Ourselves. 

Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal..

(2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Every child of God knows he must pray.  This is one of the core truths of a relationship with the Lord.  Of course, there are words involved, as in any relationship that begins and is sustained with words.  It is our lifeline, the Holy Spirit breath in our lives to discern the truth and recognize the still, small voice of our Heavenly Father.

As Christians, we are acutely aware of the need around us.  Rightly so.   Our intercession is essential.  We ask – that’s the first step in the commission of Jesus in Matthew 7:7.  We ask for our lives and needs, for the lives and well-being of others, and for the world around us.

The other two commands in the same verse are intensely personal – seek  and knock.  It’s not just a list of needs that are mentioned just because the Lord promises to care, turn our fears into peace and sustain our lives. Search and knock is individual and secret – the mystery in the reality of every day.

Every hero of faith in the Bible experienced God in a personal and unique way.  Those encounters, recorded for our benefit and encouragement in such a variety of ways, is at the heart of our walk of faith with insight and victory.  Seeking and knocking is our prayer for ourselves until we enter and experience the Presence of Jesus.

We need to be sure that we can trust the Giver of all the gifts we ask for.  It is actually foolish not to know the character of the God to whom you direct your prayer.  God reveals himself in every word we read in the Word.  It’s essential to know Him in all His glory so that our prayers can be filled with faith, trust, love, and praise.  This is how we learn more about God daily to be like Him — continuous transformation — the paths of righteousness on which He leads us. (Psalm 23:3) 

In every Bible study, quiet time with the Word, we read and learn God’s heart, his character, his dealings with man.  That is the purpose of Bible study.  The more we learn, the deeper the desire to be like Jesus and to satisfy our hunger and thirst for righteousness.  This, once again, fuels the searching activity, because our hunger is stimulated with what we feed on. 

Knocking usually has to do with a door.  One does not knock on a curtain or  an opening.  It is a door that is closed and the other side not visible.  

In the Bible, a door is symbolic of revelation knowledge.  Here in Matthew 7, Jesus speaks of knocking with the promise that the door will be opened.   It’s clear that He’s involved, He’s got the key, He’s turning the doorknob and he’s right there where the door opens.

In the third chapter of Revelation we read about a door twice.  

To the faithful church of Philadelphia, Jesus promises an open door that no one can shut.  The second part of the vers leads us to a deeper insight regarding the door.

…for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. (Revelation 3:8)

It is there at the revelation of who Jesus is, the foundation, the key to revelation knowledge, where the enemy will attack and sap our strength. Therefore, he promises that no one will be able to close it.  No attack can prevent us from knowing who Jesus is; knowing His character and the promises to sustain us.

Just further on, Jesus is speaking to the lukewarm church, Laodicea.  His words are sharp and direct.  He addresses the abominable state of half-hearted faith; people who pretend to know the Saviour and whose lives speak of the opposite—the hypocrisy of namesake Christians who deny the power of the Gospel.

Just after he gives the miraculous, transformative advice to a lukewarm church in 3:18; the therapy for a mentality of pretending – gold refined by fire, white robes and eye ointment, He speaks again of a door. The soft voice of love that wins back, that graciously invites to the feast of the prodigal son. 

Look, I’m standing at the door and I’m knocking. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will go in to him, and eat with him, and he with me. (3:20)

This is the highest promise – Jesus rewarding us with His presence so that He can heal our brokenness and wounding over the serene calmness of a meal, the Bread and Wine of His Presence.

It is clearly a door with two sides – one command and one promise.  We must knock with the conviction of an open door that no one can shut. (Matthew 7:7 and Revelation 3:8).  More than that, it is a door that guarantees the Presence of Jesus himself.  He doesn’t stand and wait for us to knock.  He knocks so we can know He’s there, ready and involved.

It’s all the same door, of course—the door of our heart, our inner being. 

 Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh,  (Ezekiel 11:19)

With a new spirit, one looks at life and circumstances differently.  It is all that enables us to “see” the invisible and therefore know the eternal glory of God’s work. That is why the eyes of our hearts are illuminated.

 ^… the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,  (Ephesians 1:18)

How can we see the glorious riches?  Knock on the door so that Jesus opens and we sit down at the table.  Put on your white robes and anoint your eyes with eye salve. It is the invisible things that have eternal value.