Ask, Seek, Knock

Luke 11:9-10 “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

ASK

• Matthew 6:8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!
• Luke 11:11-13 “You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you sinful people 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.”

• Ephesians 3:20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

• John 14:13-14 "You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!"

• Matthew 18:19 “I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you."

• James 4:2-3 You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.
• John 15:7,16 "But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! … You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name."
• 1 John 3:22 And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.
• 1 John 5:14-15 And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.
• James 1:5-6 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

SEEK

• Acts 17:27 "His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us."
• Luke 12:31 "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need."
• Hebrews 11:6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
• Romans 2:7,29 He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. … No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by God’s Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people.
• 1 Corinthians 14:12 Since you are so eager to have the special abilities the Spirit gives, seek those that will strengthen the whole church.

KNOCK

• Luke 11:5-8 Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him,  ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’  And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’  But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.

God doesn't always answer in expected ways.

Jesus doesn't teach us to do something He will not do; He is the ultimate model and fulfillment of asking, seeking, and knocking.

• ASK - John 14:15-17 - “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you."
• SEEK - Luke 19:10 - "For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” (also see Prodigal Son - Luke 15:11-32)
• KNOCK - Revelation 3:20 - “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends."