Parable of Three Friends

Which of you shall have a FRIEND, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, FRIEND, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? —Luke 11:5-6

In this parable (Luke 11:1-8) Jesus teaches some great lessons on prayer. A man has two friends. One is a local friend and the other is a friend coming from out of town. The problem is, he has no bread to provide a meal for his traveling friend. So he goes to his neighbor friend to borrow some bread.

The characters in the parable represent: (1) The neighbor friend represents God, who provides the “Bread of Life.” (2) The friend on his journey represents the lost sinner who needs “the Bread of Life.” (3) The friend who prays for bread from his neighbor is a picture of the Christian who prays to God to provide what he lacks to give to his unsaved friend.

The application of the parable: We must recognize that within ourselves, we don’t have what it takes to satisfy the hunger of lost friends and relatives. We need to go to God in prayer, confess what we lack, and ask God to supply us with what it will take to give the unsaved the “Bread of Life” so they can be saved. Sometimes, this may require several requests at the throne of grace (Luke 11:7-8).

Don’t give up praying for your unsaved friends and loved ones that they might receive “the Bread of Life” at your hand!