READY, WILLING, AND ABLE

Don’t you think it’s interesting that the one thing the disciples wanted Jesus to teach them to do was to pray? They didn’t ask him to teach them to preach, though they must have heard him preach many, many times. They didn’t ask him to show them how to teach the crowds, though they had seen him instruct literally thousands of people. They didn’t ask him to teach them how to heal the sick or how to cast out demons, though they had seen him do so. No, the one thing they wanted to learn from Jesus was how to pray.
No doubt they had watched as he drew aside from the great crowds of people that gathered wherever he went. Usually it was early in the morning or late at night that he drew aside to find a secluded spot, a place to pray. And no doubt the disciples had sensed something very different both in the way Jesus prayed and the affects of his prayers. There must have been something starling, powerful, and even awesome that took place whenever Jesus prayed. For all the miracles and wonders they had seen in the time they spent with Jesus, it was his times of prayer that were to them the most significant. It was the time he spent alone with his Father that seemed to be the most impressive. And so they asked him “Lord Teach us to pray.”
You know, as I’ve thought about prayer and what this Scripture says about prayer, I think I’ve come to the conclusion that prayer greatly depends on two things. First, is the character of the one to whom we pray. And of course, as Christians we pray to the living and all powerful God whose essence and character is perfect love. So this first aspect of prayer is really beyond our control. But the second one isn’t. The second one is our understanding of the character of the one to whom we pray. It is how we see God, how we understand his nature. And I think this is what Jesus is getting at in this section of Luke. He’s helping us to understand God’s nature when it comes to prayer.
You see, God wants us to come to him. He tells us to “ask, seek, and knock.” He invites us to come to him through prayer and allow him to mend the hole in our lives… to fix what has become broken. Only God can do that. Only God can fill the void that is in our soul. Anything else is just an illusion... an illusion of peace… an illusion of happiness… an illusion of satisfaction. Unfortunately, though, illusions often create very real dangers.
We’ve all heard stories about the person lost in a desert who is dying of thirst. And as she claws her way across the sand, she sees reflected on a sand dune what looks like an oasis. It’s only a mirage; it’s not real. But the illusion is so intense and vivid because her need is so strong and so real that she actually tries to drink the sand.
Though most omit it from Luke’s version of this story, there are some manuscripts that have, “If a child asks for bread would you give him a stone.” The answer is, “Of course not.” But still, there are similarities between a loaf of bread and what a smooth, round stone may look like. And after all, wasn’t it the stones that Satan used to tempt Jesus to turn into bread in order to satisfy his hunger? There must be something in the appearance of bread and a smooth, desert stone that’s very similar. But there is also a big difference.
You see, one o f the dangers of living with illusions is that there is no satisfaction in it. The stone may look like bread, but it isn’t bread. And because it isn’t bread, the satisfaction it offers isn’t real. It’s an illusion that in the end leaves us feeling empty.
How many stories do we need to hear of the rich and the famous taking their own lives because they weren’t satisfied? They had everything—or at least everything this world could offer—and yet they were empty.
That’s because the things that the world offers to us are only stones, illusions, they’re not real. What we need is bread, not stones. Jesus said that he was the living bread that came down from heaven, and that those who partake of this bread shall never die. He said that he was the bread of life, and whoever comes to him shall never be hungry. Only Jesus is able to satisfy our deepest need.
I was once told by someone who grew up in Columbia that high in up in the mountains of that country, where the coca plant grew, the local villagers would chew on the leaves of that tree in order to ease their hunger pains. It is from those leave that the narcotic cocaine is derived. They would chew the leaves, usually with a bit of lime to increase the effectiveness to suppress their appetite. But it couldn’t satisfy the hunger, it could only mask it. And if the person didn’t eat, eventually they would die. The illusion couldn’t keep them alive; it could only hide the pain.
And so Luke’s main point comes with the questions: “If your child asks for a fish will [you] give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will [you] give a scorpion?” And again the answer is, “Of course not.” Both the sting of a scorpion and the bight of a snake are serious, and both have the potential to kill. One of the very real dangers of an illusion is, not only does it not satisfy, but it is spiritually fatal as well.
Spiritual fatality comes when our focus is taken off of God and placed on this world and what this world can give. And once that separation takes place, we are in essence spiritually dead. The venom of illusion always seeks to kill that which would draw us to God. It always tries to keep us from turning to God. It prevents us from asking, seeking or knocking. It keeps us from prayer.
But when we do come to God in prayer we find that what God offers to us is not an illusion, but something very, very real. And not only is it not an illusion, but what God gives is always the very best. And it is always more than enough.
Just look at the story of the wedding feast in Canna. The wedding was in full swing when the host ran out of wine. In that time and culture, this would have been disastrous. But at the request of his mother, Jesus turned six water pots full of water into wine. And not just any cheap wine, but as the host of the party said, it was the best wine.
Or what about the little group of followers that was caught on the back side of the Sea of Galilee? It was late in the day, there was no McDonalds around, no 7-11, nothing… just desert. Jesus took the small sack lunch of a little boy and he fed five-thousand men and their families. Not only did they eat until they were full, but as the disciples cleaned up, they were able to fill twelve baskets with leftovers.
Or what about the time by the Sea of Galilee when Jesus told Simon to push out into deep water and throw down his net for a catch of fish? Simon obeyed and had such a catch that it started to break his nets. When he called for help they soon had both boats so full that they both began to sink.
And what about your own life? How many times can you look back and see the hand of God providing when there seemed to be no possible way? And isn’t it always the case that God’s provision in those times turns out to be the very best?
That brings us to God’s ultimate gift; God’s ultimate provision for us. Jesus says if we being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, “how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”
Now this is the ultimate gift. It is the gift that goes beyond our everyday need and reaches to our ultimate need—our need for God. What greater gift could God give than to give God’s self. That is what God has done on the cross. And that is what God continues to do through the Holy Spirit.
Humanity’s deepest desire has always been to find fulfillment and peace. But it’s a desire that can never be realized by anything we can have apart from God. “What benefit would it be if we could gain the world but in the end loose our soul?”
You see, that’s the point. Jesus said, “Peace I leave you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.” The peace Jesus gives is one which the world can never know because it is a peace that originated in the heart of God. It is a peace that can never be realized apart from God, a peace that surpasses all understanding. It is a kenotic peace, one secured at Calvary.
Humanity’s need for fulfillment and peace can only be found in the self-giving God’s gift given through the cross. It is a gift we are called to imitate.
The apostle Paul says, “So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.”
We began with Jesus’ instruction to ask, seek, and knock. These three words carry a meaning far beyond a single event. You see, as Christians we are to continually ask, to always be seeking, and to never stop knocking. It is a call to an ever deepening relationship with God. It is a call to all Christians everywhere to look to God. It is a call to find our total and absolute contentment in Christ and Christ alone.
The cry to ask, seek, knock is also a plea. It is a plea to those who do not know God—to those who may know the name, but not the person of Jesus Christ. It is a plea to those who have been looking down the wrong paths for their happiness. It is God calling you home. It is God calling you to a personal relationship. But more than that, it is a promise. It is God’s promise that if you would ask, seek, and knock your Heavenly Father is ready willing and able to enter your life and make a difference.
Let’s pray:
Thank you gracious Father, for the invitation to ask, seek and knock. And thank you for your promise to always answering. Through Jesus Christ your son our lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit One God now and forever. Amen