A Glorious Inheritance

In order to fully understand the importance of the nations within the Kingdom, we must first come to understand the way the Lord views the nations. His perspective toward the nations is one of love. God’s heart is for the nations and has been for centuries and generations now.  Time and time again, scripture references the nations and spotlights their importance. We must not overlook the centrality of the nations to the Lord’s heart nor their place within Kingdom dynamics.

In the various rolls that the nations play in scripture, chief among them is the inheritance of Jesus. When He died on the cross and rose victorious from the grave, the nations were promised to Him as part of His glorious inheritance (Ps 2:8). Where every knee will bow, so too shall every tongue declare His sovereignty, beauty, and worthiness (Phillip 2:10-11).

Indeed, scripture contains this beautiful decree from the Father to the Son:

Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.

Psalm 2:8

All authority and dominion on earth will be placed under the authority of our King. His global governance will know no end. Between that day and our present reality, though, we are invited to participate in the preparation of the nation for Jesus. As part of this, we are given permission to ask for the nations as the heritage of Christ Jesus. This is modeled for us by many people in scripture who took up the place of intercession for nations and people groups. Jonah, John, Ruth, and Esther are just a few of them. Moreover, as friends of the bridegroom, we are called to actively participate in making disciples and calling the church into the fullness of her identity. This is certainly inclusive of the nations (Rev 5:6).

Making the Distant Close

Praying for the nations doesn’t have to be difficult or ceremonial. It can be rather simple. In order to practically integrate prayer for the nations into my daily routine, I’ve started placing the names of nations in a place that I find myself at least a few times a day: the kitchen sink. Several inches above the faucet, I’ve hung a small chalkboard on my kitchen wall. I write a few verses of scripture and the names of five or six different nations on the board at the beginning of every week. Each time I go to wash the dishes or fill my watering pale, I’m reminded to pray for the nations by name. I quickly ask the Lord what His heart is for that nation and then pray it back to Him. In the past, I’ve also used global prayer resources like those from Every Home for Christ or Release International. These quick prayers help to keep both the nations and prayer at the front of my mind.

In addition to praying for the nations as a whole, I also focus my prayer around a couple of nations in particular. A few years ago the Lord put a couple of specific nations on my heart. Throughout the years, He has revealed different aspects of His heart to me for these nations along with different scriptures to help ground my prayers. I pray for the people of these nations, their leaders, their churches, and their economies regularly. To coalesce my prayers, I’ve started keeping a prayer journal that is specific to my intercession for them. The past few years of prayer have given me a bigger heart for those nations than I could have imagined possible. While I cannot see the direct result of my prayers, and may never see it in my life, I know that the Lord does hear my prayer and is moving mighty on behalf of them (1 John 5:14) (Ps 116:1). More than that, though, I have come to better know the heart of the King of kings (Rev 19:16).  He is sovereign and worthy; the praise of the nations truly will be His (Rev 14:11) (Philip 2:10-11).

It is this reality that I base my prayers on. Christ will return and will be seated upon a very real throne as the recipient of the worship and adoration of every nation and tongue. His rule will know no end — and until that day comes, I will continue to intercede for distant lands and their people that they might be closer to the Lord.