The Christ Quarter
The Christ Quarter discusses God's Words through scripture, what those means and how they apply to our lives. I hope that God will speak to you through His Words and that my discussion of those words and will help to bring you closer to Him.
I am blessed to have this opportunity to share God's word with you and I thank you so much for listening.
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- Kirk
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The Christ Quarter
Persistent Prayer
Have you ever felt like your prayers are hitting the ceiling? Like God has put you on hold? In this reflective episode on Luke 11:5-13, we explore Jesus's profound teaching on prayer through the parable of the persistent friend knocking at midnight.
The scripture presents a fascinating contrast between human friendship and divine relationship. While even our closest friends may disappoint us in times of desperate need, God remains steadfastly present. We delve into the meaning of "importunity" – that shameless persistence that keeps knocking despite rejection – and how it applies to our prayer lives today.
Many believers struggle with finding balance in prayer. Where's the line between faithfully petitioning God and simply pestering Him with repetitive requests? Jesus's famous words "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" aren't a blank check for material desires but an invitation to align our hearts with God's purposes. When prayers seem unanswered, perhaps God has something better planned, or there's important work for us exactly where we are.
Jesus concludes with a powerful comparison: if imperfect human parents know how to give good gifts to their children, how much more will our perfect Heavenly Father give us what we truly need? The ultimate gift isn't material prosperity but the Holy Spirit – emphasizing God's primary concern for our spiritual wellbeing over temporary comforts. When God feels distant, it's not because He's moved away but because our attention has wandered. He remains patiently present, waiting for us to turn back to Him.
Join us for this reflection that will transform how you approach prayer. Whether you're a seasoned believer or just beginning your spiritual journey, this episode offers fresh insights on communicating with God. God who deeply desires a relationship with you.
Subscribe to The Christ Quarter for more short, meaningful encounters with scripture that will enrich your daily walk with Christ.
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Luke 11:5-13
King James Version
5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;
6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?
7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.
8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?
12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?
13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Welcome to the Christ Quarter. I'm so glad you're here with me to take 15 minutes of this day to enjoy the presence of Christ and the words of Christ. Today's scripture selection is Luke, chapter 11, verses 5 through 13. The King James Version reads as follows and he said unto you, though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity, he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you ask and it shall be given. You, seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you, for every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth. And to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he, for a fish, give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Let us pray, lord. We thank you for this day. We thank you for the freedom and the ability to discuss your word and enjoy your presence. You for the freedom and the ability to discuss your word and enjoy your presence. Help us to understand your word and your will for our daily lives more fully. We ask that you bless this discussion of your word, that it will speak to someone who needs to hear from you. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen.
Speaker 1:The verses for today are very personal. God is a real, personal, day-to-day God. He cares about us and our day-to-day needs. He wants us to have what we need to live a happy, joy-filled life. Today's scriptures discuss how to petition God and how to wait on Him. Let's get right into it.
Speaker 1:The first section of today's text, verses 5 through 8, read and he said unto them which of you shall have a friend and shall go unto him at midnight and say unto him Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine in his journey is come to me and I have nothing to set before him. And he, from within, shall answer and say Trouble me not. The door is now now shut and my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity, he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. Importunity is used here to say that the person requesting help is in such need that he is willing to be shamelessly pushy even though his friend has ungraciously said no and will not give him the bread. Our friend here is willing to shamelessly continue to ask for bread until he's given it again. He does not receive the bread because of their friendship, but because his friend is desperate to get him to leave. This is an example of how many of our friendships are.
Speaker 1:Who can we really count on when we are truly desperately in need? Many of our friends disappear as soon as we cannot continue to help them. They disappear even more quickly when we need help from them, and that is not to leave our good, true friends off the hook. We, as regular mistake-prone and accident-prone people, cannot be truly depended upon. Even with the best intentions, we cannot always do what we would like to do.
Speaker 1:How many times have you been the one giving a ride to a friend and could not get to them in time because of some event that was out of your control? It happens to all of us. Fortunately for us, it does not happen to God. God foresees all events and has already set his plans in place to get us where he needs us to be. When he needs us to be there, his plans are always successful. Notice my emphasis on when he needs us to be there. If our plans are not in sync with His plans, our plans will be unfruitful. For this reason, we must always be careful to search our own hearts to be sure that what we're asking God for is godly and to His glory.
Speaker 1:In my own prayer life, I struggle with where the line is between talking to God daily and laying bare the needs and desires of my own heart and just bugging God and irritating him with requests that he already knows about anyway. I believe this line would be different for each of us and it is up to us to be aware of ourselves and our true motives, but the defining fact for me is the knowledge that God wants to have a relationship with each of us and wants to hear what we are going through. When a child comes to us with a concern that may seem trivial to us, we still listen to that child and feel love and a closeness to that child because they are bringing their issues to us. They're important issues that are meaningful to them. They're bringing those issues to us and trusting us to take them seriously and to help them. God wants us to bring our issues to him and trust him that he will take us seriously and that he will help us.
Speaker 1:The second section of today's text, verses 5 through 8, reads and I say unto you Ask, ask and it shall be given. You, seek and you shall find. Knock and it should be opened unto you, for everyone that asketh receiveth. He that seeketh find it, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. These verses are very easily misapplied. I asked God for a new Samsung S20 Ultra. I'm sure it will be in the mail tomorrow. I went seeking tickets to my favorite vacation spot. I'm sure I'll find them somewhere. No, no.
Speaker 1:Whenever reading scriptures, we must consider the context. Today's scriptures are part of a larger teaching regarding how the disciples are to behave and think. When reading these scriptures, we have to keep in mind that Jesus is talking to people who already have a strong prayer life and hearts after God and he doesn't really have to emphasize to them to ask for godly things. So we have to keep that in mind and when we are petitioning God, we have to make sure that what we are asking for is godly in nature. If we sincerely and honestly petition God because we need tickets to go on a missionary trip to spread God's word and to glorify God, perhaps he would provide that. God knows our hearts and wants us to come to him in love, sincerity and expectation. We should expect that what we ask God for we will receive. But if we do not receive what we've asked for, realize that maybe we just haven't received it yet or maybe it wasn't what we should have been asking for anyway.
Speaker 1:In my personal experience, sometimes God doesn't give us what we want and what we ask for because he has something much better in store for us. God is faithful to meet our needs within his plan. If you're asking for a job or a raise at work because you need to provide for your family, perhaps he will provide that. Provide for your family. Perhaps he will provide that. However, if you ask for a new job but God has a task for you to complete on your current job, he will keep you there until his plans have been completed. Sometimes, when waiting on an answer to a prayer and it seems that God has not answered your prayer. Ask God if he has something for you to do where you are now. God's plan for our life should come before our own plans.
Speaker 1:The third and final section of today's text verses 5 through 8, reads If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone. Or if he ask a fish is a father, will he give him a stone. Or if he ask a fish, will he, for a fish, give him a serpent. Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them than ask him?
Speaker 1:These scriptures compare our earthly fathers to our heavenly father. Good fathers care for their children and give them good things. If we properly expect such good behavior from our imperfect, mistake-prone earthly fathers, we should expect so much more from our perfect heavenly father. While God does bless his children with material possessions when it fits within his plan, we should not expect an overabundance of material goods from God. To selfishly ask God for more material possessions and wealth than we need is to show God that our heart is not after Him. What more can God give us than he already has? He has given us His Son, his Holy Spirit, which is inside all believers, and he has given us His attention. And that's just the beginning. Nothing God could ever give us or do for us can come close to what he has already done.
Speaker 1:We should acknowledge this in our daily thoughts and in our prayer life. Before going into our needs and desires and what we want, we should thank God for his presence and all that he has done for us. As parents, we want to know that our children appreciate what we do for them and do not look at us as a place to go for handouts, asking nicely for what they want, giving us a very brief thank you and then going back to their lives, forgetting about us until they need us to provide for them or save them again. That's not a very pretty picture, is it? But many of us fit right into that picture when it comes to our heavenly father. Do we talk to god every day, or do we only approach him when we're in trouble or when we're in need? We should go before him daily.
Speaker 1:I occasionally have experienced times in my prayer life where I feel that God is far away. During those times, I try to remember to remind myself that God is not far away. God is always with us, that God is not far away, god is always with us. It is not that God is far away, but rather that I have moved too far away from God, and what I give my attention to. God is still there, patiently waiting for me to turn my attention back to Him.
Speaker 1:I would like to leave you with that today. No matter how far you stray, no matter how far you walk, no matter how far you run, god is right there with you, patiently waiting for you to turn to him, talk to him and tell him how your day has been. Let's wrap up our show today with a prayer Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed. Be thy name, thy kingdom, come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. That concludes our scripture discussion for today. Thank you for spending time with me and please come back to the Christ Quarter for another 15 minutes of talking about learning about and enjoying Christ.