I have been taking people through a serious study of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament.
In the 18th chapter of Luke, we come to the verses dealing with prayer, one of the most difficult things in the world. That is why so few people pray. Reading the Bible is difficult, prayer is more difficult. Watching TV, talking to people, singing praises – all of these are particularly easy compared to praying. The Prayer Meeting in many churches is the poorest meeting attended. Because? Because it’s such hard work!
Put a man, who can speak on almost any subject, in a prayer meeting, and suddenly he is speechless!
In Cowdenbeath, a man raised a very uncomfortable matter at a Church meeting, and I asked him to pray about it right there and lead us in prayer. That was the end of the awkward issues raised unnecessarily and with malevolent intent!
Praying is so central and so vital. Jesus Christ is telling his disciples here to pray and to keep praying. They should never get discouraged. You should never give in when it comes to prayer. When it comes to prayer, we shouldn’t even consider saying: What’s the point of all this? What is the purpose? What is the meaning of all this sentence?
As we consider the prayers we have prayed in the last few months, we have seen some results, some consequences, things have happened, but we are also very aware of other prayers, such as sincere, real, and serious, and these remain a question. a battlefield while we wait for an answer, some kind of answer that we can understand.
Jesus has been talking about the Kingdom. Jesus has been warning us not to run around looking for signs of the kingdom here and there, signs that will never be seen, signs that are not related to the kingdom. We must NOT look for blessings where there are none.
Jesus has been teaching us about His Coming again – His Return – and Jesus has been talking about the deteriorating condition of the world.
It is at this point that Jesus speaks of how vital and important it is for the disciples to continue to pray. Don’t give up and don’t give up. Don’t even consider these as possibilities.
Why do some people seem to get along better than others? In pray? Why do some people seem to go directly to God? Right through? And others not? It can be answered by these words in our verses here – Persistence and Perseverance.
To teach this, Jesus told a parable: “to show them that they should always pray and not faint.” Now, if Jesus is to teach his disciples these lessons, it indicates that HE realized that some might feel like giving up.
It is easier to watch television than to pray; it is easier to read the Bible and sing praises than to pray. Whatever you do well, I’m sure you find it easier than praying.
Jesus says – There was a judge – he was not a pious man – he did not care about people. Is there anything we can learn from such a man? Should we just dismiss such a man as having nothing to teach us spiritually? That is NOT the attitude of Jesus. Jesus sees something in this situation that we can learn from, even from this harsh, cold, uncaring judge. (Maybe we should take some time to thank God that our courts are basically free of corruption on this earth, and within our legal system, compared to so many other countries today.)
At that time, something could happen to the Judge to decide in your favor.
Now there was a widow who kept coming to this judge, asking him to look at her case and figure out what was wrong. He had no money to bribe the corrupt judge. She only had one weapon: persistence. The judge was not upset. There was nothing for him, materially speaking. Why should he look at this woman’s grievance?
She had been wronged, so what? But she persevered, she scolded. It was all she could do. She went on and on with him. She became a bit of a pest.
She annoyed him. she persisted. she persevered. She kept coming with her order. She was holding on. She simply refused to give up.
This unfair judge said, “She’s wearing me down. I’ll see her case if only for peace. I just can’t be bothered with her. She keeps bothering me.”
Now Jesus says: “Listen to what the unjust judge says.” If this is how a cold and indifferent judge can be persuaded to heed, won’t God do justice for his Chosen, who cry out to him day and night?
Will God continue to discourage you? I tell you – He will see that justice is done and it is done fast. Our God is a good Judge – He is just – He is just. He is willing to do what is right for us, and he is open to hearing our prayers, IF WE PERSIST.
When it comes to prayer, we must be like the woman. We must keep pleading with the Father, even in times of pain, suffering, and persecution, even when we think He is not heeding our requests, even when we think it is all a waste of time, even when I think we are getting nowhere.
The widow was on the right. We have to make sure that we are praying correctly. We have to make sure that our sentences are correct sentences and that our requests are valid. Jesus teaches us that it is fair to continue praying-day and night-looking at God to do justice. “God, look at my case and act.”
Then Jesus says: However, when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth? When Jesus Christ returns, will he be found to have remained faithful in prayer? It is an important topic.
sand shaw