Is praying Maranatha against His will?

I have frequently found myself saying or praying “Marantha”–come, Lord Jesus!–especially when I read or hear some sort of event that seems really horrific.

Yet I have been struck by the thought that, in a sense, this prayer is actually against his currently revealed will.

This is not to say it’s a bad or sinful prayer to pray. It’s just that it doesn’t seem to be his will to return right now.

We don’t know when it’s going to be fulfilled. We don’t want to put God in a box. On the one hand, the indicators seem to be that he’s not coming back now. It’s been 2,000 years and he hasn’t come back yet. If Matthew 24:14 is any kind of indicator at all, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be fulfilled any time soon. And yet we long for his return and pray for it regularly.

I’m reminded of the two “sides” in 2 Peter 3. In verse 9, we are reminded that God is “not slow to keep his promise… He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” In verse 12, we are told to “look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.”

I do wonder what Peter meant by that. God already knows the hour when Jesus will return (Matthew 24:36). If that is a fixed point in time, then how can we “speed its coming”? Living in the tension of 2 Peter 3–knowing that God is lingering, yet some how working to speed his return, even knowing that he has already set the date–requires living in the. midst of mystery.

Perhaps the best thing is to live in Philippians 4 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

So, I continue to pray, “Marantha.” I am making my request – “come, Lord Jesus!” known to him. And I am trusting that his timing is good, and seeking his peace.