Ask, seek and knock
1) Have we ever asked someone for a favor? Have we ever turned to someone and requested help?
2) Most have, and Jesus once spoke of a man who needed help (a favor).
a) Tonight’s text has already been announced – Lk. 11.
b) Jesus was praying in a certain place and His disciples saw it (Lk. 11:1).
c) These men knew that John the Baptist had taught his disciples how to pray.
d) They wanted Jesus to give them some instructions about prayer.
e) The Lord responded by giving what many refer to as the “model prayer.”
3) Then He followed up this prayer with a short story.
a) Lk. 11:5-8 – READ
b) It has been suggested that Jesus had in mind a winter scene.
c) In verse 7 we are told the homeowner had his children “in bed with him.”
d) This was often done in the winter months so everyone could stay warm.
e) Some of us have been in bed during the winter months; we were warm and ready for bed.
f) When in that type of state, we typically do not want to get out of bed and get cold.
g) Most would rather deal with a situation the following morning.
4) A man went to his neighbor’s house and said he wanted three loaves of bread.
5) He said he had a friend come and he did not have food to feed him.
6) The host’s neighbor did not want to get up and deal with the matter.
7) Even though the man who was in bed was a “friend,” he wanted to stay in bed.
8) Verse 8 tells us the man who had had visitors that needed fed was persistent.
a) Luke uses a word translated “importunity.”
b) Some sources refer to this as “shameless persistence.”
c) One can almost imagine the neighbor banging on the door and hollering non-stop.
d) He carries on to the point that the man in bed figures, “I am not going to be able sleep through this.”
e) Because the neighbor is so persistent the man who has gone to bed finally gets up.
f) He gives the neighbor what he wants.
g) I suspect the man was ready to not give just 3 loaves of bread, but all the food he had.
h) “Here is what I have, now leave me alone so I can get back to sleep.”
9) After Jesus lays out this story He says this in verse 9: READ
a) Asking, seeking and knocking are all joined with an aggressive neighbor who needed bread.
b) What lessons did Jesus have in mind as He gave this little story?
c) How do asking, seeking and knocking relate to the story about the neighbor.
d) We may not know all that Jesus wanted to teach, but there are some things we can know for sure.
10) For instance, God is not like the homeowner who was in bed.
11) Rather than say, “I am not going to help unless I get pestered to death,” God is ready to help His people.
12) God wants to help His people.
a) God also says that we need to seek His help when needs arise.
b) We may stand ready to help someone with something, but our willingness to help goes unused.
c) A person does not receive assistance from us because he does not ask.
d) Some of us have actually said to someone, “I would have helped if you would have asked.”
13) When we “ask” for help, we are acknowledging a need; we are requesting assistance.
14) This is has application to prayer. We are admitting to God that we cannot do things on our own.
15) We need His help and perhaps deliverance.
16) Jas. 4:2 says we “have not because we ask not.”
17) We do need to be people who ask. Asking provides us with benefits.
18) For instance, it is one means to keep away sinful pride.
19) Asking for assistance requires that a man humble himself. We are admitting we need outside help.
20) Some never ask because they have a problem with pride.
21) “Asking” for things in prayer also offers us an objective.
a) There is something we are seeking; we have our attention focused on something.
b) Part of prayer is having a purpose.
c) As we ask, we want to always be mindful of God’s will.
d) 1 Jn. 5:14 says if we “ask anything according to His will He hears us.”
e) Humbling ourselves with a Godly objective is then joined with something else: Faith.
f) Jesus said we are to have when we ask, Mt. 21:22.
g) The word “ask” in Lk. 11 deals with many of the fundamental issues concerning prayer.
22) As I look at “ask, seek and knock” I find it helpful to view these words from a non-religious standpoint.
23) If we can understand what these words mean in the world, we can better appreciate them in Christianity.
a) Consider a man who is “asking” about something related to the world.
b) If he is asking he is curious. He is gathering information; he has what is likely a mild interest.
c) A man who asks about something may or may not follow through on his asking.
d) A man may ask about things that are important to him or not very important.
e) What if a man is not “asking” but he is “seeking”?
24) Now things are more intense.
25) If a man is “seeking,” he knows what he wants. He has an objective (purpose).
26) He is now likely ready to spend time, money and effort to get what he seeks.
27) He is ready take a day off work, a week off work, a month off work.
28) If he is really seeking something, he may quit his job so he can seek what he desires.
29) At the seeking stage a man is putting forth effort and it may be great effort.
30) Both of these words (as well as the third one) can be illustrated in terms of a man’s need for shelter.
a) There are times when we “ask” about lodging.
b) Perhaps we are out of town. We have driven for many hours, the day is gone, and we are tired.
c) We come into a city and we see a series of motels.
d) We stop at the first and “ask” if a room is available.
e) At this point we are not too desperate about getting a room.
f) If there are no rooms for rent or we think the rate is too high, we can “ask” across the street.
g) Let’s change the scenario.
31) It is now winter and there is a terrible snow storm; flakes are falling hard and fast. It is a whiteout.
32) We see an exit sign for food and shelter and we manage to barely make it off the Interstate.
a) In this second case we are not “asking” for shelter; we are “seeking shelter.”
b) We know we must have a place to stay; it is too dangerous to continue on the road.
c) We are ready to take whatever is available and pay whatever it costs to get a room.
33) Some prayer will be in the “asking” category. It is a concern but it is not really a burden.
34) Other prayer should be in the “seeking” category.
35) A third category of prayer will be the “knocking” category.
a) The language of the New Testament is a great language to communicate ideas.
b) Many of the words in the New Testament make the Bible very, very precise.
c) We have, for instance, just one word for forgiveness in English.
d) The New Testament has more than one word for forgiveness.
e) The word translated “knock” means a “gentle knock.”
f) We have probably had someone come to our home and just beat on the door.
g) With this word Jesus says we do not need to use spiritual fists when we pray.
36) Knocking is, however, a type of prayer and it bring us to the most persistent type of prayer.
37) Let’s go back to our motel illustration.
a) Once again it is a snowstorm and we make it to a community by the Interstate.
b) We stop at the first motel and the person at the desk says there are no more rooms left in town.
c) He can’t help us either. We suspect he is holding something back so we decide to quiz him.
d) He finally says he has one room left, but it is not up to their standards.
38) It has a broken shower. One light switch is not working. They do not have pillows for the bed.
39) The television is broken. The only furniture in the room is a bed. It needs new paint.
40) Question:
41) Will we want the room with some flaws or will we head back out to the snowstorm and possibly die?
a) We will take the room.
b) At this point we are not asking the desk clerk about a room.
c) We are no “seeking” a room. We are “knocking.” We are about ready to start banging on the bell.
d) We know what we want and we are not going to leave the desk until he turns over the key.
42) Prayer can sometimes fall into this type of category.
a) Some things are so important and urgent in life that we are like an octopus.
b) We are like the man who needed three loaves of bread.
c) We pray and we will not give up.
d) It is not that we are trying to wear God down.
e) Sometimes to prevail at or with something, we must persevere.
f) This is how some prayers are answered.
43) Saul (Acts 9:9-11) had been blinded by his experience on the road to Damascus.
44) He was blind for three days. He was praying.
45) This was not the “asking” kind of prayer.
46) This was not the “seeking” kind of prayer. This was the “knocking” type of prayer.
a) If we ever seek “big things” from God, we probably need to knock.
b) Some godly goals and plans can be accomplished by asking.
c) There is nothing wrong with asking. Jesus said people will receive help (“be given”).
d) Other things will require a more intense form of prayer (seek).
e) If this is done, Jesus said people will “find.”
47) Some spiritual goals are big; they are large enough that Jesus says we will need to “knock.”
48) To accomplish some things we will need to pray intently and perhaps for a long period of time.
49) Jesus said (Lk. 18:1), “do not faint. Do not grow weary. Do not stop.”
50) The good news is that God is not going to be like the man who wanted to stay in bed.
51) God wants to open that door and will open the door, but He wants us to know something.
a) Some doors are not opened quickly or easily.
b) We must be willing to keep trying.
c) Prayers in the “knocking category” are going to be things especially near and dear to our heart.
d) They may be the type of thing that we are willing to die for – they are that important.
e) They are worth just about every single thing we have.
f) Some may never have a prayer that is in the knocking category and that is sad.
g) One of our goals should be a Christian who can pray at all three levels.
h) We know how to ask, we know how to seek, and we know how to knock.
52) Tonight, are we Christians who really work at praying?