Word of Salvation – Vol. 37 No. 27 – July 1992
The Honourable God
Sermon by Rev. M. C. De Graaf on Luke 11:5-10
Reading: Luke 11:1-13
Singing: 65, 1a, 23, 104a, 72.
Brothers and Sisters,
In our Call to Worship we heard Paul urge Christians to ‘Be joyful always, pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances…!’
As we’ve seen in the past, at first glance, that can strike you as being a pretty tall order! How could anyone be constantly praying, or joyful, or thankful?
But, of course, what we’re seeing in that passage is a call to live a life in which we recognise the hand of God in everything that we do and in all that occurs around us!
It is because of that truth that we can have joy, even in times of hardship and pain. I may not feel that bubbly but because of my God I can still have the solid, deep joy that stands unshaken in the face of a hostile world. The same is true for thankfulness. I know who my God is, I know what He has given; I can still thank Him for His loving concern both during times of adversity and during times of prosperity. That recognition of the hand of God deeply affects not only our joy and thankfulness but also the way we come before that God in prayer. For many of us prayer has a way of losing its power and relevance in our lives. Not only do we find praying ‘continually’ very difficult, we find praying ‘occasionally with meaning’ difficult. All 1Thessalonians 5 reminds us, one of the reasons for this is, that all too often we fail to see the hand of God, that involvement of God in our lives. Sub-consciously we become unsure if He’s still listening; and if He is, we’re not even sure if He’s still interested. And our prayer-life dries up.
In many ways, this truth is also reinforced for us here, in our text from Luke chapter eleven.
The chapter begins with the disciples asking Jesus for a lesson on prayer. It seems that John had done the same for his followers. Jewish historians tell us that many Rabbis taught simple prayers to their disciples. The twelve wanted the same. So Jesus teaches them what we now call the Lord’s Prayer. It begins by praising the Father: ‘Hallowed be your name.’ It goes on to recognize His Kingdom and His providential care for His children. The focus then shifts to us and our need for forgiveness and guidance in our daily life. It’s not the only prayer that should be prayed. It doesn’t cover all things that a believer should pray for. Jesus Himself would cover many other topics in His prayer-life. But it does provide for us a good, clear model of what the basics should involve.
But then, Jesus goes on. After dealing with the how of prayer, in our text we see Him tackle the why of prayer.
He tells a parable. At first glance, the meaning of the story seems to be little different from the one told in Luke 18 about the persistent widow. The theme seems to once again centre on the need for ‘persistence’. The NIV even gives that word as an alternate translation in verse 8. And yet, that idea, for many reasons doesn’t really seem to fit in these verses. Jesus seems to be talking about something else.
To really understand what’s going on here, you need to think about the country and the culture in which Jesus and His disciples were operating. And more importantly, you need to realise that what Jesus is saying (in the Greek) is structured in such a way that Jesus is assuming that no-one would ever say what is said in verse 7.
Now of course it is true that in any culture a certain amount of boldness would have been required to awaken a neighbour in this way, at this time. The home of a Palestinian peasant usually only had one room, with a cooking fire in the centre. At night the family slept in a fairly tight circle around the fire. If one person awoke and moved around, everyone would know. Verse 5 involves a major disturbance.
And yet we need to realise, that in the Greek, Jesus is making the beginning of His parable into a question that expects His good Palestinian hearers to answer, negatively: ‘No – none of us would do that!’
He is saying: ‘Who of you – if someone came with this kind of request, would say: The kids are here, the door is bolted I can’t help!?’ Assumed answer: None of you! In the Palestine of old, and still to an extent the Palestine of today, no one would dream of being that rude. After all the request is not for the man who is calling, it is for his guest. Palestinian etiquette would require that you regard a guest not just the guest of your neighbour, he is also your guest, the guest of the whole village. And a guest had to be treated with respect and love. Looking at the cultural context in the Middle East we would know that it was not just a midnight snack the caller was looking for. A guest deserved a banquet – bread was the centre piece, but it was rarely served alone; it needed to be dipped into things. This was probably not the only door the caller was going to knock on. He needed to be sure that the guest was fed properly. And the whole village was obliged to make sure that he could do it.
Despite the fact that it is late at night, despite the children, despite the bolted door, despite his not being a close friend – the man in bed will get up not because of the caller’s persistence or because of his boldness.
The word and the idea in verse 8 is better translated as: because he is a man of integrity. He is a man who would be afraid of being shamed or untrue to what he believes.
If he would have kept that door closed he would have betrayed his culture and his beliefs, and everyone in the village would have known about it. He would have been an outcast. And in the East of course, the whole idea of shame, plays an important part in their thinking!
That is why he will give to you as much as you need. The literal text actually says: ‘Whatever he wants.’
Jesus then goes on and He applies this truth: If your sense of what is right would not allow you to keep that door closed how much more will God act according to what He knows is right! This truth is, of course, reinforced in the verses 11-13. Earthly fathers would never give snakes or scorpions to children, neither can our heavenly Father be untrue to who He is! Think about it. The God we serve is very much the God of Psalms 66 and 67! The God who is unwavering, the God who cannot let go. He led the people through the wilderness, He returned them from exile, He sent His Son, as a lamb to take away the sins of the earth. This history shows him to be a God of faithfulness, power and integrity – the Creator of the heavens and the earth who never abandons the works of his hands.
If we truly believe that this is the one we serve, then our prayer-life can never be dull or irrelevant. We are talking to the God who separated the Red Sea, who called Gideon to service, who chose a man like Paul.
He is a God who listened and who answered their prayer, not always in the way they wanted but always in a way that reflected His love for them.
And of course what Jesus is saying isn’t just true for prayer. Because our God is a God of integrity (true to self) this affects the way we approach all our worship and also the Lord’s Supper. We are remembering the God of history who sent His Son. We are remembering the God of history who would not abandon men like David or Peter, we are remembering the God of history who said He was going to destroy the nation of Israel in Numbers 14, but who was stopped when Moses reminded Him of who He was – slow to anger, abounding in love, able to forgive the sinner and the rebellious.
Moses points at what the people around would say and what God has already done. He appeals to whom he knows God to be. Forgiveness follows. The Lord remains faithful to His promises.
It is that God whom we worship!
AMEN