God Gives Good Gifts

Matthew 7:7–11 CSB

“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, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Who among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him.

Ask seek and knock are in the present imperative tense, carrying the meaning of continual action.

Ask, seek, and knock is not a treatise on different types of prayer but rather a manner of emphasis

“the door” is actually just “it” in the greek

Stone and bread - similar shapes?

fish and snake - fish could be a snake like catfish of the region

point is in v. 11. As sinful humans we even know how to give good gifts to our children. God as heavenly Father is much better than we

Back to prayer. What has Jesus just said?

Matthew 6:33 CSB

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

Matthew 6:7–8 CSB

When you pray, don’t babble like the Gentiles, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words. Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him.

Matthew 6:10 CSB

Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

1 John 5:14–15 CSB

This is the confidence we have before him: If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked of him.

1 John 5:11–13 CSB

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. The one who has the Son has life. The one who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

We know God always hears and responds to a prayer of salvation.

What good things should we be praying for?

Why don’t we?

What will you pray for this week?