Okay, now we can move to a collection of do something
different that is wrapped around the idea of
prayer. And if you were here kind of week one,
the idea was God had just kind of challenged
me with my own prayer life that I wasn't satisfied
with where it was at. And God's like, you don't
need more information. You need to do something
different. You need to just do it. With around
that, I realized I've got to change the way I
view prayer, that if I'm going to do something
different, I have to see it through a different
lens. And so if you were here the first week,
we talked about this idea that prayer is a gift
that waters. And there was a planner box up here.
If you still haven't seen that, you need to go
back and watch it. But there's a planner box
that is bringing to life everything that God
put inside of you that he always intended for
to grow in your life. And so prayer is this gift
that allows me to water those things into being.
We talked last week about the winter seasons
of life, right? Like the difficult things that
when we go through things we don't like, things
that we would prefer to run away from, that it's
actually in those moments when we lean into prayer
that what prayer is, is it's a gift that waters
into life. But it's also because we're watering,
we're trusting in a relationship that is inside
of the mess. And what we find is the person of
the relationship, which is God, and we had a
table set up here, that we get to sit down at
the table with God Almighty, with the one that
one word changes everything. We sit with him
and what he's longing from us is honest conversation.
That we would just be honest with God about where
we're at. That we would hand over to him the
things that we're holding that are so deeply
ingrained in us that are holding us back from
growing into all the things that he wants us
to be. And so this gift of prayer at the table,
which brings us to today. That prayer is a gift
because it releases the power of heaven. Prayer
is a gift because it releases the power of heaven.
For me, there was a moment on my sabbatical where
I got to go to Montana, and I happened to be
there in between skiing season and boating season.
So there was a mountain for skiing, and there
was a lake for boating, and I was there in a
season when they were doing neither. The lake
was too cold, so nobody was in the lake, and
the mountain had just lost its snow. Right? So
it was a rainy day, and I went, you know what?
On a rainy day, it feels right to just have a
fireplace. I'm sure whatever the ski lodge is,
they got a fireplace. They got a coffee shop.
I'll go get a cup of coffee, sit by the fire,
read a book. I'm like, that sounds so good. So
I drive up the mountain, get to the ski lodge,
and wouldn't you know it, they closed the week
before. So I'm like, okay, God, I don't know
where I'm going to go now. And so I begin to
drive down the mountain. There was these signs
for hiking trails. Now, those of you that know
me, I do not hike. So my version was, I wonder
if there's a parking lot with a view and I'll
just sit in my car and read a book, right? And
so I pull up in the parking lot and I realized
they'd made a little outlook. I'm like, okay.
So I get out and I kind of walk the outlook and
the view is amazing. But what I noticed is there
was a bench and it's right on the edge and there's
nothing in front of it other than the view. I
don't know how you feel about the bench. I feel
like the bench was put there for me by God. OK,
so I sit on the bench and I'm looking and the
view is the top of the pine trees and then down
a mountain. And then there's the lake that nobody's
on because it's not boating season. And then
there's another mountain going up. And as I'm
reading this book on prayer, I'm sitting on this
bench and I watch a storm come in. And the storm
drops down one mountain across the lake and up
the other mountain and out. And in that moment,
I'm reminded of the power of God. I'm reminded
of how powerful he is. I'm reminded that I have
no control over this moment and where this storm
goes and what it does. I'm reminded that me sitting
there going is not going to do anything to that
storm. And I'm in awe of the power of God. And
then this question is in this book. If you were
to take every single prayer that you have prayed
this weekend, recall them and recount them, and
you were to write them down, and then God answered
every single one of them that week. So as you
look back on your week and you go, God answered
every single one, this was the question. What
would have happened? So let me ask you, if you
wrote down, if you recalled every prayer that
you have prayed this week and God answered every
single prayer today, what would happen? What
would change? Because you see what I realized?
My prayers don't match the God I'm praying to.
I pray about the dumbest stuff. That whether
it's answered or not, it doesn't matter. Whether
the Steelers win or not, next season's coming.
Right? Like we just pray about the dumbest things.
And don't get me wrong. I'll pray with you about
anything. But what I realized is that if I really
believe in the power of prayer and the person
that I'm praying to, then I got some bigger prayers
to pray. That what I prayed didn't move the needle
at all in the kingdom of heaven. And I realized,
I realized that what Jesus was talking about
in Matthew chapter six, this idea of the prayer
of heaven being released, I realized that my
prayers are too small. Here's just what I mean.
So the context that we're about to jump into,
right? The context is that the disciples have
asked Jesus somewhere along the way, because
it's captured in another spot. Teach us how to
pray. So it's overplayed and often said, and
I've said it before, but of all the things that
the disciples could have asked that they saw
Jesus do, right? The thing that they asked Jesus,
the thing that they go, this moved the needle
of heaven on earth. This moved the needle in
the life of Jesus. What you capture them asking
is teach us how to pray. So he says this, this
then is how you should pray. Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name. Instantly, what happens
is our Father, our Father, right? So it's relational.
It's connection to God. This is not just some
random being. It's our Father. And what are we
saying? He's in heaven, right? Like he is God,
our Father. Hallowed, there is no one like you.
Hallowed be your name. There's no one like you.
So instantly in the first two parts, we're just
framed up as one, we're in relationship with
this God. Two, he is like no one else. The next
part, your kingdom come, your will be done on
earth as it is in heaven. Your kingdom come,
your will. Okay, your kingdom. So instantly what
I've said is, My kingdom is secondary to whose?
Your kingdom, God, my father. Your kingdom come,
your will. So my will, what I want, is secondary
to God, what you want. So God, your kingdom and
your will come where? On earth. You know what
earth is? It's your home. It's my home. So, so
we want your kingdom and your will in our home
as it is in heaven. So, so, so what Jesus is
tapping into is the reality that in our home,
it can be shaped. It can be shaped by the things
of heaven. Then in fact, in prayer and the gift
that you have is to go to God almighty, the one
who, his word, things change, right? Because
he's got authority. You now have the privilege
in prayer to go to God and go, I want my home
to match what is in heaven. Now, this is connected
to what God always intended for you. What Jesus
is talking about is your purpose on planet earth.
My purpose on planet earth. This is what you
were created for. What do I mean? You go all
the way back to creation. What do you find in
creation? You find humans put into a garden.
And in Genesis chapter 1, verse 26, it says specifically
that they were created, these humans were created
in the image of God. Right? That he created them
to be reflectors of who he is. That you would
be a reflection, that when people see you, they
would see God. And then he says that they are
to rule. So as a reflection of him, they are
to rule. So what the word rule is, it carries
royalty to it. And the idea is that it's a transfer
of authority, that authority, they were put under
the authority of God to shape and manage God's
creation, to make it in the shaping and in the
managing, to make it look like God. to make it
look like a reflection of his image, that what
you would create with your hands would be created
in such a way that when people see what you do
and how you shape and what you do when you're
home and what you do in the spaces that God has
you, that those spaces would be a reflection
of God himself. That was the original intent
of creation. That's why humans exist. And so
what happens is you follow the story along, you
find that sin enters. And what sin does is sin
disconnects us, right? If God created us to be
co -managers, what we do is we go, I'm going
to manage my world. I don't need you. And so
the humans stepped out from that and they begin
to shape the world the way they want to shape
the world. They begin to manage the world the
way they want to manage the world. And what happens
is they're disconnected from the source. And
so now it's under their effort and under their
way, and their world is being shaped by their
hands. Enter Jesus. What does Jesus do? Jesus
shows up, and his mission that he is on is to
restore all things. What is he restoring them
back to? To the way God always intended it to
be. Well, what was his intent? That you would
be co -shapers, co -managers, right? Like that
you would be co -creators with God under his
authority. Sin leaves us stepped out from under
his authority, and now you are the authority.
What Jesus does is Jesus comes and he restores
you back under the authority that you were always
supposed to be under, the authority of God the
Father, which is why your kingdom come, your
will be done. What are we saying? We're under
your authority. We're under your will. Right?
And so what Jesus does is Jesus restores the
relationship so that now I can spend my days
on planet Earth on the purpose that I was originally
created for, to be a reflection of God himself
through everything I shape under the authority
of God. Now, here's where it gets fascinating,
because when Jesus was about to leave the Earth,
you might know it as the Great Commission. He
says, all authority on heaven and earth has what?
Been given to me. So Jesus has all authority.
And what does he do? He puts his people, his
church under his authority. And then he tells
them things like this. When you pray in my name,
it'll be given to you. In my name, any request.
And you see it over and over in scripture, in
Jesus name. And you might've been like, I just
thought that's how you ended the call, right?
Like, I just thought that's how, when you were
praying, that's what you're supposed to do. I
don't know. And what you get is this, that in
my name, in Jesus's name, the translation of
that is under my authority. Anything, so you're
placing yourself back to what you were always
created to be, under the authority and connected
to the power source of heaven to shape what?
To co -shape and co -manage this world to look
a whole lot like God. Now, I don't know how you
feel about all that. But I'm kind of simple.
If you've been around me, just, if you're like,
no, you're not, stick around for 10 minutes.
Because I think this helps us understand. You
were created to move things and shape things
and manage things. In the kingdom of heaven.
You were created by God to co -manage under his
authority, under his power, under his reign,
and the resources of heaven. Resources of heaven.
That's what, when Jesus teaches here, that's
what he's calling forward. That what is available
in heaven is available on earth through who?
Through his people. And so what has happened
is in the original creation, we were connected
directly to the source. And we were put into
a garden where he says, OK, in the garden, you
are going to co -manage. and shape this space
in the image of God. And you're like, okay, I'm
creating it, which I don't think Black and Decker
was created in the image of God, but there you
go. I'm created in the image of God and I will
shape, I will shape and co -manage with God that
his reflection is seen in what's created, essentially
heaven on earth, where his rule and reign is
what's there. Where his ideals and what he cares
about. So what happens in the original creation,
we're connected directly to the power source.
To what? To shape. And some of you are like,
that's obnoxiously loud. I agree. I hope it's
obnoxious. You want to know why? Because God
made you with muscle memory. Guess what's going
to happen next time you hear a leaf blower? You're
going to remember. Now, okay, so sin enters.
What actually happened with sin? If we were connected
directly to the source to co -create and manage,
what happens with sin is now I'm out on my own,
under my own strength and under my own power
and whatever I can grab, and I'm trying to shape
and manage my space. Pretty limited, right? The
person of Jesus. It's the first time you're like,
Jesus is an extension cord? Yes, he is. What
did Jesus do? Jesus restored your connection
to the power source of heaven. Jesus restored
all of the resources of heaven according to the
prayer of Jesus. This is how you should pray,
that your kingdom come, your will be done where?
On earth, in our home, as it is in heaven. So
what you're asking is the resources of heaven
because I'm connected to the power through the
person of Jesus, I've been restored. So what?
So now I can go about the world in a restored
way. You also have to feel it because God made
you to remember by feeling, right? But in Jesus,
what has happened is what's been restored is
the purpose you were always created for. You
were created to be a conduit of heaven. You were
created to be a conduit for the God who at one
word, everything changes. You were created to
be a power connected to the power source that
in this moment, in this space, you can call forward
the resources of heaven. You were created for
it. And Jesus has restored it and given it back
to you. And here's the thing. I don't pray like
it. I don't find myself praying like all of heaven
is available and the resources of heaven are
available to this moment. And Jesus goes, hey,
your kingdom come. Isn't it amazing? Sometimes
I think, sometimes with like Bible stuff, we
just need stories, right? If you're here and
you're like, John, I don't really know. Go back
to our Christmas service. All of the good news
stories, guess what? They all came through the
power of prayer. They all came from heaven releasing
its resources to earth. When you pray for somebody
for healing, what are you asking? God, you, under
your authority, you are the healer. You have
the power. And we're asking that that power flood
this moment to this human and heal them. We're
calling forward heaven to earth that it would
be on earth because in heaven, guess what? Everything
is healed. There's no more ailments. There's
no more pain. There's no more suffering. If you
like that message, come back in a couple of weeks.
We're going to dig into that even more. But here's
the thing. You are a conduit. You have the ability
to pray with power. You have the ability to call
forward heaven to earth. And we need these moments
where we capture stories. There's a lady named
Monica, and Monica had a son. And Monica would,
every night, put her hand on her son's forehead,
and she would pray for him. And she would pray
that he would be a man of God, that he would
be one that pursued passionately the things of
God, that he would stand for Christ and everything
that Jesus was for, that through him the kingdom
would be built. Every night she's got her hand
on his forehead. The young man, or the baby turns
into a young man and turns adamantly opposed
to Christianity, adamantly opposed to his mama's
faith. In fact, so much so that he becomes an
agitator on the other side. He decides that he's
going to not only not stand for his mom's faith,
he's going to stand against it. And he begins
to speak in public spaces about it. And there's
this moment where his mama doesn't stop praying
because she believes in prayer, right? So she
keeps praying. And she keeps praying that, God,
you would rescue him and use him in the kingdom
of God. And all the prayers that she's prayed,
she's still praying those, that you can do that.
And one night God gives her a dream. And in the
dream, she sees her son restored to the faith.
She sees him doing great things for God. And
that ignites her again. And she's now got the
new passion to begin to pray. And nine years
later, this young man is about to go to a city.
The city is known for ungodly living and everything
that's opposed to God. And he's going to take
this trip and she's scared for him. And she prays,
God, don't let him go. And yet God still lets
him go. And when he's in the city, something
happens and the young man's life is turned around
and he meets Jesus and it transforms his life
for the rest of his life. And he did a 180 and
became someone who was so strong in the faith
in the early church. You might have heard of
him. His name is Augustine. If you don't know
who that is, go research it. Because it's someone
who has transformed your life sitting here. It's
someone that God has used to build his church.
It's someone that God used within the foundations
of our faith. And it started where? A mama going,
I'm going to call the resources of heaven to
a crib. Don't miss it. The power of heaven being
released. There's a story. I think stories are
just so good to help us understand. Acts chapter
12. And verse one, it was about this time that
King Herod arrested some who belonged to the
church intending to persecute them. He had James.
the brother of John put to death with the sword.
So King Herod is arresting the early church and
his intent is to persecute. Not only does he
arrest, but he actually puts to death, right?
And here's the thing, James is put to death.
And in that, I want you to capture, what does
this mean for the church? Okay, so imagine we're
here today. There's a new regime that comes in
place. And that king's like, I'm going to start
pursuing the church and putting them to death.
And everybody outside of the church is celebrating
that you're being persecuted and put to death.
I don't know about you. My natural thing is like,
that's not good. To be scared, to be worried,
because they are actively putting them to death.
And so in this context, all of the human feels
are there, right? Like all of the natural fears
that would have been into it. into the moment.
And so then in verse three, it says, when he
saw, so when the king sees that this met with
approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize
Peter also. So what happens is the Jews who are
the ones that by having their support, by not
creating any riots, by keeping the peace, so
to speak, By making them happy, that keeps him
in power. So what is happening, the king politically
is making a power move, a power play. He is,
you might say, using the worldly things to shape
his kingdom, right? The king is using means of
violence. He's using means of coercion. He's
using means of... playing the political power
game, and he's doing it all to what? To shape,
to shape the world around him. So much so that
then verse four, he says, after arresting Peter,
so Peter's a leader in the church, after arresting
Peter. He put him in prison, handing him over
to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers
each. Herod intended to bring him out for public
trial after Passover. So he arrests Peter, who's
the leader. He puts him into a prison. The best
we can tell, there were these four squads. And
in those four squads, there was four soldiers.
And so two of the soldiers would be side by side
with him, chained to him. And then two of them,
one by the first door, one by the second door.
There was no way Peter was walking out. is what
the Bible wants us to understand. And then on
top of that, it says that he's gonna have a public
trial. Now the public trial, because he already
knows the favor of the people are what? On his
side, the public trial of Peter, you might as
well have just said is a death sentence. He's
gonna be put to death. So you've got a king who
is using the world around him, using worldly
measure, worldly. activities, if you like, false
senses of power, false senses of fear, to shape
the world to be how he wants it to be. I want
to give you a picture of what that looks like.
Some of you are like, man, what is going to happen
next? I don't know. I'm with you. But we got
this guy. Let's see what it does. Because for
the king, he's choosing to use what? Not the
gift that came by purpose through Jesus to heaven,
but he's choosing to use another power source.
He's choosing to use the world's power to shape
the world around him. And it looks like it works,
right? This thing sounds like a go -kart, I'm
just telling you, right? Every time, smells like
a go -kart, sounds like a go -kart. But here's
the thing, the king is shaping the world around
him. And he's using... The world's means to do
it. And as he shapes, at some point, it becomes
extremely limited. At some point, his power will
run out. Because what he's tapped into is a false
sense of power that was never created to ignite
who God created him to be. And to shape the world
around him the way God intended to shape the
world around him. I wonder, church, I wonder
how many of you, how many of us, we just continue,
we continue to wonder why our world, and by world
I mean your life, why your life is so limited.
while you're always fighting to hold on to, while
you're always fighting to shape and move. Oh,
you're trying to do what you're created to do,
but you're tapped into the wrong source of life.
And it's fascinating. Listen to what the church
does, right? So he's arrested. He's about to
go on trial. He'll go to death. Listen to the
very next verse. So Peter was kept in prison,
but the church was earnestly praying for him.
What is the church doing? This is bad. That's
what the church is doing. This is not good. You
know what happens? I mean, you can imagine the
conversation, right? You know what happens when
he goes to trial? They're definitely going to
condemn him. You can understand the anxiety and
the stress and that this isn't going to turn
out well. And the temptation is that I go and
I shape it by this, right? Like I shape it by
what I can do. Instead, what we're given by the
church is they step into what? They step into
prayer and it's not just any kind of prayer.
That word earnestly is to fervently pray. It
is also to constantly pray. They constantly went
to what? The power source that they knew. What
does the church do? The church goes, I'm going
to connect. I'm going to connect to what we've
been given in Jesus. And through the power of
the Holy Spirit, we're going to go to God in
prayer. I'm going to ask him to work. We're going
to ask him to shape. That what seems impossible
is possible with God. And so we're going to go
to the source. We're going to go to heaven's
resources and ask them to flood. Listen to what
happens. The night before, Herod was to bring
him to trial. So the night before, this is last
minute, y 'all. The night before, like the next
morning, he's going to trial. He's going to be
found guilty. He's going to be put to death,
right? So that's the kind of timeline. This is
last minute. Peter was sleeping between two soldiers
bound with two chains. And sentries stood guard
at the entrance. Wait. Peter's chained to two
soldiers. And what is he doing? The night before,
the last minute, he's sleeping. There's something
here about trusting the one who, one word from
him, one word from him. I can sleep in the midst
of what looks like certain death. Why? Because
one word from him, one word from him will change
it. And so the church is tapped in, right? Like
the church is calling forward. Suddenly, an angel
of the Lord appeared and the light shone in the
cell. The prayer makes it to the cell. He struck
Peter on the side and woke him up. He's sleeping
so solidly, he has to be hit in the side to wake
him up. That is how confident he is in who God
is and what God is doing. He gets hit on the
side. Get up, he said, and the chains and the
chains and the chains, what? Fell off. And the
chains fell off. I wonder how many of you sitting
in here, the story that you're reading is actually
you. And you know what you're chained to? Your
vices. You're chained to your way of shaping
the world. You're chained to the things that
you just can't stop, that you said you would
stop, but you can't stop. And you're chained
to them. And you need to know today, the only
power that breaks the chains that are on you
is the power released from heaven. There's not
another source. That you're not strong enough.
Oh, it may look like you're winning today. You
will not win because your power will run out.
The only thing that breaks the chains around
Peter is God himself and they fall off. Verse
eight, then the angel said to him, put on your
clothes and sandals. You know what you do when
an angel tells you to do something? You do it.
And Peter did so. Wrap your cloak around you
and follow me, the angel told him. Peter followed
him out of the prison, but he had no idea what
the angel was doing, what the angel was doing
was really happening. He thought he was seeing
a vision. They passed the first and second guards,
so they just breeze on by, easy breezy, and came
to the iron gate leading to the city. I don't
know much about iron gates, but I know they're,
in these days, they're pretty strong, right?
One word from our God, listen. It opened for
them by itself. An iron gate. Just open. Why?
Because heaven's resources crashing into earth
changes the way earth works. It changes the way
earth is shaped. And they went through it. And
when he had walked the length of one street,
suddenly the angel left him. Then Peter came
to himself and said, now I know without a doubt,
the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me. The
Lord has sent his angel and rescued me. Notice
what he doesn't say. Oh, there's a whole bunch
of people that are praying for me back there
because they were praying and because of their
power. No, no, no, no. They prayed and what showed
up? The Lord showed up and rescued. He has no
doubt. He is very clear. One word from that God,
when that God showed up, Shows up, things have
to change. From Herod's clutches and from everything
the Jewish people were hoping would happen, when
this dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary,
the mother of John, also called Mark, where many
people had gathered and were what? Praying. So
he goes to the very place. Where there is a group
of people who believe in prayer that are calling
forward the resources from heaven that on earth
heaven would crash in. Peter knocked at the outer
entrance and the servant named Rhoda came and
answered the door. When she recognized Peter's
voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without
opening it and exclaimed, Peter is at the door.
You're out of the mind. You're out of your mind,
they told her. When she kept insisting it was
so, they said it must be his angel. They had
a belief at the time that when you died an angel,
you had a guardian angel and that guardian angel
showed up. So they're believing he's dead and
his guardian angel has showed up. But Peter kept
knocking at the door and when they opened the
door and saw him, they were what? They were astonished.
Okay, we just got to catch the story. Peter,
set free, he comes, he knocks at the outer door.
Rhoda comes up to the door, right? Oh, that sounds
like Peter. She runs back. Hey, Peter's here.
Meanwhile, Peter's still out of the door. Can
I come in? You don't let me in? So we have a
debate on whether it's an angel or not, but when
they realize it's Peter, maybe it's just worth
stating. It was easier for them to believe that
Peter had died than it was that God answered
prayer. And I wonder how many of us, it's easier
for us to believe that God will not answer your
prayer than God will answer your prayer. I don't
know about you, but I want to be in a community
that is astonished by the power of heaven that's
released on earth. I don't want to be a part
of a community. I don't want to pray anymore
around the whole like the idea of, oh, well,
we'll pray and see what God, I don't want to
do that. I want to pray in expectancy that the
God who has unlimited resources, who has tapped
us into it through the person of Jesus and tells
us to pray that heaven would come to earth, that
we would pray that heaven would come to earth.
That what you need and what I need and what you
see, that we would trust the God who is all powerful
for one word that'll change everything. And so
let me ask you, if you wrote down all of your
prayers, This past week. And God answered everyone.
What would happen. Let's pray. God. God we humbly.
Recognize who you are. Just in recognizing you
are God almighty. That means we're not. God we
say thank you. For restoring in Jesus the purpose.
That we have on this earth. that we can co -shape
and co -manage, that we get to co -create with
you, that we get to be the distributors through
our prayers of heaven's resources. God, would
you light a fire in us in the belief of prayer
that it is a gift from you? God, I pray over
those today that their prayers are too small.
Would you give them faith? Would you help them
in their unbelief? God, would we be a people
that cry out to you that heaven, your kingdom,
that it would come to earth, that your will would
be done where? In our homes. God, would you start
in our homes? Would you move to our community?
Would you move through our church? Would you
move through our nation? that we would see the
power of heaven released. So God, we thank you
that we're people that get to put you on display.
May your kingdom come and your will be done.
It is in your name that we all say, amen.