RED LETTER JOURNEY
CRITICAL CARE
PART 3: CRITICAL SIGNIFICANCE
|
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:7-12
The definition of CRITICAL that we will look at today is “a crucial, decisive, or critical operation.”
Do you always give a child what they ask for?
Many of you may remember the 50’s TV show Father Knows Best. Those boys trusted their father and sought his wise counsel. They didn’t always listen and paid the price for their disobedience, but they knew where to go for guidance.
Our Heavenly Father always knows what is best for us.
I’m reminded of the Stones song, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” As God’s children, we may not always get what we WANT, but He will always give us what we NEED.
Charles Spurgeon wrote, “It would be a terrible thing if God always gave us all we asked for. Our heavenly Father himself knows how to give far better than we know how to ask.”
I don’t know about you, but I’m glad my Heavenly Father has not given me everything I’ve asked Him for and I wish I’d been more obedient when He said, “No.” The worst mistakes of my life were due to rebellion against His will and His wishes for me.
In this passage we have three instructions: ASK . . . SEEK . . . KNOCK.
As a child, did you ever ask your parents for anything? If they said ‘no’ or ‘later’ did you give up immediately? Unlike me, you may have been a better child. I rarely gave up. I’d go back and back and back again until I either got a ‘Yes’ or I was told, “If you ask one more time I’m going to spank you.” (Actually, my mom said ‘whip’ but she’d be locked up in today’s society for that.)
First, Jesus tells us to ASK. God doesn’t grow weary of us asking for the desires of our hearts. The Greek word here actually means to beg or crave something. He says if we ask, we will receive. We will always receive an answer to our prayers, but sometimes that answer is NO.
Secondly, Jesus tells us to SEEK. Go for it. Pursue it. We can’t sit in our rocking chairs and expect God to give us everything without any effort on our part. We must endeavor to go after those things we desire, in accordance with God’s will that is.
Lastly, He tells us to KNOCK.
Have you ever gone to a friend’s house and stood outside their door hoping they’d open it? You don’t knock. You don’t ring the bell. You just stand there. What happens? Nothing.
Christ says, “If you knock.” We need to knock. Our Lord gave us free will and will not force His presence on us. We need to knock on heaven’s door via prayer, and He promises to always open up and invite us to come in.
Have you ever gone to someone’s house and knocked on the door, but they didn’t answer immediately? You know they’re inside. What do you do? Do you turn around and go home or knock again? You knock again – and again and again. If you’ve knocked for ten minutes and they still haven’t answered, there is a good chance they are either not at home or they don’t really want to see you.
Jesus promises us if we knock, the door WILL BE opened. He does not say, “I may decide to open the door for you or I may not.” He will not leave us standing outside. He will open it.
I leave you with a few questions?
Have you knocked today? If not, what are you waiting for?
Have you ASKED for HIS FORGIVENESS . . . SOUGHT HIS SALVATION . . . AND RECEIVED HIS REDEMPTION?
If not, what are you waiting for?
If you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus, He is knocking on your heart’s door. Please don’t wait another day. Click on the following link to learn how to find peace in your life.
And if you find it, please let me know. I’d love to hear from you.
Leave a comment