“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. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
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.” Matthew 7:7-11 (KJB)
Some will note that I changed the question mark to a period. Why? I believe it to be a statement from Jesus and not a question, though I know His questions often make very loud statements. I noticed too that the New King James, as do other translations use an exclamation mark; which might be even better.
My thoughts today are on verse 11 solely. No father of earth would be so mean, ugly, and hateful as to give their child a serpent rather than a fish, or if they were hungry give them a stone rather than bread. I am speaking of Dad’s who care for their children; not the deserters, who care for no one but themselves.
Even though we are evil, we are still kind to our children, and sometimes to others. The goodness we see of people around us doing “good things” should be a reminder to us of the superior goodness of our heavenly Father.
He loves us even when we are unlovely, unloving, and downright hateful (John 3:16). He loved us so much that even though we were His enemies He sent His Son to die for us (Romans 5:8).
O my; how the goodness of God is so far superior than any goodness we have.
“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! — Bad as our fallen nature is, the father in us is not extinguished. What a heart, then, must the Father of all fathers have towards His pleading children! In the corresponding passage in Luke (see on Luk_11:13), instead of “good things,” our Lord asks whether He will not much more give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him. At this early stage of His ministry, and before such an audience, He seems to avoid such sharp doctrinal teaching as was more accordant with His plan at the riper stage indicated in Luke, and in addressing His own disciples exclusively.” Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary
Will you call on the name of Jesus today? Will trust the One who is truly the one who describes Goodness?
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