Persistence in Faith

Rev. Ryan McDermott

St. Peter Lutheran Church

Elma, IA

Proper 24C – 17 October 2010

Text: Luke 18:1-8

Persistence in Faith

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Jacob wrestled with God, and he refused to give up the fight, except that God bless him. And so, for his persistence in faith, God blessed him. Likewise, in the parable we hear today, the widow receives justice from the unrighteous judge because of her persistence.

Anyone who has children understands the predicament of the unrighteous judge. Think of a time when you took your child into a store, and he just had to have something, whether it was a candy or a stuffed animal or a comic book. You have no intention of buying something he does not need, and so he proceeds to throw a fit. He wants that candy, and he wants it now! Screaming and crying, and maybe even hitting or stomping, ensue. You just know that every eye in the store is on you and your miscreant child. And so, you scoop him up and get him a candy or toy, only so he will stop screaming. You acted not on account of his need, but in view of public opinion of you as a parent. After all, no one wants to be known as the parent whose kids always act up in the grocery store.

Like any good parent, our heavenly Father invites us, even commands us to come to Him and ask for what we need. Not that He needs to hear our prayers – our Father knows what we need before we even form the thought to ask. But He does like to be asked. After all, the act of asking involves a certain humbling on our part. We must, even implicitly, confess that we are not masters of our own domain and destiny. We must confess that we are not in control of our lifes. We must confess that we are incapable of satisfying our own needs, however contrary that may appear to the world's appeal. Our heavenly Father provides for us all that we need to support this body and life, and all that we need to bring us safely and joyfully into the next.

But how much would we like to forget this! This world would have you think that you can get what you need all under your own powers and abilities. If you just work hard enough, you can pull yourself up by your bootstraps and be all you can be. If you just work a little harder, you can have that glamourous house and that shiny new car. If you just work a few more weekends and doubles, you can have that big TV and that Caribbean cruise.

Oh, sure, you might have to give up things, but it's all worth it in the end, right? What's a few sleepless nights now? The family will understand when they see the pile of Christmas presents. What's a few rounds of birth-control now? Our children will be much better off if we have them when we are more prepared. What's a few more payments on the credit card? That new TV will look great for the big game.

Then something happens that upsets the apple-cart. Perhaps the injustice perpetrated against the widow in the parable was the murder of her husband? What would happen if you were to fall down tomorrow morning, and never be able to work again? What would happen if your brother were to rise against you, or your family abandon you?

Of course, the proper thing to do would be to run to God in prayer. Our heavenly Father commands that we pray to Him and ask Him for what we need. And when we are in dire need, we are only too happy to do so. We are most willing to fill God's ear with all our sob stories and failed ambitions. We tell Him all our dreams and hopes that have come grinding to a halt. Like a child with a broken toy, we come to our Father and ask Him to fix it. And He will.

Our Father is no tyrant. He is no whimsical dragon-god, whose good-will depends on the time of day or the weather. Unlike the idol of the Muslims, our Father in heaven is near and dear to us, and He delights in His children and always wants what is best for us. He rejoices to hear our prayers and is pleased to fix our problems. He loves to be asked for help, and does not hesitate to give it. He has promised to give us what we need, when we need it.

And of course, there is the rub. When we are in dire straits, we want our fix right then and there, and we want it to look the way we imagine things. But our Father does not always see things our way; in fact, He seldom does. On the contrary, He sees things as they are, and as they should be, and therefore He acts to make our situation just as it ought to be. Sometimes that means that we must wait upon His gracious will. God always answers prayer, but sometimes He answers with a “Not Yet”. God is not a tyrant, but neither is he Santa Claus. He will give us just what we need, but that may not be what we particularly want. But rest assured, our Father has promised that He will care for us better than we could have hoped for.

And His best gift has already been given to us. In the fullness of time, yet when no one was expecting Him, the fullness of the Godhead became man in the person of Jesus Christ. Our Lord was born of a virgin, suffered, and died, that we might become sons and daughters of God. In Jesus, all who believe and are baptized have been crucified and rise again in newness of life. Upon the cross, the will of God was enacted upon Jesus for our salvation. Our pleas for mercy were answered in the most unexpected but powerful way possible. The veil of sin and death was rent asunder. The chasm between God and Man was bridged.

This morning, we have witnessed our heavenly Father claim another dear son as His own. This morning, in a most ordinary and unpresuming act, Grayson was drowned and died with all sins and evil desires, and was raised again into newness of life. He, and each of us with him, now calls God his Father. The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is with us each step of each day, to guide and to bless us. And we must never let that go.

In Holy Baptism, the Name of the Triune God is placed upon you. That name marks you as one redeemed by Christ the Crucified. That sign of the Cross on your head and your heart entitles you to call out “Abba, Father!” And you must cry out to Him! He has promised to be faithful to you, even when you are unfaithful to Him. He will never leave you, nor forsake you. Even this day, He invites you to His House, to His Table, where before your eyes He spreads a banquet of the choicest food – the very precious Body and Blood of His Son Jesus, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins and the preservation of your faith.

So cry out to God in every situation. Confess your sins. “Entrust your days and burdens to God's most loving hand.” Petition Him for His gifts. Thank and praise Him for His blessings. But never fail to pray, because He never fails to answer.

Leave all to His direction;

His wisdom rules for you

In ways to rouse your wonder

At all His love can do.

Soon He, His promise keeping,

With wonder-working pow'rs

Will banish from your spirit

What gave you troubled hours.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.