|
|
Bible Stumpers
Parents Who Sought God for Their ChildrenA desperate father. A grieving mother. A prayer whispered so quietly it was mistaken for drunkenness. How many of these parents do you know? Throughout history, parents have turned to God with the deepest concerns of their hearts: a sick child, a troubled child, a promised child, or a child they feared they might lose. Their prayers did not all receive the answer they hoped for, but Scripture records their faith, grief, persistence, and trust. Test your biblical knowledge with 10 questions and a bonus about parents who sought God for their children. Answer from memory, then reveal the answers to see how you score. 1. Which synagogue ruler fell at Jesus’ feet pleading for his dying twelve-year-old daughter, only to have Jesus pause to heal someone else on the way? Answer: Jairus. During the delay, messengers reported that the girl had died, but Jesus raised her anyway. Luke notes that she was Jairus’s only daughter. Reference: Mark 5:22–43; Luke 8:41–56 Insight: What appeared to be a disastrous delay did not place Jairus’s daughter beyond Jesus’ reach. God’s timing may test a parent’s faith, but it never limits His power. 2. Which father regularly rose early and offered a burnt offering for each of his children, fearing they might have sinned and cursed God in their hearts? Answer: Job. The text says, “Thus Job did continually.” Reference: Job 1:4–5 Insight: Job’s concern extended beyond his children’s circumstances to the condition of their hearts. His intercession was not prompted by a single emergency, but was part of his regular life as a father. 3. Which mother answered what sounded like a refusal from Jesus by speaking of crumbs under the table, then learned that her daughter had already been delivered? Answer: The woman who was Greek and Syrophoenician by birth. Matthew calls her a Canaanite woman. Reference: Matthew 15:21–28; Mark 7:24–30 Insight: Her persistence was rooted in confidence that even the smallest expression of Christ’s mercy would be enough. She refused to let discouragement end her appeal for her daughter. 4. Which royal official begged Jesus to come down before his son died, then discovered that the fever had left at the exact hour Jesus spoke the word from miles away? Answer: The royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum. He found Jesus in Cana. Reference: John 4:46–53 Insight: Jesus did not need to be physically present to act. The official had to trust Christ’s word before he could see the evidence that his son had been healed. 5. Which mother laid her dead son on a prophet’s bed, saddled a donkey, and kept saying, “It is well,” until she reached the man of God? Answer: The Shunammite woman, whose son Elisha had promised she would bear. Reference: 2 Kings 4:18–37 Insight: Her words did not mean she felt no grief. They revealed her determination to carry the crisis to the one place where she believed God might still intervene. 6. Which widow accused a prophet of bringing her sin to remembrance when her son stopped breathing, even though the prophet’s God had already sustained their household through famine? Answer: The widow of Zarephath, speaking to Elijah. Reference: 1 Kings 17:17–24 Insight: A previous experience of God’s provision did not protect her from a new crisis. Yet the God who sustained her family through famine also proved able to restore the life she thought was lost. 7. Which king lay on the ground and fasted for seven days over a sick child, then rose, washed, ate, and worshiped as soon as he learned the child had died? Answer: David, interceding for the son born to Bathsheba. Reference: 2 Samuel 12:15–23 Insight: David prayed fervently while hope remained, but he continued to worship when God’s answer was not the one he desired. Faithful prayer does not guarantee the outcome a parent seeks. 8. Which father asked God to send the messenger again and teach him how to raise the son who had been promised but was not yet born? Answer: Manoah, the father of Samson. He prayed, “Teach us what we are to do for the boy who will be born.” Reference: Judges 13:8–12 Insight: Manoah did not merely celebrate the promise of a child. He immediately asked God for wisdom to fulfill the responsibility of raising him. 9. Which mother prayed so quietly that a priest thought she was drunk, later fulfilled her vow, and responded with a song celebrating the strength God gives to the weak? Answer: Hannah, the mother of Samuel. Her original prayer was for a son. After Samuel’s birth and dedication, she poured out her song of praise. Reference: 1 Samuel 1:10–28; 2:1–10 Insight: Hannah did not treat Samuel merely as the answer to her personal longing. She remembered her promise and entrusted the child she loved back to God. 10. Which father pleaded for his 13-year-old son to live before God after hearing that his wife would bear him another son? Answer: Abraham. When God promised him a son through Sarah, Abraham laughed and then said, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!” Reference: Genesis 17:17–22 Insight: Abraham’s heart was already deeply attached to Ishmael. After hearing that Sarah would bear him a son, he asked that his 13-year-old might continue to live under God’s favor. God did not establish the covenant through Ishmael, but He did promise to bless him greatly. Bonus: Which father put an “if” in his desperate plea, saying, “If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us,” then confessed that his own faith was mixed with doubt? Answer: The father of the boy with a deaf and mute spirit. He cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!” Reference: Mark 9:17–29, especially verses 22, 24, and 25 Insight: Jesus did not reject this father for admitting his doubt. Parents may bring both their faith and their fear to God honestly. Parents throughout history have brought their children to God in faith, fear, grief, and hope. These stories remind us that no concern for a child is too small, too desperate, or too late to place before Him. Which parent’s story speaks most powerfully to you? |
