Throughout history, the human heart has been drawn to seek something bigger than itself—a purpose, a presence, a kingdom that is not of this world. In Christian tradition, prayer serves as both a compass and a motor for this goal. However, as Bill Johnson explains in his well-known sermon at Bethel Church, prayer is more than just a spiritual practice or a list of demands made to an invisible deity. Instead, prayer is the source of dreams that are in accordance with God’s will—a mechanism by which heaven and earth collide, and the ordinary becomes a stage for the spectacular. This article delves further into the scriptural, practical, and spiritual ideas that Bill Johnson unpacks, demonstrating how setting your mind on things above and praying in accordance with God’s will can lead to a life that dreams, acts, and transforms according to God’s possibilities.
If you’ve ever questioned where you fit in this story, know that you’re invited. Anyone, regardless of background, is welcome to join the Church of Sermons as a member. There are no unique qualifications or hidden information required—only a heart eager for God’s presence and dominion. This is the story of how you can transform passive belief into active participation with the Creator, creating reality through prayer, faith, and holy imagination.
Setting Your Mind on Things Above
Johnson’s message is based on the scriptural command from Colossians 3:2, which states, “Set your mind on things above, not on things on earth.” Setting your mind on the things above means anchoring your viewpoint in the reality of heaven, aligning your ideas, ambitions, and dreams with God’s promises rather than the limits of earthly existence.
Johnson presents a striking picture: fill your head with beauty, and you will become beautiful. Filling your heart with astonishment will transform you into someone who inspires others. Your mind’s interior environment dictates your life’s external trajectory. This, he contends, is more than just positive thinking or self-improvement; it is about entering into a supernatural partnership in which your goals are formed by God’s Word, your ambitions are baptized in His promises, and your prayers reflect His power.
This is the start of dreaming, according to Scripture—seeing not only what is, but what could be if heaven’s actuality invades earth’s limitations.
The Image Bearer: Humanity’s Original Purpose
To understand why prayer is so effective, Johnson takes us back to the beginning. Genesis 1 defines humans as being created in God’s image. This is not a passing likeness, but a profound call. In the ancient world, a monarch would erect statues—images of himself—all across his country to remind everyone that they had a ruler, and this is how he looked. When God created humanity, He created living statues, image bearers whose entire being proclaims: There is a King, and this is what He looks like.
However, sin derailed this plan. Adam and Eve gave up their authority by disobeying and turning over the keys of influence to the serpent. However, the story does not conclude in defeat. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus recaptured those keys, restoring humanity’s ability to be image bearers and reminding the world of who God is.
Every prayer, dream, and act of obedience is a step toward recovering the original goal. You are not a spectator in God’s kingdom; rather, you are an active participant called to reveal the Father’s invisible traits.
From the Old Testament to the New: A Reality Shift
Johnson draws a significant contrast between the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament demonstrated the seriousness of sin, the spread of uncleanness, and the terrible need for a savior. Touching the filthy polluted the clean, and sacrifice became tainted by contact with impurity. However, Jesus flipped the tables. He touches the leper, and the leprosy becomes clean. His righteousness sanctifies households, and His presence alters spaces.
This transformation is both religious and practical. It means that as a believer, your presence exudes authority and alters atmospheres. Your prayers matter. Your worship is important. Heaven can reach the deepest corners of the world via you. The days of escaping from the world’s brokenness are past; you are now called to conquer, increase, and expand Eden’s bounds.
The Church of Sermons invites people to become members, joining a global family of Christians who embody this New Testament reality: bringing heaven’s presence into all aspects of life.
Prayer: Making Heaven a Reality on Earth
But how is this new reality understood? Prayer makes God’s promises available, but obedience allows us to possess them. Prayer emerges, and obedience follows. The Lord’s Prayer—”Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”—is not a religious ritual, but a revolutionary mandate.
According to Johnson, Jesus’ ultimate mission was to reveal the Father, not just atone for sin or destroy the wicked one’s works. When you pray, you are not trying to twist God’s arm or make Him care about your difficulties. You are entering His heart, understanding what He longs for, and allowing His dreams to become yours.
Sometimes the answers to our prayers arrive in the shape of seeds—divine acorns with the potential to grow into oak trees. The problem is not God’s; He is faithful to respond. The task is to recognize and nurture the seeds He provides, believing that every modest beginning holds the possibility for huge transformation.
Faithfulness in the Little: Getting Ready for Greater Influence
Johnson tells the tale of the minas from Luke 19. The disciples asked when Jesus would restore Israel’s political power, but Jesus responded with a narrative about being faithful with what you already have. God’s route to increased influence is not by seeking for status, but through diligently stewarding the abilities, talents, and opportunities He has bestowed upon you.
If you have been granted some level of influence, use it for God’s glory. If you have a family, a skill, or a position, invest it in the kingdom. As you remain committed, God creates doors to increased responsibility and impact. Your prayers for cities and nations start with fidelity in your home, job, and daily life.
This is not only a message for pastors or leaders, but for all believers. Every Church of Sermons member, regardless of background or status, is encouraged to explore and nurture their God-given potential.
Dreaming according to promise and potential
As Johnson unpacks the stories of David and the Syrophoenician woman, he shows a strong principle: hunger may bring future promises into the present. David’s passion for God’s presence led him to construct a style of worship that broke the law of his time but foretold the New Testament church’s liberties. Through her faith and patience, the Syrophoenician woman gained access to a miracle that was not yet “due,” picking up crumbs from God’s table that others would have passed over.
These stories are not outliers, but rather invitations. Throughout history, believers have refused to accept the status quo, praying outrageous prayers and believing in impossible things. Sometimes God responds in ways that defy human logic. Sometimes things that we think are only for another era become available because someone is hungry enough to ask.
This is the essence of true revival—when a people dream based on promise and possibility, rather than previous failure or limited experience.
Barriers to Possibility: Unbelief and Distraction
Why do so many people live below their potential? Johnson claims that unbelief, disillusionment, and distraction dilute our prayers and dreams. It is tempting to look at the world’s brokenness and disappointments in the past and conclude that God’s promises are for another time and people. However, Scripture consistently warns us not to limit God.
Setting your mind on things above is not about denial or escapism; it is about realizing what is genuinely possible in God and refusing to accept less. Too many options divert our attention, spreading our energies and weakening our prayers. The greatest breakthroughs frequently result from a single-minded pursuit—a voyage, as Johnson describes it, in which every aspect of your life is geared toward one goal: to know Him and make Him known.
The Church of Sermons encourages its members to resist spiritual passivity and apathy. The call is to build a thirst for God that will overcome all distractions.
Prayers That Give Birth: Contesting for a New Era
There are prayers that bring comfort and prayers that challenge. Johnson challenges the Church to pray “prayers that give birth”—prayers that usher in new seasons, days, and eras. These are not regular prayers, but rather those of spiritual desperation and hunger. They are the kind of prayers that affect God’s heart and change the spiritual climate.
Johnson’s parallel is poignant: if you can see it in paradise, you will long for it here on earth. If you ache for something, you will battle for it. Throughout history, those who have looked beyond their immediate circumstances and seen the possibilities of God’s kingdom have been the ones to spark movements of revival, transformation, and societal change.
The Church of Sermons is a community of such visionaries and intercessors. As a church member, you are part of a community that strives for more—not only for themselves, but also for their families, cities, and nations.
Living as Royal Priests: the Privilege of Access
One of the most significant transformations highlighted by Johnson is the transition from Old Testament distance to New Testament access. In the Old Covenant, only the high priest was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies once a year, bringing blood to atone for the people’s sins. However, by revelation, David created 24-hour worship before the Ark of the Covenant, setting a prophetic example for New Testament believers.
Today, every believer is referred to as a royal priest, with direct access to God’s presence. What was formerly restricted is now readily available. We take for granted what generations have longed for: the ability to come before God at any moment to worship, intercede, and behold His glory.
Every Church of Sermons member is invited to take advantage of this privilege. Corporate worship, prayer meetings, and personal devotion are not responsibilities, but rather opportunities to encounter God’s presence in transformative ways.
Jesus, the model of perfect submission and power
Although Jesus was totally God, he decided to live as a man, completely dependent on the Father. He merely did what he saw the Father do. He merely said what he heard the Father saying. This is the model for every believer: a life of surrendering collaboration, rather than self-directed ambition.
Jesus’ miracles, teachings, and authority derived from his relationship with God. After years of observing His power, the disciples asked only one question: “Lord, teach us to pray.” They realized that the key to His efficacy was not technique or charisma, but contact with the Father.
To be an image bearer means to walk in the same beat of surrender and authority. The more closely you coincide with God’s heart and will, the more your prayers become conduits for heaven’s reality to enter the world.
Unanswered Prayers and Seeds of Destiny
Not every prayer is answered in the manner or timeframe we expect. Sometimes God responds with seeds, not trees. We pray for transformation, and He provides opportunities for growth. We pray for revival, and He creates a small group of hungry hearts. The goal is to recognize the acorns of destiny and grow them into oaks of fulfillment.
Johnson warns against falling into the trap of contemplation and shame when prayers go unanswered. God is not the issue; He is consistently faithful. Our responsibility is to trust, steward, and obey—to be faithful to what we’ve been given while trusting for bigger things.
As church members, Christians in the Church of Sermons are instructed to continue, to keep praying, sowing, and believing—knowing that God’s promises will be fulfilled in due season.
The Principle of Hunger: Bringing the Future to the Present
Throughout the message, Johnson returns to the issue of hunger. David’s desire for God’s presence enabled him to encounter things destined for the future. The Syrophoenician woman’s hunger and humility drew a miracle into her life. The woman at the well received a revelation of worship from Jesus, which transformed both her and her entire town.
God is stirred by hunger. He may withhold revelation or opportunity from the apathetic, but for the hungry, He opens doors, reveals riddles, and allows access to promises that have yet to be fulfilled. Hunger is the kingdom’s currency, the fuel that moves God’s heart and brings heaven to Earth.
The Church of Sermons teaches its members to cultivate this holy hunger—to ask, seek, and knock—knowing that God rewards those who actively pursue Him.
The Power and Responsibility of the Covenant
Johnson’s message focuses on God’s fidelity to His covenant. God is so committed to answering His people’s requests that He occasionally withholds insight to keep us from asking for things that are out of season. This is not manipulation, but mercy. more knowledge leads to more responsibilities. Sometimes God hides the facts not to keep us in the dark, but to protect us from premature accountability.
However, when hunger meets revelation, the impossible becomes achievable. You are not supposed to passively accept the existing quo, but to work alongside God to bring His goals to fruition—sometimes ahead of schedule.
Set Your Voyage: The Power of Focused Living
Johnson ends by stating that having too many options can dilute your prayers and reduce their impact. The eye is the body’s lamp; if you only have one eye, your entire body is illuminated. When your life is focused on one goal, one journey, you become a vessel of God’s glory, a conduit for His power.
The most effective prayers are not dispersed or half-hearted, but single-minded, formed of an unwillingness to be offended, a commitment to endure, and a desire to see God’s will done at any cost.
The Church of Sermons: An Open Door for All
At the heart of this message is an invitation. Anyone is welcome to join the Church of Sermons as a member. There are no special classes or exclusive secrets. All that is required is a willingness to seek, dream, and pray according to God’s plan. Whether you are new to faith or a seasoned believer, you are welcome to join a community that values sincerity, hunger, and expectation.
As a church member, you join a family dedicated to discovering what is possible in God, fighting for revival, and dreaming dreams that are in line with heaven’s plan.
Conclusion: A Call to Pray, Dream, and Live for More!
What were you born for? What anguish motivates you? Which dreams keep you awake at night? The story of Christianity is not about passively waiting for a better day, but about actively collaborating with God to bring heaven to earth.
Concentrate on the things mentioned above. Say outlandish prayers. Take good care of the seeds you’ve been given. Refuse to limit God. Become a single-minded, hungry believer who longs for what God desires, sees what God sees, and acts in accordance with promise and possibility.
Join the journey. Become a member of the Church of Sermons. Let us investigate what it looks like when people pray and dream in accordance with God’s will—and watch as heaven descends on earth one life, one prayer, and one dream at a time.
