Prayer is one of those disciplines that I never feel I’ve mastered, and perhaps I never will. When it comes to teaching about prayer, I find myself continually reflecting on what I can share that might add to others' spiritual strength and intimacy with God. We all agree that prayer is a significant part of Scripture and a crucial activity for God's people. However, prayerlessness can creep into anyone's life, often limiting prayer to times of grave danger or emergencies.
I’m reminded of a man who encountered trouble while flying his personal airplane. He called the control tower and said, "Pilot to tower, I'm 300 miles from the airport, six hundred feet above the ground, and I'm out of fuel. I am descending rapidly. Please advise." The dispatcher replied, "Bow your head. Close your eyes. Repeat after me: 'Our Father, who art in heaven...' "In essence, prayer becomes relevant only in a crisis. Our goal should be to move from sporadic prayer to a lifestyle of prayer and devotion. Jesus shared a parable with His disciples to remind them that they should always pray. Let’s delve into this parable and explore its richness.
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ For some time he refused. 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!’” And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And 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. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Reflecting on this text, a few questions arise that may move us to consider and practice a life of persistent prayer. The first question is:
To teach His disciples about prayer, Jesus brings them into the courtroom. This judge may have been sitting regally in a tent, traveling from place to place. The parable conveys that he’s a wicked man because he neither feared God nor cared about people. This is completely antithetical to Jesus' teaching: love God and love people. The judge would have been surrounded by assistants, often dictating which cases would come before him based on bribes.
In contrast, the widow had her own hardships. As a woman in that time, she had very little standing or credibility before the law, especially without a husband. She would have been poor, vulnerable, and marginalized, unable to pay a bribe to get her case tried. Nevertheless, she came before the judge, seeking justice from an adversary. For all intents and purposes, she was in great need. In that sense, she was needy.
Needy people are prayerful people. I am not talking about being clingy; I am talking about being broken in the right places. Do you recognize your necessity for God? This widow understood that money or status wouldn’t solve her problem. Scripture is silent about the specific area of life she sought justice in, but the point is that she knew she was dependent on a verdict from the judge. It was F.B. Meyer who once said, "The great tragedy of life is not unanswered prayer, but unoffered prayer." The widow was going to be sure that her petition would not go unoffered. The widow understood her neediness. Do we understand the same? The next question is:
The judge, being wicked, couldn’t care less about the widow's need or the injustice done to her. However, though she seemed hopeless, she wasn’t helpless. There was a holy stubbornness that wouldn’t allow her to stop coming before the judge. Her persistence and passion behind her need were evident. The judge finally said, "I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!" Her passion came from desperation, recognizing that this was her only option.
Recognizing our need is one thing, but has it translated into a holy passion? Jesus' point behind this parable is to remind the disciples that they should always pray. Passion is feeling deeply about what you’re praying for; it’s not emotionalism. It comes from an "I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired" place. To have a persistent prayer life, there must be a holy passion accompanying our petitions. Finally:
Jesus contrasts the unjust judge with Himself to highlight His nature. The judge doesn’t fear God and doesn’t care for people, while Jesus is God and gave His life for people. The judge answers prayer out of fear, but Jesus answers prayer for His glory.
The widow was a stranger, but we are His children. She had no friend to advocate for her, but we have the Great Advocate. She had to go to a court of law, but we go to a throne of grace. A persistent prayer life becomes more attractive when we understand who we are and whose we are. He understands the depths of our needs and desires. Jesus ends with a question: Will He find faith on Earth? In essence, will our faith manifest in such a way that a life of persistent prayer is what we live by?
John Newton (best known for penning the lyrics to the hymn “Amazing Grace”) once stated, "Thou art coming to a King. Large petitions with thee bring. For His love and power are such, none can ever ask too much." Knowing that I can bring whatever small or huge petition before a King, fuels me to be persistent in my pursuit of God.
Again, I ask these three questions: Are you needy? Where’s your passion? Do you know Him?
Answering yes to these questions will place you on the path to a life of persistent prayer.
Lionel King serves as Christ Church's Teaching Pastor and prior to that he was the Teen Director. He previously worked as a teacher in Paterson and has a heart for sharing the truth in a relevant fashion to an ever-changing generation through speaking, lecturing, and spoken-word poetry. In addition to local churches, he has shared in prisons, schools, political functions, NFL/NCAA chapels, motivational meetings, and national conferences. He also served in a leadership capacity within the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA). He has a bachelor's degree in Sociology and Elementary Education, and a Masters of Divinity from Nyack Alliance Theological Seminary. He and his wonderful bride, Stephanie King, are the parents of two children.