"Pray Without Ceasing”

“Jesus told them a story showing that it was necessary for them to pray consistently and never quit. He said, “There was once a judge in some city who never gave God a thought and cared nothing for people. A widow in that city kept after him: ‘My rights are being violated. Protect me!’ “He never gave her the time of day. But after this went on and on he said to himself, ‘I care nothing what God thinks, even less what people think. But because this widow won’t quit badgering me, I’d better do something and see that she gets justice—otherwise I’m going to end up beaten black-and-blue by her pounding.’” Then the Master said, “Do you hear what that judge, corrupt as he is, is saying? So, what makes you think God won’t step in and work justice for his chosen people, who continue to cry out for help? Won’t he stick up for them? I assure you, he will. He will not drag his feet. But how much of that kind of persistent faith will the Son of Man find on the earth when he returns?” Luke 18:1-8 (MSG)

In the parable of the “Persistent Widow”, Jesus Christ taught us about how to persist in prayer. He used the example of a woman asking for justice, so that she can be avenged of her adversaries.

In life, as well as in matters of justice, God does not favor the rich over the poor, neither does he favor the powerful over the oppressed. We are all created equal in the eyes of God.

In the eyes of man, there are different categories of people. There is a class of people known as “the oppressed”.

So, who are “the oppressed?”

They are:

-those denied of their rights.

-those silenced by their enemies.

-those the Bible describes as “turned back at the gate”, that is, denied justice and

-those that have no helper.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:7, the Bible admonishes us to “pray without ceasing”.

In James 5:16, the Bible says:

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” NKJV

The recent announcement that some prominent United States of America gymnasts, including Simone Biles, Aly Raisman and others recently settled their claims with the Department of Justice underscores the importance of persistence in prayer. They had been sexually abused by Dr. Larry Nassar for decades. This matter was reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2015 and 2016, yet it was not investigated by the FBI. It took their persistence in asking for justice, including a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, before they finally got justice. Surely, a lot of these young women, whose innocence was stolen from them, would have been praying for years, hoping to get justice.

Inasmuch as the claims have been settled, this raises a lot of serious questions that needs to be answered.

1. Why did it take the FBI years to investigate this matter?

2. Even though $138.7 million dollars is a lot of money to pay for the incompetence of government officials, it can never fully compensate these innocent gymnasts of what they suffered in the hands of Dr. Larry Nassar. What has government done to punish those responsible for this failure to do the right thing?

3. Are these government officials still in service?

4. What of other thousands of complaints filed with the FBI several years ago that have never been investigated?

5. Who will speak for those still waiting for justice after all these years?

6. What steps have been taken to ensure that this does not happen again?

Remember, “Justice delayed is Justice denied”.

To the oppressed and those that have no helper, we leave you with these words of comfort from the Bible spoken by Jesus Christ, quoting the words of Prophet Isaiah.

In Luke 4:18:

“The Spirit of the upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord”. NKJV

Finally, not every act of government in giving of justice needs to be delayed.

In 2 Kings 8:1-6, we read about a woman who was granted justice in her matter. Not only that, but the King also appointed a special officer to ensure that her rights were restored.

“Then Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, “Arise and go, you and your household, and stay wherever you can; for the Lord has called for a famine, and furthermore, it will come upon the land for seven years.” So the woman arose and did according to the saying of the man of God, and she went with her household and dwelt in the land of the Philistines seven years. It came to pass, at the end of seven years, that the woman returned from the land of the Philistines; and she went to make an appeal to the king for her house and for her land. Then the king talked with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Tell me, please, all the great things Elisha has done.” Now it happened, as he was telling the king how he had restored the dead to life, that there was the woman whose son he had restored to life, appealing to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, “My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life.” And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So, the king appointed a certain officer for her, saying,