The Storyteller: The Parable of the Giving Father
Matthew 7:7-11
Before you read this sermon, allow me to make two points. First, not all parables are long like the story of the Prodigal Son; some are only a sentence or two. Second, I have long found prayer to be something of a mystery. To quote my former teacher Larry Hurtado, “I believe in prayer and I’ve been known to pray at times,” yet there are many questions I have about prayer. Perhaps that is why I am sensitive to foolish things said about prayer, remarks like the one Ruby makes in my introduction.
Years ago I when I served another church, there was a couple named Carl and Ruby. They’ve both passed on so I feel I can tell these stories about Ruby without fear of her hearing about it.
Ruby was known for saying odd things. In particular, she said things without thinking about the implications of what she was saying.
Local storytellers used to tell about an incident that happened when Ruby was much younger and Carl was still farming. It was wheat harvest and, like many other farm wives, Ruby was driving a grain truck to the elevator. Wives drove and sat in the long lines waiting for the trucks to be weighed and then emptied. That way their husbands could stay in the fields working.
Anyway, when Ruby finally drove her truck onto the scale, she said to the operator, “My brakes are squeaking, do you think we need to put some grease on them?”
On another occasion, I was talking with her about the need for the church to do outreach and evangelism. She said, “I don’t know if that’s a good idea; if you get a lot of new people into a church, pretty soon they’ll want to start doing things differently.” I suspect there are not a few Baptists who think that but they just won’t say it.
Then, every time we discussed prayer during Sunday night Bible study, Ruby would make a point to say, “You have to be careful what you pray for because you just might get it.”
I always thought what a frightening God that would be. It would show a streak of meanness, at worst or plain foolishness, at best. We wouldn’t want a God like that. We want the God who answers our prayers to be always wise and always good in answering them. Jesus says that’s what the Father who gives is like.
Ruby had apparently forgotten what Jesus said in the passage we just read.
Jesus invites the fathers among his listeners to think about how they would respond to a child’s request. Note this: Jesus does not have in mind the mentally ill father, the sadistic father, the psychotic father. He’s thinking of the ordinary, imperfect human father who just wants to do the best for his child. (The reference to “being evil” doesn’t mean their scoundrels, it just means they are sinners, imperfect, unlike the Heavenly Father.) Jesus has great trust that those imperfect fathers will try to do the right thing.
If a child asked that imperfect father for bread, he would not be given a stone. Most commentators suggest that the small loaves of brown bread used in Palestine resembled stones in shape and color. No father would do that and not just because he didn’t want to pay for the dental work. He would respond to his child’s hunger as quickly as possible.
If a child asked that imperfect father for a fish, a staple of the diet in Jesus’ day, he would not be given a snake. Some water snakes resemble fish. Even if it were not a deadly snake, the shock and disappointment might easily erode the child’s trust for the father.
In Luke’s slightly different version of the story, Jesus asks, “Who among you, if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion?” The thought seems to be that a scorpion curled up on itself can resemble an egg. This trick is the deadliest for a scorpion’s sting is extremely painful and can be deadly. Again, no parent, male or female, would do such a thing. In fact, many would take the scorpion’s sting rather than let their child be hurt.
Let me digress a moment. Jesus grew up in a family. He watched as Joseph and Mary worked together to make their humble home safe and comfortable. Each parent worked in their own sphere to make their house in Nazareth a place where Jesus and his brothers could learn the meaning of family.
Back to the parable. At this point, Jesus says, “Look, if you imperfect fathers would never do anything so hurtful, do you honestly believe your heavenly Father would?”
Earthly parents, being imperfect, will make mistakes. They might be too harsh. They might be over indulgent, giving their children too much, thinking they were doing the loving thing. They might give into pressure when they should stand firm in the face of whining and begging.
I saw a little drama/comedy unfold in a New Orleans grocery store. A mother and her five-year-old son were shopping along the cookie aisle. The boy had found some cookies he wanted, really wanted. So, he started asking his mother for them. She said no. He’d ask again. She’d say no. He’d ask again. She’d say no. This went on until finally the mother said, “I’ll get them but you’ll have to eat every one of them.” To this the obviously delighted boy said, “Really, I can.” The Giving Father Jesus speaks of wouldn’t cave like that. It wouldn’t be good for the child.
Ruby had no reason to be afraid her prayers might come back to haunt her.
This mini-parable is attached to a statement Jesus made about prayer.
7. "Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.
8. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
It’s tempting to look at that promise and say, “Wow. That Ferrari gonna be in the driveway any time now.”
No. I don’t think Jesus is talking about how we can get a quarter million dollar car. He’s talking about things that are more fundamental and essential.
Jesus had already told his listeners that God knows we need food and clothing.
It’s appropriate to pray for our physical needs.
It’s appropriate to pray for our relationships, for our marriages, for our families.
It’s appropriate to pray that we might be able to do our work with effectiveness and integrity.
It’s appropriate to pray for our nation and the world in which we live.
As we pray for these things, we can do so knowing that the Giving Father wants to give us what is good.
Above all, it’s appropriate to pray for what will make us a better fit for the Kingdom.
Luke has a special interest in the Holy Spirit so it’s not surprising that his version of this story stresses a note he particularly wanted his readers to know. According to Luke, Jesus ends the little parable with a note that would have caught the attention of any Jew who had looked for the Messiah. The prophets had said the Messiah would introduce the era of the Spirit. At that time, God’s Spirit would dwell with his people so they might better serve him. Imagine how the hearts of Jesus’ listeners would have leapt at his words: “If you … 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."
Of course, it is also a significant promise for the church as well.
Theologians and Bible scholars debate the meaning of terms like “filled with the Spirit,” “Spirit baptism,” or “in the Spirit.” Leaving the finer points to the specialists, I think the common element in these terms is the idea of intimacy. Through the Spirit, God is involved in our lives in an amazing way—as we live for Christ in our day-to-day activities, as we join with other Christians in worship, and as we attempt to do the work of Christ in a needy world. That was so important Jesus told his disciple to wait until the Spirit came before they even attempted to fulfill the Great Commission (Luke 24:49). The promise became a reality on the Day of Pentecost.
As the Spirit continues to work in our lives, He begins to shape how we pray.
When we first begin to pray, we often think of prayer as a way to get what we want, sometimes even the things we want. Then, we may begin to think of prayer as a means to change those things we’d like to see changed. Finally, with God’s grace, we come to that point of seeing prayer as the avenue by which we might become better citizens of God’s Kingdom.
Each stage of prayer is appropriate; each gives us the opportunity to prove the goodness of the Giving Father.
Conclusion: This mini-parable reminds us of an important lesson about prayer. We don’t pray because we’ve seen answers. Oh, sure, stories of answered prayer encourage us to pray, but we have a greater source of encouragement. We pray because we know the character of the One to whom we pray.
With that in mind, let me end with a couple quotes that capture the essence of what Jesus is saying.
Arland Hultgren, a professor of New Testament, says: “God is extremely good. The person who persists in prayer so often finds … that things turn out better than one might expect. It is more interesting than one could plan, and it is richer by far than what one could desire.”
The other quote comes from a band of “theologians” known as The Rolling Stones. While I would hardly recommend regularly turning to them for spiritual guidance, this is has an almost Biblical ring to it.
"You can't always get what you want
But … you … just might find
You just might find
You get what you need…"
