God’s Messenger Says, “Knock!” – Part 1

David W Palmer

(Matthew 7:7–8 DKJV) “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. {8} For everyone who asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it will be opened.”

“Knock and it will be opened to you.”

Knocking usually implies a repeated and somewhat urgent striking of a closed door. The person knocking wants the door opened; they want a response, and are unashamed to seek it persistently.

Jesus makes this a very open-ended promise when he says, “Knock and it will be opened to you.” (Of course, in his mountaintop classroom, the “you” refers to his closest followers—his apprentices.)

In the following illustration, Jesus gave us a great way to apply his “knocking” promise in the area of prayer:

(Luke 11:5–9 NKJV) And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; {6} for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; {7} and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? {8} I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs. {9} So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

Person A, you, goes to person B for some bread. This speaks of us going to God in prayer. Jesus said that they are already friends, implying that a close and open relationship of familiarity and trust already exists between them. Person A has a legitimate need; person C came to visit him, and he wants to be hospitable and to provide some refreshments. However, he doesn’t have the bread on hand. Because of the late hour, it is not possible to buy any at the shops; so he goes to ask for it from the one with whom he has close relationship—in his case person B, in our case God. So, Jesus’s illustration here applies to us asking God for things we need, and to us interceding for the needs of others.

We see that person B (representing God in this story) didn’t want to stir himself to answer; but because of the unashamed and persistent asking of his friend, he rose and gave him what he needed. In using the word “friend,” Jesus showed that those of his followers who draw close to God, and who love him consistently, would not damage their relationship with him through persistent knocking and asking. In truth, he says that this is evidence of the type of faith he is hoping to find when he returns:

(Luke 18:2–8 NKJV) “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. {3} Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ {4} And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, {5} yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’” {6} Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. {7} And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? {8} I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

In this story, we see an even more extreme example of the effectiveness of persistence when you have a legitimate claim that is covered in your covenant. The judge is like God, but only in as much as he had the title and position of judge. In his personal character, he was far from God-like; he “did not fear God nor regard man.” In other words, Jesus is showing us that persistence will even work on a person who doesn’t care about your needs or your legitimate claims.

So how much more will your insistent knocking reach God’s heart; he loves you, and his compassion deeply feels your needs. As a good Father, he longs to supply what his family wants, let alone their needs and legitimate claims. So we can be fully assured of God’s willingness to act; he is not at all reluctant to respond positively to our knocking. Jesus assures us that God is listening to our cry, and will “avenge” us “speedily.”

Although the judge in Jesus’s story was unsympathetic to the widow’s claim, because he was in a role representing God’s authority, the widow had little choice but to approach him. We see that the widow’s righteous persistence came from her conviction that her cause was just, and that her covenant assured her of a favorable outcome. Her unashamed, faith-filled persistence moved the “unjust judge” into action on her behalf. How much more “shall God not avenge his own elect”?

We note, however, that Jesus also said, “Though he bears long with them.” This is because God has to take a lot into account when proposing to act on earth; he has many other people to consider, and ramifications to evaluate. Each time God acts, he has to ensure that his actions are in line with his nature of love. So he has to warrant that what he does is for the highest good of everyone, not just us. Yet, despite the delays of love’s constraints, he will certainly show us favor way beyond what we deserve, and give us far more than we could ever earn. God is good; he will speedily answer in the fastest time his perfect love will allow.

Today, I encourage you to keep knocking in your prayer of faith. It’s not the repetition that moves God, but the unashamed, fully assured faith that prompts it. He is listening to your cry today. Don’t give up; “knock and it will be opened to you.”