INTRODUCTION
From Roman history comes the story of a Roman emperor in his chariot as a part of a parade. Cheering people lined the streets while legionaries were stationed to keep the people at a safe distance. The emperor’s family sat on a platform to watch him go by in all the pride of his position. As the emperor came near the place where his family was stationed, a young boy jumped from the platform, burrowed through the crowd, and tried to dodge a legionnaire so he could run to the emperor’s chariot. The soldier stopped him and said; "You cannot go out there, boy. Do you know who is in that chariot? That is the emperor. You cannot go near him." The little boy laughed, then said; "He may be your emperor, but he is my father." Then he ran to his father’s open arms.
There is a beautiful song that emphasizes our position as God’s children. It is entitled, "A Child of the King."
I once was an outcast stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice, and an alien by birth,
But I’ve been adopted, my name’s written down,
An heir to a mansion, a robe, and a crown.
I’m a child of the King,
A child of the King:
With Jesus my Savior,
I’m a child of the King."
The child of God is a child of the King and can approach him with as much pride and confidence as the young lad did the emperor. The means by which we do so is prayer. Prayer is our lifeline to God. It is one of the means by which we search for his will and by which he reveals his will to us. It is our source of comfort and strength for our journey through the trials and tribulations of life. It is an attitude that we are to be in throughout the day. Without it, a Christian can never be all God wants him or her to be.
Now, if prayer is so vitally important, why do surveys show the majority of Christians spend so little time in it? It does require effort. It requires some planning. It may mean getting up a little earlier or going to bed a little later. Since prayer is so important, it behooves us to find time to consult God through it. The Bible says we can come boldly before his throne of grace. If we are his children, we should want to talk to him as our heavenly Father just as we want to communicate with our earthly parents or other relatives. Jesus himself gives us an example in the need of prayer. Luke details the prayer life of Jesus more than any of the other gospel writers. He is also the author that details the prayer life of the early church in the Book of Acts. Not only must we pray often, but we should pray persistently.
Persistence in prayer is what Jesus teaches through the parables of the persistent widow and the friend at midnight. Prayer was a normal part of Jewish life. Christianity also emphasized the importance of private prayer as over against ceremonial prayer.
Jesus was nearing the end of his public ministry and moving toward Jerusalem as he told the parable of the persistent widow. He told the parable so his followers would always pray and not give up. His early followers must have been much like some Christians today. They needed encouragement in their prayer life. It is tempting to give up in our prayer life if it appears God is not listening or if it is infringing on the time we need for doing something else.
It seems that in a certain town there was a judge that feared neither God nor cared about people. In this, he laced the two most important characteristics a judge should have. Also in that town was a widow who kept coming to the judge to grant her justice with her adversary. Widows in biblical times were especially vulnerable to such people. They were unprotected, and men often took legal or financial advantage of them. Jesus does not name the offense her adversary was committing, but it probably involved some type of monetary settlement. By going to the judge, she went to the only source of help available to her.
For some reason, the judge refused to help her. Maybe the adversary of the widow was his friend. Perhaps, he was just lazy. Finally, her persistence won his aid. Perhaps, he thought she would damage his reputation if he did not help. Though he did not care about people or fear God, the persistence of the widow wore him down. Meeting her demand seemed the only way to get rid of her.
Then Jesus makes the application. We can couch it in an if then statement. If the judge, who was unjust, answered the cries of the widow, who was a stranger to him, then God, who is just and loving, will much more answer his children whom he has chosen.
The other parable, that of the friend at midnight, is found in chapter eleven. It follows the account of Jesus teaching his followers how to pray. He tells of a friend who goes to another friend at midnight asking for bread. He needs the bread because a friend of his who is on a journey has stopped by and he has nothing to feed him. It may seem strange for a traveler to arrive at midnight, but in ancient times many people traveled at night to avoid the heat of the day. Hospitality rules demanded a guest be served even if the pantry was bare and the food shops closed. Thus he decides to ask his neighbor for some food. However, only enough bread and food were prepared for one day, and the family had already eaten this and settled in for the night.
The neighbor tells the friend not to bother him. The door is locked, and the children are in bed. Jesus takes for granted that his listeners are familiar with house designs. It was a one room cottage with a clay floor. For safety, the owner pulled a door bolt through an iron wall ring before he blew out the lamp. Sleeping mats were rolled out, and the family slept on a raised part above the clay floor. The animals were often brought in at night to protect them from weather and thieves, and they slept on the floor. We can understand why the neighbor would plead with the friend not to bother him.
While the neighbor would not get up to help his friend, Jesus says he will because of his friend’s persistence. Again, the conclusion can be couched in an if then statement. If the neighbor who was unwilling answered the pleas of the friend who was persistent in his request, then God who is willing will much more answer his children who are also persistent.
Now what does Jesus teach us about prayer through these two parables?
I. WE MUST PRAY AND NOT GIVE UP
While the widow and friend at midnight were not praying, Jesus tells the parables to teach the necessity of persistence in prayer. The parable of the friend at midnight was told after Jesus taught his followers the Lord’s prayer. The other parable was told to teach his followers that they should pray and not give up. The participants in both parables were successful in getting what they asked for because they did not give up. The friend at midnight continued to knock and beg for food until finally the neighbor got up, disturbing his family and the animals in the process, and gave him what he requested. The unjust judge finally gave the widow her request of justice because she would not leave him alone.
We have a responsibility to approach God in prayer. Prayer is a necessity in the Christian’s life, and God willingly invites us to involve ourselves in this much needed endeavor and to do so on a regular basis. And we must not give up on our prayer lives. There are many reasons why we might give up praying. It is too late. I am too tired. I do not know how to pray effectively. I do not have time. I do not know what to pray for. It seems God does not answer my prayers. On and on the excuses can go, but we must pray regularly and with persistence.
II. GOD DELIGHTS IN ANSWERING THE PRAYERS OF HIS CHILDREN
This truth stands in sharp contrast to the participants in the parables. The unjust judge did not want to answer the request of the widow. It was her persistence that caused him to give in. Perhaps he was afraid of damaging his reputation if he did not. The neighbor did not want to get up to answer the request of his friend who called at midnight. His family and the animals were asleep. He did not want to disturb them. It was the persistence of the midnight caller that caused him to get up and satisfy his request.
God is not like the unjust judge and neighbor. He delights in answering the requests of his children. He wants us to pray to him. He desires that we come before his throne of grace. He wants to hear our praises and requests, and he will eagerly give us an answer. We do not have to come to him trembling. We can come boldly. When we have an adequate understanding of God’s character, it will change our perspective on prayer.
III. GOD MAY NOT ANSWER OUR REQUESTS IMMEDIATELY
The friend at midnight and the widow did not get their answers immediately. The widow had to keep coming to the judge. He finally answered because she was wearing him out with her persistence. The neighbor did not get up at once to answer his friend’s request. The friends had to keep asking before the neighbor finally gave in.
God will answer our prayers, but sometimes the answer does not come immediately or sometimes it an answer we don’t want. We do not always know why, but we can be sure he has good reasons for the delay. We must keep on having faith as we keep on bringing our requests before him.
IV. GOD REWARDS OUR PERSISTENCE
It was the persistence of the widow that led the unjust judge to answer her request and solve her problem. He had no concern for humanity or God, but the persistence of the widow wore him down. It was the persistence of the friend at midnight that brought the reward of food. He was in a bind. He needed food for a friend. It was necessary that he meet his need.
After telling the parable of the friend at midnight, Jesus said to his followers: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." The idea behind the verbs is one of continual action. Keep on asking, keep on seeking and keep on knocking. Persistence.
I keep a few chickens at the house, and recently a few of them had a mind to get out every day and wander around the yard. I didn’t mind that so much as I did the fact that they got in my shrubbery and scratched out the mulch into the grass. Well, this went on for a week or so, and I finally decided I would fix that problem. So I herded them up one day and cut the feathers on one of their wings. Now they don’t wander around the yard anymore. The interesting thing though is that they can still fly high enough to get out, but they don’t try except at night. When dusk begins to arrive you can watch them get anxious. Sometimes they have to try several times, but they are determined to fly up in a tree. Maybe they do it out of fear or instinct or a little of both, but they are persistant in their effors to get up off that ground and their efforst are usually rewarded with success.
V. REGULAR PRAYERS ARE HEARD AND ANSWERED BY GOD
The widow went regularly to the unjust judge with her request. The friend at midnight was regular in knocking on the door for help from his friend. If the unjust judge would hear the plea of the widow, and if the neighbor would get up from his comfortable position to answer the door, then surely God will hear and answer the prayers of his children.
CONCLUSION
Let us remember that Christ invites us to pray and not give up, and he delights in answering our prayers. Though God does not answer immediately sometimes, he rewards our regular and persistent prayers.
INTO THE DAY
I got up early one morning
And rushed right into the day;
I had so much to accomplish
I didn’t have time to pray.
Troubles just tumbled about me
And heavier came each task.
Why doesn’t God help me, I wondered,
He answered, "You didn’t ask."
I tried to come into God’s presence,
I used all my keys at the lock,
God gently and lovingly chided
"Why child, you didn’t knock."
I wanted to see joy and beauty,
But the day toiled on gray and bleak,
I called on the Lord for the reason-
He said; "You didn’t seek."
I woke up early this morning
And paused before entering the day.
I had so much to accomplish
That I had to take time to pray
