Opener: Please allow me to rant…I often wonder if we Christians take time to reflect on what we look like to the unbelieving world that is outside the four walls of our church…Sunday after Sunday.
Why go to church…why be a part of the church community? – This is a question that I have been grappling with lately…here are my thoughts…
· I don’t think we’re supposed to be competing with popular culture by making our music and our church experience “easy to swallow” for the unbelieving world. What I mean by this is that I agree with Marva Dawn who describes Christian community as an “alternative society.”
“We dare not make worship too easy, for God is always beyond our grasp. Worship cannot be only cerebral or emotional, for God is mysterious and wise. Worship must be unceasingly comforting so that through it God will address our suffering. It must be perpetually paradoxical so that we know we must worship forever. Strangers will have no need to return to our worship services if they can understand all that our worship offers of God in one Sunday gulp.” (Reaching Out without Dumbing Down, Marva Dawn, p. 289)
· If this is true, then what do we have to “offer” to an unbelieving world?
i) I think we offer a place for authentic relationship. A level playing ground where different generations and socio-economic groups can put aside their differences and worship the living God (and actually live together in harmony!)
ii) The church is the only place where the Holy Spirit ministers from one believer to another….through prayer, Bible Study, worship and encouragement. You can’t get Holy Spirit blessing from Dr. Phil!
iii) The church humbly offers the Eucharist as the means of hope, forgiveness and life. When we partake of the elements, the presence of Christ is supernatural and his ministry is powerful yet mysterious.
iv) The church SHOULD offer a place where people can be “held” and ministered to on a weekly basis so that they can go back into the real world and be ambassadors of this “alternative society” that we have been called to. Being “nice” and “moral” people is not enough...it’s a pleasant bi-product of the Christian life but there are lots of “nice” and “moral” people in the world who don’t go to church. This should have significant implications on what we choose to do for worship, prayers and our teaching/preaching. Are we just making ourselves feel good about being Christians, or are we participating in something that is essential for our hearts, bodies, souls and minds?
v) The church should be a place where we can know and be known (this can’t happen just on Sundays….therefore we need small groups!)
vi) The church ought to be a place where people are invited into the rhythm of God. This might mean that we are intentional about honouring Sabbath. Why is it that Christians are just as tired, busy and burnt out as the rest of the world? Do God’s people have a different rhythm and rest that would intrigue the unbelieving world?
vii) We are gathering to declare that God’s “empowering presence” is in our midst. God touches, heals, renews and redeems. And we invite others to experience this…is our community “trade-marked” by grace, unity, mercy…?
We should be often asking the question… “Why would my unbelieving neighbor, friend or family member want to be a part of this community?”
All this to say…what kind of message are we sending outwards…or even to each other… of what it means to live a life of following Jesus? Well, one of the areas where we send off lots of disconcerting images is in the area of prayer. I am weary of our response to prayer….because it’s often….“Oh, I know I really don’t pray enough.” We carry around a perpetual inferiority complex…I’d love it if we started being a group that turned it around…what if we said…we pray…and we pray enough…and we pray together…and we pray for one another…and it’s our life-line to God…we can’t live without it!
And so in today’s gospel passage, Jesus teaches his disciples about prayer…he’s not going for a guilt-trip here…instead at the heart of this parable is encouragement…and this encouraging lesson happens in the context of an upside-down courtroom.
The context for these 8 verses is in the midst of the disciples being stressed out about the Kingdom of God that Jesus was establishing. They are constantly struggling with how it would come together…in some ways, it probably seemed so close (miracles happening) but then it seemed so far away because Jesus would talk about suffering and struggle that needed to happen.
In Luke 17, Jesus talks to his disciples of what it will be like at the end of the age…this is not apocalyptic (end times) talk….like many of Jesus’ teachings - - - in Luke - - - it refers to a future time when the enemies of Jesus and this kingdom talk will wreak havoc and destruction…this must have been quite a story for the disciples to comprehend…
The Coming of the Kingdom of God
20 Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ’Here it is,’ or ’There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst." [b]
22 Then he said to his disciples, "The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. 23 People will tell you, ’There he is!’ or ’Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. 24 For the Son of Man in his day [c] will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
26 "Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.
28 "It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
30 "It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 -36 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left."
37 "Where, Lord?" they asked.
He replied, "Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather."
[God’s kingdom is in your grasp! If you’re anxious about your future, there’s hope!]
see v. 37… “Where Lord?”…and his answer… “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”
He must have seen a look of disdain or misery in their eyes…because he then proceeds to offer a parable of encouragement to them….
See 18:1 “Then Jesus told the disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.”
I want to say 2 things about this story and how things look in God’s courthouse….
1) In God’s courthouse, we are named as the unjust judge…(vv. 2-5)
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ’Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 "For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ’Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ "
It may be easy to read this parable and automatically go to the interpretation that the disciples are supposed to learn from the widow here in a lesson on perseverance in prayer…the widow perseveres…and we should too…and we’ll eventually get what we pray for…and perhaps you’ve heard sermons along those lines before…but I’d like us all to be challenged in a different way this morning….In our recent course on Bible Study Interpretation (Hermeneutics), the students were challenged to read the Bible and the gospel stories with a mindset that they would put themselves into the story. Reading on a deeper level….wrestling with what it might be to be each character in the story…and then reflecting on what God might be teaching us as we put ourselves into the story. I want us to take that approach this morning…because as you read these 8 verses there seems to be something deeper going on in this story…Jesus often told parables as a way of telling a deeper truth that couldn’t always be seen on the surface or at first glance.
PARABLE definition: (by Andrew Parker) Jesus’ parables were not riddles, but uncomfortably penetrating pieces of self-authenticating logic that compelled the hearer to face a twisted attitude and straighten it out.
So Jesus’ parables should. . .shake us up!
It should be the same with our approach to Bible reading, or teaching and preaching the Bible. I have often been challenged to “not take the easy way out” of a Bible reading…this Word of God that we read is messy…sure there are lots of nice phrases and “feel good” verses that we can pull out and make ourselves feel good…but what do we do with the messy situations…what are we to learn in the midst of the failures of characters in the Bible?? Why would God put them in there? Could it be that he wants to teach us something deeper? I want to go back to the Marva Dawn idea that I quoted earlier…we’re not supposed to be able to “get this” in one gulp…these stories and these Scriptures should shake us up…because it is often in this “shaken up” stage that we can learn the real lessons of faith that will change and transform our lives.
So let’s not take the easy way out this passage…as I read through this passage, there was more than a call to persevering in prayer going on here…as you’re reading your Bible…start getting used to the habit of noting when you hit “snags”…and maybe it is at these snags that you pull out a red pen a put a big question mark in your Bibles….and if it’s a big snag, then put 2 question marks…or put “F’s” in your Bible when you see failure in the Bible….everything’s not neat and tidy in this book….and then wrestle with the Word of God…pray through it, asking God to open the eyes of your heart…and wrestle with it in community….talk it over with your brothers and sisters in Christ and don’t let them try to give you a pat answer….and you’ll soon find that the Word of God becomes alive in new ways in your life….and you will not be able to put this book down because you’ll be hungering and thirsting for this Word that changes and challenges you at every level…OH GOD…help us to wrestle with your Word….not just fall in love with the nice parts… but to be changed and energized by the hard parts…. And to lean on your Holy Spirit to empower us to engage your Word with heart, mind and soul.
But I digress….
The snag I hit in this passage was in v. 8… “When the Son of man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” And the reason why this threw me was that if this parable was all about learning to pray with more perseverance, then why did Jesus throw this line in at the end where he seemed to be talking about a matter of faith, rather than a matter of prayer? Why didn’t he just leave it as “I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.” That’s the ending I want to hear…if I prayer with more perseverance, I’ll get justice, because God is so much better than an unjust judge isn’t he? And the justice will come quickly….meaning God will answer my prayers quickly right? And so I’m gonna get my friends to pray, and send out an e-mail and then… (I’ll do my best to manipulate God for my glory right?)
But then he finishes with this one-liner that becomes the “snag”… WILL HE FIND FAITH on the earth??
What are we supposed to do with that? May I suggest that to understand this a little better, perhaps we need to turn things upside-down and realize that…
JESUS names us as the UNJUST JUDGE.
(Gasp!)
But he’s the bad guy in the story! I’m not him….I’m not a bad guy am I Lord?…I’m a Christian….I mean…I go to church and all that kind of stuff…I’m a nice person…
It’s almost reminiscent of David….when the prophet Nathan tells him a story of injustice in 2 Samuel 12…and David goes ballistic….into a fit of range… “The man who did that deserves to die!” And Nathan responds…. “You are the man!” And David finds himself named in the story…and it hurts….and it convicts him….and it humbles him.
And so…Jesus names us in this story….and perhaps we don’t like it….but there is something to be learned here….
I believe Jesus is humbly rebuking his disciples with this story. The disciples have been with Jesus for 2 years (??) and they have been doing the hard work of ministry. Trying to make sense of what Jesus was doing….rejoicing in the miracles, but also being confounded by the ways he dealt with different people in different situations. There were times when the disciples behaved like the UNJUST JUDGE…they didn’t want to deal with peoples’ pleas for justice because it was annoying…or it would hinder them from doing “real and exciting” ministry….and if they just ignored it long enough, perhaps it would go away?
And perhaps Jesus had seen instances where the disciples had given in…and decided to help out the people who were crying out for justice. And even though the disciples did it out of self-preservation rather than “the call of the kingdom” it got done. And justice was delivered.
(“Blessed are the poor in the Spirit, for they will inherit the earth”….see Blessings and Woes in Luke 6)
And what about us….is it possible that we are being named in this story? Who are the voices of injustice calling into our lives both personally and corporately??
And what has been our response to these injustices? Are we caring for orphans and widows in distress?
(see James 1:27 - - “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”)
SO………then Jesus puts a character twist on us….he’s challenged us with our role as the unjust judge….and before we get too overwhelmed by our scheming ways…he encourages us to live out the role of the persistent widow….
2) In God’s courthouse, we are called to be the widow…(vv. 6-8)
6 And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 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? 8 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?"
Disciples…it’s going to be ok….because God is gracious! And though we function in the role of the unjust judge, Jesus takes us….blesses us….breaks us…and then gives us back in a new role….this time as the persistent widow.
And Jesus says to his disciples….if YOU….who are the unjust judge show that you give justice to those who persevere in getting your attention….how much more will GOD….who is the just judge….be willing to give you disciples justice….because you often seem that you feel like you’re getting treated poorly…and Jesus isn’t asking you to get it right, he’s asking you to get in touch….with God, the Father….the one who will take care of you as you commune with him.
Jesus isn’t calling the disciples to pray harder….but pray smarter! He’s not asking the disciples to put in more time of prayer, or have longer prayer lists, or bigger prayer meetings….he is instead focusing on three themes…
PRAYER JUSTICE FAITH
And maybe the phrasing for this could be…. “PRAYERS for JUSTICE are examples of our FAITH on the earth.” In my struggle with verse 8…this helps me overcome my snag….
And as we take on this better role of the persistent widow, you and I will change our perspectives accordingly. Rather than just trying to pray more, and have longer prayer times….maybe we’ll walk through our lives, thinking about how we can pray for justice…and this can be our testimony of being the faithful people of God here on earth.
What is the justice that we are praying for? In other words, What does it look like to pray for justice in a way that shows us as faithful followers of Christ?
(I wish we could interact on this one!)
- Perhaps you are overwhelmed….and you feel like your voice of seeking justice is not being heard…..Jesus would encourage you today
- Perhaps you’re going crazy trying to pray for all the things you feel you should be praying for…Maybe Jesus is calling you to lighten up….take his yoke….and focus on issues of justice rather than praying for everything and anything
- Perhaps it’s a call to repent of playing the unjust judge role…let it go…and allow God to be judge
- Perhaps it’s a call to persevere as you stand up for justice in your workplace, your school, our community, our country, our world… what cause has God placed in your heart…[THIS IS THE ACTION PART] .we’re not all called to the same cause…..and if you want to streamline your cause, stick to issues that are biblical (ie. Poor, widows in distress, the oppressed)
Eg’s of the Justice issue:
- Streets Alive Ministry
- Soup Kitchen
- 2.8 Billion people live on less than $2/day
- 20 000 die of starvation everyday
- _____________________________ ?
Q: Are we bringing Christ down from heaven to live amongst the poor?
Q: Are our lives interacting with the poor? Are we somehow partnering w/ the poor?
-- The church is called to be the voice for the voiceless…we are called to stand up for the oppressed
-- If our church closed its’ doors, would our neighborhood/community cry?
-- There are no throwaway people in the eyes of the People of God
** And then Jesus reminds us to stay humble…and keep it in check…this is good for us to keep in mind as we continue to prepare our hearts for our time at the Lord’s table this morning…
The parable of the Pharisees and the Tax Collector
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ’God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ’God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."
In order to keep ourselves from becoming self-righteous, Jesus uses another quick parable to remind us that being a people of prayer is not for show…..”For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted…”
Let’s reflect and respond to God’s word….
“Prayer for Justice are examples of our faith here on earth”
· pray for justice for the oppressed
· pray for a willing heart to hear voices that are seeking justice (near & far)
(AMOS 5) A Lament and Call to Repentance
1 Hear this word, house of Israel, this lament I take up concerning you:
2 "Fallen is Virgin Israel,
never to rise again,
deserted in her own land,
with no one to lift her up."
3 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to the house of Israel:
"Your city that marches out a thousand strong
will have only a hundred left;
your town that marches out a hundred strong
will have only ten left."
4 This is what the LORD says to the house of Israel:
"Seek me and live;
5 do not seek Bethel,
do not go to Gilgal,
do not journey to Beersheba.
For Gilgal will surely go into exile,
and Bethel will be reduced to nothing. [a]"
6 Seek the LORD and live,
or he will sweep through the house of Joseph like a fire;
it will devour them,
and Bethel will have no one to quench it.
7 There are those who turn justice into bitterness
and cast righteousness to the ground.
8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion,
who turns midnight into dawn
and darkens day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out over the face of the land—
the LORD is his name.
9 He flashes destruction on the stronghold
and brings the fortified city to ruin.
10 There are those who hate the one who reproves in court
and detest the one who tells the truth.
11 You levy a straw tax on the poor
and impose a tax on their grain.
Therefore, though you have built stone mansions,
you will not live in them;
though you have planted lush vineyards,
you will not drink their wine.
12 For I know how many are your offenses
and how great your sins.
There are those who oppress the innocent and take bribes
and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.
13 Therefore the prudent keep quiet in such times,
for the times are evil.
14 Seek good, not evil,
that you may live.
Then the LORD God Almighty will be with you,
just as you say he is.
15 Hate evil, love good;
maintain justice in the courts.
