The Midnight Friend of Importunity
Reflective Reading: Luke 11
We are all familiar with the Lord’s Prayer. In Luke’s rendition of how Jesus taught the disciples to pray, he included a story I like to call The Midnight Friend of Importunity. Let’s read it:
“And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth” (Luke 11:5-8).
Would you happily get up and give your friend what he needed? I’m sure I would get up, but I’m not sure how happy I would be. The friend in this story isn’t very happy either. In fact, he tells his needy friend that the door is locked, his children are sleeping, and he’s not getting up to help him. But something changes his mind, as we see in the last sentence:
“…yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.”
The sleeper does not get up and open the door because the man is his friend, but because of his needy friend’s importunity! I have read the word importunity many times and never given it a second thought. However, as I re-read this story, I became curious about this unique word.
Did you know that the word importunity means shameful begging, impudence, lack of modesty, or irreverence? Fascinating! Now, why would this man get up and help his friend because of his importunity? I certainly wouldn’t want to help my friend if he acted like that! So, what is Jesus trying to communicate with this unusual story? The answer is found in Jesus’ application to the story. He proceeds with the following teaching:
“And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him” (Luke 11:9-13)?
I believe Jesus uses the word importunity to illustrate how much our heavenly Father wants to answer our prayers. If a man will answer the call of a shamelessly begging friend, how much more will our heavenly Father answer our prayers when we ask sincerely? Not only does our Father desire to answer our prayers, he desires to answer them by giving us a gift far greater than anything we could imagine—the Holy Spirit. The story about the needy, rude friend, and the good father giving good gifts to his children, all teach that our heavenly Father desires to give even greater gifts to them who ask. Keep in mind that all of these stories are related to the disciple’s desire to learn to pray. The Apostle Paul picks up on the connection of the Holy Spirit and prayer in Romans 8:26–28:
“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
Friends, there you have it. Don’t stop asking. Don’t stop seeking. Don’t stop knocking. God desires to answer our prayers, and He will give us His Holy Spirit to guide our prayers according to His will, working all things together for good, according to His purpose.
Prayer is the power that sets things in motion. Prayer is the engine that drives our spiritual lives forward. Prayer aligns our lives to accomplish great things for God. Prayer realigns our lives to be in the right place at the right time for the best outcomes. As you continue in prayer by asking, seeking, and knocking, the Holy Spirit will direct and redirect your requests to give you the best results. The disciples asked how to pray, and they got much more than they asked for. The same will be true for us, when we pray, “thy will be done.” And don’t be surprised if you get much more than you asked for!
“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
Sincerely,
Mark Hamby
M.S., M. Div., Th. M., D. Min.
Recommended Resources:
Jessica’s First Prayer Book/Audio Drama (Ages 6+)
Arthur’s Big Opportunity (Ages 6+)
Captain’s Sword (Ages 9+)
The Knight’s Charge (Ages 9+)
Standing with Grace (Ages 9+)
Tip Lewis and His Lamp Book/Audio Drama (Ages 9+)
On My Knees (Ages 12+)
