Luke 11:13 (ESV)
If you then, who are evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Jesus’ disciples asked him to
teach them to pray. They had observed him praying and made the request. He responded
with what we often call the Lord’s Prayer. He then assured them that God would hear
and answer their prayers. If a selfish individual will respond to a friend because
of his persistence, then asking, seeking, and knocking will certainly get a
response from God who is not selfish. Then he ended with verse 13 quoted above.
It’s not what we expect. We would expect him to say, “how much more will the heavenly
Father give you good things.” But that’s not what he says. He says that the
Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask.
Why the Holy Spirit? Because it
is the Holy Spirit that intercedes for us since we don’t know how to pray
according to Romans 8. It is the Holy Spirit that comes alongside us and
teaches us what to say when we are called to answer for our faith according to Luke
12:12. It is the Holy Spirit that grows in us the fruit of the Spirit according
to Galatians 5. It is the Holy Spirit who is given to us because Jesus returned
to Heaven after his resurrection according to his promise in John 16:7. And it
is the Holy Spirit that convinces the world that they need Jesus according to
John 16:8-11.
This passage in Luke 11 is not a
promise that God will give us anything we want. It is not a promise of health
and prosperity. It is much better than that. It is a promise that, as believers
in Jesus Christ, whatever happens in our lives we have the assurance that the
Father hears us and the confidence that the Spirit indwells and empowers us. What
could be better than that?
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