Storyteller: The Parables of JesusNäide

Ask, Seek, Knock (The Parable of the Friend at Midnight)

Throughout the gospels, the disciples ask Jesus a lot of questions, and though He is always teaching them through everything He says and does, there is only one instance where they directly request that Jesus teach them something specific.

Luke 11:1 (ESV) says, “Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’”

They were not asking to learn how to pray, because as Jewish men they had been praying and reciting prayers since their youth. They were asking Jesus to teach them to pray—to live a lifestyle of prayer and to do so with the right mindset and heart posture.

The disciples had watched and witnessed the life of Jesus for nearly three years at this point, and they undoubtedly recognized a power in Him that they themselves felt they lacked. They longed for the same connection with God that Jesus had.

Therefore, Jesus taught them to pray through a parable that was as relevant then as it is today, especially if we have the desire for a more connected and consistent prayer life but struggle to do so.

Prayer allows us to prioritize what matters most in our lives.

Jesus gives us a way to center ourselves around our loving Father. His template for prayer is an invitation into greater intimacy and to recognize that in every circumstance, no matter what we face, we will find that the truest answer to our deepest longing can only be found in Him.

Prayer allows us to preach the Gospel to our hearts, making it the focus of our lives so we can dethrone ourselves as masters and give Him the rightful place to reign and rule in and through us.

This parable may feel confusing for us but would have made sense to Jesus’ original audience. During Jesus’ time, in the Middle East, people would often travel at night to avoid the heat, relying on the kindness and hospitality of strangers or acquaintances to give them food, shelter, and protection. In the parable, a man comes to his neighbor in the middle of the night, asking for bread to serve a visiting traveler.

Although the neighbor is a grouch, he eventually shares what he has because the shame of being a bad neighbor makes him morally obligated to do so.

Jesus is not equating God with the grouchy neighbor; He is contrasting them, highlighting how the grumpy neighbor only gives because of the persistence of the neighbor, whereas God willingly comes to anyone who asks. He delights in giving to those who depend on Him and answers those in need, so long as it aligns with His will and His heart.

It is who He is.

This is one of the reasons Jesus says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8, ESV).

Jesus knows the character of His Father, so he encourages us to make a habit of bringing our requests to Him. Our prayers can be a continual, moment-by-moment lifestyle of daily interactions with God the Father through prayer.

In fact, Jesus is using these verbs as a present active imperative, which means He is giving a perpetual commandment to keep asking, keep seeking, and keep knocking.

God does not command us out of a cruel or vengeful spirit. Rather, His guidance is the loving provision of a perfect Father, a truth Jesus reveals by contrasting a flawed human father refusing a child a serpent or scorpion with our faultless heavenly Father’s good intentions.

God is infinitely better and gracious in every way, but especially in giving us the indwelling power of His Holy Spirit, Who empowers us to live for Christ.

In the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we have all we could ever need, if only we are willing to ask, seek, and knock.

Prayer

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, ESV)

Jesus, I admit, I do not know how to pray without ceasing in every situation, but I want to learn from You. Just as You taught the disciples, teach me to pray, for my very life depends on You. Amen.