“… ‘Do not bother me; the
door has already been shut, and my children and I are in bed; I cannot
get up and give to you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not
get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of
his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs. And I
say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you; seek and you shall find;
knock, and it shall be opened to you…” (Luke 11:7-9)
For a number of years, I’ve taught a Thursday
morning Bible study at a convalescent home in Norwalk, California. We’ve
been taking our time in the Gospel of Luke, and on Thursday morning, we
touched the end of Chapter 10 and read the first few verses of Chapter
11. These are people somewhere around ninety in age and a goal is for
each one to see that God is not finished with them - they are useful for
they can smile, bless and pray. On January 1st we read the parable of
the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:29-37, and then went further. We’ll go
back a little next week, but for the New Year they saw what we all need
to see - persistence in prayer results in answers from the Lord.
During this week’s study, I compared prayer to
the tools in my garage. Decades ago, I bought tools and learned to use
them, but for a long time I lived in apartments and had little use for
such things. I have limited mechanical abilities anyway and those years
of not using tools caused my skills to dwindle. Other tools came to me
on my father’s death and I have to confess that I have no idea what some
of them do. Another problem is that many of my late mother’s remaining
possessions fill the garage and it’s discouraging to try and find tools
on or near the cluttered workbench.
Our prayers tend to be like that. God gives us
beautiful gifts of prayer and He provides opportunities for them to be
used, but our lives are cluttered with various needs that seem to get in
the way. If we have a hammer, a saw, a carpenter’s plane and a few other
things, we can build a bookcase. If we have a few pots and pans, some
flour, vegetables and a couple of other items, we can cook dinner. Those
are things we can SEE, but prayer is invisible, mysterious and it
doesn’t seem like DOING anything to most people, who prefer building or
cooking to asking help from Almighty God. Nothing is more important than
prayer. Don’t let clutter and the distractions of life stop your times
with God.
Our Scripture for today had its beginning in
Luke 11:1, when “one of His disciples said to
(Jesus), ‘Lord, teach us to pray as John
(the Baptist) also taught his disciples.”
Jesus responded with the Lord’s Prayer, also seen in Matthew 6:9-13. In
both places, Jesus was basically telling disciples throughout history to
start our prayers with praise – tell God you love and respect Him - “Hallowed be Your name…” Next ask that the Lord will
soon return and bring the JUSTICE of God to humanity. Finally we ask for
our needs, such as our “daily bread,”
followed by a confession that we need to be forgiven, and we reasonably
ask for protection from the evil one.
In the account in Luke, Jesus then told a
parable. He asks you to imagine that a good friend from a considerable
distance away suddenly comes to your house at midnight. He is hungry and
you have little to offer. At least you can give him some bread, but you
look in the pantry and find – nothing! So you rush over to your
neighbor’s house and ask through the door for three loaves of bread. The
neighbor refuses, essentially telling you to “go away.” But you don’t –
you keep knocking on the door. And Jesus said that your neighbor will
eventually give you what you want; not because he likes you, but “because of (your) persistence he
will rise and give (you) as many
(loaves)” as you need (Luke 11:5-8).
Jesus urges us to “ask and
it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be
opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds,
and to him who knocks it will be opened” (Luke 11:9-10). All of
this, the Lord’s Prayer and the “Parable of the Persistent Friend” as it
is sometimes called, is within the context of the disciples request in
Luke 11:1, “Lord, teach us to pray…” An
important part of receiving answers to prayer is persistence. We are to
keep on praying. Even if it seems that our prayers are bouncing off the
ceiling and no one is responding, keep on praying, which is faith in
action.
As mentioned, the attendees at my Thursday
morning Bible studies are elderly. All of them are weakened by the aging
process and most are in wheelchairs. When I observed that it's hard to
still be alive when so many are not,” many heads nodded. The elderly
have what is called “survivor guilt” in relation to loved ones who are
gone. And it's true that most 90-year old people believe they no longer
have anything useful to offer.
But God is sovereign. If you are here on this
earth, it is because the all-powerful God has good intentions for your
life. The Thursday morning attendees cannot lift or use a hammer, and
they can’t get out of their wheelchairs to cook a dinner. But when much
in life is absent, it is God’s intention that we will begin to really
pray.
“God has dealt to each one
a measure of faith” (Romans 12:3). The world does not understand
“faith” because it isn’t something we do. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). If faith was just something we
did, then it would not be “evidence” of
anything. The fact is that “Jesus (is)
the author and finisher of our faith”
(Hebrews 12:2). When we entrust ourselves to the Lord, a “measure of (God’s) faith”
is planted deep in us. “Faith” is a gift to
those who receive the Lord.
“Faith” sees that
God is the loving Father you have always needed, who HEARS your prayers
of praise, supplication, adoration, confession, intercession and more.
And He will answer. Jesus continued by asking several questions. He
asked: “If a son asks for bread from any father
among you, will he give him a stone?...” (Luke 11:11). Then He
answered that you are to be given God's Heavenly Bread, “the Holy Spirit” (Luke 11:13). He gives you Someone who
will enable you to grow in faith and persist in prayer.
Father, I need Your Holy Spirit. Please help
me. Thank You. In Jesus Name. Amen.
