Luke 11. “I tell 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 the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.’” (11:9-10) I love these verses! What a fantastic promise Jesus gives us!

Now you might think – ask and it will be given to you – sweet! I would like a new Porsche, and a house with a pool (or a private jet, why not?!); and I would love for the new career door I have been knocking on to swing wide open for me with a good salary and benefits… Thanks God!

Except, that’s not how this works. God is not a vending machine or Santa Claus in the sky. So, what did Jesus mean when he made this statement? Let’s back up a couple of steps and look at these verses in the context of what Jesus is teaching in this chapter. Chapter 11 opens with Jesus off by himself praying, something he frequently sneaks away to do in the early morning or late at night after a busy day of ministry. Then the disciples come and ask, “Lord, teach us to pray” (11:1-4) and the Lord’s Prayer follows.

Many sermons have been preached on the Lord’s Prayer, but the essence is this: First, the disciple acknowledges who God is and that He is the Holy Lord God Almighty, Ruler of the Universe, and so on. (That’s the hallowed be your name section.) In this part the disciple acknowledges that God is God, and the disciple is not God.

Secondly, the disciple asks that the kingdom of God be made manifest here on earth in ever-increasing measure. (That’s the your kingdom come section.)The heart of a disciple desires to see the rule and reign of Christ spread across all the earth. However, we cannot have our personal kingdom and the kingdom of God competing with each other. Aldous Huxley once said, “My kingdom go is the necessary corollary to Thy kingdom come”. The kingdom of God takes precedence over my own desires and ambitions. (Remember the deny yourself training from Luke 9:23-25?!)

Then the Lord’s Prayer concludes with some basic asks: For the provision of daily needs, for forgiveness, for transformation, and that God would keep us out of trouble. The passage contains two more short stories about prayer: The persistent friend who finally gets what he wants (11:5-8), and the good father who gives his children what they need (11:11-13).

This is context for the “Ask and it will be given to you” promise. This means that the disciple who is asking has set aside their own desires, is kingdom of God focused, is not seeking beyond reasonable provision, is not seeking something that would be detrimental for them, and is focused on doing what God desires. God delights in answering requests that are framed like that! Keep on asking, seeking, and knocking!

Does it help to see this promise from Jesus framed in context? Have you ever asked God for something and did not get it? Why do you think you got “no” or “wait” as an answer? (Sometimes we never figure it out, but it’s always worth reflecting on!) Are you encouraged by the story of the persistent friend? What do you need to be persistent about in prayer? What stood out to you from Luke 11?