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TOPIC: Torrey, R A - Keep Praying Until God Answers (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 01 - When He Seems Not To Hear
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When He Seems Not To Hear - Trust Him Still
There are two passages in the Gospel of Luke which throw a flood of light upon the question, "What sort of praying is it that prevails with God and obtains what it seeks from Him?" and also upon the question, "Why is it that many prayers of God's own children come short of obtaining that which we seek of God?"
The first of these two passages you will find in Luk_11:5-10; our Lord Jesus Himself is the speaker:
"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.
"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."
Keep On Praying Until You Get It!
The central lesson in this parable of our Lord is: When we pray, if we do not obtain the thing the first time, pray again; and if we do not obtain it the second time, pray a third time; and if we do not obtain it the hundredth time, go on praying until we do get it.
We should do much thinking before we ask anything of God and be clear that we ask according to His will. We should not rush heedlessly into God's presence and ask for the first thing that comes to mind without giving proper thought to the question of whether it is really what we ought to have. But when we have decided that we should pray for something, we should keep on praying until we get it.
The word translated "importunity" in verse 8 is a deeply significant word. Its primary meaning is "shamelessness"-that is, it sets forth the persistent determination in prayer to God that will not be put to shame by any apparent refusal on His part to grant the thing that we ask.
This is a very startling way that our Lord employs to set forth the necessity of "importunity" and persistence in prayer. It is as if the Lord would have us understand that God would have us draw nigh to Him with a resolute determination to obtain the things that we seek, a determination that will not be put to shame by any seeming refusal or delay on God's part.