"The Power of Confident Prayer"
Luke 11:1-13
A sermon for 6/26/22 – Third Sunday after Pentecost
Pastor John Bright
Luke 11 “5 And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? 8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.
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. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 11 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? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 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!””
Pause right there. Those words I just read; they were “Breathed by God”! God wants you to hear His Word right now! So, what is your response? Do you want to transformed by that Word or do you want to be informed about the words? You have to choose.
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What is a parable? Is it an illustration? Sure, but it’s so much more! Often it is an exaggeration of a real situation for those listening. Jesus’ parables are grounded in the culture of His day so they were believable for those around Him. Two things we often miss:
• Parables are meant to shock and bother you!
• Parables are meant to show God’s extravagant love!
Here we have “Parable of the Friend at Midnight.”
The Setting, v. 1-4
“1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
3 Give us day by day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.”
The Disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray. They mention that John the Baptizer has been teaching his disciples. We recognize what was taught because we have been praying this since we were children and learned the Lord’s Pray (some prefer to call this The Disciples Prayer). Why mention the setting? That’s the context for the parable. It is meant to encourage the Disciples – that’s us – to pray with CONFIDENCE. Later, in Luke 18, we will meet the widow who is persistent, for now the lesson for us is to have confidence in our prayers to be answered.
The Parable, v. 5-8
“5 And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? 8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.”
In the Greek, this parable begins with a phrase that is much like, “Can you imagine?” In that day, the answer would be, “No! Never!” Here is how Harry Wendt (“The Parables of Jesus” 1997) describes the situation:
“A friend from a distant village comes to your home just before midnight, and you must provide him with a meal and accommodation. But you don’t have the necessary items to feed him as you should. So you go to one of your neighbors to borrow some bread – and the neighbor offers ridiculous excuses about a locked door and sleeping children.”
Those listening to Jesus in that day would say, “That would never happen.”
There are also some translation issues here. Remember, all translation is about making choices. In verse 8, the word that get’s translated as “persistence” can also be translated in other ways. It matters to the central issue in this parable. In the Middle East, to provide hospitality to a guest was a requirement in order to “avoid shame.” This is about the sleepy man’s reputation. So that makes it about God’s reputation. In every parable, you have to figure out which character is God.
If we want to learn about prayer, it’s not just saying the right words – we also need to have an expectation that God is listening. Do you believe that? Do your actions following prayer show you believe that God heard the prayer?
Now, to have a friend arrive at midnight would be unusual. It was safer to travel during the day. The arrival of the friend – even at an unexpected time – places an obligation on the host to provide the evening meal, not just a midnight snack 😊 There had to be bread. It was used as a sop in the same way bread is used around the world today to get food from the plate to the mouth. The obligations for providing bread to this friend were precise:
• Provide bread that is fresh
• Provide bread that is unbroken
• Provide more than can be eaten – this one reminds me of all the meals at Grandma Bright’s house because she always cooked for ten more people than she had invited!
This explains why the man is in search of three loaves. Jesus tells the parable in way that shows the friend does not want to get up. He wants to sleep. I can relate to that, for sure. The excuses he makes could be considered humorous. So why was the man so sure his friend would have bread?
In many villages, there was a community oven where folks would bake a weeks’ worth of bread. The man in the parable knows who has bread. In fact, he could have asked for everything needed to serve the meal from his sleepy friend in the village – even serving dishes. That he only asks for the bread is asking for a little rather than a lot.
That brings us to verse 8 and the response of the sleepy friend in the village. Remember – it’s about the one with the bread avoiding shame. It is not a matter of friendship, it’s really about his reputation. If the sleepy friend does not provide the bread, the man will go to other houses and at each one he will tell of the one who refused him bread. The next morning, as the sleepy man walks around the village, he will be met with cries of “Shame on you!” Instead, the sleepy man gives the bread and the man with the guest can meet his obligations. These actions uphold the reputation of the whole village.
Our God is presented here as a God of Honor. He hears our prayers. You can have confidence and be assured that He loves you sooooooooooo much and He wants to help you with your needs!
Ask, Seek, Knock, v.9-10
“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. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”
These are the actions of the man in need of bread. He went to the one who could meet the basic need to set food before his guest. These are verses meant to give us confidence – not in ourselves. We are to have great confidence in prayer because we pray to our Heavenly Father.
Comparing Fathers, v. 11-13
“11 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? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 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!””
Some background:
• Baked bread looks like a stone
• There is an “unclean” fish in that area that resembles an eel
• When a scorpion rolls up into a protective position, it looks like a small egg
Bread, fish and eggs were all basic needs – staples of the Middle Eastern diet. It would be unthinkable for a Middle Eastern father to deny his children the basic needs. What does Jesus tell us is our basic need? The Holy Spirit. Why? The Holy Spirit opens up the channel of God’s love and grace to flow to us without measure. Let me be really clear – this parable has nothing to do with banging on the Gates of Heaven to receive a new car or a perfect spouse or any other possession. What would you think if I told you the goal is not to have possessions, but rather to be possessed by God? Becoming His Disciple is possible because of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Praise God!
Then what comes? Here is where we have the perfect context to read the words of Jesus from John 15:
“5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”
9 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”
Bearing fruit – love – joy – these are the things of God. The Holy Spirit comes to show us how to seek the things of God for it is in this way that our hungering and thirsting will be truly satisfied. The opposite of this is to continue seeking the things of the world which never satisfy. The things of this world never fill us up – they make us more and more empty inside.
The Holy Spirit makes it possible to for us to pray the Lord’s Prayer with God in mind – NOT US! This is the point of this parable – prayer is about God – NOT US! Prayer is about the confident belief that God meets our most basic needs. What are your basic needs? These are the needs for which we think we don’t even need God’s help. Each one of us needs acceptance, security and significance (“Freedom in Christ” Neil Anderson, 2017).
Can you imagine a person in need who prays to God and, then, God refuses to turn His ear of love to hear that prayer? Of course not. Now take your eyes off the person making the prayer. Put your eyes on God who promises to hear the prayer and meet the need. If you can keep your vision fixed on God above with great confidence in His desire and ability to meet your needs… you might just be getting the point of this parable. Amen.
TEACHING SHEET
"The Power of Confident Prayer"
Luke 11:1-13
6/26/22
A couple of things we often miss in all the parables of Jesus:
• Parables are meant to shock and bother you!
• Parables are meant to show God’s extravagant love!
“Parable of the Friend at Midnight.”
The Setting, v. 1-4
Prayer is the context for the parable. It is meant to encourage the Disciples – that’s us – to pray with CONFIDENCE.
The Parable, v. 5-8
Jesus is asking them “Can you imagine?” In that day, the answer would be, “No! Never!” Here is how Harry Wendt (“The Parables of Jesus” 1997) describes the situation: “A friend from a distant village comes to your home just before midnight, and you must provide him with a meal and accommodation. But you don’t have the necessary items to feed him as you should. So you go to one of your neighbors to borrow some bread – and the neighbor offers ridiculous excuses about a locked door and sleeping children.”
In verse 8, the word that get’s translated as “persistence” can also be translated in other ways. In the Middle East, to provide hospitality to a guest was a requirement in order to “avoid shame.” This is about the sleepy man’s reputation. So that makes it about God’s reputation. In every parable, you have to figure out which character is God.
The obligations for providing bread to this friend were precise:
• Provide bread that is fresh
• Provide bread that is unbroken
• Provide more than can be eaten
Ask, Seek, Knock, v.9-10
These are verses meant to give us confidence – not in ourselves. We are to have great confidence in prayer because we pray to our Heavenly Father.
Comparing Fathers, v. 11-13
Bread, fish and eggs were all basic needs – staples of the Middle Eastern diet. It would be unthinkable for a Middle Eastern father to deny his children the basic needs. What does Jesus tell us is our basic need? The Holy Spirit.
What would you think if I told you the goal is not to have possessions, but rather to be possessed by God? Becoming His Disciple is possible because of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Praise God!
John 15:5-12 - Bearing fruit – love – joy – these are the things of God. The Holy Spirit comes to show us how to seek the things of God for it is in this way that our hungering and thirsting will be truly satisfied. The opposite of this is to continue seeking the things of the world which never satisfy. The things of this world never fill us up – they make us more and more empty inside.
The Holy Spirit makes it possible to for us to pray the Lord’s Prayer with God in mind – NOT US! This is the point of this parable – prayer is about God – NOT US! Prayer is about the confident belief that God meets our most basic needs. What are your basic needs? These are the needs for which we think we don’t even need God’s help. Each one of us needs acceptance, security and significance (“Freedom in Christ” Neil Anderson, 2017).
Put your eyes on God who promises to hear the prayer and meet the need. If you can keep your vision fixed on God above with great confidence in His desire and ability to meet your needs… you might just be getting the point of this parable. Amen.
