Friend at Midnight

How many of you struggle with prayer?

Prayer is clearly seen as an essential practice of someone who believes in God, but it at the same time for most believers is the most neglected.

With our ever decreasing attention spans, prayer is increasingly pushed to the margins of our lives.

The issue with this is that prayer is essential to the spiritual health and well being a person, for prayer is one of the key ways we communicate with our heavenly Father and lay our needs before Him.

So we know prayer is necessary, but how do we do it?

Jesus answers this question in Luke 11.

In the beginning of the chapter he lays out the model prayer to His disciples upon their request.

To bolster his point, Christ is tells a story to illustrate what our disposition in prayer ought to be, and how faithful God is to provide and fulfill prayer.

Luke 11:5-13

V. 5-6

5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;

Hospitality was a command and sacred duty in biblical times.

Travelers were often going at night and a friend knocking at your door was not unusual.

The host was expected to put on a meal for the guest, and bread was essential.

V. 7-8

7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs.

The friend inside came up with a plethora of excuses to not get up.

It was clear that friendship was not enough to motivate this man.

What motivated him to finally get up was the shameless persistance of the man knocking.

Christ point here is that we as Christians ought to be persistent in the petitions we lay before God.

Specifically and humbly presenting our needs before God until we receive an answer.

God is not like this man however, but instead we as we persist in prayer are continuing to offer up our needs to a God who loves and cares for us, and wants to provide for us.

This is clearly illustrated in the next section.

V.9-10

And I tell 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 the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened

Christ here makes a few points.

For one we see the development of request- ask-seek-knock.

This is where we a transformative component of prayer, as we pray, prayer transforms us. We become more dependent, and more humble in persistently seeking after God.

Two we see the promise that those whom seek God for salvation and for his provision, those things will be given.

The idea we are to gain here is this: not that every single request we lay before God is answered, but as we continue to ask and seek for God and His deliverance God will prove Himself to be faithful.

Christ bolsters this description of God with one final example.

v. 11-13

11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

If evil, sinful men can give their children what they need, how much more will a loving heavenly Father provide for His people.

Its here we see the climax of the parable as Christ states exactly what the Father will give in abudnance.

We have in our mind material provision, which He does provide, but even more than that God gives us the Holy Spirit.

Luke, Volumes 1 & 2 The Father’s Greatest Gift

He will persuade us of the truth of the gospel, working in us the gift of faith. By faith he will unite us to Jesus Christ, so it is only through the Spirit we receive the blessings of salvation: justification, sanctification, and adoption. That is not all; it is only the beginning. The Spirit will win us the victory over sin. The Spirit will equip us with gifts for ministry. The Spirit will grow in us the fruit of godliness. The Spirit will assure us that we are the children of God. One day the Spirit will raise us from the dead, just as he raised Jesus from the dead, and by his transforming grace he will change us into glory.

If you truly long to be more like Christ, kill sin, and experience joy in your relationship with God, God will answer the call, we must just simply ask, seek, knock.

Discussion Questions:

Do you have a hard time praying? Why?

Is it hard to trust and believe that God will provide what you need?