Luke 11:8

“I say to you, Though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend, yet because of his unwillingness to take no for an answer he will arise and give him as many as he needs.”

The man is, however, persistent. He will not take no for an answer and keeps on banging on the door. This is not recommended behaviour, it is illustrating a point. And because the neighbour recognises that he will not take no for an answer, he reluctantly gets up and gives him what he has asked for to the full extent of his needs. It is the only way that he and his family will get any sleep.

The lessons are simple:

· If you want ‘daily bread' from God with which to feed yourself and others you must ask persistently.

· If you go on asking persistently you will receive it, for God is not unwilling like this man but wants to give it to you.

The story is then applied. It is God's desire to give the Holy Spirit to all who ask Him, and on a continual basis. This equates ‘Tomorrow's bread' with the Holy Spirit. But those who would continue to enjoy the new age of the Spirit must be persistent. They must want more and more.