Does God Answer Prayer?

The last couple weeks we have looked at Jesus teaching the disciples about the content of prayer. Today we are looking at Jesus continuing to teach on prayer but this time He is teaching on the necessity of prayer.

Persistence

v.5-8

Customs

If you were traveling, the places that you would stay would be other towns or with friends. Because of the heat in Israel traveling at night would be the best time to journey. A friend arriving at midnight wasn’t something that would be totally out of the ordinary or rude.

Hospitality was important, therefore when you arrived giving food to that friend was an important custom. When the friend arrived if you didn’t have food, out of hospitality neighbors would assist.

Everyone slept on the same platform, it was incredibly difficult to get up and get food without awakening and disturbing the whole family.

Jesus’ Question

This is a rhetorical question. “Which of you.” In the custom of the day, all of them would have done this same thing.

Application

Just as you wouldn’t be afraid to go to a friend to ask for bread, and because it is something that you truly need you would be persistent in asking that friend. You need to come to the Father with prayers that you actually mean and need.

You need to continue to pray for God answers prayer three ways, yes, no, or in my time.

To often our prayers are ones in which we are only half paying attention.

How many times do we go to God in prayer and while we are praying in the back of our minds we are going through the list of things that we must get done by the end of the day.

When we pray this way we are people caught between to worlds. On one hand we know in our heads that change is the only way which this world will change but we lack the focus to be able to bring anything decent before God.

This is the equivalence in the Old Covenant to show up with a lame blind lamb for sacrifice and saying it’s all I had time to get.

It’s pathetic and we should expect to receive anything from the Lord.

Come to Him focused on prayer, and in v.9 tells us we won’t have to be persistent, we will receive it.

A Good Father

v.11-13

Our Condition

How many of us would give a snake instead of fish, or a scorpion instead of an egg? NONE OF US!!

v.13, Man is evil, we might not always do evil things but the key to the verse is ARE; Huparho. This is a state of being, not direct actions that we take all the time.

Acts 14:8 ESV

8 Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was crippled from birth and had never walked.

The word was is the same word, showing the state of being.

He wasn’t lame because of an action, because he didn’t want to walk. He was lame because it was a condition that he was in.

So it is with us when Jesus says you are evil.

Romans 3:10–12 ESV

10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”

Paul in Romans is speaking of the same condition, no one does good.

In Acts we see a change in this state:

Acts 7:55 ESV

55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

Stephen, His state was changed not because of Him, but because of the grace of God through the indwelling of the 3 person of the Godhead. This is the only way that our condition is changed.

God’s Goodness In Contrast

If we in our fallen state would still give good gifts, can you imagine the giving attitude of a perfect God!!

When we ask things of Him, how ready He is to give, how amazing His gifts are!!

Name It and Claim It

v.9-10

When we are asking for things from God and expecting gifts, we must realize that the things we will get from God are the things in line with His will.

“Yes, we can name and claim those things God has clearly promised in Scripture. For instance, we can claim the certainty of forgiveness if we confess our sins before Him, because He promises that. But when it comes to getting a raise, purchasing a home, or finding healing from a disease, God hasn't made those kind of specific promises anywhere in Scripture, so we are not free to name and claim those things.” - R.C. Sproul, The Prayer of the Lord

1 John 5:14–15 ESV

14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

When we ask according to His will. He hears us. Sometimes we might make requests that aren’t in line with the will of God. In those cases He will tell us no.

If my child has hit their daily limit for sugar and they ask me for some ice cream, I’m going to say no. Because even though ice cream isn’t inherently bad, but I know it’s going to be better for them in the long run if I say no to that request.

We all understand this with parenting, so why don’t we see it with our prayer life and in the gifts that God gives us?

What God Gives

v.13

How Much More

Because God is good, how much more will He pour out the good gifts on us.

This is the extent of the giving that God does. Much More.

The Holy Spirit

Luke, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit says that it’s the Holy Spirit that is poured out. There is nothing more or greater that we could ever ask for.

Proverbs 1:23 ESV

23 If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.

With the Holy Spirit we get the ability to understand the words of God, to absorb it, comprehend it.

Ezekiel 36:26–27 ESV

26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

The Holy Spirit causes us to be able to obey the commands of an almighty God whom we love.

Ephesians 1:13–14 ESV

13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

With the Holy Spirit comes the gift of assurance, no fear of life after death. The knowledge that you will be in heaven for all eternity.

This is all why Luke refers to the good gift as the Holy Spirit.