Psalm 21: Key to the Kingdom

Verse 7: The king trusts in the Lord's unfailing love and will not be shaken.

Verse 9: When the king appears, he will throw his enemies into a fiery furnace. The Lord will also be angry and consume them with fire.

In prayer, we often ask for the will of heaven to be done on earth. We tend to think of heaven and earth as spatially distinct, with heaven being above and superior to earth. We naturally assign greater value, goodness, and virtue to heaven than to earth. It is easy for us to understand that the will of heaven is realized on earth.

Jesus not only spoke of prayer-from top to bottom, but also spoke of the opposite direction from earth to heaven in Matthew 16 and 18. When Peter declared Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus was so pleased that he gave him the keys to the kingdom of heaven. These keys can bind and loose things on earth and in heaven. Jesus repeated the phrase "keys to the kingdom" to his disciples. The context of this statement was forgiveness. If people confess Jesus and forgive each other, then the keys to the kingdom of heaven will work on earth.

In Psalm 20 and 21, there are verses that appear to be like the keys to the kingdom of heaven. When the king throws his enemies into a fiery furnace, the Lord in heaven is also angry and consumes them with fire. Then, can the king move the Lord in heaven? There is a condition. The king must trust only in God.

Knowing who Jesus really is, forgiveness, and relying only on God - these three things are the keys to the kingdom of heaven that work on earth. First, in knowing who Jesus really was, Jesus cut off the possibility of being recognized and understood by people to prevent misunderstanding. Second, forgiveness is a process that, when reversed, produces an impossible result. Lastly, relying only on God is like the constant and unchanging bluebird of happiness for Christians. When Jesus praised Peter's confession and said it was revealed to him by heaven, he may have been emphasizing the inclusiveness and confidence of heaven. Even if we don't fully understand who Jesus is, keep slipping in forgiveness, and failing to rely only on God throughout our lives, heaven gives us the key to the kingdom of heaven with generosity.