“PERSISTENT PRAYER”
LUKE 18:1-8
I. Introduction
The Doctrine of the Sovereignty of God is one of the central biblical principles upon which this church stands. God’s absolute sovereignty over His creation and everything and every-one in it guides, directs, and defines our understanding of every other Christian doctrine.
When we talk about how God’s sovereignty applies to us, we usually speak of it in regard to our salvation and how a person comes to saving faith. This is where the theological argu-ments over God’s foreknowledge, man’s free will, election, predestination, the question, “Who chose whom?” and a myriad of other issues come to the fore. They all relate, if not directly, then at least indirectly to the salvation, the saving of a soul.
Those of us who are convinced that the Scriptures teach that salvation – every aspect of it – is all of God and none of man, have no difficulty accepting the fact of it. But we all strug-gle when it comes to getting our heads around the details of God’s magnificent sovereignty in our salvation. And that’s all right, because we understand and accept the fact that a finite human mind could never fully grasp that which emanates from the infinite mind of God.
That shouldn’t surprise us because there are all sorts of things we cannot fully comprehend. For example, how can three be one? Our finite minds cannot understand the Trinity, yet we believe it. How can anything have neither a beginning nor an end? Again, our finite minds cannot comprehend eternity, yet we believe it. So while we do not understand everything God has told us, we believe what He has told us, because He has told us. Isn’t that faith?
Romans 4:3
3 For what does the Scripture say? (Paul quotes Genesis 15:6) “And Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.”
Abraham believed God! This isn’t saying that Abraham believed there was a God. Such belief is not saving faith. When the Scriptures say, “Abraham believed God,” they are say-ing that Abraham believed what God said back in Genesis 15:6. That belief is saving faith!
Hebrews 11:1, 6a
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (or, I might add, “…things not understood”)
6a And without faith it is impossible to please (God)…
So let me say it once again. We believe (have faith in) what God has said because He has said it. And in that, He is pleased. I know that some would disagree with this, but I do not think there is a divine mandate for us to fully understand everything God has said. However – and I doubt that any serious theologian would disagree with this – I think there is a divine man-date to believe (to have faith in) everything God has said.
Our sovereign God tells us of His Trinity and we believe; we have faith in what He says. Our sovereign God tells us of eternity future and eternity past and we believe; we have faith in what He says. But what about this one? Our sovereign God tells us that He will answer our prayers, and He doesn’t…or so it often seems. Do we still believe what He says? How can we be motivated to persist in prayer when God is not answering?
Brock read what has come to be called, “The Lord’s Prayer.” But it really isn’t that at all. Rather, it is Jesus’ instructions or His model for our prayers. And among those instructions the Lord teaches us to pray for His return – “…Thy kingdom come.” Well, Christians have been praying for that for two thousand years. Some of you are praying for it right now. But so far that prayer has gone unanswered.
On a more immediate level, what about all those requests you’ve sent into the throne room for lost loved ones, who remain lost? What about all those requests you’ve sent to heaven for God to rescue you from illness or dilemma, but He has yet to do so? What about all those times you’ve genuinely and sincerely begged God to glorify Himself in some trouble or strife or persecution or heartache, and it seems that the only one being glorified is Satan?
In such circumstances it’s easy for Christians to lose hope and to quit praying. But Jesus knew that and He gave us this morning’s passage to strengthen and encourage us. As we study these verses in Luke’s gospel, we should remember that what may seem like a long time to us, even our entire life, from the moment we are saved until the moment God calls us home, is a mere moment in eternity. So when you think you’ve been waiting too long for God to answer your prayer, it’s helpful to remember the Apostle Peter’s counsel in the second book that bears his name.
2 Peter 3:8
8 But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
The point is that God neither exists in nor is bound by the constraints of time as you and I know it and count it on this earth. Have you been praying for something for forty years? It’s only a moment. So pray again. And then pray again. Persist! My Webster’s dictionary defines persistence as “…stubborn or enduring continuance; tenacity.”
We are to understand that between Jesus’ ascension to heaven and His return for His church at the Rapture, this world would, for the most part, ignore Him, disregard His Word, and persecute God’s children. We also need to understand that is the normal condition of this age, the “Church Age,” in which we now live. So there is a sense in which the widow about whom we’ll read in Luke 18:1-8, is very much like the church. She is awaiting justice and so are we. We’re here awaiting our heavenly Bridegroom. When He comes He will mete out perfect justice and all, all will be made right. But while we wait for that justice, we know that we will often be ignored, disregarded, and persecuted.
Given that fact, how can the saints persevere? We can persevere by believing that God hears and answers every prayer sent up by His people. After all, don’t we believe in the words of our sovereign God who has promised that He will answer our prayers? We often like to say that although God will always answer our prayers, His answer may not always be what we want to hear. But aren’t “yes,” “no,” and “wait” all answers? Turn with me to 1 John 5 and listen to something He says about our prayers.
*1 John 5:14-15
14 And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.
What are the key words in v. 14? Aren’t they, “…according to His will”? If you want your prayers answered the way you want them answered you must pray according to God’s will. And then you must humble yourself before Him and recognize that His will may result in a, “Yes.” His will may result in a, “No.” His will may result in a, “Wait. It isn’t time yet.”
Have you been praying for the Second Coming? Good! Keep it up. But for now, God’s answer is, “Wait. It isn’t time yet.” But eventually, we’ll all see His answer is “Yes!”
Again, have you, at some time in the past, prayed for someone’s salvation, someone who has since come to saving faith? While you were praying did you ever become discouraged and think, “I know God hears me, but maybe His answer is, ‘No.’”? Then, when that person was saved, you realized that God had never been saying, “No,” He had been saying, “Wait. It isn’t time yet.” And on the day the person in question received Christ, God answered your prayers and said, “Yes!”
Listen, you and I are not privy to the inner workings of the mind of God. Why He answers our prayers in the affirmative, or the negative, or seemingly not at all is beyond the scope of our comprehension. (above our pay grade) But we know He hears us when we pray, and we know He answers every prayer according to His perfect will for our lives and – don’t miss this – for His glory. And so, persist in prayer. By doing so, you will not lose heart.
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II. Review
The parable Jesus gives us in Luke 18:1-8 fits perfectly into the larger context of Luke’s gospel. Jesus had recently told His disciples that after He returned to heaven many false teachers would claim that – during the disciples’ own lifetimes – Jesus would be coming back to establish His Millennial Kingdom on this earth. Back in Luke 17:22 He said to the disciples, “The days shall come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.”
Jesus’ parable of the unjust judge will teach His disciples and us to continue in prayer.
You and I may not see all that we pray for accomplished this side of heaven. So while we wait for God’s work to be done, we are called to pray, pray again, and pray some more. Only by doing so will we be strengthened and encouraged so that the debilitating effects of this world will not wear us down. If you don’t want to lose heart, keep praying.
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III. Text
While this parable speaks to all of our requests to God, Luke applies it specifically to the Second Coming. That may not be obvious in the first six verses, but it will become clear in the last two.
*Luke 18:1-8 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
1 Now (Jesus) was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart,
2 saying, “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God, and did not respect man.
3 “And there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’
4 “And for a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man,
5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, lest by con-tinually coming she wear me out.’”
6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said;
7 now shall not God bring about justice for His elect, who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?
8 “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them speedily. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
Here we stand, very near to what we believe is the end of the Church Age. So the subject of this parable should be of particular interest to us. Let’s be honest with ourselves. The days are evil and it is not uncommon for us to experience every emotion from discouragement to anger to fear. So Jesus tells us how to deal with all of those things as we await His answers, His ultimate justice, and His very presence with us.
*Luke 18:1
1 Now (Jesus) was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.
Later, in the Apostle Paul’s first letter to the church at Thessalonica, he instructs them to, “…pray without ceasing (5:17).” Our immediate response to that is, “That’s impossible! No one can do that. I’ve got to go to work, I’ve got to eat, I’ve got to sleep. How can I pray when I’m sleeping?” Okay, okay, take a deep breath. This is not about praying twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. It is about a lifestyle. It is about a life that is consciously and deliberately lived in complete dependence upon God.
When Paul said, “…pray without ceasing,” he used a term that was also used to describe repeated military assaults. Imagine an army storming a fortress, withdrawing to regroup, then storming it again. That’s exactly what General Santa Anna did when the Mexicans defeated the Texans at the Alamo in 1836. He didn’t quit when his initial assaults failed. Rather, Santa Anna stormed the Alamo again and again until the old mission finally fell.
That’s how we should be praying. We should always be ready to take both our burdens and our praises before God, and to do so repeatedly. Some people used to refer to that kind of persistence in prayer as “storming the gates of heaven.” There’s another word in Luke 18:1 that bears our scrutiny. The word is “ought.” The Greek is “dĕi,” a little word with a lot of meaning. It does not refer to something you should do. It speaks of something you must do. One Greek dictionary defines it as, “…an unavoidable, urgent, and compulsory necessity.”
So in Luke 18:1 Jesus is not merely suggesting that we should pray so as not to lose heart. He is commanding us to pray. He is saying that we must pray, and as we do, we will not lose heart. You see, prayer is not just a good idea, Christian. It is a necessity.
But because we don’t pray as we ought (must), we do lose heart, and we give up on prayer. Since Jesus knew that we would tend to do that, He lays out the purpose of the parable right here at the start. Why do you think it is our tendency to lose heart so quickly and give up on prayer? Let me suggest a few possibilities.
1. Maybe we think we can handle whatever might arise in our own strength. I know that I am sometimes guilty of that, and I don’t pray. That’s an ego problem. Are you guilty of that?
2. Maybe we think our natural talents and abilities will get us through anything. This is a real trap for people who know how smart they are and how well they can handle difficult or trying situations. That’s an ego problem. Are you guilty of that?
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I need to go off the track for just a minute here and tell you something about myself. I want you to know that I feel utterly inadequate to stand here before you and preach, teach, and deliver God’s Word to you on Sunday mornings. Let me be very clear about this. This is not false humility, not at all. It is a crystal clear conviction that I cannot do this unless I am fully dependent upon God. There is not a week that goes by that I do not “hit the wall” and find myself in despair and totally overwhelmed by trying to get myself ready to stand here. Ginny can tell you how I struggle to prepare these sermons.
I want you to know how we pray together for these sermons, for you to be here to receive them, for your spiritual growth, for your protection from evil, and for your submission to God’s Word, as well my own submission to Him and His will. Beyond that, I pray for the wisdom I need to be your pastor. That’s because I’m well aware of my own sin and my own inadequacy, and my need to trust God for anything I have to say to you that is worthwhile.
It’s a sobering responsibility to teach God’s Word to God’s people. James makes that clear.
James 3:1
1 Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.
Now let me say it again. This is not false humility. On the contrary, this is exactly what God wants you to know about me whether I’m standing here in front of you or not. And don’t be fooled – knowing your own sin and your own inadequacy, and trusting in God for everything you need is exactly where He wants you too. (back on track)
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So, the first reason we stop praying is that we think we can “handle it,” whatever “it” is.
A second reason we stop praying is that we think we’re just so gifted and talented that we really don’t need any help. But the third reason that we often stop praying is one to which we’ve already alluded. God doesn’t answer in the time that we allot Him to do so. What? “Dear God, I want an answer and I want it now. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.”
3. Maybe we think God is supposed to do His work on our schedule. If our egos are to blame for stopping prayer because we think we can handle it, or because we think we’re so gifted and talented, how big is the ego that says, “God, if you don’t work on my timetable I’m just not gonna talk to you anymore.”? Are you guilty of that?
None of us would say such a thing. But do we do it? Jesus knew that’s precisely what many of us would do when things get rough. That’s why He gave His disciples the examples of Lot and Noah back in Luke 17. They were mocked and rejected. Jesus knew His disciples would be too. He knew they would be persecuted all the way to death itself. And He knew that the only way they could stand up under it was, “…to pray and not lose heart.”
*Luke 18:2-3
2 (Jesus was) saying, “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God, and did not respect man.
3 “And there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’”
Jesus’ description of the two people in this parable is clear and simple. The judge is a vain and godless man who holds a position of power and authority. The widow is alone, destitute, powerless, deprived, and helpless. She is in desperate need of legal help and protection. All that she has “going for her” is OT law.
Deuteronomy 24:17-18
17 “You shall not pervert the justice due an alien, or an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment in pledge.
18 “But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and that the LORD your God redeemed you from there; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing.”
Any judge in Israel would’ve known that passage, but only those who feared God would’ve paid any attention to it. However, this judge could care less about God’s laws or the people, particularly the so-called little or unimportant people, whom he was expected to protect. So he ignores the widow’s pleas for help and hopes she’ll just go away and leave him alone.
But in Luke 18:3 we find out that the widow is relentless. She just keeps storming the gates, as it were. She isn’t “losing heart,” is she? Now remember the larger context here. Jesus has been talking about His Second Coming and about how it will seem to us like it’s never going to happen. But we are not to be discouraged. No matter what the world says to us or about us – no matter what the world does to us – we are to look for His return for the church.
In the meantime, we can expect that this world will only continue to get worse and worse. Jesus will address this subject again later on in Luke in the parable of the fig tree.
*Luke 21:34-36
34 “Be on guard, that your hearts may not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day come on you suddenly like a trap;
35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth.
36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying in order that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
So you and I are to be praying for the Lord’s return, and we are to be praying that we will have the strength and the courage to endure until He comes for us. Theologians call that eschatological praying. We need to do it in order to spiritually survive in a world that only gets worse and more hostile to God and His people. As evil and false teaching abound, both within and without the church, do you really think you can stand up under all of it without persistent prayer?
Listen Christian, you may that think you can, but the Lord Jesus Himself knows that you cannot! So like the widow in the parable, are you persevering, are you persisting in prayer?
*Luke 18:4-6
4 “And for a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man,
5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, lest by con-tinually coming she wear me out.’”
6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said;
Isn’t it interesting that this judge knows he’s a weasel? He just doesn’t care, but he does care about his own comfort and his own peace. This poor widow does not know whether God will ultimately say, “Yes,” or “No” to her repeated requests, but she does know, that at least for now, He is saying, “Wait. It isn’t time yet.”
Neither she nor the unjust judge knows that our sovereign God is orchestrating the outcome.
So here’s a lesson for us as believers. No matter what the outcome, the final results of our praying will always glorify Him, and will always be in our eternal best interest. The world doesn’t believe that, and if we are willing to be brutally honest with ourselves, we often struggle to believe it too. But our sovereign God has said so!
Romans 8:28-29a (vv. 26-27 are about prayer)
28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (What purpose?)
29a For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son…
No small part of our being conformed to the image of His Son is our prayer life, especially as it relates to God’s promises.
• God’s Son has promised that He will come back.
• He has promised that He will be faithful to His own, His elect.
• He has promised that He will judge the lost and vindicate His people, the church.
• He has promised that He will set His throne in Jerusalem and exalt Himself upon it.
• He has promised that He will reign in His Millennial Kingdom.
• He has promised that He will create a new heaven and a new earth.
Are we persistently praying for these things? That’s one major thing we need to be taking from this passage in Luke’s gospel. (back to the parable)
*Luke 18:6-8
6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said;
7 now shall not God bring about justice for His elect, who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?
8 “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them speedily. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
Just so there is no misunderstanding – Jesus is not comparing God to the unjust judge; He is contrasting God over against the unjust judge. In the end the widow received the justice she so diligently sought. It isn’t likely that she cared why or even how she received it. She just knew she had received that for which she had kept asking.
Jesus’ point in v. 7 is taught in the form of a rhetorical question. If the poor widow could finally get justice, protection, and that which was right from a hard, cold, and godless judge, how much more justice, protection, and righteousness can you expect from the God who gave His own Son to suffer and die for you?
In v. 8 Jesus’ promise is that we, God’s elect, will be blessed with justice “speedily.” The Greek here is “en tachei.” It doesn’t mean fast, it means sudden, unexpected, and without warning.
Sudden, unexpected, and without warning defines that moment yet future when the dead in Christ will be raised, and the church will be taken to heaven, doesn’t it? (the Rapture)
But when you and I see the word “speedily” or “quickly,” as some versions of the Bible translate it, we think it means fast, and we forget that God’s schedule is vastly different than ours. “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Peter 3:8).”
Jesus Christ will not return until all of the elect have come to saving faith. And once that has happened His return will not be fast; it will be sudden. His church will be vindicated and His judgment will fall upon all unbelief.
Finally, Luke 18:8 ends with a question, a question that should cut us right to the quick. “…when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” Here is another rhetorical question that seems to imply that when Jesus does return faith – true faith, active faith, and a faith that endures to the end – will be rare.
That presents a sad picture, but one that is coming into sharper focus all around us. True believers are rare in today’s world, and among true believers, those who persist in prayer are also rare. Are you praying for His return? When He comes will He find His own people praying the last words of the Bible – “Come, Lord Jesus.”? He wants us to be doing that.
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IV. Conclusion
I want to close with just a few words of practical advice. James, the Lord’s half-brother, will deliver them to us. He reminds us that there are two primary reasons that the answers to your prayers may be hindered, or may not come to you in this life at all.
*James 4:3, 6
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.
6 But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
Are you asking for what you want for yourself as opposed to asking for what God wants for you? Your prayers will be hindered. Are you awash in personal pride and refusing to hum-ble yourself before God? Your prayers will be hindered.
May God grant us the grace we need to be persistent in prayer and to humbly seek His will when we pray.
~ Pray ~