Our Divine Sufficiency

«And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. And he said unto them, When ye pray, say,» «Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.»

At the request of the disciples for instruction in regard to prayer, the Lord gave them the prayer here recorded, every word of which possesses deep meaning.

The Saviour knew that his disciples were dull of comprehension, and as he sought to impress upon them the willingness of their heavenly Father to hear and answer prayer, he simplified his teaching by illustrations. «Which of you,» he said, «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 can not rise and give thee. I say unto you, Tho 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.»

Here, at the unseasonable hour of midnight, a belated traveler is represented as arriving at the house of his friend, who has nothing with which to supply his necessities. But the host does not sit down, and make no effort to meet the needs of his guest. He goes to a neighbor, saying, «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.» The neighbor answers, «Trouble me not; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I can not rise and give thee.» But tho he will not grant his petition because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity, he rises and gives him as many as he needs.

This illustration should be most carefully considered. The traveler needs food; and his friend renders him all the assistance in his power. Tho his neighbor is unwilling to be troubled, he will not desist his pleading; his friend must be relieved; and at last his earnest importunity is rewarded; his wants are supplied.

But none of the excuses urged by the reluctant neighbor will be offered by our heavenly Father. He says: «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?»

With such encouragement as this promise affords, why should there be a reluctance on our part to make known our requests unto God? Christ compares the love of a parent, who is so willing to relieve the necessities of his children, with that of our Father in heaven. He would impress upon his followers their true relationship to God. They are his children, his by creation, and by redemption. God is their Father in a sense that implies a closer relationship than that of a child to its earthly parents. He «so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life.» If earthly parents know how to give good gifts unto their children, how much more shall our Father in heaven «give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him»?

In his lessons Christ presented the relation that the human agents should sustain to God and to one another. He does not leave one soul in darkness in regard to the Source of our strength. He points us to prayer as a refuge in all perplexities and disappointments. He says, «What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.» The needy soul may be supplied with grace if he will ask in simple, trusting, childlike faith in God as his Father, through Jesus as his Saviour. Christ understands the needs of humanity. He will not be indifferent to the soul who desires his love and his presence. He is waiting to be gracious, to impart the bright beams of his righteousness. It was for this that he came to our world. He says, «I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.» But it is only by our own consent that Jesus can release us from our bondage to Satan. His promise is, «Him that cometh to me, I will in nowise cast out.» Then let us not dishonor God by refusing to come to him.

Christ announced his mission to the world when, in the synagogue at Nazareth, he read from the prophecy of Isaiah: «The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.» What a work was before him!—To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. This period embraces age after age, extends from century to century, while probation shall last. God is waiting to hear the asking and knocking; watching to see humanity draw nigh unto him, who alone can help us. He longs to forgive their sins, to receive them as his own. He will receive every contrite soul who comes to him; for it was to do this work that God anointed his only-begotten Son.

But why did not Christ finish the statement recorded in Isaiah? Why did he omit the clause, «and the day of vengeance of our God»? The latter portion of this sentence was just as much truth as the first part; and Christ did not deny the truth by his silence, by withholding a portion of his own words given to his chosen prophet. But this last clause was that upon which his hearers delighted to dwell, and which they were inclined to practice, pronouncing judgment upon all who were not of their religious faith. Instead of giving to the people words of truth and righteousness and forgiveness, they had taught them that God hated all the heathen world. The paternal character of God had been misrepresented, and buried beneath human traditions.

But the time had come for the fulfilment of the prophecy, «The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.» Isa. 9:2. The work of Christ was to present to the world the open door of mercy, through which all might have an abundant entrance through faith and repentance. He held in his hand all the treasures of wisdom. Eternal truth fell from his lips like precious jewels, and its meaning was flashed into the minds and hearts of those who received his words. He had come to uproot tradition and superstition, and sow the earth with truth; in the place of the commandments of men, to give them the commandments of God. The insufficiency of formal, ceremonial obedience to save the soul, he made to appear in its true light when contrasted with the eternal obligations resting upon the human family.

Christ encourages the sincere requests made to him in simple, trusting faith. All who seek of him shall find; all who knock will have the door opened unto them. The excuse will not be made, Trouble me not; the door is closed; I do not wish to open it. God’s is a divine friendship, a treasure house where abundant supplies of spiritual riches are stored for every one who has a sense of his need and asks in faith.

The Lord desires that we shall avail ourselves of the rich supplies awaiting our demand, that we may relieve the necessities of those who are hungering and thirsting for the bread and water of life, by pointing them to the source of righteousness and salvation. But unless dependent upon the grace and wisdom that come alone from God, we can not supply the help of which humanity around us stands in such great need. We can not work successfully for perishing souls unless we often and urgently make our requests known unto God, our Friend in every emergency.

In the work that Christ has left for his followers to do, we may have divine help. His promise is, «Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.» And this promise is «unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.» When perplexities arise, the first thought should be directed to God in prayer. This was the practice of Christ, and he is our efficiency. We need not fail nor be discouraged. In looking unto him whom our sins have pierced, we see the One whom the Father has given to be the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Mrs. E. G. White. —