ASK, SEEK KNOCK, BEILEVE !

ASK, SEEK, KNOCK, BEILEVE: Whether or not you use your Bible to pray the promises of God's Word back to Him putting Him in remembrance of what He said, whether or not they use it, most believers are unaware of this verse in the Bible: "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matthew 7:7). Too often, though, many believers fail to receive what they are asking for; they fail to find what they are seeking; and the door on which they are knocking is not open. Why ? They must be doing something wrong when they don't receive, because the next verse promises, "for everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened" (v.8) what is the reason for their failure ? Either that person is not known by the Lord, or they are not coming according to the rule of the Bible: and that rule is that we come in faith. And I must say this one more time in this lesson, the Word of God is the object of our faith ! I once read a book by a missionary who had spent 32 years in the Holy Land. This was around the turn of the century, when customs there was very much like they had been for centuries. In this book, the missionary commented on this passage of Scripture in (Matthew 7). He said, "I thought, as most Believers do, that when Jesus said, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you," He meant if you asked and didn't receive an immediate answer to keep on asking. However, after living in the Holy Land for many years and becoming familiar with the thinking of the Eastern mind, I learned that this was not what Jesus meant at all. "In those days, if someone came to the outer gate and knocked, seeking entranc, the more wealthy was saying there servant to call out and asked the name of the visitor. If it was someone who was known, they could enter immediately. If it was someone unknown, the servant would go to the master of the house and asked if he or she should let the visitor in. The thought here is that when you knock, if you are known, you gain immediate entrance. "To him that knocketh it shall be opened." If when we ask we do not receive, if when we seek we do not find, if when we knock it is not open to us, we should ask ourselves if we are known by the master of the house. If not, we should become acquainted personally and intimately with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We should make Him Lord of our life daily and not just when we visit something that is called church. Or when we feel like it ! Having done this, the next step in faith, to ". . . Believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (Hebrews 11:6). For, as Jesus explained in (Matthew 7:11), our heavenly Father is eager to give gifts unto His children: "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him ?" (v. 11). What earthly father or mother wants his or her child to go through life poor and downtrodden, sick and suffering ? On the contrary, most of us labor and suffer so our children can have advantages we never had. So if you, being carnal -- being human -- want good things for your children, ". . . HOW MUCH MORE shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him ?" Those three words, "how much more," sends a thrill through my spirit.