JCSLK #56 Jesus On the Road To Jerusalem 1 Prayer Parables - Luke 18

 

JCSLK #56 Jesus On the Road To Jerusalem

1 Prayer Parables Luke 18

 Introduction

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good Emperors and the last emperor of the Pax Romana, the Peace of Roma, an age of relative peace, calm, and stability for the Roman Empire lasting from 27 BC to 180 AD. He was called the Stoic Emperor and wrote a series of meditations about how to live a good life. I watched a movie sometime last year in which a teacher gave a copy of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius to a student with the words, “I read it every day. I find it better than the Bible.” And I thought what a typical “Hollywood” thing to say. Only a person with no understanding, no knowledge and no soul would say that the writings of a Roman emperor trying to conquer the world by force, war and violence would make such a ludicrous statement.

I’ve read some of Meditations, they are as far as I read they are a series of thoughts and recollections from Marcus Aurelias’ stoic teachers and guardians about how to live a responsible, and from the Roman viewpoint, a moral life. But to compare it to the Bible is like comparing Mother Goose to Shakespeare. Marcus Aurelius’ son Commodus was the next emperor and he began the downfall of the Empire through his greed, desire for power and immorality. So much for the great stoic emperor and his Meditations.

Jesus the teacher of life, the source of eternal life

We are not here to listen to man’s thoughts but to God’s Word. The Bible contains the story of man’s redemption and man’s redeemer, Jesus Christ. And here in the Gospels we have the teachings of Jesus the greatest teacher ever known to the world and the only teacher whose lessons changed the world for good and touched eternity. Jesus seemed to teach about everything concerning living in this world but more importantly he taught about those things that meant living in the next world. His teaching changed everything, but most importantly He changed us, morally, spiritually and eternally, He changed us.

Now in Luke 17-18 Jesus is traveling from Ephraim in Perea down to Jerusalem. It will be His last trip and He knows, so he is going slow and everywhere he goes he heals and he  teaches. He teaches plainly to the disciples but uses parables with the crowds of the curious because parables are intended to separate the true seekers of truth from those who are just looking for personal gain.

Timeline: On The Road from Ephriam to Jerusalem

Jesus heals 10 Lepers on His way to Jerusalem – Luke 17:11-19

Jesus teaches about the advent of the Kingdom – Luke 17:20-37

The Parable on Prayer: The Persistent Widow – Luke 18:1-8

The Parable on Prayer: The Proud Pharisee & Tax Collector – Luke 18:9-14

In Jerusalem: The Last Week of Jesus Life

Jesus First Lessons on prayer – Luke 11 

Luke 11:1-4 The Model for Prayer - 1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. 2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. 3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

Model: The Blueprint of Prayer

Front Door Entrance: Relation with God. Our Father, which art In Heaven

Hallway: Adoration of the Father. Hallowed Be They Name

Living Room: Submission to the Divine Will. Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be done as in heaven so in earth.

Dining Room: Recognition of necessity of God for life. Give us day by day our daily bread.

Bedroom: Reconciliation with God and with others. Forgive us our sin, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

Back door Exit: Humiliation before God. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

The Mindset of Prayer

Persistence / Importunity Luke 11:5-10 – 5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; … 8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. 9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

The reason for such importunity, such persistence is in the next question.

Paternal Love Luke 11:11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

Parables of Prayer – Luke 18:1-30

 Praying or Fainting, Faithful or Faithless - Luke 18:1-8

And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;            

            Luke says the first parable was for the purpose of praying rather than fainting.  The term "that men ought always" means "with a view of being necessary” this was more than a suggestion it was a definite principle about the power of prayer in the disciple’s life, in our life.

            Men ought always to pray and not to faint. Literally, this means not to give in to evil, to turn coward, lose heart, or behave badly. In other words, don't give up, don't quit but instead pray and keep on praying. To pray is to continue the fight. The two words, pray and faint, are in contrast, they are in opposition to each other. In other words, if we are not praying then we are fainting. If I am not praying then I am giving up, quitting the battlefield, walking away in surrender.   

This casts a different light upon the practice of prayer.  Instead of a sometimes occurrence or a type of emergency escape, prayer becomes the source of power for continuing the fight in the skirmishes or the battles of living in this sinful world.  We might think that words like fighting, or believing or enduring, would be more appropriate here than praying, but Jesus’ point is that praying is enduring, believing and fighting.

“We make prayer the preparation for work, it is never that in the Bible. Prayer is the exercise of drawing on the grace of God. Don’t say, ‘I will endure this until I can get away and pray.’ Pray now; draw on the grace of God in the moment of need. … Prayer does not fit us for the greater works; prayer is the greater work. - Oswald Chambers.

We need to quit thinking of prayer as an add-on to the Christian life and begin to see it as the foundation of the Christian life. Prayer is essential. Prayer is my strength for continuing the fight, but it also my submission to God who supplies my needs, the ammunition for the fight and it is a sign of my faith that I will not give up the fight. Without consistent and continual prayer there is no hope of victory.

 Psalms 55:16-18 As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me.

David is in the midst of a battle due to betrayal in his life but despite that terrible harsh blow, he doesn’t quit, no he prays and does not faint. He simply increases his time and intensity in prayer. 

Now let’s look at the parable Jesus used to teach about prayer.  Luke 18:2

Parable 1: The Widow and the Judge - Luke 18:2-6

Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: 3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. 4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; 5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. 6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.

The Judge in this story was probably a Roman provincial magistrate.  Edersheim in his epic book, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, describes these village judges as something like the old marshal. They were appointed by the Romans as peace-keeping forces in the smaller towns. They were often corrupt, taking bribes and vying for political position. He was not therefore under Jewish law or the Jewish God and Jesus says he didn’t really care about the laws of man either. He is the consummate judge, appointed by others and not answerable to anyone else.

A widow comes, and keeps on coming over and over again, to this corrupt judge and pleads her case, "Avenge me of mine adversary."  To "avenge" is simply asking for justice, for protection under the law. The woman had an someone who was against her, an adversary, seeking to do her harm, probably by defrauding her.

This corrupt judge will not help her. He ignores her pleas, they aren’t important to him because she is not important to him, he owes her nothing, she did not give him her position and will not pay him a bribe, so he won’t help. Until he thinks to himself, Luke 18:4-5 Though I fear not God, nor regard man; 5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. Lest she weary me, literally means, "Lest she beat me under the eye."  The term was a figure of speech, it meant that the judge feared damage to his reputation, to his advancement. I would be "a black eye," to his reputation is she kept coming and people got to talking. So the judge relents and grants her request giving her justice.

The Prayer Principle of Persistence

Jesus then says, Luke 18:6-7 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith Now why would Jesus use a corrupt Judge to illustrate a point about prayer to the holy and righteous God?

Much like Hebrew poetry that using comparison and contrast, Jesus parable her is using contrast. Jesus uses this very strong contrast, the unrighteous Judge contrasting to the all righteous Father in Heaven. This amplifies the truth of the parable. He does this often in his parables about people. Remember the unrighteous steward who stole from his master, the undesirable Samaritan who stopped to help, or the ungrateful son who had denied his father and ran away.  In this case Jesus contrasts the uncaring judge with the loving Heavenly Father.

The point of the parable is in, Luke 18:7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?   

If an unrighteous, uncaring judge would do right because of persistence, how much more will a holy, loving God care for us, His own children. Then Jesus adds this qualifier about persistence to God's answer to our prayers "Which cry day and night to Him, though He bear long with them.”

            The parable is a lesson in persistence. We cannot expect God to help us if we faint before He answers. He will answer, of that there is no doubt. He will answer as our Heavenly Father because He loves His children. Here, the only conditional element is our persistence and the only qualifier is the plan of God, “though He bear long with them.”

Illustration: Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane - Mark 14:35–42 

35 And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee, take away this cup from me: nevertheless not that I will, but what thou wilt’. 37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, ‘Simon, sleepest thou? Couldst not thou watch one hour? 38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation: the spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.’ 39 And again he went away, and prayed, and spoke the same words. 40 And when he returned, he found them asleep again (for their eyes were heavy), neither wist they what to answer him. 41 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, ‘Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come, behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go, lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.’

Three times Jesus persistently prayed to His Father and always ended with the qualifier, “Thy will be done.” What this parable teaches, Jesus did throughout his life on earth.

Fainting Faith and a Questioning Lord - Luke 18:8 

I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Jesus, himself gives us His word that, Yes!, God will answer. That is not in question, but what is in question is our faith. Our faith as demonstrated by our prayers. Jesus asks, if He shall find faith on the earth when He comes. This is a question directed to us. It is being laid at our feet, here and now. "When the Son of Man comes will he find faith? Will He find the saints of God persistently, faithfully, praying?"  Today we stand between those saints of old, who did not faint, and the return of our Lord. And we must answer the question not with our words or good intentions but with our persistent prayer. Are we praying because if we are not then we are fainting?

Are we still hearing the words of Jesus, "Child God, pray don't faint."  Often I want to faint, to quit, to give up, to have rest even if it is the rest of failure, but the echo of Jesus’ words should echo in our hearts, "Pray, don't faint."

Prayer will keep me from sinking, pray will hold me above the waves of despair. Prayer and the Word of God are the only powers I possess to overcome the sin, oppression and evil that seeks to destroy me. Pray, don’t faint.

Parable 2: The Proud Pharisee and Humble Publican - Luke 18:9-14          

9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

 The Prayer Principle of Humility

During the time of Christ, the Pharisees were considered the closest in lifestyle to what the law demanded, they were looked up to as holy and righteous examples of Godly living, as keepers of the Law of God. Here again Jesus uses a contrasting parable to teach the principle of humility in prayer. The Publicans are the contrast to the Pharisees. The publican were Jews who had taken jobs for the hated Roman Empire as tax collectors. They often padded the tax bill for their own wealth and benefit.  They were hated because they were traitors to their own people, usually dishonest and collaborators with Rome.

Jesus tells us that the Pharisee prayed only to himself, with himself. God wasn’t listening, He did not hear.  The pharisees self-righteousness was like a sound barrier. Nor was the Pharisee really trying to pray to God. His prayer was pretense for those around him.  

There is a contrast in their attitude of prayer with the Pharisee standing, hands uplifted and looking up toward heaven, this was the normal stance for Jewish prayer.

The Pharisee - One of my sources said, “He never asks for anything. All he really does is report how wonderful he is (using the pronoun “I” five times in his prayer) and reports how awful this publican is. He can easily catalogue his ritual prowess. He fasted twice a week and meticulously tithed a tenth. The Pharisees fasted on Mondays and Thursdays. The law only required one fast a year. However, the market convened on these days and thus people came to town. … It was the perfect time to attract attention.

He quotes the Pharisee Rabbi Simeon ben Jochai, “If there are only two righteous men in the world, I and my son are these two; if there is only one, I am he!” - Mark E. Moore, The Chronological Life of Christ.

The Publican - The publican is a study in contrasting humility to the Pharisee. He stands at a distance from the Pharisee, he is not good enough to stand in that company, he knows he is unworthy before God. His stance of prayer is not willing to look toward heaven, in a sense into his father’s eyes. While the Pharisee stands beating on the publican, the publican beats himself on the chest. He prays not to himself, but to God. He has no good deeds to brag about but instead prays, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” In the Greek text sinner has a definite article and should be read “THE sinner.” The Pharisee elevates himself as a righteous man, but the publican presents himself as THE sinner.

Jesus gives the point of the parable in Luke 18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. In the end both men get exactly what they asked for that day the Temple grounds. The publican asked for mercy and Jesus says he was justified. The Pharisee asked for nothing because in his mind he needed nothing. He was as good as it gets, therefor he got nothing. That is what he asked for and that was exactly got. Nothing.

God expects and accepts the humble man and the humble prayer, but He refuses and rejects the proud man and proud prayer.

Illustration: David’s prayer in Psalms 51

Psalms 51:1-4 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.  3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.  4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,
and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.

The Prayer Parable Principles: The two parables Jesus taught in Luke 18 give us these two principle of prayer.

Powerful prayer mut be consistent, and persistent. Prayer is the weapon of distinction in the battles of faith. Pray, don’t faint. 

Secondly our heart and our prayers must be presented in utter humility, aware of our sin, weakness and failings. Pray knowing that God ignores the proud, but bends down to hear the humble.

Conclusion

We live in a sinful, hurtful, belligerent world opposed to the children of God. That is our arena, our battlefield. We are here by God’s will to fight against this world of sin by faith. Paul in Ephesians 6 lists our armor and weapons for the fight. We are be outfitted with the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the sword of the Word, the shoes of the Gospel and the belt of truth. And as Paul finishes that list of armor and weapons, he says, in …

Ephesians 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Prayer is an essential weapon in the armor of God. Jesus says we can’t begin or finish the fight without prayer. Paul says the armor of God is not complete without prayer.

Calvary Baptist church, fathers, mothers, children we must commit ourselves to prayer. Pray as Jesus taught. Pray with importunity, pray with persistence, pray with humility. And most of all in this day and at this time, pray and don’t faint. The answers to our prayers  may seem a long time in coming, but one day we will see or be with Jesus when he comes in the clouds with all the Host of Heaven and then we will see the ultimate answer to every sincere we every prayed.