Attitudes of Prayer
Luke 11: 5-13
Note: Some materials of this sermon are taken from sermoncentral.com
This morning we will examine the parable which is commonly called: “The Friend at Midnight.” Jesus gave this parable to His disciples after giving them the model prayer in response to their request that He would teach them how to pray. It is clear that our Lord gave this parable to His disciples to give them further instruction on prayer. It seems that the disciples needed not just to have a pattern of prayer but also to know the proper attitudes of prayer. In this parable, the Lord is teaching three important attitudes of prayer:
A. BOLDNESS
We are to pray boldly.
Traveling at night was common during the biblical times in order to avoid the midday heat. For this reason, guest usually comes at midnight. The man in the story had a late arriving guest who is hungry after a long and exhausting journey and it is his duty as host to provide a meal. In those days, hospitality was held in high regard and was seen almost as a duty. A visitor has to be welcomed and cared for, regardless of the hour of his arrival. But food was not as readily available at that time as it is today. There were of course no 24 hour convenience food stores on each corner. And poor families baked only enough bread daily and usually consumed in a day. The poor host in the parable had nothing to offer his guest and was embarrassed. And he was in great dilemma. Not to provide for his guest’s needs would not only bring shame upon himself and his family but to the village as a whole. What is he to do?
He could not supply the need himself but he knew of someone who could help him supply this need –his neighborhood friend. But, would he have the nerve to wake up his friend (and possibly his friend’s whole family) in the middle of the night for three loaves of bread? In those days, the whole family slept in the same room, and even the smaller livestock was brought into the house to be safe from thieves. He could cause considerable inconvenience to his friend’s house if he goes there to ask for bread. Therefore the friend’s negative response and refusal to the request were actually expected and understandable. Friendship is not a sufficient reason to upset the whole household.
But the man went on and persisted on his request. He persistently implored his friend of his need. Ultimately, the reluctant friend got up and gave him what he needed, for one reason only, his persistence. The KJV Bible used the word “importunity” for the word persistence as used in the NIV. Its Greek word carries the idea of “boldness.” And right, there is a sense of boldness in what the man in the parable is doing. He was shamelessly bold in imploring his friend about his need. To bring great disturbance to a whole family (who were sleeping peacefully) in the middle of the night is really an act of shameless boldness. The man was shamelessly bold to get what he needed. I think, our prayers need to have the same intenseness. Christians must have the same attitude in prayer.
Anyway, Jesus did not compare God to a sleepy, selfish, unwilling, and angry neighbor here. He actually gives a contrast between God and the man’s friend here. What He is saying to the disciples is that if a neighbor can be persuaded to meet the needs of a friend on the basis of friendship, social etiquette or by someone’s insistence and imploration, how much more will our Father in Heaven meet the needs of his children. There’s no sense of reluctance and unwillingness in the divine provision of God. When it comes to answering the needs of His people, God is always willing and able. Persistence in prayer does not mean we must keep beating on God‘s door until we overcome God’s unwillingness to act. In simple terms, persistence is the attitude to go on. Boldness in prayer, on the other hand, does not mean we have the face to demand God whatever we want, but it is simply having sure confidence that God will lovingly respond to us.
Now, what makes us bold and shamelessly persistent to come to God for our needs? The answer to this question is our relationship to God. He is our Father who loves us; we are His people. The writer of Hebrews reminds us that because Jesus Christ our High Priest is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, we can “come boldly before God’s throne of grace” (Heb 4:16). This verse indirectly reminds us that it’s the sacrifice of our High Priest that made us God’s children. Therefore, we don’t have to fear coming to the throne of Grace because we are children of the King.
B. PASSION
We are to pray passionately.
It’s clear that the man in the parable made his request with passion –he did it with his heart in it. He was passionate because he felt the need and his helplessness. This person would not be passionate to ask something if he didn’t really feel the need or if he believed he could do it by his own. That’s the truth behind the person’s passion to come to God for a need –he really felt the need and realized his helplessness. This is true to every person in the Bible who came to God in prayer with passion, like Moses, Elijah, etc.
But, will we only be passionate in prayer when we have burdens? No! Jesus does not want us to have such intensity in prayer only during midnight emergencies. He wants our every prayer to be done with such attitude. Every prayer must be done with our heart in it. The passion of prayer must be there always regardless of the heaviness of the need. To emphasize his point, the Lord says in verse 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.”
Asking, seeking, and knocking are not just making simple requests. These words suggest desire, urgency, and determination. These are not simple acts, but series of acts that suggest situations where one seeks response, attention, and opportunity. The one who pleads with passion does not leave without receiving a response. He would not leave empty-handed. The Lord is saying here: “Prayer is not an option. It is not for emergency only, but it should be done as if there is an emergency.”
Sadly, many believers don’t pray, take prayer for granted, or make prayer a last recourse. When life’s voyage is peaceful and serene, cool and placid, the communication line to heaven is idle, inoperative, and unused. No one seems to notice and appreciate its value until the storm comes rushing in. Nowadays, people are so busy with their phones. They say that an average texter sends 10 to 20 text messages a day, and half of it are nonsensical. Prayer, on the other hand, is the most unused communication line to many people. They are anxious to have the latest model of mobile phone, to have the fastest network connection, but they have no regard if they have connection with heaven.
In this parable, Jesus wants us to keep an open line of communication with God –which is constant, dynamic, and spirited. Look at verse 10, the Lord says, “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” He is giving us here the certainty that our Heavenly Father will not only hear our prayers but promises to answer each and every prayer, in His time, to His honor and to our joy and amazement. Therefore, prayer must not be a dull, boring, and lifeless activity. In contrast, prayer is even meant to bring excitement, anticipation, and hope. Believers have the reason to pray with passion.
C. EXPECTANCY
We are to pray expectantly.
Verses 11-12 say, “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? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?” Jesus gives this analogy along with the parable of the friend at midnight to emphasize that God does answer our prayers, and that, His answers are always good ones. Because God is a good God, a loving Heavenly Father, He can be expected not only to answer our prayers, but answers them in such a way that it is for our highest good. The bottom line of the whole matter is now given in verse 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!"
Question: Do you as a parent ever worry about the answers you give to your child whenever they ask for something? When you say yes and give them what they want, are you spoiling them? Or when you say no, was your denial selfish or shortsighted? The answer of course is no. As parents, we do the best we can for and to our children, though sometimes our best is just not good enough. But our Heavenly Father does not have such limits. He knows what’s good and best. He never says “yes” because He was just forced, intimidated, or cornered. He never says “no” because he is distracted, exhausted or irritable. God has no limitation as such.
The point here is that believers can pray expectantly. We don’t have to be guessing, doubting, or wondering if God would mind to answer our prayers or not. We don’t have to agonize with uncertainties as to how or when God is going to answer our prayers. There is nothing to fret since the Word of God gives us the best, the truest, and the most reliable assurance that God knows when is the right time and what is the right answer to our prayers. And God, to be true to His promises, even made His Spirit available to help us present our very needs to Him. Wow!
By the way, the giving of the Spirit here does not mean that it is possible to be a Christian and not have the Holy Spirit; that this verse is a promise of a “second blessing,” which is to be prayed for and comes at a later time to saved believers. That is not the meaning of this passage. I believe the context reveals to us that it speaks to the fact that God loves for His children to develop the habit of asking His help, but He does not leave them trapped by their own limited perception of the situation, so He makes the Holy Spirit available to present His children’s needs to the Him. This may have been what Paul had in mind when he says in Romans 8:26, “And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don’t always (even) know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groaning that can not be expressed in words.” God therefore can be expected to respond to the prayers of His people.
CONCLUSION:
Prayer is our communication line to God. Let us keep it always open, operative, and if possible, busy. God is very eager to respond to our prayers more than we are eager to receive the answer of our prayers.
