11:8 - I have always been perplexed by this verse. It seems like Jesus is saying that God doesn't want to be bothered by us, but He will if we keep pushing. In reality, as you study the verse, you find out that what it really means is that God will grant us not because we ask and keep on asking, but because of His good character. God gives to us because He is good and not because He has to. Every gift God gives is like a father giving his kids Christmas presents. It is so much fun He is just as excited as we are.
11:10 - For everyone to receive when they ask this passage must be seen in light of vs 13. The asking is for salvation or for the Holy Spirit and God always says yes to that prayer. I think sometimes we have taken this verse to mean we can get whatever we want from God. In reality, God is promising to give us as much of the BEST thing if we will ask Him. god doesn't promise we can have all we want (that spoils people), but He is promising He will always give us more of Himself. For those of us that walk with Him this should be even more encouraging than thinking we can have anything we want.
11:11-12 - God ONLY gives good gifts. I remember being raised and when I prayed I would give God all kinds of caveats as if He would give me exactly what I asked instead of what I meant. I actually would pray like an attorney on a car commercial with all kinds of tiny writing to make sure God didn't have any loopholes. I would pray that I could see my mom, but not if it meant someone getting in a tragic accident or dying. As if God would kill someone off to teach you to pray more specifically. God always gives good gifts and He knows what we are praying for. We can trust Him with every prayer that He will only say yes to what is good and do it with no strings attached.
11:17 - A house divided against itself will fall! That includes God's house. We need to protect against division and fighting. We have to stand together for the same things.
11:23 - "Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters."
11:24-26 - It isn't enough to clean up your life and to put things in order. Jesus says that if you only do that the bad things that were in your life will eventually get hungry again and you will end up giving in and being worse off than the beginning. Jesus is teaching that we need to invite God in so our hearts (cleaned and put in order) are occupied by someone strong enough to fight off our old life when it comes back. This is why self-help Christianity is a waste of time. Being a better person doesn't fix anything. Being a person more surrendered to Christ is what makes the difference. If we spent more time getting to know Him and inviting Him in to live with us we would have a lot less repenting to do.
11:29 - "As the crowds increased, Jesus said, 'This is a wicked generation.'" WOW! When we see the crowds increase we pull back, but Jesus let loose. He wanted to make sure that people didn't just follow and miss the point. When the crowds increase we need to make sure to help them see the truth. Crowds feel good when you are the one leading, but it is more important that they know the truth than you and I feeling good about ourselves.
11:41 - "But know as for what is inside you - be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you."
11:42 - We should all be committed to justice and the love of God.
Love, Michael
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