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Back to Sermons Index Back to Home Page 15th April 2007 AMASK, SEEK, KNOCK! Pastor Linton Smith
Last Sunday we celebrated the resurrection of Jesus. Today we celebrate that He is alive, that we serve a risen Saviour. He has opened the way for us to enjoy a personal relationship with God – and that includes the privilege of prayer! With that in mind, today we look at Luke 11:5-13. Jesus teaches His disciples the Lord’s Prayer and goes on to encourage them to pray with confidence. Right in the middle of what He says He urges them to keep on asking, seeking, and knocking. Luke 11:9,10.. Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Either side of these words we find an illustration to encourage us to do just this.. to ask, seek, knock. By means of these illustrations Jesus assures us that. ð GOD WILL GIVE US WHAT WE NEED. Jesus says.. Luke 11:5-8.. Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.’ Then the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. Kenneth Bailey has thrown new light on this illustration. He spent many years in the Middle East researching the culture of people similar to the people who were there in Jesus’ time. He translates the first part of this illustration like this. Can any one of you imagine having a friend and going to him at midnight and saying to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he will answer from within, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is closed and my children are in bed with me. I cannot get up and give you anything’? Can you imagine that? A listener at that time would have said, No! Bailey tells us why. The villages were small and each village was expected to welcome travelers and give them lodgings and food. The man’s friend arrived at midnight. The man welcomed him and then discovered he had no bread. Bread was essential. Each person at the table would be given a loaf of bread and would tear a piece from it and use it to pick up food from the shared dish on the table, using a fresh piece each time he took food from the dish. This man needed three loaves – one for his guest, one for himself and one possibly for his wife. And he had none. He knew.. along with all the people in the village.. who had baked bread that day.. and so at midnight he went to this man and asked for bread. Jesus asks, Can you imagine the man sending him away empty handed? No. Bailey tells us why. He translates the next part of the illustration like this.. I tell you though he will not give him anything having arisen because of being his friend but because of his avoidance of shame he will get up and give him whatever he wants. [Kenneth E. Bailey / Poet and Peasant p120] He understands the word translated ‘boldness’ in the NIV to apply not to the man asking, but to the man in the house, and translates it as ‘avoidance of shame.’ The man will get up and give him bread because if he does not.. it will be known throughout the entire village the next day.. that he has let the entire village down. He will hang his head in shame. It is unthinkable he would say, No. The New Living Translation seems to combine the ideas of the boldness of the man seeking bread at midnight and the avoidance of shame by the other man.. and translates it like this.. Though he won't do it as a friend, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you what you want so his reputation won't be damaged. This man will give the other what he needs.. for the sake of his own reputation.. his own honour. The man seeking help knows that – and will ask confidently whatever the hour! When we pray.. we often say something like this, For Your Name’s sake.. or For the sake of Your name. When we say that we are asking God to answer our prayer so that He will be honoured. And this is a Biblical way to pray. In Isaiah 48 the LORD speaks of His dealings with His people.. and says in Isaiah 48:11.. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another. With that in mind, Jeremiah prayed like this.. Jeremiah 14:7.. Although our sins testify against us, O LORD, do something for the sake of your name. And Daniel prayed like this.. Daniel 9:17-19.. Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name. When we pray.. let’s pray like that! Before we leave this illustration let’s note two things. Notice first that the man gives the other what he needs. Can you imagine the man having a good meal.. going to bed.. and getting up at midnight for a snack.. and going to his friend for bread? No way. But it is totally different when he goes with a genuine need. God will meet our needs. Not our wants. And notice that the one man goes to the other on behalf of his friend. He wants to meet his friend’s need. It seems to me that Jesus is here encouraging us not only to pray.. but to pray for our friends! He is encouraging us to go to God with confidence on behalf of our friends and call on Him to help.. for the sake of His Name! Let’s do it. He will hear.. and He will respond. Then Jesus assures us that.. ð GOD WILL GIVE US WHAT IS GOOD. The second illustration is found in Luke 11:11,12. Jesus asks, Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? Matthew adds.. Which of you, if his sons asks for bread, will give him a stone? Can anyone imagine a father doing this – a stone for bread, a snake for a fish, a scorpion for an egg? No. At least one commentator describes these examples as bizarre. Not so, says Bailey. He quotes a Middle Eastern writer [Poet and Peasant p136] who points out that round stones are like round loaves of bread, snakes resemble sea snakes [a kind of fish] and a scorpion all folded up looks like an egg. These objects are carefully chosen. A human father will take care what he gives his child. He will be careful to give his child good things. Matthew’s record of what Jesus said reads like this.. Matthew 7:9-11.. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! God will give us what is good. We can be assured of that.. He loves us.. and cares for us.. so let’s respond to Him as Peter tells us to do.. 1 Peter 5:6,7.. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Then Jesus assures us that.. ð GOD WILL GIVE US HIMSELF! In Matthew’s gospel Jesus says the Father will give us good gifts. In Luke 11:13 Jesus says.. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! Jesus is saying God will give Himself to us! How can we say that? We can say it because the Holy Spirit is God Himself. Jesus also said to His disciples.. John 14:15-18.. If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Another Counselor.. another of the same kind as I.. and then He says.. I will come to you. The Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus. Jesus! Paul writes about the Spirit God has given us like this.. 1 Corinthians 2:10-12.. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. Who is the Spirit of God? My spirit is me.. your spirit is you.. and God’s Spirit is God! God gives His Spirit to us.. gives Himself to us.. and the Spirit opens our spiritual eyes! We understand things we never understood before.. we understand the Bible as we have never understood it.. it comes alive.. and speaks to us! In fact.. it was the Spirit of God who worked in our hearts to wake us up to our need of God. Jesus also said to His disciples.. John 16:7,8.. It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.. Yes.. the Spirit of God convicted us of our guilt.. that we were sinners.. unrighteous.. and headed for judgment.. and then we came to Jesus.. and were forgiven.. and found peace.. And what the Spirit of God did for us.. He will do for our friends. The very best thing we can pray for our friends is that they will come to faith in Christ. And God will give His Holy Spirit to bring this about. His Spirit will convict our friends of their need. Pray.. plead.. with God to do this. Will it always result in our friends coming to faith? No. Because God will convict.. but He will not force.. each person must decide. Will God answer our prayer? Yes. He will do all He can to convict and convince. Straight way? May be. We may need to be patient. This week there was a very encouraging devotion in Our Daily Bread. A certain lady had been praying for a friend for 30 years. One day the friend left her a message that she had some great news. Sue was convinced that her friend had received Jesus as Savior. After all, she had been praying for her for 30 years. A few days later, her friend revealed her “great news”: She had a new boyfriend and was moving in with him. When the one who had been praying for so long heard that she cried out in desperation, “Lord, what makes me think that You would answer me after 30 years of praying?” … A month later her friend called and left another message: “I have wonderful news! I trusted Jesus as my Savior! I don’t know why I didn’t do it long ago.” [Radio Bible Class / Our Daily Bread 12-4-07] In the words of Jesus.. Ask and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Pray with confidence!
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