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PARABLE OF THE PERSISTENT WIDOW – KEEP ON PRAYING
LORD’S DAY, JUNE 28 EVENING
Luke 18:1-8

Memory verse: Luke 18:7-8

 

“…when the Son of man cometh,

shall he find faith on the earth?”

 

PARABLE OF THE PERSISTENT WIDOW – KEEP ON PRAYING
 
In the parable’s conclusion, Jesus said to note what the unjust judge said in Luke 18:5: “because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.” Jesus’ reply in Luke 18:7-8, “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”
 
God is a Just Judge. He will never behave like the unjust judge. But the lesson from God is to use the lesser to teach us the greater. God’s children pray for God’s protection and deliverance when they suffer for Christ. But the persecution continues as if God has not heard. God’s children become impatient because they feel God has not listened to their cry. In their impatience, they sin. When they sin, others are hurt and stumbled.
 
Persevering in prayer is good for every believer’s faith. It is good for them to know how mature or weak their faith is. If they endure patiently to the end of the trial, they know their faith is strong enough to withstand that level of persecution. However, if they sin, they know their faith has reached its limit. They need to repent, and to trust God again and grow more. Either way, the patient waiting for God’s deliverance is good for all believers.
 
If God were to hear and answer believers’ cries immediately, how would they measure the level of their faith? God will not allow all those who persecute Christians to escape His just judgment. When Christians endure persecution, Christ’s image is seen clearly. If these persecutors do not repent of their sin, God is waiting to condemn them when they die. The Apostle Paul persecuted Christ before his salvation, but he repented and was saved by Christ. That is the only way for all sinners, including the persecutors of Christians, to be saved and be forgiven by God. The issue is not God’s delay in hearing believers but whether these believers have the maturity of faith to persevere in their prayers when persecution comes.
 
THOUGHT: Am I patient or impatient in my prayer life?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, help me to always wait patiently for Thy will to be done in all my prayers, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

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