The Right Heart for Revelation

In this week’s episode of the PRESS Movement Podcast, Taquoya Porter dives into Matthew 11—a short but powerful prayer where Jesus thanks the Father for revealing truth not to the proud, but to the humble.

Jesus says, “I thank thee, O Father… because thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them unto babes.” What does that mean for us today? Paula walks through the contrast between those who think they already know God and those who approach Him as teachable, moldable children.

In this reflection, you’ll discover how revelation comes not through intellect but through innocence—through hearts willing to be shaped by God. The deeper you want to go in faith, the lower you must bow in humility.

Be encouraged to come before God as a clean slate, ready for Him to write His story on your life. Because when you press, prayer reaches every single situation.

🎧 Listen now or read more at PressToPray.com

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Transcript

Press means supply force. When God said press, prayer reaches every single situation. He gave us permission to apply force to every situation that we will go through.

And in this podcast, we are going to learn to apply force to what's applying pressure to us. Welcome back everybody to the Press Movement Podcast. So glad you're here today.

Thank you for joining me. Let's go to Matthew chapter 11. That's where we'll find our prayer today.

And as we're setting up Matthew 11, I was thinking about the book of Matthew. Now that we're in the New Testament, it is the first book in the New Testament. It is one of the four gospels, we call them Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, because they spread the good news of Jesus Christ.

One of my favorite things about the gospels is that it tells the same story often from different angles. Sometimes it's exactly the same story. Sometimes I'm speaking in an overarching manner, meaning that it's all telling the story of Jesus.

With that said, this particular story that we're going to in Matthew 11 today is not found in the other gospels. However, the concept is. When we find ourselves in Matthew chapter 11, I wanted to back up and go to Matthew chapter 10 first, because there you will see that Jesus has now called his 12 disciples.

The Bible says he gave them power against unclean spirits to cast them out, to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. The names of his apostles are listed, and so is their commission by God, that they're not to go the way of the Gentiles or into any city of the Samaritans, but rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. He tells them to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils.

He tells them not to plan for themselves. Don't take two coats, nor two pairs of shoes. When you go into a city and you get to it, find out who's a good person there, who's worthy.

Stay with them. If they reject you, shake the dust off your feet. If they reject the message, shake the dust off your feet.

It'll be better for Sodom and Gomorrah, he says, in the day of judgment than for the city that rejects the word of God. Tell them I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves, but be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Tell them beware of men, because they're going to try to deliver you before counselors and scourge you, and they're going to bring you before their governors.

It's going to be for my sake, but when they bring you, when they are arresting you, don't worry about what you're going to say or how you're going to answer them, because in the same hour that you need to speak, I'm going to give you what to speak. He's really prepping them, because the ministry and walking with God is going to cost them something. He tells them, fear not them which kill the body but are not able to kill the soul, but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body.

In other words, whatever they can do to you, it doesn't matter, because there is somebody that if you're going to be fearful, you should be more fearful of, and that somebody is him. He tells them, don't get it mixed up. Don't think I'm just come to bring peace on earth.

He said, I came with a sword. I came to set man at variance against his father, daughter against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. He says, because of me, people are going to be separated, and they're going to have to choose me over everything is what he's letting them know, but you take up your cross and follow me, because if you think you're chasing life and all you're chasing is life down here, he lets them know in Matthew 10, 39, if you think you're finding life here, if you think you're chasing life down here, if down here is all you have, then you really don't have anything, but if you lose your life, and I don't think he just meant die or perish there, but if you surrender your life for his sake, you'll find life.

God has always been the God of uneven exchanges. It's only when we weigh what he's offering us in the times of what's temporal that we think God isn't worth it, but logically even when you think about eternity, when you think about how short life really is, you know that even if you give him your whole life, but he gives you eternity, he's already given so much more than whatever you'll surrender, and that's more or less what he's teaching them, and so we get to chapter 11, and he encounters the disciples of John who were sent by John to say to Jesus, are you him? Is this who we're looking for? And he answers them in a manner, he said, go and show John again those things which you do here and see, so let John know what's happening, and then he goes on to preach to the multitudes concerning John. What did you go to see? Was it a man clothed in suffering? A prophet? He's more than a prophet.

The Bible says that Jesus said of him, it is written, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee, and he's talking about John here. Severely I say unto you, among them that are born, no man greater than John the Baptist, and yet he's going to be the least in the kingdom of heaven. He tells them that the kingdom of heaven is suffering violence, and the violence take it by force.

He said for all the prophets in the law prophesied until John, and if you will receive it, this is Elias, which was for it to come. He's giving them not even hints, but revelation that everything is shifting now, that John is stepping off the scene and Jesus is stepping onto it. He's starting to give them revelation of the prophets that John was prophesied, but now comes somebody else.

It's things that perhaps they should have logically known, but they could not conceptualize. They couldn't understand how John could be so important because he came to them neither eating or drinking, and they said, oh, he has a devil in Matthew 11 18. He said, but the son of man has come to you eating and drinking, and they say he's gluttonous.

So in other words, nobody can please you. What you think God should present himself as, the way you think prophecy should be revealed, the way you think things should happen, no matter what you're seeing, you can't see because it's not happening the way you think. How many times do we get stuck there where we're thinking and thinking and thinking, and the way we're thinking about God or what we believe he should do or will do, it's not happening that way.

So it's no surprise when he finally comes to praying for them in verse 25, and this is the prayer. Matthew 11 25. I thank thee, oh father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou has hid these things from the wise and prudent, and has revealed them unto babes.

Even so, father, for so it seemed good in thy sight. That was the whole prayer. God, I thank you because we're now entering the season of opening their eyes.

You see, he was using this time to let them see the dots they weren't connecting. It wasn't even just about John, but in verse 21, he has said, whoa, unto Chorazin and to Bethsaida, for the mighty works which were done in you have been done entirely in sight, and they would have repented. He keeps telling them time and time again, you're missing it.

You're missing the obvious signs, but he's thankful because in this hour, somebody's going to see it. He's thankful because it's not just somebody, but he's seeing those who will believe God, who will believe the revelation. He calls them babes, and I believe that's important, not because of their age or their youthfulness, but their approach to God was one of innocence, one of beginnings, one of not living or posturing like, I already know, I already know.

When you think of a baby, they're starting from scratch. Their knowledge base is starting from scratch. They have no reason to fear, no points of reference.

There is an innocence to them. He is telling them there's somebody God is giving revelation to, and it's because they're just like babes in his sight. It's very intriguing to me that the way to the deep things of God is to recognize you don't have a way to the deep things of God.

The way to the deep things of God in revelation is to become a clean and empty slate before him, where he can write the story, he can give the definitions, he can give the details, where it's not about what you think or where you've been. If you find yourself thinking you're wise and prudent before God, you know how foolish you must sound. When you stand before God saying, I know this, and I know that, I'm certain of this, and this is the way it should be.

You should become very cautious because you stand before somebody who has more knowledge than you can ever imagine and more wisdom. But when you come before God as a child, as a babe, as an innocent one, somebody he can maneuver and change and cultivate however he wants, then you'll see the hand of God. The thing about babes that really stands out to me right now, though, is the way they'll grow off of whatever you feed them.

Whatever you feed them in terms of mindset, in terms of intake, like food, diet, culture, all of that's going to craft who they are because they're a clean slate. Jesus is giving thanks in this text because somebody got revelation as a babe, somebody he can cultivate, somebody he can grow, somebody he can change. I want to be the one he's thankful to have following him.

I want to be the one who doesn't bring my ideals to the table, my thoughts, but rather the slate he can write upon. My prayer is that the stories and the relationship and the revelation with God that he'll write for me and give me won't have to argue with any of my thoughts or any of my ideals. I pray for you that God helps us to become what he can mold, nourish, and form as he would see fit.

And we trust God today because prayer reaches every single situation. Join the movement, join the community, like, share, and subscribe to this podcast. Visit us at PressToPray.com or find us on Instagram or Facebook.

Did you know that when you are quiet, your voice is missing to God's ears? I know some of us have prayed and were wondering, how long should I pray about this? Why should I pray if God already knows? How will I know God is answering? And what do I do when I feel like God's not listening? But God is listening for your voice. It's too quiet in this world for the troubles we have. You have to raise your voice and God wants to hear from you.

It's Too Quiet, a book about prayer, is designed to answer your prayer questions and build your faith. Visit PressToPray.com.