Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened, MAT 7:7-8.

Our text is a command to pray for all gracious gifts. Few Scriptural verses have been more perverted in meaning than these. Many have regarded it as a blank check that can be filled out by anyone, regardless of their conduct or walk of life. Nothing is further from the truth. We see in JAM 4:3, "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts." That is not a contradiction. When we ask any petition that we would use to exalt ourselves and our fleshly desires, that is asking amiss.

In our text the Lord Jesus is giving us a command to ask. See the context in which this same command is used in Luke 11. The disciples said, "Lord, teach us to pray." Jesus first gave them the Lord's Prayer, asking God to give, forgive, and then deliver. There is no deliverance until there is forgiveness, and for us to ask without having a forgiving spirit, is not acceptable. MAT 6:12 says, "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." LUK 11:4a says, "And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us."

We must see the context in which Jesus gave our text. In the gospel of Luke, which is a counterpart to our text, we need to understand that we must ask for forgiveness first, and with the forgiveness that we forgive, we will be forgiven. "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive." If we do not forgive, we will not be forgiven.

In order to understand why this is not a blank check, we must keep it in the context in which the Saviour spoke it. Our text does not teach that God becomes our servant, but it is a prayer to know His will. Taken out of context it could give the impression that all we have to do is dictate, and God is at our command. That is not the meaning of our text; it is a prayer to know His will.

Our text must be seen in context with MAT 6:33, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God [which is to come under the reign and rule of Christ, the King of kings], and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Our highest desire must be to walk in the service of the Lord. Our first request must be, "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth...," MAT 6:9-10. In other words, what is Thy will comes first, then all these other things will be added unto you.

Our text teaches the same principle as 1JO 5:14, "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us." Therefore, the first issue of prayer must be to know the will of God. We must include in our prayer, "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Our first petition must be for wisdom to ask according to His will; then He will hear us.

The people who ask and receive not are those who seek first their own desires and all that pleases the flesh. They have a legal religion. A legal religion is a desire to be delivered from the penalty of sin before the courts of heaven, but there is no desire to be delivered from sin itself. A legal religion looks only at the letter of the law without any concern for the spirit of the law; even then the letter of the law becomes a matter of selective choice coupled with a private interpretation. They have a selfish religion which is not motivated by a love for God nor a desire to become reconciled to Him. They want mercy before God's bar of justice, but they have no desire for the imparted righteousness of Christ that they might walk in His footsteps.

PRO 28:9 says, "He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination." Now we see that "Ask, and it shall be given you," and "For every one that asketh receiveth," doesn't mean it is for everyone who asks, regardless of their frame of mind. If our first desire and petition is not to hear and do the will of God, our prayers are an abomination. We are told to come boldly unto the throne of grace, but see those preceding verses. That boldness is in the Spirit of Christ. It is not to come with arrogance.

In HEB 4:15-16 we read, "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. [Then it says in the next verse] Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Do you see that the boldness must be in Christ? That boldness must be with our eyes looking to a Christ who knows the feeling of our infirmities. He knows who we are and that we are not able to do what we must do. Now our petition must be, "Thy will be done." In Christ, who is the express image of God, we see the will of God. He has a feeling for our infirmities; in all points He was tempted as we are, but He is without sin.

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy." That implies we are asking for mercy, undeserved favor; we have no right or title to it. We cannot come with arrogance, but we can come with boldness when we come to obtain mercy! What is mercy? It is undeserved favor and help in time of need. We may come boldly in the Spirit of Christ. We would not discourage any person from coming to the Lord who comes in the right spirit.

When we pray in Jesus' name, we must acknowledge from our heart there is no merit in anything we say or do, but we ask only on the basis of mercy merited by Christ. Sometimes it is so hard to realize that even though we may be in travail and in great need, yet that is not the basis upon which we will be heard. A petition we are bringing before the Lord may be so urgent, but we will be heard only on the basis that we deserve nothing, Christ has merited it for us. So when we ask in Jesus' name, we are asking, knowing we deserve nothing, but we ask for Christ's sake because He has merited it through the blood of His cross.

God says we are not to pray as the heathen. We are told in MAT 6:7-8, "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him."

During a meeting a man told of a book he had read in which a person prayed non-stop for three hours. He explained that several men had gone to the door to listen, and found the person was still praying. So this man asked the group, "When was the last time you have prayed for three hours?" It was as though by much speaking, he would prevail. The Lord admonishes us against that kind of thought.

The most powerful prayer I ever prayed in my life was, "Lord, help me," just three words! At the time there were no other words I could find to say. I had no words to express what was in my heart or what my problem was. However, I understood Jesus' words, "your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him." That prayer brought one of the greatest blessings to me when the Lord spoke to my soul out of ISA 41:13, "For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee." And He did help me.

We must not think we gain access before the throne of God's grace for much speaking, but that doesn't mean we don't sometimes spend hours in prayer. However, we don't spend hours thinking that we will open the door of heaven thereby.

The words of our text must be taken in context with other Scriptures, such as 1JO 3:22, "And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight." These commands under the law of love are described in TIT 2:11-14, "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." Do we want access before the throne? Then this is what we should be praying for: "Thy will be done."

When we turn from ungodliness, it is a blessed demonstration of His will. Ungodliness is any transgression of the first table of the law; godliness is to love God with our heart, our soul, and our mind. Any transgression of that law of love is ungodliness.

"We should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world." What does righteously mean? It is our right attitude toward our fellow man which is the second table of the law of love. It means we should come before the Lord asking Him what His holy will is in this matter, case, or situation as touching this brother so we might live in a Godly manner in this life for His glory.

Our text is found in the section beginning with MAT 7:1 and continues through V:12. We must see our text in its context. It begins with "Judge not," a topic I've already spoken on, but I want you to see the context in which our text lays. When we get a glimpse in our own heart, then we become like the Pharisees that brought the woman taken in adultery to Jesus. When the Lord gave them a glimpse into their own heart, they didn't have one stone to throw at a woman who was guilty of a crime punishable by death.

The group of verses in which our text lays ends with the golden rule: "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets," MAT 7:12. Now we can see that the context in which our text lays pertains to the second table of the law of love.

The verse just before our text tells us not to cast that which is holy before dogs nor our pearls before the swine. How can we say to a brother we will remove the mote from his eye when there is a beam of self-righteousness in our own eye? We can only do so with a knowledge of our own unrighteousness in the Spirit of Christ, prayerfully; that is the message our text is teaching us. It is praying for the Spirit of Christ that we may observe the precepts in the preceding verses.

As we learn by God's grace to see what manner of person we ought to be, who would not say with the apostle in 2CO 2:16, "And who is sufficient for these things?" Who would not see and realize that we need God's help? We may not with a self-righteous beam in our own eye pass judgment on a brother. We may not take that which is holy and cast it before dogs. How do we discern this? Where is the line? We must judge between right and wrong, but not with a judgmental or condemning spirit. "And who is sufficient for these things?" We are not. Therefore, the Lord Jesus is teaching us, "Ask." We must ask that the Lord will give us the right spirit in dealing with our fellow man; that the Lord will give us the right attitude, and the Spirit of Christ.

Our Saviour's teaching in our text is to teach us that we are not to seek these things within ourselves, but to seek the Spirit of Christ that comes from above. We, within ourselves, will always have a judging spirit, justifying ourselves while condemning the other man. Christ is telling us we must come before the throne of grace seeking His Spirit that we might be able to exhort others in love. We are to come seeking to restore such a one, not destroy him, and restore him in the Spirit of Christ lest we be taken in a fault, cf., GAL 6:1.

This childlike spirit is beautifully described by the psalmist in PSA 123:2, "Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us." There is a tremendous lesson in that passage. When that Psalm was written, it was customary that kings, rulers, etc., had many servants who were trained to watch their master's hand. If the master wanted them, he would beckon to them, and they would come to be instructed or given their orders. So they were always watching the hand of their master or mistress for the beckoning to know what they must do.

Psalm 123:2 so blessedly illustrates how our eyes must be trained to see the Lord's hand in His every providence. If the hand of the Lord has shown us any displeasure in any way, shape, or form that means for us to draw near unto Him to inquire of His will.

"So [the psalmist says in effect,] our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us." In other words, our eyes are open to see as well as our ears are open to hear. Often we can see the Lord's hand in something in the way of providence even though He may not have spoken to us in His Word. So our eyes are unto the Lord, "as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God." These humble prayers are answered by the Lord granting what we ask for as our text says, "For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened," MAT 7:8.

The Apostle James teaches that God gives liberally when we ask in faith. Scripture says that if we lack wisdom, we are to ask of God. Where does wisdom begin? "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding," PRO 9:10. "The fear of the Lord" is a holy reverence for His will. If one does not have that Godly fear in his heart, he may not despair over it. JAM 1 5-8 says, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." The next verse is an admonition. "But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed." If we come to the Lord and ask His will, we will find His revealed will in the Scriptures.

However, if you say that under these circumstances, at this time, you can't obey, then that is not asking in faith. We may not barter the Word of God. When we see His will clearly written in the Word of God, it is "Amen." Our Isaac goes on the altar; everything we own goes on the altar. There is no bartering; we say, "Lord, Thy will be done!" We cannot separate faith from obedience.

What was the unbelief in the children of Israel while they were in the wilderness? It was a matter of disobedience. Each time the Lord commanded them to do something; they murmured. They were to go forward, and they didn't do it. They decided to have a captain over them and return to Egypt. Rebelling against the Lord's will, they disobeyed. 1CO 10:9-12 says, "Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall."

Faith and obedience cannot be separated. "Let him ask in faith;" in other words, in obedience, let him obey when he receives knowledge of the will of God. To waver means that even though you know the will of God, it is more convenient to do other things first; you can't quite make that big a sacrifice today. What happens? One becomes like the wave of the sea, tossing to and fro, unable to truly come before the Lord to ask, "Lord, what is Thy will," because when it is shown to you, you don't do it.

Continuing, JAM 1:7 says, "For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways." A double-minded man has a double standard; he will do the Lord's will, but...not in this instance, the sacrifice would be to great. Therefore, he is unstable in all his ways. That is very important to understand. "Ask, and it shall be given you;" but how do we ask? We are to ask in faith, i.e., in the way of obedience; when we understand the will of God, we do it. If a man has a double standard, "let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord." That is very powerful language.

The most powerful prayer is to plead God's Word or His promise. We receive insight into His will from His Word, and when we receive the application of the Word by the Holy Spirit, then we have a promise which applies to us personally. Our most powerful prayer is, "Lord, thou hast said." 2SA 7:25 says, "And now, O LORD God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, establish it for ever, and do as thou hast said." What could be more powerful than to call God on His Word? How can we call Him on His Word if we are ignorant of it or are tromping on it?

Notice how MAT 7:8 seems to be a repetition of V:7. "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Seemingly V:8 is a repetition. "For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." Now let's see the distinction between them. There is one very significant difference, see that word everyone! The word everyone which is not in V:7 teaches that every saint from the most established in faith, to the newest born babe in Christ needs to daily cry unto the Lord for every need. That means not one person is excluded in that command; there is no such thing as becoming so established in faith that we can go by faith without prayer.

As Jesus ceased praying, it was one of His disciples, not a Samaritan, that said unto Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples," LUK 11:1. The oldest and most experienced saint has as much need to be shown God's way as the weakest babe in grace. There is never a time when a person can become so strong in faith that he can proceed without knowing the Lord's will. The Lord doesn't give manna for more than one day. When manna came down in the wilderness, they had to gather it every day.

1CO 8:1-2 says, "Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. [When we get to where we think we know it all, not needing the Lord, then we find] And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know." When we get to the place where we think we know, where we don't need to ask anymore, we have become proud and puffed up and arrogant. Then we need prayer more than the smallest babe in Christ.

This Scripture teaches us that true prayer is not only a gift of God, for His own apostles had to come asking to be taught to pray, but it is not to be learned in the schools of human learning. It is not something where we go from kindergarten on through various grades to graduate with a Master's or Doctor's degree in the matter of prayer. It does not work that way. I find in my own life, if the Lord withdraws, I become as prayerless as one who has never known the Lord. Then my urgent prayer must be, "Lord, teach me to pray. Lord, give me prayer."

One time one of my children asked me to pray for him. My answer had to be, "Pray for me that the Lord will give me prayer." It is so easy to say, "I'll pray for you." We can give a whole recitation of words on bended knee, but there may not be a grain of true prayer in it. Prayer is a gift of God. We need to ask God to give us prayer. "Teach me to pray" is a prayer that must be used throughout our entire lives. It doesn't make any difference how established one is in faith, we must still come back to the Lord asking for a true prayer.

We see in Luke's counterpart to our text that after Jesus had given the disciples the pattern of prayer in the Lord's prayer, He went on to illustrate effective prayer. Let's deal with this in its context. Jesus is teaching the beautiful combination of humility and boldness in LUK 11. There is great difference between arrogance and boldness.

Asking is a beggar's trade, and Jesus says, "Ask." It requires humility to ask for that which we have no claim or right. How would you feel walking up to a stranger and asking for something which you do not have coming? It is humiliating. Can you picture asking one of your own friends for something to which you have no right? That is not asking the person to sell something; it is asking that they give it to you. That is humble pie, beggar's language.

Asking is a confession that we are missing that for which we ask. We do not go up to a person and ask for something already in our hand. When we come before the Lord, we come empty handed as a beggar. When we pray, "Lord help me!" or "Lord save me!" or "Our Father which art in heaven...give us...forgive us...deliver us," we are confessing our helpless, lost condition. That in itself is a confession. Analyze this. When we say, "Thank you," for something, we are confessing that we are not entitled to what we have received. We must come with prayer and thanksgiving to make our needs known. We don't need to say, "Thank you," for something we had coming. The more undeserving one is, the greater the gratitude, and the greater the thanksgiving. We can see this when we pray, "Lord help me!" or "Lord save me!" We are really confessing our helpless condition. We are relying upon His delivering hand.

In teaching His disciples how to pray, Jesus also taught boldness, "Ask and it shall be given you... For every one that asketh receiveth." We do not have to be timid; we do not have to come with unbelief which is an attitude of "I'll ask, but I won't get it anyway." We must ask in faith, believing we shall receive what we ask. "Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them," MAR 11:24. That is asking with boldness. Now we can come in faith pleading His promise. "Ask, and it shall be given you...For every one that asketh receiveth."

Asking as a beggar requires humility, but it also requires boldness. Can you picture yourself as a beggar? Not only would it take humility, it takes some boldness and fortitude within yourself to dare to go up to a person and ask for something. Coming as a beggar to the King's palace requires much boldness, therefore Jesus gives this encouraging promise, "For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." This is encouragement to the weak one so they don't come with unbelief. They can come with faith believing they shall receive because He has promised. Now the one with little faith can come pleading this promise for he shall receive.

Jesus so beautifully illustrates this in LUK 11:5-8, "And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth."

We must notice in His illustration Jesus showed that the humble boldness of a friend aroused the man's compassion to fill a need. There is humility and boldness. The man was told, "No," but he didn't give up. He shows his humility when he said he needed help. He stressed his need with persistence.

The contrast is that we come to more than a friend, we come to our heavenly Father! Now compare that to a little child who comes to his busy father, tugging on his trousers, saying, "Daddy, I'm hungry. Can I have something to eat?" Our heavenly Father has a parental relationship with us; He is closer than a friend. How much more would He do it than an earthly father? "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" LUK 11:13.

Jesus also illustrated the reluctance of the friend due to the inopportune time. The man was in bed; he was slumbering and weary. Have you ever had someone try to wake you up shortly after falling asleep? That is more disturbing than being awakened a half hour earlier in the morning. The man had probably gone to bed shortly before this; a most inopportune time.

PSA 121:2-4 tells us, "My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." We can't come to the Lord at an inopportune time; we can't come to Him and find Him in bed sleeping; we can't come to Him in a time when He is weary. There is no such thing as an inopportune time with the Lord, no matter what time of the day or night we come. Sometimes our most powerful prayer comes during the night. While the rest of the family is sleeping, we can wrestle, as Jacob wrestled all night, in prayer. The Lord never sleeps or slumbers; He is never weary.

This illustration also teaches us that the man would not arise because the request was only a simple matter of a trifling need. If he had fallen among thieves, was bleeding and dying, the man would have arose immediately. This was just a request for some loaves of bread, a request that could probably wait until morning, and it was just a friend. That never happens with the Lord.

It is our privilege to come unto the Lord with our smallest need. See the royal invitation issued to every saint in PHI 4:6-7, "Be careful for nothing [for the smallest thing]; but in every thing by prayer [even the smallest requests] and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." The peace of God means we will have every request supplied through Christ Jesus. We must not forebear because the request is small.

The need for importunity implies that prayer is not always answered when and in the manner we may imagine. The Lord is teaching us that we don't always get the answer the first time we ask; perhaps the first request will be denied. This implies that we are not always answered when and in the manner we imagined. The Lord has His own way of answering prayers.

The man didn't want to get up because he had a reluctance within himself; he was weary, tired, and didn't want to get up. That is not the case with God. We don't need to overcome any hesitation in God, but God sometimes withholds Himself until the posture of our heart is right. Therefore, we need importunity.

ISA 30:18 says, "And therefore will the LORD wait [God is not our bellboy who responds at the snap of a finger; most often He waits for a proper posture of the heart], that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him." God sometimes puts us in a holding pattern; we may have to wait for His answer. Let's look at several reasons why the Lord doesn't answer prayer instantly.

God delays in answering prayer also teaches the need for soul searching to see if there be any unrepented sin which hides the Lord's face. Is it possible that we have an unforgiving spirit toward another person? When we come before the throne of grace with a wrong attitude, He doesn't answer; so we keep knocking. Now it puts us to soul searching. Why doesn't the Lord answer?

In HOS 5:14-15 we read how the Lord knocks on the door of our heart with His chastening hand. "For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the house of Judah: I, even I, will tear and go away; I will take away, and none shall rescue him. I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early." If our prayer does not include a confession of our own guilt before the Lord, we may need some soul searching. He may not answer if we have unacknowledged sin. He brings us into affliction and hides His face because we need to search out iniquity within ourselves.

The Lord also waits to be gracious to prove our earnestness. Had the man seeking bread replied it was okay, he'd be back in the morning, he would have known there was no earnest need, and he wouldn't have given the three loaves. The Lord is going to test us to see how earnest we are, to sort out our faith and unbelief. Faith is knowing His promise and waiting until He answers. Unbelief knocks on the door once and leaves thinking he wouldn't get it anyway.

JER 29:13 says, "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." The Lord doesn't want a half-hearted sinner service. He doesn't want our heart divided, half for the world and human reasoning and half of God's Word as His will. He wants whole-hearted service.

It is by our importunity and endurance in prayer that our faith is distinguished from unbelief. In PSA 27:14 we read, "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." We come before our God on bended knee with a humble heart, and we wait until He answers. We do not run ahead of Him thinking we have it figured out; the Lord didn't answer, but "this" is probably it, and off we go.

Importunity is needful to reveal the rebellion of the heart which needs to be broken. Then our prayer becomes like that of Ephraim in JER 31:18, "I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God." That means it is as an ox or bullock just being broke, he didn't understand how to serve under the yoke. The animal had not been trained, did not know how to work with the animal on the other side of the yoke. Therefore, he fought to get away, and was chastised. Now see the prayer that follows, "Turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God." Here we recognize that we have been rebellious and need to have the rebellion broken, so our prayer is that the Lord will turn us in such a way that we have a desire to walk in the ways of the Lord. We need the Lord to turn our heart of rebellion to walk in His ways.

It is while we are waiting in a humble posture that we hear Jesus' voice saying "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden [with a burden of sin], and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you [come into my service], and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light," MAT 11:28-30. We must come under the yoke of Christ; we must understand that the yoke of Christ is to serve the Lord. We cannot walk in the ways of the flesh, the things of our vain and sinful heart; that is rebellion. We must see we cannot do anything of our own that is pleasing to the Lord, so we ask the Lord to turn us, believing we shall receive what we ask. That is when faith comes into lively exercise.

Jesus says, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart [What does that mean?]: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." This means we are to look to the example of Christ. "Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously," 1PE 2:23. Jesus suffered the shame we deserve on the cross, but He prayed and said, "...Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do," LUK 23:34. He said we are to learn of Him. How? "Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." MAT 16:24. We are to crucify that ugly monster, "self," that old man of sin, for His yoke is so easy when we learn the delight there is in doing His will, cf., PSA 112:1.

These teachings and trials of faith are necessary to teach patience. JAM 1:2-4 says, "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." Did you ever stop to analyze how important patience is? That is the subject of another sermon, so I will not dwell on it here. However, we are to become patient in well-doing, in waiting upon the Lord.

Such trials are also necessary to reveal our faith by our patient quest for our urgent needs through importunity. We need to look at another illustration found in the pages of Holy Writ about patience being tried, importunity prevailing, wherein God was glorified. We find it in MAT 15:22-23, "And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. [He did not answer her; she had to wait.] And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us." Do you see the encouragement she received? Her patience and her faith were being tried, but her importunity, i.e., persistance, prevailed.

Next the Lord Jesus said in V:24, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel;" In other words, He wasn't sent for her, but nothing daunted her. She may have reasoned that she wasn't one of God's elect! Her faith was tried; her importunity was tried because she could have turned and walked away in despair. She renewed her petition with all the more persistence in V:25, "Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me." Take notice of how short her prayer was. She didn't argue about anything.

See how Jesus hid His face until she acknowledged her sin to reveal her humility as well as her boldness. It is so important that we confess our sin when we are struggling before the Lord. MAT 15:26-27 says, "But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."

Jesus hid His love for her until she revealed her humility and boldness by acknowledging her sin and unworthiness. She confessed that she was no more than a dog, but she was still pleading. She acknowledged she was not entitled to the children's bread but she was pleading for the crumbs which fell to the dogs. Do you see her importunity? That is what we must learn. She confessed who she was; she was unworthy; she could even reason that she was not even one of His elect because He said He didn't even come for her, but she still prevailed in prayer by such importunity.

God was glorified by her continued asking, seeking and knocking; she confessed her unworthiness until she received her desired request, which revealed her faith. The Lord wanted her faith to be revealed. To have faith is one thing, but sometimes the Lord holds back answers to reveal our faith and put it into lively exercise. By trying our faith, like Abraham putting Isaac on the altar, faith is revealed. Without the trial, no one, not even Abraham, would have known he had that much faith. Only the Lord would have known, but when Abraham obeyed and placed Isaac on the altar, his faith was revealed by his obedience.

Now watch what happened to this woman; the Lord brought a trial upon her that God would be glorified in the revelation of her faith. In MAT 15:28 we read, "Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour." The Lord used this trial, these discouragements, and His abstaining from answering to reveal her faith.

True faith is not destroyed by God's delay; it knows "He waits to be gracious," and therefore its possessor is able to say with Jeremiah in LAM 3:26, "It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD." This is so precious when we have experienced a little of it. The Lord uses this as He did with the Israelites in the wilderness. Are we going to start murmuring and revealing our unbelief. Will we chide with Moses and the Lord? Will we come against the law as though it were unfair? The Lord will try our faith to see if we can say, "It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD."

When Jesus' disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, this is one of the chief lessons He taught, "Our Father which art in heaven...give us...forgive us...deliver us"! "Give us" teaches us to come as a beggar, "forgive us" teaches us that we must become guilty, and that we need forgiveness. "Deliver us" teaches that we are confessing our helpless condition in ourselves. It shows that we have acknowledged our need for salvation which comes only from the Lord. Amen.

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