Scientists tell us that we can survive for about three weeks without food, three days without water but only about three minutes without oxygen. If that is true physically, it is also true spiritually. Our gospel and epistle readings for today, while written by Luke and Paul with different purposes in mind, actually complement each other. They describe the two most fundamental ways we grow to know God and become more like Jesus. Bible reading and prayer can be likened to breathing. Spiritual breathing. We breathe in God’s word and breathe out God’s word in our prayers – that is, the scriptures guide us in what to pray, when to pray and how to pray.
In our epistle reading, Paul describes the scriptures as literally “God breathed”. The expression is similar to the creation narrative in Genesis 2, “Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7). Just as breathing oxygen is vital for life, so the hearing or reading of God’s living word is vital for our spiritual lives, so that we “may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16). That is why Paul instructs Timothy to be faithful in teaching and preaching the scriptures, because, he warns people will want teaching,
“to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).
What we can learn about prayer from our gospel reading? Verse 1.
“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” (Luke 8:1). Observe that this is a parable. Jesus used parables to challenge his hearers about their beliefs, their assumptions and their prejudices. He used parables to shock and unsettle so that people would be open to hearing and receiving God’s word. Observe too that the expression “to pray” and “not give up” are both in the present tense. In other words, Jesus exhorts us to pray continuously, without end, regardless of the outcome. Why? Because the temptation is to give up and doubt God, when he fails to answer our prayers in the way we expect, or according to our timetable. So, what can we learn from this parable?
The Cry of the Widow
The Coldness of the Judge
The Contrast with our Father
- The Cry of the Widow
“And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.” (Luke 8:3).
We don’t know the reason for her demand but as a woman she was not allowed to speak in a court. And as a widow she had no husband to speak on her behalf. Invariably widows were also poor. She was therefore at a significant disadvantage. However, she was determined. She kept coming to the judge. When he appeared in court, she was there. When he was out shopping, she was there. She stalked him. Everywhere he went, there she was, constantly asking him to give her justice. She was disadvantaged. She was determined and she was desperate. She had no other way to obtain justice but to plead her case before the judge. Therefore, she made herself a nuisance every day until she gained justice. The cry of the widow.
- The Coldness of the Judge
“In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought… But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think,yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ (Luke 18:2-4)
The word “finally” suggests that for some considerable time the judge ignored the widows pleas. When he finally acted it was out of self interest, or rather self preservation. Because the word Jesus uses is a boxing analogy. The judge was afraid that if he didn’t hear her case, she would give him a black eye. Ignoring her was probably affecting his reputation, hence he acted. The cry of the widow. The coldness of the judge and
- The Contrast with our Father
“will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.”(Luke 18:7-8)
It is important to emphasize that Jesus is not comparing our heavenly Father with the judge. He is nothing like the judge. Jesus asks two rhetorical questions. The answer is meant to be obvious. Our Father hears our prayers. Not only that, but will he honour our persistence. God will bring justice. So here’s the question I know you are thinking – If Jesus says, “they will get justice, and quickly” why does our heavenly Father not give us justice quickly? It may just have to do with how we understand that little word “justice”. In this I’m so very grateful to Michael Marsh for a very helpful sermon “What about the Unjust Widow?”[i] Let me quote from Michael’s exposition,
“We assume the judge is unjust and the widow just and we celebrate when she’s finally granted justice. That’s how the usual interpretation goes… What if the widow is unjust?
Maybe she’s not much better than or different from the judge. What if this parable is challenging our usual idea about justice? What if it’s revealing our willingness to often settle for a simple and superficial understanding and practice of justice? At a minimum we want “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” (Leviticus 24:20) and more if we can get it. That’s what the widow wants too. But didn’t Jesus say something about loving our enemies (Luke 6:27)?
We hear her crying for justice against her opponent but the Greek word that gets translated as “justice” actually means “avenged.” (Amy Jill-Levine, Short Stories by Jesus, 242). She wants her opponent to be punished, hurt, injured, and suffer in the same way she did or still does. I wonder how often that’s what we want when we cry for justice against our opponent.”
While not an explanation for all unanswered prayer, maybe that is why some of our prayers remain unanswered? Michael Marsh concludes,
“What if justice isn’t primarily about just deserts, punishment, or revenge? What if justice is about restoring balance and making things right as best we can? What if justice isn’t only about individual actions but the systems in which we all participate? What if justice is about meeting the needs of hurt people, both victims and offenders? What if justice means some should be held accountable for meeting those needs but all are responsible? This isn’t about “them” somewhere out there. This is about all of us everywhere…How are you doing justice today? How will you do justice tomorrow, the day after, and the one after that? I think that’s what Jesus is getting at when he asks, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” I don’t know if he will. That’s up to you and me.”
As we conclude, remember the reason Jesus told this parable: “to show us that we should always pray and not give up.” (Luke 18:1)
To help us do that, remember the concept of spiritual breathing. Lets make sure our continual prayers, like our continual breathing, as we discover God’s will for our lives from our daily reading of the scriptures.
Samuel Chadwick was a Methodist minister in the early 20th century. He once said, “The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. “He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom – but trembles when we pray!”
A homily prepared for the weekly Sabeel service.
[i] https://interruptingthesilence.com/2022/10/17/what-about-the-unjust-widow-a-sermon-on-luke-181-8/
I am also grateful to Alan Carr for his sermon “The Power of Persistent Prayer” especially his outline which I have adapted. https://www.sermonnotebook.org