The ask, seek and knock model fits well for Matthew 7:9-11 (ask and seek) and Luke (11:12) (added knock part) where Jesus talks about giving good and/or bad gifts to children.
Ask: bread or stone (to get started)
Seek: fish or serpent (snake) (for the journey)
Knock: egg or scorpion (with possible surprise)
Since God and (evil) people give good gifts to their children, the following questions comes to mind. Who are the children? Who, then, would not give good gifts to their children?
Matthew 7:9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? [kjv]
7:10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? [kjv]
Luke 11:12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? [kjv]
Who would give "bad" "gifts" to their "children"?
Would the religious establishment give "bad" "gifts" to their "children"?
Would the religious establishment,
deceptively, do any of the following?
☐ Who would make a "
stone" (big piece of "
sand", for a building, organization, etc.) look like the "
bread" of "
life"?
☐ Who would make a "
serpent" (Satan. Did God really say? You can be as a god.) look like a "
fish" (Christ)?
☐ Who would make a "
scorpion" (judgment) look like an "
egg" (life)?
On the surface, these statements appear to lack significant logical meaning.
Those being evil, Jews, non-Jews, Christians, secular people, etc., give good gifts to their children.
The Father in heaven does so too, even more. That is nice.
If everyone does this, what then is the meaning? It can often as important as what is not said as to what is said? Who would not give good gifts but, instead, give the not good gifts? These declarative statements need some verses at the end of the chapter to complete the picture - the houses built on rock and on sand.
Those people in the human sand infrastructure are the ones that would not give good gifts to their "
children" as in followers, flock, etc. Examples include the Sadducees and Pharisees, and, later, many Christian church infrastructures (throughout the ages) who would rather take advantage of their flock than give them good gifts (or guidance or teaching, etc.).
