ESV Study Bible Devotions: The Parable of the Persistent Widow
Luke 18:1-8 - And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man.3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
For the first time in my life, I find myself standing before a costly obedience. This obedience, in the mind of the natural man seems perhaps lunacy, and certainly not standing up for what is right, or just.
Yet, between this so called justice, and me, is a wall (obedience) with a door. If I choose, I can open the door, walk through the wall, and seek justice with my sword. Or, I can bow in obedience, and let God rightfully pursue justice, and remain ever presently waiting upon Him.
So, it would seem, I am to forgo my justice, and become, as it were, the pleading widow. I am to completely let go of my brand of justice, my inclination to act, and place my faith driven obedience first.
The Parable of the Persistent Widow is mostly about eschatology (study of end times). As we mature in our Christian walk, we begin to understand that our justice may not be complete on this earth. Sometimes, God ordains that we suffer loss, so that we might understand that our lives are to be focused primarily in longing for Him, and His coming.
When Christ comes, will he find us longing for Him, or will He finds us longing for what is right, what is pleasurable, and what we have become comfortable with here on earth? Will we find our comfort in our money, our homes, our families, our church, or will we spend our lives crying Maranatha...come Lord Jesus, come.
Oh my soul, cry Maranatha, long for the Messiah's coming!
Dr. John MacArthur the Parable of the Persistent Widow.
