11 If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
In verses 11-13, Jesus asked two questions that show God the Father is a greater Giver than human fathers.
11:11
If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?
Jesus gave two bizarre illustrations of how to respond when someone makes a request of another. If a son asks for something basic like food, would a father provide him with something strange like a stone or a serpent?
11:12
Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?
The second illustration poses the question: If a son asks for an egg, would the father give him a scorpion? It is absurd to think that God would not meet us in our need. It is unthinkable that God would answer prayer in this manner.
11:13
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
Jesus asked His disciples whether their sense of fatherhood was greater than the Father’s. The Father would give the great gift of the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. The Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to engage in ministry. God would later, in the second chapter of Acts (Acts 2:33), give the gift of the Holy Spirit permanently to the church.
The “much more” is far beyond what humans would do.
PRINCIPLE:
We persist in prayer because God has promised to respond to us.
APPLICATION:
God always does that which is consistent with His character in answer to prayer. If a human father wants to provide for his children, much more so does God want to meet His children’s needs. We should never be apprehensive about how God answers our prayers.
It is not sufficient to say our prayers. We need to engage with God as a person in prayer. God does not need to be hounded to answer prayer. The Father will answer those who call upon Him in prayer. Jesus prayed at every major event in His life (Lu 3:21; 5:16, 6:12; 9:28-29). He would pray for Simon (Lu 22:32). He would pray in the garden before His betrayal and crucifixion (Lu 22:40-44). He prayed on the cross (Lu 23:46).
