Kingdom Come, Week 7; The Judge and the Widow, Luke 18-18-30
I’m standing in front of the Western Wall or Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. Jews from all over the world come to face this wall and pray. Why is this so sacred? It’s not the last remaining piece of the Temple. It’s actually a portion of the wall surrounding the Temple. Most scholars feel the Temple was on the spot where the Muslim Dome of the Rock is today. So why do Jews face this wall and pray? As they say in Fiddler on the Roof – “Tradition!” Since the destruction of the Temple two thousand years ago, this was the closest spot to the Temple where Jews could pray. Imagine all the prayers offered by this wall through all the centuries. It’s a very holy place. I once heard a story of a man who came day after day and year after year to pray at the wall. When someone asked him what it’s like he said, “Like I’m talking to a wall.”
You may feel this way when you pray. I receive a lot of questions about prayer. Does prayer change things? Why do we pray if God already knows what He will do? Why does it take so long for Him to answer? What if He never answers? Maybe, when you pray, you feel like you’re talking to a wall or the ceiling.
One thing we know about Jesus: He prayed. Every morning He rose before sunrise to call home to His Heavenly Father. He teaches His disciples, including us, to do the same. He even tells them “a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1). The scene opens with a judge who is not afraid of anyone. You might think this makes him fair and impartial. Yet he has a hard head and a hard heart. He refuses to obey the two greatest commandments: love God and love your neighbor. There is not a compassionate bone in his body or an ounce of faith in his soul. The only way to win his favor is with a bribe.
One day a widow walks into his courtroom. The most powerless people in the ancient world are widows. This widow is especially vulnerable since there are no family members to fight for her. In fact the adversary which denies her just desserts may well be a relative. When she enters the courtroom she is a woman in a man’s world, a pauper in a world that expects you to pay to play. Her pleas bounce off the judge like water on Gibraltar. Yet she has one thing on her side – grit, feistiness, persistence, chutzpah! She will not give up. Her continual demands for justice eventually wear down the rock hard resistance of the judge. Using a boxing term he says, I will see she gets justice, so she won’t beat me up with her coming.
Well that’s good for the widow but this story may leave you thinking God is not good like the judge. Must we nag God with our prayers in order to get an answer? No. Jesus uses a teaching method common to rabbis. If something is true in a negative example, how much more is it true in a positive one. If a heartless, soulless judge can be worn down with persistence, then God, who loves His chosen ones with all His heart, will hear and answer their cries for justice. Don’t give up. Stick with it. Keep praying.
That’s a hard message to hear when you’ve worn holes in your jeans praying for justice, healing or peace. Jesus doesn’t promise us a timetable for our prayers. He simply asks us to be patient and persistent in prayer. Then He adds one more lesson which, unfortunately, is buried in a poor translation. The NIV says in verse 7, “Will he keep putting them off?” But the literal words are, “And He is patient with them.” Why should we be patient while we pray for God to act? Because God is patient with us. We do not always act justly or fairly. Sometimes we are like the judge in failing to fully love God and neighbor. We must be patient with God for He is exceedingly patient with us and others. Pray for justice and healing and don’t give up. But also pray for patience, insight and the courage to change what’s unjust in you.
As you go to your discussion, what are your questions, your frustrations, and your celebrations with prayer? Prayer opens a door for the flow of the Spirit. That’s better than hitting your head against a wall.