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The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out
to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you,
he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.” Luke
18:6–8
It’s interesting that Jesus uses the example of a dishonest judge
to illustrate the importance of praying to God, calling out to Him
day and night for justice. As the parable goes, this judge cared
little about a widow in his town who continually came to him asking
for a just decision. He felt as though she was continually
bothering him. Because she was so persistent, the judge thought to
himself, “...because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver
a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.”
Jesus’ conclusion from this parable is quoted above.
The simple lesson we ought to learn from this parable is that we
must be persistent in prayer. God will always answer our prayers,
seeing to it that “justice is done” speedily. But many people have
prayed and prayed and prayed for some situation, prayed even for
justice, and it appeared that God did not answer their prayer.
Thus, some may question the promise of Jesus that persistent prayer
will always be answered and justice always be rendered.
If this is your experience, it is essential that you remind
yourself of two things. First, Jesus’ words are true. When we
persevere in prayer and trust in God, He hears us and answers. This
is our Lord’s unwavering promise. But secondly, the “justice” that
God delivers may often be different than the justice we expect. It
may be that we want someone to pay for a wrong they did to us, but
after praying fervently, our expectation is not met by our Lord.
For this reason, it is essential that we know that God answers
every prayer we pray, but in accord with His perfect will and
wisdom. Therefore, God’s view of justice at times may be very
different than ours. At times, His justice is satisfied by His
invitation to us to show mercy in abundance. True mercy always
satisfies justice.
Take, for example, the case of someone speaking in a rude manner to
you. If you offer that situation to our Lord, He will enter in and
provide His grace for you to deal with it in accord with His will.
Perhaps He will soften the other person's heart so that they
apologize, or perhaps, if they don’t apologize and their heart is
not softened, then God’s answer to your prayer will be to give you
the grace of humility so that you can love that person despite
their unrepentance. Regardless of the way our Lord intervenes, the
fact remains that He will intervene and enable you to fulfill His
perfect will. If, however, your prayer is that the person be held
accountable and condemned, then you are trying to tell God what to
do, and He will not accede to your request. All of our prayer must
ultimately be for the fulfillment of God’s perfect will in accord
with His wisdom.
Reflect, today, upon how completely you trust in God. Do you know,
with certainty, that He will answer every prayer that you fervently
pray with faith in accord with His divine will? Believing this is
freeing and enables you to live more fully in union with Him. If
there is some issue with which you struggle right now, even some
apparent injustice, then entrust it to our Lord, day and night
without ceasing, and know that His grace will guide you as He
answers you in accord with His will.
My all-wise Lord, Your will is perfect in all things, and You
always bestow Your grace upon me when I pray without ceasing.
Please give me a trusting Heart, dear Lord, so that I will never
waver in my hope that You will always answer my prayers in accord
with Your will. Jesus, I trust in You.
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