Luke 11:1-13

Holy Spirit teach us to pray for Your will to be done here on earth as well as in heaven.

Be persistent in prayer and quick to do good.

Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened.

“the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8)

if we can't see God here, how will we recognize God when we are there? Terry Hershey “Sabbath Moments”

Luke 11:1-13

11 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”

2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say:

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

4 And forgive us our sins,

For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.”

5 And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? 8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

9 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

11 If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

Jesus employs a parable to instruct His disciples to pray with persistence and with faith.

In Israel’s culture of hospitality, hosts were expected to feed their guests. The image is one of a single-room house or a dwelling where the sleeping quarters were confined to one room—usually on an elevated platform above the main floor. To meet the friend’s request would cause the entire family to be disturbed.

To the friend requesting bread, his persistence illustrates how Jesus’ disciples should pray. With all three commands in this verse, Jesus encourages His followers to anticipate God’s generosity and kindness.

Since sinful parents know how to provide for their children, God can be expected to do abundantly more—even pouring out His Spirit upon His children. Faithlife Bible.

The Lord’s Prayer illustrates the variety of requests that one can and should make to God, as well as displaying the humble attitude that should accompany prayer. The use of the plural pronoun us throughout the prayer shows that it is not just the prayer of one person for his or her own personal needs, but a community prayer.

God is approached confidently as a caring figure. In the context of intimacy with God, there also is respect and recognition of His uniqueness. Hallowed means that God is holy, set apart, unique in His character and attributes. Your kingdom comes a  reference to God’s program and promise. This is more affirmation than request, highlighting the petitioner’s submission to God’s will and the desire to see God’s work come to pass.

Our daily bread recognizes that one is dependent on God for daily needs. Sin is a debt to God that needs to be acknowledged on the basis of His mercy. The petitioner recognizes that if mercy is to be sought from God, then mercy must be shown to others. We need to adopt the same standard that we expect others to follow. If one is to avoid sin, one must follow where God leads. In short, the petitioner asks God for the spiritual protection necessary to avoid falling into sin. Jesus’ point is that in prayer the disciple is to be bold. The example in the parable is a man who goes boldly to his neighbor to seek what he requires. Likewise, the disciple is to go boldly to God for that which is needed.

This verse does not mean that we receive whatever we want in prayer. With its reference to receiving God’s Spirit, the suggestion is that we receive what is spiritually beneficial.

 

If people, who are evil, can give good gifts, imagine the value of God’s gift of the Holy Spirit. If anyone does not have the Holy Spirit, that person does not belong to Christ. In the triune Godhead, the Holy Spirit is the divine distributor of the good things purchased by the Son and ordained by the Father. NKJ Bible.

Isaiah 55:6 Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.