The Two Tales Of The Persistent

5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

- Jesus, Luke 11:5-8

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!’”  

- Jesus, Luke 18:1-4

These two stories capture the essence of persistent prayer. First, we have a friend who needs something at midnight and will not go away, so his friend finally gives in and gives him what he wants. Second, we have a widow demanding justice from a judge and was relentless in her pursuit, until the judge finally gave in and provided the justice she sought.

Both stories are a strong reminder from Jesus that our prayers to God for ourselves, for others, and for justice, should not stop, but be relentless in our petitioning to Him. Like the friend in the first story who came with shameless audacity… because of God’s great love for us, He will give us what we need. And like the widow in the second story who was relentless in her pursuit of justice… because God is a righteous judge, He will bring justice.

Our prayers require tenacity, persistence, and faithfulness.

Another word that is often used is “importunate.” It literally means “persistence, to the point of annoyance or intrusion.” It is how Jesus tells us to pray. We are to never give up praying, because our prayers are based on an absolute trust and faith in our God. We can fully count on the Lord to answer our prayers when, where and how He chooses.

As Christ-followers, one of our trademarks is faithful, never-ceasing, persistent prayer. It is the mark of a true disciple of Jesus Christ.

Let us pray...

Father in Heaven, thank you for being a friend who is always there for us and a righteous Judge who will ultimately bring about justice in this world. Help us grow in our faith and our trust in You, that our prayers to You will be faithful, never-ceasing, and persistent, knowing that You alone will supply what we need… in Your timing, and in Your way. Amen.

Friends, Holy Week is just three short weeks away. I pray you are preparing your hearts right now as we remember what Jesus did for us on the cross and celebrate His resurrection that offers us new life in Him.

May we continue to prepare the way for Him to all those around us.

Pastor Ken

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