WEBVTT 00:00:00.330 --> 00:00:04.309 Good morning everyone. It's been a while since 00:00:04.309 --> 00:00:08.390 I've been up here. I'm hoping you'll all be better 00:00:08.390 --> 00:00:10.210 behaved than the people I'm normally in front 00:00:10.210 --> 00:00:17.210 of each week. Don't count on it. Thanks Karen. 00:00:19.969 --> 00:00:24.710 On the day of Edith's birth, our eldest and firstborn, 00:00:25.129 --> 00:00:29.050 I enjoyed a peaceful sleep in until about 7 .30am. 00:00:29.609 --> 00:00:33.729 Now usually I was the first to awake so when 00:00:33.729 --> 00:00:36.130 I woke and felt that Lucy wasn't there, I went 00:00:36.130 --> 00:00:39.130 looking for her. She'd been awake since 2 a .m. 00:00:39.229 --> 00:00:42.229 with contractions. Now feeling rather guilty, 00:00:42.630 --> 00:00:46.429 I snapped into action. I massaged her lower back, 00:00:46.729 --> 00:00:49.950 I retrieved food and water, offered heat packs 00:00:49.950 --> 00:00:53.049 and added the last -minute items to our hospital 00:00:53.049 --> 00:00:57.829 bag. There was excitement, nerves and... Great 00:00:57.829 --> 00:01:00.890 anticipation for this day. Today was the day 00:01:00.890 --> 00:01:05.769 we would get to meet our little girl. But a few 00:01:05.769 --> 00:01:08.849 hours pass and things weren't progressing as 00:01:08.849 --> 00:01:12.390 fast as I thought they might. So my mind began 00:01:12.390 --> 00:01:16.090 to wander. And I remembered that we took our 00:01:16.090 --> 00:01:18.329 dinner to the beach the night before and I parked 00:01:18.329 --> 00:01:21.909 the car under a tree. And when we came back from 00:01:21.909 --> 00:01:25.879 dinner, the car was covered in bird poo. So I 00:01:25.879 --> 00:01:30.219 took the opportunity to go and wash the car Yeah, 00:01:30.219 --> 00:01:35.579 I did Now when I returned I was straight back 00:01:35.579 --> 00:01:38.379 into the back rubbing and the heat packs And 00:01:38.379 --> 00:01:40.420 phoning the hospital just to let them know that 00:01:40.420 --> 00:01:43.439 we weren't far away But the hospital staff said 00:01:43.439 --> 00:01:46.420 it wasn't quite time and they asked us to wait 00:01:46.420 --> 00:01:49.879 Now I figured given that it wasn't time to head 00:01:49.879 --> 00:01:52.579 in yet. Well, we might as well just watch a little 00:01:52.579 --> 00:01:54.909 bit of television After all, if we're going to 00:01:54.909 --> 00:01:57.049 sit here, we may as well be entertained, right? 00:01:58.969 --> 00:02:02.469 By 1pm, contractions were consistent and quick, 00:02:02.469 --> 00:02:05.769 so we got in the car and we headed in. Now this 00:02:05.769 --> 00:02:08.990 was go time, and I returned to peak levels of 00:02:08.990 --> 00:02:12.310 alertness. I packed the car, messaged the mothers, 00:02:12.909 --> 00:02:15.889 drove in super carefully, dropped Lucy off, parked 00:02:15.889 --> 00:02:18.750 the car, escorted Lucy to the ward and into our 00:02:18.750 --> 00:02:21.789 room. I was right back in there alongside my 00:02:21.789 --> 00:02:24.069 wife helping to see this through to the end. 00:02:24.310 --> 00:02:27.110 I helped Lucy by holding her hair, applying the 00:02:27.110 --> 00:02:31.449 gas mask and offering reassurance. Hours of this 00:02:31.449 --> 00:02:36.629 passed by, and it's about 6pm now. My stomach 00:02:36.629 --> 00:02:39.710 makes itself known to me and reminds me that 00:02:39.710 --> 00:02:44.150 it's dinner time. Lucy can't move because of 00:02:44.150 --> 00:02:48.050 the epidural, so I head across the road and go 00:02:48.050 --> 00:02:51.229 to get some food. After all, a man has to eat, 00:02:51.370 --> 00:02:55.969 right? I browse the restaurants, sit down, order 00:02:55.969 --> 00:02:58.590 and eat, and when I'm finished, I return to the 00:02:58.590 --> 00:03:01.729 hospital. Things still don't seem to have progressed, 00:03:01.750 --> 00:03:04.629 so I wander the room, fiddling with things, looking 00:03:04.629 --> 00:03:07.770 out the window, and eventually I lay down on 00:03:07.770 --> 00:03:11.689 the couch and drift off to sleep. A couple of 00:03:11.689 --> 00:03:14.569 hours later, I'm woken when the nurse exclaims, 00:03:14.569 --> 00:03:20.379 ooh, I see a head. Here she comes. I leapt out 00:03:20.379 --> 00:03:24.219 of bed and sprung back into action. I was bedside, 00:03:24.360 --> 00:03:27.159 attentive and fully alert and it wasn't much 00:03:27.159 --> 00:03:29.520 longer until our beautiful Edith was born at 00:03:29.520 --> 00:03:36.300 about 10pm. Well, waiting and delays can draw 00:03:36.300 --> 00:03:39.680 out all sorts of responses in us. They can make 00:03:39.680 --> 00:03:43.719 us lose interest, look for alternatives, become 00:03:43.719 --> 00:03:47.539 frustrated or even grow cold and indifferent. 00:03:48.139 --> 00:03:51.060 Now I've obviously told that story in a particular 00:03:51.060 --> 00:03:55.400 way for emphasis, but the reality is here I was 00:03:55.400 --> 00:03:58.759 in one of the most joyful moments of my life 00:03:58.759 --> 00:04:01.139 and I still couldn't sustain my attention for 00:04:01.139 --> 00:04:06.919 even 15 hours. I drifted, I got distracted, my 00:04:06.919 --> 00:04:10.340 interest faded, and that's what waiting does 00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:14.639 to us. If something doesn't keep us going, we 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:18.129 begin to lose heart, don't we? And in many ways, 00:04:18.250 --> 00:04:21.230 the Christian life is a life of waiting. We are 00:04:21.230 --> 00:04:23.329 waiting for Jesus to return and make all things 00:04:23.329 --> 00:04:27.129 right, but that waiting can feel long, almost 00:04:27.129 --> 00:04:30.689 2 ,000 years long. And it can produce the same 00:04:30.689 --> 00:04:35.050 responses in us. We lose heart, we grow indifferent, 00:04:35.829 --> 00:04:39.410 we become distracted, or we begin to wonder, 00:04:40.589 --> 00:04:44.149 is he really coming back? And the Bible itself 00:04:44.149 --> 00:04:47.189 acknowledges this struggle. In 2 Peter 3 verse 00:04:47.189 --> 00:04:51.389 4, the people scoff, where is this coming? He 00:04:51.389 --> 00:04:55.189 promised. Ever since our ancestors died, everything 00:04:55.189 --> 00:04:57.629 goes on as it has since the beginning of creation. 00:04:58.850 --> 00:05:02.329 And in Matthew 24 12, Jesus warns that the love 00:05:02.329 --> 00:05:06.750 of most will grow cold. And maybe you felt that. 00:05:07.589 --> 00:05:11.170 Because while we wait, life keeps happening. 00:05:12.670 --> 00:05:19.050 Suffering, injustice. temptation, grief, and 00:05:19.050 --> 00:05:21.370 we seek answers to these things but sometimes 00:05:21.370 --> 00:05:26.230 they don't seem to come and so slowly and quietly 00:05:26.230 --> 00:05:30.889 our faith erodes. We might not say it out loud 00:05:30.889 --> 00:05:37.129 but we begin to wonder why keep praying? Why 00:05:37.129 --> 00:05:41.250 keep going? And this is the struggle which Jesus 00:05:41.250 --> 00:05:45.180 addresses in today's passage. Very graciously 00:05:45.180 --> 00:05:48.100 Jesus tells this encouraging story to his disciples 00:05:48.100 --> 00:05:53.339 to remind them and us to keep going because Jesus 00:05:53.339 --> 00:05:56.720 will sort everything out. And we're going to 00:05:56.720 --> 00:06:00.040 explore this big idea today in two points. Be 00:06:00.040 --> 00:06:04.160 persistent in prayer and be confident in God's 00:06:04.160 --> 00:06:07.240 character. But before I go any further, let's 00:06:07.240 --> 00:06:12.819 just pray. Heavenly Father, I pray that we might 00:06:12.819 --> 00:06:16.459 find these words of yours a great encouragement 00:06:16.459 --> 00:06:20.319 in our walk with you. Lord, may they meet us 00:06:20.319 --> 00:06:23.680 where we're at and may they move us to treasure 00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:29.399 you and to persist in faithfulness to you. Amen. 00:06:31.519 --> 00:06:33.860 The parable of the persistent widow shows us 00:06:33.860 --> 00:06:38.160 a woman who has no power, no status and no protection. 00:06:38.670 --> 00:06:41.430 Having lost her husband, she is socially and 00:06:41.430 --> 00:06:43.990 economically vulnerable with no one to advocate 00:06:43.990 --> 00:06:47.910 for her. Yet she has one thing, persistence. 00:06:48.910 --> 00:06:51.889 She returns again and again to the judge refusing 00:06:51.889 --> 00:06:55.170 to give up and her persistence reveals her faith. 00:06:55.829 --> 00:06:59.189 She keeps coming back because she believes justice 00:06:59.189 --> 00:07:03.050 will be done. Jesus draws our attention to this 00:07:03.050 --> 00:07:06.699 widow. Her example shows us how we are to approach 00:07:06.699 --> 00:07:11.639 God with relentless, dependent prayer. Like her, 00:07:11.660 --> 00:07:15.480 we are called to always pray and not give up. 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:19.060 Prayer is a declaration of our dependence on 00:07:19.060 --> 00:07:23.300 God. It's an acknowledgement that we cannot ultimately 00:07:23.300 --> 00:07:27.339 provide for or sustain ourselves. Culturally, 00:07:27.339 --> 00:07:29.939 we don't like the terms dependence and vulnerability. 00:07:30.439 --> 00:07:33.139 We prize independence and self -sufficiency. 00:07:33.449 --> 00:07:35.990 We prefer not to be found in need of others. 00:07:36.750 --> 00:07:39.170 Yet, while we like to think of ourselves as self 00:07:39.170 --> 00:07:42.209 -sufficient, the reality is life brings our way 00:07:42.209 --> 00:07:44.970 many difficult things outside of our control. 00:07:46.629 --> 00:07:50.350 Suffering, broken relationships, chronic illnesses, 00:07:51.290 --> 00:07:56.490 grief, persecution, unrelenting sin. And of course, 00:07:56.610 --> 00:07:59.829 there is one inescapable event common to all 00:07:59.829 --> 00:08:04.850 of us. Death. So in reality, we really are no 00:08:04.850 --> 00:08:09.029 different from the widow in need of help. Now 00:08:09.029 --> 00:08:12.230 when the widow faced rejection and the cold uncaring 00:08:12.230 --> 00:08:15.209 silence of the unjust judge, what did she do? 00:08:15.889 --> 00:08:19.430 She didn't let rejection drive her away. She 00:08:19.430 --> 00:08:22.529 didn't stop believing he could help. She didn't 00:08:22.529 --> 00:08:26.250 think asking was futile. She simply kept going. 00:08:26.930 --> 00:08:30.209 She returned again and again believing that justice 00:08:30.209 --> 00:08:34.029 could be done. And Jesus is calling us to do 00:08:34.029 --> 00:08:39.070 the same. A true faith is tested and revealed 00:08:39.070 --> 00:08:42.370 in our persistence, continually returning to 00:08:42.370 --> 00:08:46.190 Him, crying out day and night, trusting that 00:08:46.190 --> 00:08:49.470 He hears and will respond, whether in this life 00:08:49.470 --> 00:08:54.029 or the next. In that persistence, our faith is 00:08:54.029 --> 00:08:59.909 deepened and proven. In Tim Keller's book on 00:08:59.909 --> 00:09:02.990 prayer, He wrote about a time in his family's 00:09:02.990 --> 00:09:05.490 life when they realised the importance of prayer. 00:09:06.169 --> 00:09:08.690 He and his wife described it like this. He said, 00:09:09.590 --> 00:09:11.909 imagine you were diagnosed with such a lethal 00:09:11.909 --> 00:09:14.490 condition that the doctor told you that you would 00:09:14.490 --> 00:09:16.549 die within hours unless you took a particular 00:09:16.549 --> 00:09:19.710 medicine, a pill every night before going to 00:09:19.710 --> 00:09:22.929 sleep. Imagine that you were told that you could 00:09:22.929 --> 00:09:26.789 never miss it or you would die. Would you forget? 00:09:27.550 --> 00:09:31.750 Would you not get around to it some nights? No, 00:09:31.769 --> 00:09:33.970 it would be so crucial that you wouldn't forget. 00:09:34.649 --> 00:09:39.990 You would never miss. Well, he says, if we don't 00:09:39.990 --> 00:09:42.750 pray to God, we're not going to make it because 00:09:42.750 --> 00:09:46.590 of all we're facing. I'm certainly not, he says. 00:09:47.529 --> 00:09:51.070 We have to pray and can't let it just slip our 00:09:51.070 --> 00:09:55.549 minds. If we truly understand our need, we would 00:09:55.549 --> 00:09:58.909 pray. like our lives depended on it, because 00:09:58.909 --> 00:10:02.830 they do. Prayer is the pill that can cure us 00:10:02.830 --> 00:10:05.750 from giving up in the face of a lifetime of troubles. 00:10:06.850 --> 00:10:08.809 And prayer is the pill that can cure us from 00:10:08.809 --> 00:10:11.789 giving up and facing an eternity of troubles 00:10:11.789 --> 00:10:15.909 without God. We need to adopt the widow's posture 00:10:15.909 --> 00:10:19.509 of helpless, dependent prayer and persistently 00:10:19.509 --> 00:10:25.230 pray so that we can keep going. But we would 00:10:25.230 --> 00:10:28.470 be crazy to persistently pray if we weren't confident 00:10:28.470 --> 00:10:31.250 in who we were praying to. Which brings me to 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:34.629 our second point. Be confident in God's character. 00:10:36.110 --> 00:10:38.710 In the story, the unjust judge relents and delivers 00:10:38.710 --> 00:10:41.570 justice, but not because he becomes righteous 00:10:41.570 --> 00:10:45.409 or develops compassion for the widow. No, he 00:10:45.409 --> 00:10:47.750 relents because he's worn down and no longer 00:10:47.750 --> 00:10:51.360 wants to be bothered. In this parable, Jesus 00:10:51.360 --> 00:10:53.879 is not saying that God is like this, bother him 00:10:53.879 --> 00:10:57.019 enough and we can bend him to our will like a 00:10:57.019 --> 00:11:00.580 child who nags their parent. Rather, Jesus is 00:11:00.580 --> 00:11:04.600 drawing a sharp contrast. He's saying, if even 00:11:04.600 --> 00:11:08.539 a corrupt, uncaring judge eventually brings justice, 00:11:09.200 --> 00:11:11.539 how much more will a loving and righteous God 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:16.919 bring justice for his chosen ones? You see, it's 00:11:16.919 --> 00:11:19.929 God's character. that gives us the assurance 00:11:19.929 --> 00:11:23.610 to keep coming to him in prayer. By contrasting 00:11:23.610 --> 00:11:26.490 the unjust judge, Jesus highlights what God is 00:11:26.490 --> 00:11:31.690 like. Unlike the unjust judge, God has a personal 00:11:31.690 --> 00:11:34.690 relationship with his elect. We are not strangers 00:11:34.690 --> 00:11:37.769 to him, nor are our troubles hidden from him. 00:11:38.970 --> 00:11:43.629 Unlike the unjust judge, God is honorable, fair 00:11:43.629 --> 00:11:48.230 and righteous. Unlike the unjust judge, God wants 00:11:48.230 --> 00:11:52.509 what is good and right for his people. Unlike 00:11:52.509 --> 00:11:55.289 the unjust judge, God is not bothered by our 00:11:55.289 --> 00:11:58.250 persistence. He invites us to come boldly and 00:11:58.250 --> 00:12:01.929 delights in our dependence on him. And unlike 00:12:01.929 --> 00:12:05.909 the unjust judge, God is loving, generous and 00:12:05.909 --> 00:12:09.149 compassionate. And we see these attributes not 00:12:09.149 --> 00:12:11.549 just in this passage but revealed all through 00:12:11.549 --> 00:12:14.809 scripture. When we consider the sum total of 00:12:14.809 --> 00:12:17.429 God's character from the Bible, we can, as difficult 00:12:17.429 --> 00:12:20.529 as it might be, start to understand that God's 00:12:20.529 --> 00:12:23.570 delays in answering our prayers are not His absence. 00:12:24.129 --> 00:12:26.909 His silence is not indifference, and His timing 00:12:26.909 --> 00:12:30.549 is not neglect. Here are a few examples from 00:12:30.549 --> 00:12:34.230 Scripture. Romans 8 -28 tells us that God works 00:12:34.230 --> 00:12:38.710 for the good of those who love Him. Isaiah 55, 00:12:38.870 --> 00:12:42.889 8 -9 says, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, 00:12:43.330 --> 00:12:45.809 neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 00:12:46.169 --> 00:12:48.330 As the heavens are higher than the earth, so 00:12:48.330 --> 00:12:51.570 are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts 00:12:51.570 --> 00:12:55.549 than your thoughts. And Proverbs 3, 5 and 6 remind 00:12:55.549 --> 00:12:58.590 us to trust in the Lord with all your heart and 00:12:58.590 --> 00:13:01.429 lean not on your own understanding. In all your 00:13:01.429 --> 00:13:03.970 ways submit to him and he will make your paths 00:13:03.970 --> 00:13:07.509 straight. In the midst of our suffering it can 00:13:07.509 --> 00:13:10.549 be difficult to comprehend how God wouldn't give 00:13:10.549 --> 00:13:14.450 us what we want. But we can find assurance in 00:13:14.450 --> 00:13:18.610 His character. He is the all -knowing, very wise 00:13:18.610 --> 00:13:22.129 God. We can trust His plans and trust that it's 00:13:22.129 --> 00:13:25.289 good for us because His character shows us this 00:13:25.289 --> 00:13:29.830 time and time again. Parents will know this struggle. 00:13:30.809 --> 00:13:33.629 Sometimes my children ask for something and it's 00:13:33.629 --> 00:13:37.779 not necessarily bad. But I have to say no. Recently 00:13:37.779 --> 00:13:39.720 they asked to visit our elderly neighbour and 00:13:39.720 --> 00:13:44.039 spend some time with her. And I said no. To them 00:13:44.039 --> 00:13:46.940 it can seem very harsh and unnecessary. They 00:13:46.940 --> 00:13:49.000 would even try to make out to you that it's tyrannical. 00:13:49.480 --> 00:13:52.940 But in my head... I'm thinking it's 4 .30 now, 00:13:53.100 --> 00:13:54.980 if you go over, she's going to give you treats 00:13:54.980 --> 00:13:57.620 galore, ruining your appetite for dinner. Extracting 00:13:57.620 --> 00:13:59.779 you from the house will be a half hour operation 00:13:59.779 --> 00:14:02.559 as you negotiate more time. We won't get back 00:14:02.559 --> 00:14:04.500 home until 5 .30, then we've got to clean up 00:14:04.500 --> 00:14:06.679 the toys, have a bath, I won't have put the dinner 00:14:06.679 --> 00:14:08.480 on, that'll push back dinner, that'll push back 00:14:08.480 --> 00:14:11.659 teeth, stories, Bible, prayer, and bedtime, and 00:14:11.659 --> 00:14:14.279 the early night I know you need will be lost. 00:14:15.000 --> 00:14:19.220 So no, you're not going. In this situation, I 00:14:19.220 --> 00:14:22.269 know the best. But it would be futile to try 00:14:22.269 --> 00:14:25.909 to explain that to them. In this situation, my 00:14:25.909 --> 00:14:28.529 wisdom and my knowledge of what lay ahead exceeds 00:14:28.529 --> 00:14:32.210 theirs. And likewise, what feels like delay or 00:14:32.210 --> 00:14:36.490 denial to us is often his good and careful provision. 00:14:38.289 --> 00:14:41.370 But it's not just about what God is like. Our 00:14:41.370 --> 00:14:44.690 assurance comes from what he's done and what 00:14:44.690 --> 00:14:48.190 he will do. Verses seven to eight of the parables 00:14:48.190 --> 00:14:51.720 say, And will not God bring about justice for 00:14:51.720 --> 00:14:54.779 His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night? 00:14:55.399 --> 00:14:58.139 Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He 00:14:58.139 --> 00:15:02.799 will see that they get justice and quickly. God 00:15:02.799 --> 00:15:07.440 has already secured justice for us. He has taken 00:15:07.440 --> 00:15:10.899 up our cause and acted decisively to vindicate 00:15:10.899 --> 00:15:15.120 us. Like the widow, we were helpless and without 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:18.059 hope. yet in His mercy God intervened in the 00:15:18.059 --> 00:15:21.299 most extraordinary way by sending His perfect 00:15:21.299 --> 00:15:25.500 Son to the cross so that we might be justified. 00:15:27.100 --> 00:15:29.759 In this sense justice has already been carried 00:15:29.759 --> 00:15:33.019 out. Out of great compassion for us, God has 00:15:33.019 --> 00:15:38.240 addressed our greatest need, eternity. The sufferings 00:15:38.240 --> 00:15:41.539 of this world are real and painful, but they're 00:15:41.539 --> 00:15:45.000 not final for His chosen ones. They will pass. 00:15:45.660 --> 00:15:49.460 Eternity will not. God has made our deliverance 00:15:49.460 --> 00:15:52.879 certain through his son Jesus, the very one telling 00:15:52.879 --> 00:15:56.659 this parable. And so we can add to the list, 00:15:57.179 --> 00:16:01.659 unlike the unjust judge, God has delivered justice 00:16:01.659 --> 00:16:06.279 at great personal cost and out of deep love for 00:16:06.279 --> 00:16:11.279 us. If this is the God we pray to, then we can 00:16:11.279 --> 00:16:15.019 be sure he is for us. You see, God's character, 00:16:15.279 --> 00:16:18.059 who He is, what He's done, and what He will do, 00:16:18.299 --> 00:16:21.440 reveal to us His faithfulness and trustworthiness. 00:16:22.279 --> 00:16:24.960 When we offer requests to a man such as the unjust 00:16:24.960 --> 00:16:28.519 judge, we can expect to be left bitter, resentful 00:16:28.519 --> 00:16:31.700 and disinclined to keep going back to Him. But 00:16:31.700 --> 00:16:36.000 when we pray to God, we anchor ourselves to His 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:40.039 good character and His faithful promises. It 00:16:40.039 --> 00:16:44.159 guards our heart from contempt. bitterness, frustration, 00:16:44.659 --> 00:16:47.860 and a willingness to give up. Our confidence 00:16:47.860 --> 00:16:52.259 in him gives us hope, and our hope keeps us going. 00:16:53.759 --> 00:16:55.940 When I'm out at the playground with my girls, 00:16:56.379 --> 00:16:58.419 it's interesting that most of my illustration's 00:16:58.419 --> 00:17:01.059 about a father -child relationship, isn't it? 00:17:01.600 --> 00:17:03.220 When I'm out at the playground with my girls, 00:17:03.240 --> 00:17:05.839 I often see them pause in their play, and they 00:17:05.839 --> 00:17:10.339 look for me. They briefly seek me out, lock their 00:17:10.339 --> 00:17:13.670 eyes onto me, and then simply return to their 00:17:13.670 --> 00:17:17.569 business of play. It's like a check. Are you 00:17:17.569 --> 00:17:20.390 still there, Dad? Have you still got me, Dad? 00:17:21.289 --> 00:17:23.630 Are you still protecting me and looking out for 00:17:23.630 --> 00:17:26.609 me? It's the little boost of confidence they 00:17:26.609 --> 00:17:29.569 need to keep going. And in a way, our prayers 00:17:29.569 --> 00:17:32.769 to the Father are like that. His character provides 00:17:32.769 --> 00:17:36.109 assurance like the assurance a parent provides 00:17:36.109 --> 00:17:39.910 for their child. Therefore, our persistence in 00:17:39.910 --> 00:17:42.839 prayer even in the face of delay, is founded 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:45.900 on our assurance of God's character and his care 00:17:45.900 --> 00:17:49.140 for his chosen people. We can be confident God 00:17:49.140 --> 00:17:53.460 will deliver because of who he is. If the unjust 00:17:53.460 --> 00:17:57.119 judge gives justice, how much more would a loving 00:17:57.119 --> 00:18:01.039 father? Before we move on to the application 00:18:01.039 --> 00:18:03.500 of today's passage, I want to just briefly mention 00:18:03.500 --> 00:18:06.240 the word quickly, which is in verse 8. I have 00:18:06.240 --> 00:18:09.380 to apologize to you and say I can't explain. 00:18:09.789 --> 00:18:12.970 The quickly part. Two thousand years doesn't 00:18:12.970 --> 00:18:16.250 seem quick and neither are our answers to prayer 00:18:16.250 --> 00:18:20.049 always quick. So I haven't been able to logically 00:18:20.049 --> 00:18:23.269 make sense of why Jesus uses that word. In all 00:18:23.269 --> 00:18:25.769 the commentaries I've read they reference 2 Peter 00:18:25.769 --> 00:18:29.490 3 8. With the Lord a day is like a thousand years 00:18:29.490 --> 00:18:32.430 and a thousand years alike a day. Perhaps it 00:18:32.430 --> 00:18:35.990 is as simple as that. Or perhaps it's also worth 00:18:35.990 --> 00:18:38.740 remembering that this is a parable. a story Jesus 00:18:38.740 --> 00:18:41.019 is telling to make a point. And the point is 00:18:41.019 --> 00:18:44.279 that God is better than the unjust judge, even 00:18:44.279 --> 00:18:49.519 in his speed. So, in light of this passage, what 00:18:49.519 --> 00:18:52.700 do we do? Well, unlike other parables, the writer 00:18:52.700 --> 00:18:56.000 Luke, before Jesus begins telling this story, 00:18:56.180 --> 00:18:59.859 makes clear what we are to do. Always pray and 00:18:59.859 --> 00:19:03.900 don't give up. But here's a few things that I 00:19:03.900 --> 00:19:06.019 got to thinking about in the application of this 00:19:06.019 --> 00:19:09.329 passage. My first point is quite simply pray. 00:19:09.809 --> 00:19:14.349 If you've never prayed, pray. If you've stopped 00:19:14.349 --> 00:19:18.450 praying, come back and start praying. If you 00:19:18.450 --> 00:19:22.670 don't feel like praying, just pray and tell God 00:19:22.670 --> 00:19:25.930 that you don't feel like praying. No perfect 00:19:25.930 --> 00:19:29.910 words are required in your prayers. Just get 00:19:29.910 --> 00:19:35.150 started and keep going. Secondly, cry out day 00:19:35.150 --> 00:19:38.460 and night. We often feel like prayer needs to 00:19:38.460 --> 00:19:41.960 be refined or controlled and sophisticated in 00:19:41.960 --> 00:19:44.480 some way. I like this verse because I think it 00:19:44.480 --> 00:19:46.880 calls us to be honest and real in our prayers. 00:19:47.660 --> 00:19:50.460 And scripture is full of raw prayers. It's full 00:19:50.460 --> 00:19:54.220 of lament. There's confusion. There are prayers 00:19:54.220 --> 00:19:57.059 that challenge God. There are prayers for people 00:19:57.059 --> 00:20:00.279 calling for punishment for wicked people. There 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:04.430 are prayers where people wrestle with God. There's 00:20:04.430 --> 00:20:07.410 no point putting on a show in your private, personal 00:20:07.410 --> 00:20:11.329 prayers to God. Be honest with him and cry out 00:20:11.329 --> 00:20:14.410 day and night. And that might mean telling him 00:20:14.410 --> 00:20:17.130 that you're tired. It might mean telling him 00:20:17.130 --> 00:20:19.789 that you don't feel like praying. And it might 00:20:19.789 --> 00:20:21.690 even mean telling him that you're struggling 00:20:21.690 --> 00:20:27.109 to trust him. My third point is trust God's character, 00:20:27.130 --> 00:20:30.509 not your circumstances. Don't pray in some vain 00:20:30.509 --> 00:20:33.450 hope to bend God to your will, but remember to 00:20:33.450 --> 00:20:36.869 pray to a loving God who wants to hear your prayers, 00:20:37.589 --> 00:20:40.549 who wants to give you justice and has given you 00:20:40.549 --> 00:20:43.829 justice. If it seems like God is not answering 00:20:43.829 --> 00:20:47.569 you, remember God's wisdom far exceeds ours and 00:20:47.569 --> 00:20:51.470 trust in his good character. And lastly, use 00:20:51.470 --> 00:20:55.109 the Lord's Prayer as a template. Brendan has 00:20:55.109 --> 00:20:57.450 just finished an excellent sermon series on the 00:20:57.450 --> 00:21:00.119 Lord's Prayer. And it's a great tool for how 00:21:00.119 --> 00:21:02.980 to pray. It reminds us that prayer is not a shopping 00:21:02.980 --> 00:21:05.640 list to get the things we want. Instead it reminds 00:21:05.640 --> 00:21:08.440 us that prayer is about aligning ourselves with 00:21:08.440 --> 00:21:11.480 God's divine purpose and will for our lives. 00:21:11.900 --> 00:21:14.839 And it reminds us that it's about praying God 00:21:14.839 --> 00:21:18.319 things. So I encourage you to go back and listen 00:21:18.319 --> 00:21:21.079 to all those sermons from that series and to 00:21:21.079 --> 00:21:23.710 just touch base with them again. and they have 00:21:23.710 --> 00:21:26.109 lots of encouraging application points in each 00:21:26.109 --> 00:21:29.369 of those as well. You can access those on Spotify 00:21:29.369 --> 00:21:33.210 or through our website. But you can't go past 00:21:33.210 --> 00:21:35.470 the simplicity of Luke's message in verse 1, 00:21:35.690 --> 00:21:39.670 when he says, pray always and don't give up. 00:21:41.430 --> 00:21:43.650 Now, as I prepared for today, I came to love 00:21:43.650 --> 00:21:48.309 this parable's ending. Jesus doesn't say, when 00:21:48.309 --> 00:21:51.509 the Son of Man comes, will He find perfect people? 00:21:52.619 --> 00:21:56.420 He says, when the Son of Man comes, will He find 00:21:56.420 --> 00:22:00.880 faith on the earth? So the real question isn't, 00:22:01.240 --> 00:22:04.599 will God answer your prayers? The real question 00:22:04.599 --> 00:22:07.720 is, will you keep trusting Him while you wait? 00:22:09.400 --> 00:22:12.160 Faith manifests itself through persistent prayer. 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:15.599 It is persistence in the waiting and persistence 00:22:15.599 --> 00:22:17.900 in the face of unanswered prayer that tests and 00:22:17.900 --> 00:22:21.400 proves our faith in God. Sometimes when we pray, 00:22:21.500 --> 00:22:25.759 our situation changes. Sometimes when we pray 00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:29.920 our situation doesn't change but always when 00:22:29.920 --> 00:22:35.319 we pray our faith deepens. So when Jesus returns 00:22:35.319 --> 00:22:38.500 will he find people whose faith eroded because 00:22:38.500 --> 00:22:42.059 they gave up or will he find people who always 00:22:42.059 --> 00:22:44.000 prayed and never gave up?