Lesson #58

THE PARABLES OF JESUS CHRIST
LESSON #58
THE PARABLE OF THE FRIENDS AT MIDNIGHT (LUK 11:5-10)

• MEMORY VERSE: PHI 4:19

• LUKE 11 IS A CHAPTER DEALING WITH JESUS’ INSTRUCTIONS ON PRAYER ABOUT WHICH WE CAN ALL LEARN MORE.

• THE PARABLE OF THE FRIENDS AT MIDNIGHT (LUK 11:5-10)
• READ LUK 11:1-10 FOR THE CONTEXT OF THE PARABLE.
• WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MIDNIGHT HOUR?
• THIS HOUR REPRESENTS AN INCONVENIENT TIME FOR A FRIEND TO COME TO VISIT BECAUSE THE HOST IS UNDOUBTEDLY SLEEPING.
• THERE ARE THREE FRIENDS IN THE PARABLE:
• THE VISITING FRIEND
• TO EVERY TRUE JEW, THE LAW OF HOSPITALITY WAS VERY IMPORTANT AND CONSTITUTED A SACRED DUTY.
• THE WILLING FRIEND WITHOUT BREAD
• IN THE AVERAGE JEWISH HOUSEHOLD, BREAD WAS BAKED FRESH EVERY MORNING.
• THE UNWILLING FRIEND WHO EVENTUALLY GAVE IT.
• NOTICE THAT THIS FRIEND DID NOT GIVE IN BECAUSE OF FRIENDSHIP OR BECAUSE OF DUTY. HE GAVE IT BECAUSE OF ANNOYANCE. (8)
• THE KING JAMES BIBLE USES THE WORD, “IMPORTUNITY”. THIS IS THE ONLY PLACE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT THAT THIS GREEK WORD IS USED.
• THE WORD “IMPORTUNITY” MEANS = SHAMELESSNESS.
• ON THE SURFACE, IF WE WOULD INTERPRET THIS PARABLE AS JESUS PRESENTED IT, WE COULD COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT JESUS IS TEACHING THAT HE IS THE WILLING FRIEND BUT DOES NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT RESOURCES TO MEET OUR NEEDS, AND THAT GOD, THE FATHER, LIKE THE UNWILLING FRIEND, IS ANNOYED BY OUR CONSTANT PRAYERFUL BEGGING.
• IS THIS AN ACCURATE DESCRIPTION OF JESUS CHRIST AND GOD, THE FATHER?
• OBVIOUSLY NOT.
• THEN, HOW ARE WE TO INTERPRET THE PARABLE?
• PEOPLE AND THINGS IN PARABLES DO NOT ALWAYS REPRESENT SOMETHING DIRECTLY. SOMETIMES PEOPLE AND THINGS REPRESENT SOMETHING BY CONTRAST. THAT IS TRUE IN THIS PARABLE.
• WHO DOES THE VISITING FRIEND REPRESENT? (6)
• THE VISITING FRIEND REPRESENTS BELIEVERS IN JESUS CHRIST WHO HAVE A NEED AND COME TO THE LORD BY PRAYER TO KNOCK ON THE DOOR OF HEAVEN.
• WHO DOES THE WILLING FRIEND WITHOUT BREAD REPRESENT BY CONTRAST (6)?
• BY CONTRAST THE WILLING FRIEND WITHOUT BREAD REPRESENTS JESUS CHRIST.
• WE MUST MAKE SURE WE UNDERSTAND THIS IS BY CONTRAST BECAUSE JESUS CHRIST CERTAINLY IS NOT WITHOUT BREAD (RESOURCES), AND JESUS CHRIST CERTAINLY IS NOT UNABLE TO GIVE.
• THEN WHY DOES THE PARABLE DEPICT JESUS AS THE FRIEND WHO HAS A SHORTAGE OF RESOURCES AND IS UNABLE TO HELP?
• IT IS MAN WHO OFTEN SEES JESUS AS UNABLE TO GIVE THOSE THINGS THAT WE NEED.
• NOTICE THAT BREAD REPRESENTS A BASIC NECESSITY OF LIFE AND SOMETHING THAT EVERY HOUSEHOLD MADE FRESH DAILY.
• WHO DOES THE UNWILLING FRIEND REPRESENT BY CONTRAST (7)?
• BY CONTRAST THE UNWILLING FRIEND REPRESENTS GOD, THE FATHER.
• THIS REPRESENTATION IS BY CONTRAST BECAUSE IN THE PARABLE WE SEE THIS FRIEND SLEEPING. GOD NEVER SLEEPS. HOWEVER, WE OFTEN THINK THAT GOD IS UNAWARE OF OUR NEEDS.
• WHY IS GOD DEPICTED AS UNWILLING?
• GOD IS NOT UNWILLING TO MEET OUR NEEDS BECAUSE HIS WORD TELLS US OVER AND OVER THAT HE LOVES US AND BLESSES US ABUNDANTLY.
• GOD IS NOT UNWILLING. IT IS MAN THAT SOMETIMES THINKS THAT GOD IS UNWILLING WHEN WE DO NOT GET OUR PRAYER ANSWERED IMMEDIATELY AND IN THE EXACT WAY WE WANTED.
• HOW DO WE KNOW THAT GOD, THE FATHER, IS WILLING AND THAT JESUS CHRIST IS ABLE TO ANSWER OUR PRAYERS?
• READ LUK 11:9-10
• JESUS USES THREE WORDS THAT GIVE AN EMPHASIS TO GOD’S WILLINGNESS AND CHRIST’S ABILITY TO SUPPLY WHAT WE NEED.
• -1- ASK
• ASKING ONCE IS SOMETIMES NOT ENOUGH.
• THERE ARE THOSE WHO SAY THAT WE ARE TO ASK GOD IN FAITH FOR SOMETHING ONLY ONCE. IF WE ASK MORE THAN ONE TIME, WE ARE DEMONSTRATING A LACK OF FAITH.
• THIS PARABLE TEACHES US JUST THE OPPOSITE. WE ARE TO KEEP ON ASKING.
• IN FACT, THE GREEK WORDS FOR “ASK”, “SEEK”, AND “KNOCK”, ARE PROGRESSIVE TENSE COMMANDS THAT MEAN = KEEP ON ASKING, KEEP ON SEEKING, AND KEEP ON KNOCKING.
• WHY MUST WE KEEP ON ASKING IN PRAYER?
• SOMETIMES IT TAKES TIME FOR US TO CONFORM OUR OWN ATTITUDES TO A GODLY PERSPECTIVE AND ACCEPT GOD’S WILL IN A SITUATION
• IN OTHER WORDS, PRAYER CHANGES THE ONE WHO PRAYS.
• SOMETIMES IT TAKES TIME FOR GOD’S PERFECT WILL TO COME TOGETHER WITH GOD’S PERFECT TIMING.
• SOMETIMES THERE IS AN ENEMY TO DEFEAT WHO HINDERS THE ANSWER TO YOUR PRAYER.
• READ DAN 10:5-14
• -2- SEEK
• WHAT IS IT WE ARE TO SEEK?
• WE ARE GO SEEK GOD’S PERFECT WILL IN ALL SITUATIONS.
• WE ARE TO KEEP ON SEEKING GOD’S PERFECT WILL BECAUSE SOMETIMES WE INITIALLY MISS HIS PERFECT WILL.
• -3- KNOCK
• THE GREEK WORD FOR “KNOCK” MEANS = A VIGOROUS, PERSISTENT KNOCK.
• WHY MUST WE BE PERSISTENT IN PRAYER?
• THE MENTAL ILLUSTRATION IS LIKE A HUGE BOLDER SITTING ON THE EDGE OF A CLIFF. THAT BOLDER REPRESENTS YOUR PROBLEM. WITH PERSISTENT PRAYER, YOU MOVE THAT BOLDER INCH BY INCH CLOSER TO THE EDGE OF THE CLIFF UNTIL FINALLY IT FALLS OVER THE CLIFF.
• THERE IS A MARVELOUS BIBLICAL EXAMPLE OF PERSISTENT PRAYER:
• READ GEN 32:24-32
• WHAT IS THE CENTRAL TRUTH OF THE PARABLE?
• GOD IS NOT WITHOUT RESOURCES, NEITHER DOES HE SLEEP. THERE IS NO HOUR OF THE DAY OR NIGHT THAT IS INCONVENIENT FOR GOD. GOD IS NOT UNWILLING TO ANSWER OUR PRAYERS. INSTEAD, GOD IS BOTH WILLING AND ABLE TO ABUNDANTLY DO ALL THAT WE ASK. HOWEVER, GOD DESIRES THAT WE PERSEVERE IN PRAYER, NOT BECAUSE HE IS RELUCTANT, BUT BECAUSE:
• PRAYER CHANGES THE ONE WHO PRAYS.
• PRAYER IS AN EXERCISE OF PERSISTENT FAITH.
• PRAYER IS COMMUNICATION WITH A GOD WHO LOVES TO HEAR FROM US.
• REMEMBER THE KINGDOM PRINCIPLE IS THAT NOTHING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD COMES EASY AND WITHOUT STRUGGLE. THAT IS ESPECIALLY TRUE OF ANSWERED PRAYER.

HOMEWORK
THE PARABLE OF THE RICH FOOL (LUK 12:13-21)
THIS IS A SELF-STUDY. PLEASE DO NOT SEND HOMEWORK ANSWERS TO THE TEACHER FORCORRECTION.

• APPLICATION OF THE PARABLE OF THE FRIENDS AT MIDNIGHT (LUK 11:5-10)

• EXAMINE YOUR PRAYER LIFE. DO YOU GIVE UP TOO EASILY? IF SO, WHY?

• ARE YOUR PRAYERS MORE CONCERNED WITH YOUR OWN WILL RATHER THAN WITH THE WILL OF GOD?

• LIST A MAJOR NEED IN YOUR LIFE THAT REQUIRES PERSISTENT PRAYER.

• DETERMINE TO FOLLOW THE MODEL PRAYER IN LUK 11:2-4 AND PERSEVERE UNTIL YOU SEE THE PROBLEM (THE BOLDER) FALL OVER THE CLIFF.

• PREPARATION FOR THE PARABLE OF THE RICH FOOL (LUK 12:13-21)
• READ LUK 12:13-34 FOR THE CONTEXT OF THE PARABLE
• BACKGROUND NOTE:
• JEWISH LAW SAID THAT THE OLDEST SON INHERITED 2/3 AND THE REST OF THE ESTATE WAS DIVIDED AMONG THE YOUNGER SONS. THE MAN IN VERSE 13 IS PROBABLY A YOUNGER SON WHO DID NOT GET HIS LEGAL SHARE.
• TO WHOM DOES JESUS SPEAK THIS PARABLE?

• DESCRIBE THE ATTITUDE OF THE MAN IN VERSE 13.

• WHO DOES THE “CERTAIN RICH MAN” IN THE PARABLE REPRESENT? (16)

• COUNT THE NUMBER OF TIMES THE WORD, “I”, APPEARS IN VERSES 17-19.

• COUNT THE NUMBER OF TIMES THE WORD, “MY”, APPEARS IN VERSES 17-19.

• WRITE YOUR DEFINITION OF THE WORD, “FOOL”. (20)

• WHAT IS THE CENTRAL TRUTH OF THE PARABLE OF THE RICH FOOL?

• MEMORY VERSE: LUK 12 34