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Commentaries
English
Luke
  
THE PARABLE OF THE UNJUST JUDGE
AND THE PERSISTENT WIDOW
(Luke 18:1-8)
1Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,2saying: "There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man.3Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’4And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man,5yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’"6Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said.7And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?8I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"


Do you wait for the coming of Christ and the shining of his kingdom? Do you beg your Lord to fulfill his promises to his own elect? May be you will not understand the said parable unless you long within yourself for the coming of Christ, and wait for the revelation of his glory which removes all injustice, cures all diseases, and destroys death. Do you think much of the dwelling of heaven on earth, or are you of the negligent, and cold-hearted who do not cry to God in the continuous prayers ascending from churches for the speedy coming of Christ.
The parable is clarified by Christ’s explanation that God is willing to help his elect in finding the fulfillment of the promises, which became to them an established truth (v. 7). He loves them and longs for them, but time is still unripe. The gospel has not reached the last tribe and tongue in the world, and evil has not yet become fully incarnate in the person of the antichrist. This is why the presence of the truth of God promised to the saints is delayed. However they cry day and night to their heavenly Father in harmony with the motivating Holy Spirit in them who called, lighted, renewed them, and filled them with his love that their longing for unification with the Father and the Son may be increased in them in the midst of hatred and persecution more than the longing of a woman for her husband who is far away from her from whom she had not heard any news since long that the neighbors said he was dead and she a widow. The coming of Christ is delayed, and the waiting of the elect is falling down. So Christ commands his church to pray persistently, holding fast the image of the faithful Father, for sometimes the believers think that God is not their Father any longer, but that he is an unjust, severe judge who does not answer their prayers. God is not unjust, but love and truth. He bends with all his lovingkindness on the redeemed of his Son, even if they did not realize his care. God hears all your prayers, even if he did not respond to them according to your wishes. He knows in his love all your needs before you ask him, and he helps you soon when the time is ripe. Thus the heavenly Father knows that the world is in dire need of the second coming of Christ, for there is no salvation from sin, disease, and death except through the coming of the kingdom of God to our evil world. Do you wish that the peace of God be spread all around the world? Then pray faithfully and persistently that Christ may come. Begin today, and be sure that God hears your prayer and definitely answers it even if his answer were late. Christ is certainly coming and revealing his true kingdom on our globe.
The widow in the parable is like the church that has been living since Christ’s ascension to heaven without the presence of her Lord visibly in her. She cries and prays persistently asking for his coming, persevering in her crying until he responds to her. Christ gives us the spiritual meaning of the woman’s persistence to get justice done to her: We have to pray persistently the fervent petition in the Lord’s Prayer, "Your kingdom come" that the King may come appearing among us.
Now you may have understood Christ’s important question. Is it possible for the Son of Man to find such faith on earth at his coming? Who is waiting for him ardently, not only with longing, love, and hope, but also with prayers knocking at the door of the truth promised to us beggars? Who is studying exactly God’s promises in the Holy Bible, and holding fast this truth promised to the church, insisting on his Lord with persistent cries to send his Son again to save us that we may obtain his kingdom, which he builds, for his elects? We do not have to wait for him simply watching him fancifully and failing to take action. The Lord invites us to participate in his coming, and pray effectually, approaching him continuously to open his heaven, renew the earth, and reveal his glory. Where is your prayer? Where is your love for Christ? Where is your faith based on the promises of the Holy Bible? Where is your great hope? Where in your heart was the guarantee of the Spirit poured out? Where is your faithfulness in supplication? The aim of this parable is to pray persistently and incessantly: "Come, Lord Jesus!"

Prayer
O Lord Jesus Christ, you are the true God, and the Possessor of your kingdom. We worship to you rejoicingly, and ask you to come soon. Teach us your love, strengthen our hope for your coming, and direct your church toward your coming that we may be waiting for you in all our concerns.
Question
How must we pray for the second coming of Christ?