LUKE 11
    Luke 11:1 "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."
    This is possibly one of the disciples who was not present when Jesus taught the 12. There is no formal record of the prayer John
the Baptist taught his disciples. In Matthew, Jesus says after this manner pray ye (Matthew 6:9). He did not mean for them to pray
the exact prayer, but rather that it was the type of prayer they should pray.
    Luke 11:2 "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, as in heaven, so in earth."
    Luke 11:3 "Give us day by day our daily bread."
    Luke 11:4 "And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil."
    Jesus is showing them a pattern of prayer. The first thing is to pray to the Father. Second, praise Him before going on.
Third, desire His kingdom to come. Fourth, line our will up with his will. Fifth, we are taught to live one day at a time.  Sixth, take
no thought for tomorrow.  Seventh, we are told if we are to be forgiven, we must forgive. Then keep us from the desire to sin, keep
us away from evil.  Then, we must ask this in the name of Jesus Christ.  Jesus was not saying
to say this prayer. He was saying pray in this manner.  The three most important things in prayer is pray to the Father, in the name
of Jesus, then have faith that it will happen.
    Luke 11:5 "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;" 
    Luke 11:6 "For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?" 
    Luke 11:7 "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." 
    Luke 11:8 "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."
    God is the greatest friend that any of us can have. Midnight is a very late hour and time is running out. We see, here, the bread
(Jesus) that we all need. This person has waited late to receive. These 3 loaves could indicate that he doesn't have the Father, Son ,
or Holy Spirit.  This friend is like a minister who has run out of the Spirit himself. He has no bread, either, He goes to God, but he
has waited a long time to ask; and God says it is late. God's children (the Christians) have already come home and are resting with
Him. Prayers, if they are sincere, God will hear and answer and give him the Spirit he desires.
    Luke 11:9 "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."
    You have not, because you ask not. Jesus tells these disciples and us how to get our prayers answered. The first step is to ask. If
we seek God. He is not in hiding. God will answer our prayers when we ask. Jesus, Himself, has opened the door to heaven for us.
    Luke 11:10 "For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened."
    God answers prayers. He will open the door to you, if you just keep on knocking.
    Luke 11:11 "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?" 
    Luke 11:12 "Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?"
    A father cares for his children and wants only the best for them, just as our heavenly Father God wants the best for all believers.
When we pray to Him, He gives us good things. These things asked for are good gifts that any father would give. The bread is
symbolic of Jesus, the fish symbolizes new life, however, the serpent and the scorpion symbolize Satan.
    Luke 11:13 "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?"
    The Holy Spirit is promised to those who ask and seek. The best gift, next to salvation, that a Christian can receive is the Holy
Spirit. It gives us power to live this life victoriously. Evil people do give good gifts to their children but they are not always careful
to make sure these gifts are in the best interest of the receiver. God gives the things that will help in our Christian walk.
    Luke 11:14  "And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the
dumb spake; and the people wondered."
    In this crowd were those from the synagogue who were trying to trap Him. They knew that evil spirits existed and also knew that
this dumb person had not been delivered by any of their Holy men. This "man" had such power over evil spirits, that they could not
explain it.
    Luke 11:15 "But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils."
    They could not explain this so they assume that this is demonic. They could not deliver this dumb person, so they
naturally assume that this is not of God.
    Luke 11:16 "And others, tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven."
    They have already had a sign from heaven in the dumb speaking, but are too blind to see.
    Luke 11:17 "But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to
desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth."
    Jesus is saying Satan would not come against Satan. He would not go against himself. Satan would not want the man delivered
because Satan is a destroyer, not a deliverer.
    Luke 11:18 "If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils
through Beelzebub."
    Luke 11:19 "And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your
judges."
    Jesus tells them, let your own sons be judged with the same measure you are judging Me. Jesus tells them, "Your own religious
people practice deliverance. Are they working with Satan as you accuse me?" Jesus gives them no chance of argument. He is not
working with Satan, but against him.
    Luke 11:20 "But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you."
    Jesus, tells them, I have proven by your own sons that deliverance is of God.  This dumb who came for deliverance, your sons
with all their power could not deliver. A greater power has come before you. The very finger of God has cast out this demon of
dumbness from this person. There is one among you, mightier than your holy men. He is telling them He is Messiah.
    Luke 11:21 "When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace:" 
    Luke 11:22 "But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour
wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils."
    This first strong man here is Satan, but when one greater than Satan comes, He destroys Satan and tears his armour down and
casts him out. Then Jesus takes over this man for His own. The stronger man (Jesus) is now ruler.
    Luke 11:23 "He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth."
    He says not only is Satan against Me, but you who proclaim to know God but are opposed to me every way I turn are against me.
There are only two sides. Satan's side and God's side. Those who are not with Jesus are on Satan's side.
    Luke 11:24 "When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he
saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out."
    This unclean spirit Jesus is speaking of is one who has been cast out of a person. This disembodied spirit is looking for a human
body that will accept him into them. When this spirit finds no other body, he comes back to the man he was cast out of. The only
way a person can keep an evil spirit that once dwelt inside their body from coming back is to fill the vacancy so full of the Word of
God that when the evil spirit tries to re-enter there will be a no vacancy sign out. The person who has been delivered must
immediately fill that vacancy with God and His goodness so that there will be no place for the evil to come back to.
    Luke 11:25 "And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished."
    Luke 11:26 "Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell
there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first."
    The danger is in not filling the vacancy. If you do not get immediately filled with God and His Word, then the worse state is seven
times worse than it was before they were delivered. The demon spirit will come right back if you let him and bring more evil spirits
with him.
    Luke 11:27  "And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said
unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked."
    This woman is overpowered by the miracles and the teachings that Jesus has brought. She knows no other way, but to bless the
mother who birthed Him and breast fed Him.
    Luke 11:28 "But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it."
    Jesus quickly turns His blessing from Mary who gave Him birth to those who receive salvation and are filled with the Word of
God. Truly Mary was blessed among women for she was obedient to God. Jesus, however, does not look back but looks forward to
those who receive the Word and have their names written in the Lamb's book of life.
    Luke 11:29  "And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a
sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet."
    Luke 11:30 "For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation."
    We see from this that Jonah was in the whale 3 days, and then he went through Ninevah telling them to repent. They repented and
God spared their city. We would think that all the miracles He was doing would be enough of a sign for all of them, but it didn't
seem to be. The specific sign that He was telling them of is His resurrection from the grave after three days.
    Luke 11:31 "The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for
she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here."
    The queen of Sheba was smart enough to realize that Soloman's wisdom was beyond what ordinary humans have, and she was
not ashamed to come and admire someone of superior intelligence. These Israelites had one in their midst who created Soloman, and
yet, they were not as smart as the queen of Sheba because they did not show Him great respect. On judgement day, the queen of
Sheba will tell these Israelites how foolish they were not to recognize Messiah.
    Luke 11:32 "The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented
at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here."
    When Jonah went through the land telling Ninevah of their sins, the King and all the land fasted and were in sackcloth and ashes
and repented; and God spared Ninevah. Jesus is a greater preacher than Jonah, but still, these Israelites have not repented or heeded
His message. On judgement day, they can stand and tell these Israelites their terrible mistake.
    Luke 11:33 "No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a
candlestick, that they which come in may see the light."
    The Light of the world who is Jesus Christ our Lord must not be hidden, but must be raised to the highest. Those in great
darkness can see the Light and come to that Light and receive life everlasting. A light is to illuminate dark areas. That is what we
Christians must do with the Light of Jesus, lift Him up so He can be seen from a distance.
    Luke 11:34 "The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but
when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness."
    Luke 11:35 "Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness."
    The eye is the window to the soul. You can look into a person's eyes and see the goodness of their heart: or you can look into dead
looking eyes, and see the evil that lurks within their heart. Their eyes give them away. When a person looks at you with sparkling
eyes that are full of life, whether they are old or young, you know the Light of Jesus has been kindled in his heart. People on drugs
and alcohol have dead looking eyes. Sometimes they have blood shot eyes, also, but their eyes have no expression just a dead look.
    Luke 11:36 "If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the
bright shining of a candle doth give thee light."
    Have you ever noticed on a very dark night when there are no street lights, you can see a house with a small crack in the curtains
even if a dim light is the only light in the house. It can be seen from a very far distance. The smallest light can do away with
darkness. When we accept Jesus (the Light) into our lives, it does away with darkness. His Light shows in our eyes. This Light of
Jesus in us runs all of the darkness away. There is no longer any darkness at all in us when the Light of Jesus comes in. Our whole
body is full of His Light and some of it shows in the body's windows, our eyes.
    Luke 11:37  "And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat."
    Luke 11:38 "And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner."
     This Pharisee was perhaps one who had been dispatched to watch Jesus to see if He might find something that he could accuse
Him of. Jesus has impressed the Pharisee enough that he took Jesus home with him. These Pharisees went through meaningless
washings before they ate as a formality. The Pharisees and other people of the synagogue are caught up in ritualistic washings and
other senseless formalities. They had no idea at all what any of it meant. They just did what was expected of them and went on.
     Luke 11:39 "And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but
your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness." 
    Luke 11:40 "Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?"
     Jesus, in these two verses, is telling this Pharisee that he had taken all kinds of care to make himself, his home, his table, and the
things on the table look  perfect from the outside, but he had not done anything to cleanse himself from within. He tells the Pharisee
that God, who made him, cares more for the soul within a man than He does all of this formality of washing the outside. Jesus tells
the Pharisee that he looks pretty good outside, but is filled with wickedness.  The sad thing is this Pharisee thinks he is alright with
God because of all these rituals he does. He is lost because his heart is evil.
     Luke 11:41 "But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you." 
     Luke 11:42 "But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and
the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone."
     These Pharisees had become so ridiculous about carrying out the tiniest thing about the law they were giving 1/10 of this almost
worthless garden stuff. All the time, they were filled with hate and greed. God wanted their love and obedience, and not just trying to
stick to a bunch of rules. God wanted their heart just like He wants our heart. Helping our neighbors and trying to live right before
God is the best sacrifice we can make for Him.
     Luke 11:43 "Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets."
     Jesus tells this Pharisee that they are too caught up in appearances. They want everyone to think they are bigshots. God loves
those who are humble, not the ones who pretend to be the high and mighty.
     Luke 11:44 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that
walk over them are not aware of them."
     These scribes and Pharisees want to be thought of as important people in the church. Jesus called them hypocrites because their
religion is just an outward show. There is no love in their heart. Jesus is saying they are dead and nobody cares. No one would really
miss them, because they never helped anyone but themselves.
     Luke 11:45  "Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also."
     This lawyer is saying, don't you know you are talking about us. He falsely calls Jesus, Master. People obey their Master. He has
no intention of obeying Jesus.
     Luke 11:46 "And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye
yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers."
     The ordinances these scholars put on their people were many and so great that they really become a great burden upon the
people. The lawyers themselves did not keep all of the ordinances. One of the things touched on here, as well, is that these lawyers
never did any physical labor but the common people did. Jesus speaks of the lawyers, as a whole, not this individual lawyer who
might become a follower of Jesus.
     Luke 11:47 "Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them." 
    Luke 11:48 "Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their
sepulchres."
     Jesus is saying to them, that they nor their father recognized a prophet until after he was dead. Their fathers did not
accept the message the prophets of old brought to them, and these lawyers do not accept the greatest prophet who ever lived, Jesus.
He says, You say you are different because you have built these fancy sepulchres for them; but if you are really different from your
fathers, why don't you believe Me (Jesus).
     Luke 11:49 "Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall
slay and persecute:"
     Jesus tells them they kill the prophets and apostles, and we know that is true. Many were killed.
     Luke 11:50 "That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this
generation;"
    Luke 11:51 "From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily
I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation."
     Jesus is speaking of His crucifixion. He also, is looking to them stoning Stephen to death, to Peter's death, the persecution of
those who followed Jesus, and then on to the fall of Jerusalem in less than 40 years. This generation Jesus spoke of is truly the one
who physically crucified Jesus, but really all generations from the beginning of the world until now are really guilty, because it was
our sin that crucified Jesus.
     Luke 11:52 "Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and
them that were entering in ye hindered."
     Worse than not accepting Jesus yourself is when you keep someone else from receiving Jesus as their Savior. This last woe that
Jesus speaks on the lawyers is because they taught people a lie and kept them from receiving Jesus.
     Luke 11:53 "And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to
provoke him to speak of many things:" 
    Luke 11:54 "Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him."
     This whole meeting was to trap Him into saying something that they could accuse Him of. They really tried to stir Him up so He
would get careless and say something they could use to frame Him. They did not know that they were speaking to and trying to trap
the Word of God, the Messiah, the Christ, the Savior, Jesus Christ the Lord.