Luke Parables of Jesus - The Friend at Midnight
Luke 11:5-13
“Then He said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs. “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. For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? 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?””
Luke 11:5-13 NASB1995
The next parable in Luke is placed in familiar territory from our study of the Sermon on the Mount. For context, the verses just ahead of this parable are the Luke version of the Lord’s Prayer, which is quite similar to Matthew, but with a few differences that show the flexibility of this prayer. Jesus then talks about persistence in prayer in this short, amusing parable of the annoying friend who knocks at the door at midnight asking for some bread for his visitor. I don’t know about you, but in this day and age, anyone (including a close friend) knocking at our door at midnight would have to have a really good reason to scare us to death and risk a call to the police or possible injury if we are try to defend our property. Obviously, back in the day of Jesus and his disciples, this story would sound very familiar to them, because the homes were probably small and close together, everyone was likely a friend to everyone else in the local area or square of homes, and the family slept together in the same room, probably over a pen for their few animals. You can’t just pop down to the all-night supermarket and get some items for your visitor, so you would rely on the neighbors to help out. Sadly, we don’t even know some of our neighbors now, which is a common problem in the 21st century.
Jesus continues the story with examples that should sound familiar again from the Sermon on the Mount, on a father giving his child good gifts, even though he is an evil human. Jesus is telling us to be persistent in prayer (ask, seek, knock). God is not the grumpy half-asleep neighbor who just got the chickens, the excitable dog and the children to sleep. Even that annoyed neighbor finally gives up and gives his friend what he seeks, just so he can try to get back to sleep. God is there at all times to hear our supplications! I found a great excerpt in Precept Austin on commentary about Luke 11 that is from Pastor Steven Cole (Bible.org). I have used his commentaries before:
First, it shows us that necessity drives bold prayer. The host had a need to provide for his friend, and he did not have the resources to meet that need. It is an awareness of great needs and our own lack of resources to meet those needs that will drive us to prayer. All too often we fail to pray because we assume our own sufficiency or competence. We wrongly think that we can get by with just a little boost from God here and there. But the fact is, we are destitute of physical, mental, and spiritual resources unless God graciously provides them. In every situation, we must recognize our desperate need and call on God for help.
Second, the need in this case was not directly personal, but the need of someone else. If the man himself had been hungry, no doubt he would have waited until morning to go to his friend’s house. But the need was not his; it was the midnight guest’s need that drove this man to his friend’s house at this unseemly hour. While we should go boldly to God to find help for our own needs, we should keep in mind that the main thrust of prayer is not just to meet our needs, but to further the Father’s kingdom. Thus we are to ask for what we need to meet the needs of others in the name of the Father’s business.
Third, the man already had an established friendship before he went to his neighbor’s house at midnight. He wasn’t just introducing himself for the first time that night! They had a personal relationship that he was acting upon. While God is often gracious to introduce Himself for the first time in response to a midnight knock on His door, the time to meet Him is before the midnight need! If you know Him as a familiar friend, you will feel more comfortable banging on His door at midnight when you have to!
Fourth, we should recognize the stark contrast between the man in bed and God. The man in bed was asleep, whereas God never sleeps. The man in bed did not want to be disturbed, whereas our requests do not disturb God. The midnight request probably put a strain on the relationship between these two friends, whereas our midnight requests do not strain our relationship with God. Jesus’ point is that we should be boldly persistent in bringing our requests to God at any hour and in any situation. If a cranky friend responds to this kind of bold persistence, how much more will your Friend in heaven respond! (Luke 11:5-13 How to Approach God)
God is there for your prayer! Establish a relationship with Him and bring Him your concerns and intercessions with boldness and courage!
My next devotional will examine another Luke parable, Luke 12:13-33 The Rich Fool.
Precept Austin is a resource that has huge commentaries and references for the Bible. Steven Cole has his sermons on Bible.org.