Luke 18:1-8
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!’”
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?”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Pray Continually
16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 4:7
I Have Kept the Faith
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
I think I overlooked the final question Jesus poses to us in His parable of the unjust judge, the first time I read this parable...When He returns to earth on His second coming, will He find faith on earth...Believers know that He will return in His second advent...There will be a second coming of Christ, and the question is, will He find faith on earth -when He returns...
God is merciful and full of grace, but that does not translate into faith, or mean when Jesus returns that there will be faith on earth...The faith we have now also does not translate or mean we will hold our faith, for many have fallen from the narrow path, and did not return...Life can get busy, things come up in our lives and we change, and maybe lose some of our faith...Faith can get lost, get put aside, just drift away, and no longer be a focus in our lives, as we age...We must not let this happen...
God pardons our guilt with the death of His Son on the cross...We are not guilty of sin, because Jesus pardons our sins...Jesus extends His mercy to all those who know they are sinners and believe in He and His Father...Unlike the unjust judge who does not fear God or care about people and what they thought, our God is perfectly just...Jesus will return and on His second coming bring us perfect justice...Our job is to be persistent in our faith, and be just with all those in the world as we patiently await Him...
Be persistent in your prayers and do not stop praying...When you stop praying you may be giving up on hope...You may be losing a part of your faith...St. Paul knew the importance of continual prayer and faith...He said, we must fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep our faith...Jesus teaches us that persistent prayer helps us with our faith, and helps us keep our faith...