So I say to you, ask, and it will be given

... seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Luke 11:9). The Lord loves to connect spiritual things with spiritual things in our hearts and minds (1 Corinthians 2:13). And as I continue to prepare for tomorrow's meeting with the theme “Authority, Identity and Humility,” I could see all three components in the context of this morning's reading from Luke 11:5-13. The “So” of the title verse connects it to the parable immediately before it. The parable is about persistence “because of his persistence he will rise and give him what he needs” (verse 8). The authority that we are given (10:19) has, like any gift, to be received, to be appropriated. In order to do this, we first and foremost need to know who we are in Christ (identity). We are beloved and cherished sons and daughters of the Father, who if we ask for bread, will not give us a stone (verse 11).

Among the complex meanings of the word translated authority (i.e. 10:19) are “the power of influence, and of right.” And in this passage, He is giving us the right and confidence to know what is our inheritance. And our inheritance includes answers to the exceeding great and precious promises of the Word. We do need to keep in mind that “no” is an answer. In fact there are three basic answers yes, no, wait. And it is in the waiting that we need persistence. The waiting helps us to know if we really want it, in which case we will be persistent. But also in the waiting our faith either grows or diminishes, and we choose. Delayed answers are an opportunity to draw near to God.

In terms of humility, in an age of independence from God, and one that clamours loudly for our rights, there is a desperate need to come back into true relationship with the Father. Let's face it in this age where we are encouraged to feel entitled, there is a huge tendency to get our wants and our needs confused. He has promised, when we are in right relationship with Him, to supply all of our needs according to His riches in Glory (Philippians 4:19), not all our wants. In the context of this morning reading, the Lord is talking about asking for bread, for fish and for the Holy Spirit. And if we are not grieve or quench the Holy spirit we need to walk in humility and obedience and in holiness. Having said that, it is clear the carnivorous is not of the Lord, and that we are in desperate need of deliverance!

Our beautiful and lovely heavenly Father, You who knows how to give good gifts to men, we come to You this morning humbling ourselves, praying, seeking Your face and repenting of our waywardness. We declare Your Kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Lord there are no viruses in heaven, and together with the rest of Your church we come in repentance and unity, and declare with the authority You have given us, an end to this pestilence. We declare that it will not come near our dwellings, and it will not by any means harm us. You promised Lord! This is our inheritance, this is our authority, and we thank You in advance for the positive answer (Mark 11:24) in Jesus Name Amen