Read: Luke 18:1-8
And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.
2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. 3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’”
6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:1-8)
George Muller, the great Victorian Christian and social reformer, tells a story of persistent prayer in his diary:
“In November 1844, I began to pray for the conversion of five individuals. I prayed every day without a single intermission, whether sick or in health, 
on the land, on the sea, and whatever the pressure of my engagements might be. Eighteen months elapsed before the first of the five was converted. I thanked God and prayed on for the others. Five years elapsed, and then the second was converted. I thanked God for the second and prayed on for the other three. Day by day, I continued to pray for them, and six years passed before the third was converted. I thanked God for the three and went on praying for the other two. These two remained unconverted.”
Thirty-six years later he wrote that the other two, sons of one of Mueller’s friends, were still not converted. He wrote, “But I hope in God, I pray on, and look for the answer. They are not converted yet, but they will be.”
In 1897, fifty-two years after he began to pray daily, without interruption, for these two men, they were finally converted—but after he died!
In Luke 18, Jesus told a story to encourage us to pray and not lose heart. Like the example of George Muller, he wants us to pray and persevere. His story centers on a judge and a widow. Judges were appointed in the Old Testament to serve God and to ensure justice for all God’s people. When King Jehoshaphat appointed judges in 2 Chronicles 19, he instructed them:
“Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the Lord. He is with you in giving judgment. 7 Now then, let the fear of the Lord be upon you. Be careful what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality or taking bribes.” (2 Chronicles 19:6-7)
In this parable, though, Jesus introduces us to a judge who doesn’t fear God and doesn’t respect people. He is a very difficult man. He won’t hear a cry to give justice “for God’s sake” and he won’t be moved by an inner sense of what is honorable or what is shameful. The implication is that this judge can only be influenced by bribery.
To this judge comes an innocent, powerless widow. In a male-dominated society, she had no one to speak up for her. In Scripture, time and again God called his people to care for the widow among them – to give a voice to the voiceless. In Isaiah 1:17, as God calls his people to repent for their sin, he says “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.” And then in verse 23, in detailing the people’s sin he declares, “They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not come to them.”
Jesus tells us how this widow comes to the unjust judge to plead her case. And yet, he refuses. For some time, he will not hear her pleas. But the widow continues to beg for justice; to plead for mercy. Finally, the judge says to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’
The idea of “beat me down” is also translated “wear me out” in other places. This judge is not afraid of God. He isn’t going to do something just because she is a poor widow. But he is sick and tired of her coming to him day after day after day. It’s giving him a headache! In the end, he gives her justice, so he won’t have to listen to her anymore!
Jesus taught this parable so we would pray and not lose heart. If this unrighteous, unjust judge will meet the needs of this powerless widow, how much more will the needs of God’s children be met by their loving, heavenly Father? No matter how discouraging or how hopeless our situation might be, it is not as bad as that widow.
We can know with certainty that God hears our prayers; he hears our petitions. He knows our needs. He will move and he will answer. When fear grips us; when anxiety assails us; when we do not know what to do….we need to pray continually with full confidence that God will hear and will act in our best interests.
Jesus affirms that God will answer our prayers and he will not delay in doing right. He answers the parable with a question, “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Will we, God’s people, trust him through the trials and troubles of life? Will we cling to him and persist in seeking him even when it seems he is slow to answer or slow to bring justice? Will we stand firm to the end?
The character of God is again our motivation to pray. He will do the best things in the best ways for us and he will do them at the right time. We await his return and until he does, we persist in prayer and in seeking after him with all our hearts.
Questions for reflection:
- What things have you prayed for over a long period of time that it doesn’t seem like God has answered?
- How have you or can you overcome the discouragement that often comes with a delayed answer? What motivates you to persist in prayer?
- Waiting over a long time for God to answer prayer can shake one’s faith in God’s character as a good Father. What has been your experience in that regard? Why do you think?
- Will you trust God through the trials and challenges of life?
- Will you cling to God and persist in seeking him even when he seems slow to answer?
- Will you stand firm to the end?