WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.000 If it's fire, it's got to look like fire, feel like fire, smell like fire or something. 2 00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:23.000 A burning fire in my chest, wanting to love and caress. 3 00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:26.000 Well, welcome to Raising Home Fire's Secret Place Training. 4 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:28.000 My name's Matt Landstown. 5 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.000 Straight after this short teaching, there will be an activation to help activate you 6 00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:35.000 in what is being taught in this session. 7 00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:37.000 And so, really hope you enjoy this session. 8 00:00:41.000 --> 00:00:42.000 Well, welcome to the session. 9 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:47.000 And in this session, I'm going to be talking about one of the principles that I believe, 10 00:00:47.000 --> 00:00:53.000 or I could say one of the core beliefs that I believe undergird a fruitful prayer life 11 00:00:53.000 --> 00:00:56.000 and a thriving connection with God. 12 00:00:56.000 --> 00:01:03.000 And our heart and my heart with this teaching and with these teachings is to equip you 13 00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:09.000 and to empower you and to help you forward in your connection with God 14 00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:12.000 and in your own personal prayer life. 15 00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:18.000 And the core belief that I want to share today in this session is the core belief 16 00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:24.000 that Jesus Christ's life, the life of Jesus, is an invitation from God to you 17 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:26.000 to live in the same kind of way. 18 00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:29.000 And, you know, Jesus was both fully God and fully man. 19 00:01:29.000 --> 00:01:34.000 He was the Son of God, or He is the Son of God, and He is the Son of Man. 20 00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:37.000 And in being the Son of God, you know, He could say things like, 21 00:01:37.000 --> 00:01:39.000 If you've seen me, you've seen the Father. 22 00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:44.000 He's the perfect, according to Hebrews, the perfect representation, the exact example 23 00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:45.000 of what God is like. 24 00:01:45.000 --> 00:01:47.000 If you want to know, what is the Father like? 25 00:01:47.000 --> 00:01:50.000 He's exactly like Jesus, and Jesus is exactly like the Father. 26 00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:52.000 If you've seen the Son, you've seen the Father. 27 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:54.000 If you've seen the Father, you've seen the Son. 28 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:59.000 Jesus is what God is like, and that is super powerful. 29 00:01:59.000 --> 00:02:03.000 And the other aspect is that Jesus is the Son of Man. 30 00:02:03.000 --> 00:02:05.000 This is what I want to focus on in this session, 31 00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:10.000 is that Jesus Christ is the most normal human that has ever walked the planet. 32 00:02:10.000 --> 00:02:16.000 He is an example of what God's intention has always been 33 00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:18.000 for what the human life is meant to look like. 34 00:02:19.000 --> 00:02:23.000 Jesus is an example of God's intention for humanity. 35 00:02:23.000 --> 00:02:28.000 And not just an example, but an invitation to step into God's intention, 36 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:32.000 to step into God's normal, of what the normal human life is meant to look like. 37 00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:36.000 Jesus was the most normal Christian to ever walk the planet. 38 00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:42.000 And in Philippians 2, it says this, in verse 5, it says, 39 00:02:42.000 --> 00:02:46.000 Let this mind be anew, which was also in Jesus Christ, 40 00:02:46.000 --> 00:02:50.000 who being in the form of God, in other words, He was God, 41 00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:54.000 did not consider robbery to be equal with God, 42 00:02:54.000 --> 00:02:59.000 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, 43 00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:01.000 and coming in the likeness of men. 44 00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:03.000 And being found in appearance as a man, 45 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:07.000 He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, 46 00:03:07.000 --> 00:03:09.000 even the death of the cross. 47 00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:14.000 So in other words, Jesus is fully God and He's fully man, 48 00:03:14.000 --> 00:03:17.000 but while He was walking the earth, He laid aside His rights, 49 00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:22.000 His divinity, in order to embrace the fullness of humanity. 50 00:03:22.000 --> 00:03:24.000 And what was the purpose behind that? 51 00:03:24.000 --> 00:03:27.000 The purpose behind that was to be an example to you and I, 52 00:03:27.000 --> 00:03:30.000 and to show you and I what God was inviting us into, 53 00:03:30.000 --> 00:03:33.000 and what God was leading us into through Christ. 54 00:03:33.000 --> 00:03:35.000 And that is the normal Christian life, 55 00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:37.000 or you could say the normal human life, 56 00:03:37.000 --> 00:03:40.000 being that God's intention is for every human to become a Christian 57 00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:42.000 and become a follower of Jesus, 58 00:03:42.000 --> 00:03:44.000 and to know Him and be in connection with Him. 59 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:51.000 So let me just share a few points around this concerning our prayer life. 60 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:54.000 The disciples, they asked Jesus a question, 61 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:56.000 and you can read this in the Lord's Prayer. 62 00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:01.000 They asked Him, Lord, Teacher, Rabbi, how do we pray? 63 00:04:01.000 --> 00:04:05.000 And I believe this is a very important question, 64 00:04:05.000 --> 00:04:09.000 and this really is the question that this entire series is aiming to answer 65 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:12.000 in as much depth as we can, 66 00:04:12.000 --> 00:04:16.000 is the question, how do we pray? 67 00:04:16.000 --> 00:04:18.000 And Jesus answered, and He said, 68 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:21.000 Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. 69 00:04:21.000 --> 00:04:25.000 Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 70 00:04:25.000 --> 00:04:29.000 And He carries on, and it's an amazing example, 71 00:04:29.000 --> 00:04:31.000 or even a framework for prayer, 72 00:04:31.000 --> 00:04:34.000 but the beginning point, in the beginning sentence, 73 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:36.000 the beginning verse for me is one of the most powerful, 74 00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:41.000 if not for me, the most powerful part of Jesus' answer. 75 00:04:41.000 --> 00:04:45.000 He says, Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. 76 00:04:45.000 --> 00:04:48.000 And when He says, Our Father, 77 00:04:48.000 --> 00:04:50.000 this to me is profound. 78 00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:55.000 First of all, the whole concept of God being Father, 79 00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:57.000 and being that personal, 80 00:04:57.000 --> 00:05:00.000 is a total new concept and is just amazing. 81 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:06.080 He's saying, first of all, hey God is Father. Now bear in mind that what Jesus has to say 82 00:05:06.080 --> 00:05:11.240 about God trumps what everyone else has to say about God. Jesus is the highest authority. 83 00:05:11.240 --> 00:05:15.880 Jesus is what God has to say about Himself. He's the Word made flesh. What is the Word? 84 00:05:15.880 --> 00:05:20.680 The Word is what God has to say about Himself, what God has to say about life, and what God 85 00:05:20.680 --> 00:05:27.680 has to say about humanity. The Word became flesh. And Jesus is saying, hey, our Father, 86 00:05:28.680 --> 00:05:35.120 first of all God is Father, but not just God is Father, God is our Father. In other words, 87 00:05:35.120 --> 00:05:39.800 He's not just your Father, He's not just my Father, He's our Father. And in that statement, 88 00:05:39.800 --> 00:05:46.800 this is what He's saying. He's saying that in the same way that you see me being a son 89 00:05:47.680 --> 00:05:54.120 to God as my Father, and the same way you see Him being a Father to me in my life, is 90 00:05:54.120 --> 00:05:59.600 the same thing, the same type, and the same kind, and the same quality of relationship 91 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:04.680 with the Father that you have been invited to enjoy. Let me and my relationship with 92 00:06:04.680 --> 00:06:10.880 the Father be an example to you, because He's not just my Father, He's also your Father, 93 00:06:10.880 --> 00:06:17.880 and the same level and the same space of relationship and connection and union and intimacy that 94 00:06:17.880 --> 00:06:23.760 you see me enjoying with the Father and walking in with the Father by the Holy Spirit, is 95 00:06:23.760 --> 00:06:29.000 the same type of relationship that you have been invited into. And so at the beginning, 96 00:06:29.000 --> 00:06:34.760 before you worry about any other aspect of prayer or anything else to pray in prayer 97 00:06:34.760 --> 00:06:39.600 or any other method of prayer, the first thing to acknowledge is this, is that He's both 98 00:06:39.600 --> 00:06:44.600 my Father and He's your Father. And the same way He's my Father, He's also your Father. 99 00:06:44.600 --> 00:06:51.600 Our Father who is in heaven. And in heaven, I used to think in heaven was this plate that 100 00:06:54.320 --> 00:07:00.720 was a whole other world away, that was this place you go when you die and God has a throne 101 00:07:00.720 --> 00:07:07.720 there and one day you'll get there. But what that word heaven really means is it means, 102 00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:13.640 it's actually got an S on the end, it's plural, it means heavens. It includes the third heaven, 103 00:07:13.640 --> 00:07:20.040 the second heaven, the first heaven, and it's probably more so emphasizing the actual atmosphere 104 00:07:20.040 --> 00:07:26.120 that we live in or the air that we breathe. One preacher said it like this. You can interpret 105 00:07:26.120 --> 00:07:33.120 that verse like this, our Father who is in the air we breathe, and then hallowed be your 106 00:07:33.320 --> 00:07:39.280 name can be interpreted as we stop and acknowledge you. Our Father who is in the air we breathe, 107 00:07:39.280 --> 00:07:46.280 we stop and we become aware of you. It's so powerful. And so before we worry about anything 108 00:07:46.640 --> 00:07:53.000 else in prayer, before we dive into anything else, the first thing is He's our Father, 109 00:07:53.000 --> 00:07:57.560 the same way as He's Jesus' Father, and He's not far away. He's in the air that we breathe. 110 00:07:57.560 --> 00:08:04.240 He's our present Father. He's with us by the Holy Spirit. Jesus in Hebrews 2 verse 10, 111 00:08:04.240 --> 00:08:10.280 that Jesus is bringing many sons into glory. Romans 8 29 says He's the firstborn amongst 112 00:08:10.280 --> 00:08:16.240 many sons or amongst many children. One of the purposes of Jesus coming to earth is this 113 00:08:16.960 --> 00:08:21.800 is to bring many sons into glory. In other words, to bring many sons into the space that 114 00:08:21.800 --> 00:08:25.960 the Father has designed for them to live in, to bring many sons and daughters, to bring 115 00:08:25.960 --> 00:08:30.800 many human beings into their sonship, into the fact that they're children of God, and 116 00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:34.919 into the place that God has provided for them, into their highest and best life before the 117 00:08:34.919 --> 00:08:40.880 Father. He's bringing many sons into glory, and He does that by becoming an example of 118 00:08:40.880 --> 00:08:46.000 what life is meant to look like for us. And so this to me is an amazing principle, and 119 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:50.800 it's an amazing encouragement when you think about Jesus' prayer life. I've often thought 120 00:08:50.800 --> 00:08:54.920 about Jesus' prayer life. I've often thought about the way Jesus connected with Father 121 00:08:54.920 --> 00:08:59.760 God. I've often thought about, and I think about every day, I think about the way that 122 00:08:59.760 --> 00:09:05.080 Jesus walked with God on earth, and just how amazing that was for Him, and how much intimacy 123 00:09:05.080 --> 00:09:10.480 He enjoyed, and how much He knew the Father. It's pretty amazing to think about Jesus' 124 00:09:10.480 --> 00:09:15.760 prayer life, and to think that that's the same type and the same quality of prayer life 125 00:09:15.760 --> 00:09:20.480 that we've been invited to have, and that God Himself has invited us to have that, which 126 00:09:20.480 --> 00:09:25.640 means it's possible for us to have that. One of the most exciting scriptures concerning 127 00:09:25.640 --> 00:09:31.440 this for me is in Matthew 17, where Jesus actually takes the three up the Mount of Transfiguration, 128 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:38.440 and in that scripture, we get to see a glimpse of Jesus' secret place. And He takes them 129 00:09:38.880 --> 00:09:44.160 up, and He starts to pray, and as He prays, the heavens open, the glory of God comes down, 130 00:09:44.280 --> 00:09:51.280 Moses and Elijah show up, the Father is there, Jesus is glowing, the three, Peter, James, 131 00:09:51.280 --> 00:09:57.760 and John are like, whoa, freaking out, like, oh my gosh, this is crazy! And they're getting 132 00:09:57.760 --> 00:10:00.000 a glimpse into what Jesus is saying. 133 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:04.760 secret place look like? What Jesus' communion with the Father look like? What 134 00:10:04.760 --> 00:10:09.840 Jesus' personal connection with Papa God look like? And I often read that 135 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:14.400 Scripture and I think, man, Jesus, if your life is an invitation from the Father to 136 00:10:14.400 --> 00:10:18.880 me to step into the same way of living, and not just the same way of living but 137 00:10:18.880 --> 00:10:23.200 in the context of what we're talking about today, a divine invitation from God 138 00:10:23.200 --> 00:10:27.920 Himself to step into the same type of prayer life and the same quality of 139 00:10:27.920 --> 00:10:34.320 prayer life that Jesus Christ Himself had and has with the Father, then this to 140 00:10:34.320 --> 00:10:38.400 me is a really exciting Scripture to see. Man, you know, currently I'm 141 00:10:38.400 --> 00:10:42.160 speaking to you right now and my prayer life doesn't look like that yet. I'm not 142 00:10:42.160 --> 00:10:48.960 I'm not glowing. My face isn't glowing with the glory of God, but, man, I'm 143 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:53.400 feeling the weight of that invitation. I'm feeling the excitement. I'm feeling 144 00:10:53.400 --> 00:10:58.240 the joy of being invited by God to step into that type of and that quality of 145 00:10:58.240 --> 00:11:04.800 prayer life. Jesus' life is an invitation from God to you, and Jesus' prayer life 146 00:11:04.800 --> 00:11:10.640 is an invitation from the Father to you to step into the same type of prayer 147 00:11:10.640 --> 00:11:14.560 life and the same quality of prayer life. 148 00:11:24.400 --> 00:11:29.520 Well, I hope you enjoyed that short teaching. What's about to come up on the 149 00:11:29.520 --> 00:11:33.240 screen is an activation, and in the activation are some questions, and those 150 00:11:33.240 --> 00:11:38.560 questions are designed to take the teaching that you've just heard and to 151 00:11:38.560 --> 00:11:42.640 take that into a deeper space in you, and so I want to encourage you. You will need 152 00:11:42.640 --> 00:11:46.880 three things. You'll need a pen and paper, something to write down answers on. 153 00:11:46.880 --> 00:11:52.280 You will need some time and space, 10 to 15 minutes, and you will need access to 154 00:11:52.280 --> 00:11:57.160 the pause button on your device so that you can pause on the question while you 155 00:11:57.160 --> 00:12:01.200 process it with the Lord. I want to encourage you to take this time and to 156 00:12:01.200 --> 00:12:07.720 process with God these questions that come up, and I pray that this moment 157 00:12:07.720 --> 00:12:11.520 really transforms you from the inside out.