Parables About Prayer (Luke 18:1-14)

Parables About Prayer

(Luke 18:1-14)

1.      Do you believe that God answers prayer?  All of my life I have professed to believe that, but in reality it is a very difficult concept for me to grasp.  Actually, on one level I have more questions about prayer than answers:

·         Why is it necessary for me to ask God for what He knows I already need? 

·         Why should I believe that the God of a universe so vast that my mind cannot grasp it would be personally interested in and would intervene in my life?

·         What is the purpose of prayer?

·         Why does it seem that prayers go unheard or unanswered?

And the list of similar question could go on and on.

2.      However, on another level I know that prayer works.  I have seen it the lives of others and have experienced it in my own life.  Prayer is a powerful resource that God has given to us that we rarely use as God intended. 

3.      I want to direct your attention to Luke 18.  In the first 14 verses of this chapter are two parables Jesus told about prayer.  These two parables are addressed to two different groups. 

·         The first parable, in verses 1-8, is addressed to His disciples.  It is a continuing of the teaching that began in Luke 17:22 which begins, “And He said to the disciples...”

·         The second parable, in verses 9-14, is addressed to the religious leaders who were self-righteous and contemptuous toward others.

      But while the parables are addressed to different groups, they both deal with the subject of prayer and there is much for us to learn from these stories. (Text – Luke 18:1-14)

T.S. – There is much more in those two stories than we can even touch on in a single study.  But I want to point out to you two things these stories teach us about praying with power.

I.    Praying with power involves praying continually.

1.      The parable of the persistent widow is unusual because we are told the meaning of the story before getting to the story.  Verse 1 says that Jesus’ purpose in telling this parable was “...to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.”  We could spend all of our time on that one statement.  Essentially, that statement tells us there are only two ways to approach life.  We can live in faith or we can live in fear.  There really is no middle ground.  Ultimately we are a faith-filled people or we are a fear-filled people.

2.      To approach life with faith means to live a life of continual prayer.  The call to “...pray at all times...” echoes throughout the Scripture.  For example:

·         Ephesians 6:18 says to “...pray at all times in the Spirit...”

·         Colossians 4:2 says to “...devote yourselves to prayer...”

·         1 Timothy 2:8 calls people “...in every place to pray...”

·         1 Thessalonians 5:17 says to “...pray without ceasing...”

3. How is it possible to do that?  How can we pray at all times?  Well, if our understanding of prayer is limited to our saying words to God, we can’t.  However, if we understand that prayer is something much deeper, much more meaningful than just saying words to God, it really is possible to “...pray at all times...” 
4. One my all-time favorite books is the classic little book, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence was a cook in a Carmelite monastery in the 17^th century.  The goal of his life became to live continually in the presence of God.  He said, “There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful, than that of a continual conversation with God...”  But he discovered that such a life is not lived by bowing one’s head continually in prayer and just throwing words at God.  Listen to his secret to praying at all times.  “The time of business does not with me differ from the time of prayer;  and in the noise and clutter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon my knees at the Blessed Sacrament.” [Preface to The Practice of the Presence of God]
5. I don’t know about you, but that is a revolutionary concept to me.  It means that prayer can be happening in our lives in the midst of anything—while wrestling with a problem at work or struggling with bills at home or chasing after little children or sitting in a doctor’s office or doing the lawn or walking through the mall or whatever!  That’s true because, at its heart, prayer is living each moment in the awareness that we are in the presence of God and at some level in our lives there is a continuing, on-going conversation with Him. 
6. That is one thing we can learn from the parable in Luke 18 about the unrighteous judge and the persistent widow.  G. Campbell Morgan points out that the widow in this parable, got her request granted because she continually placed herself in the presence of the judge.  And he says that the main point of this story is not that we have to badger God into answering us.  The main point is that if an unrighteous judge would grant a request simply because the widow would not go away, how much more can we depend on a righteous, loving God to grant our requests as we live continually in His presence!
7. So, we can choose to live in faith which is expressed in a life of continual prayer.  But there is an alternative to that kind of life.  And, if you are like me, you find yourself slipping to easy into the other approach to life.  That is, if we do not “...pray at all times...” we end up living not in faith but in fear or we “...lose heart...” as verse 1 puts it.  That phrase, “...lose heart...” translates a single word in the Greek text.  It is made up of two words.  A preposition which means “in or with” and a noun which means “bad or evil.”  In other words, we constantly face the choice of living in God or apart from God.  In God, faith dominates our lives.  Apart from God, fear dominates our lives.  Praying with power involves continually living in God.

II.  Praying with power involves coming to God in humility.

1.      Luke 18:9 tells us that the second parable in this chapter is directed toward “...some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt...”  While there are many nuances of meaning in the parable of the Pharisee and tax-collector praying in the temple, the main point is so obvious, so transparent that it is impossible to miss.  The main point is that to pray effectively requires that we come to God in a spirit of genuine humility.

2.      The Pharisee in this story was the antithesis of humility.  Everything about him spoke of self-righteousness, pride, and arrogance.  With great irony Jesus said in verse 11 that he “...was praying this to himself...”  In other words, his prayer was not directed toward God.  He said these words for his own benefit and to enlighten those who may have been listening to him.  Notice he mentioned God only once in his prayer and that in a cursory way at the very beginning.  Five times he refers to himself, using the personal pronoun “I.”

3.      On the other hand, everything about the tax-collector speaks of humility.  Notice what Jesus said in verse 13 about this man:

·         “...standing some distance away...” – While the Pharisee seemed to seek the central place so that all could see him, this humble man was content to stay on the periphery.

·         “...was unwilling to lift to lift his eyes to heaven...” – He did not feel worthy even to look in God’s direction.

·         “...was beating on his breast...” – A way of expressing sorrow and genuine repentance.

·         “...God, be merciful to me, the sinner...” – While he began his prayer with the same word as in the prayer of the Pharisee, the entire tone is different.  His prayer was just a simple plea for mercy and an acknowledgment of his sin.

4.      These two men could not have been more different.  And the result of their prayers could not have been more different.  God answered the prayer of humility, granting mercy on the one who offered that prayer. 

5.      Humility is a prerequisite for powerful praying.  The Scripture says “...humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:10).  That is exactly what happened to the tax-collector in this parable.  He cast Himself upon God and God lifted him up.

6.      I want you to hear another quote from the writings of Brother Lawrence:  “I consider myself the most wretched of men, full of sores and corruption, and who has committed all sorts of crimes against his King.  Touched with a sensible regret I confess to Him all my wickedness.  I ask His forgiveness, I abandon myself in His hands, that He may do what He pleases with me.    This King, full of mercy and goodness, very far from chastising me, embraces me with love, makes me eat at His table, serves me with His own hands, give me the key of His treasures;  He converses and delights Himself with me incessantly, in a thousand and a thousand ways, and treats me in all respects as His favorite.  It is thus I consider myself from time to time in His holy presence.” [The Practice of the Presence of God, p.32]

Conclusion

1.      I do not stand before you today pretending to be an authority on prayer.  I am keenly aware that there are people in this room who are much further along in the journey than I will probably ever be.  But I can point you to some things God’s Word tells us about this amazing privilege.  And these stories in Luke 18 clearly teach us that:

·         To pray with power we must pray continually

·         To pray with power we must pray in a spirit of humility

2.      I want to conclude today by reading a wonderful prayer about learning how to pray.  It was written by Andrew Murray in his classic book With Christ in the School of Prayer.  So that you can concentrate on the words, I am going to ask that you close your eyes and let this prayer be your prayer this morning.

      “Blessed Lord Jesus!  Once again I am coming to You.  Every lesson You give me convinces me all the more deeply that I don’t know how to pray properly.  But every lesson also inspires me with hope that You are going to teach me what prayer should be.  O my Lord!  I look to you with courage.  You are the Great Intercessor. You alone pray and hear prayer for the sole purpose of glorifying the Father.  Teach me to pray as You do.

      Let you life and Your love of the Father take possession of me.  A new longing is filling my soul that every day and every hour prayer to the glory of the Father will become everything to me.  O my Lord!  Please teach me this!

      My God and Father!  Accept the desire of Your child who has seen that Your glory is along worth living for.  Show me Your glory.  Let it overshadow me and fill my heart!  May I dwell in it as Christ did.  Tell me what pleases You, fulfill in my Your own good pleasure, so that I may find my glory in seeking the glory of the Father.  Amen.”  [Quoted in Spiritual Classics, Foster and Griffin, p.274]

The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

The Rich Man and Lazarus

(Luke 16:19-31)

1.      If you were asked to make a list of single words that describe Jesus as you understand Him, what are some of the words you would choose?  Here are a few on my list:

            LOVING                       COMMITTED                     STRONG

            POWERFUL                 GENTLE                             GRACIOUS

            FOCUSED                    FORGIVING                      CARING

            GENEROUS                 PRESENT                            WISE                                              TEACHER                    GOD                                       SAVIOR        

LORD                            SERVANT                          KING                         

JOY                                PEACE                                PATIENT                              

FORTRESS                   SACRIFICE                                    LIFE

            ROCK                            LIGHT                                 HOPE

            FAITHFUL                   TRUE                                   KIND 

            HONEST                       CALM                                 FRIEND

            ETERNAL                     HOPE                                  MERCIFUL

            WONDERFUL             COUNSELOR                    POWERFUL 

            DISCERNING              OBEDIENT                         WELCOMING

            COMPASSIONATE     HOLY                                  HEALER

      And, of course, you can no doubt think of many other words that would be appropriate to use to describe Jesus.

2.      However, there is one word—not matter how little or how much a person may know about Jesus—one word that would never be used to describe Him.  And that is the word “SELFISH.” No matter what else one may think of Jesus, no-one can make the claim that He was selfish, that He lived primarily for Himself.  His life was the very antithesis of selfishness.

·         The Scripture says in Philippians 2 that when He came to our world He “...emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of man.” [Philippians 2:7]

·         During His earthly ministry He constantly talked about the importance of denying self and putting others before self, and He demonstrated that kind of life for His followers to see.

·         And, of course, the great climax of His earthly ministry was the voluntary laying down of His life for the sins of the world, the One with no guilt dying in place of the guilty, the righteous dying for the unrighteous, the just dying for the unjust so that we could be pronounced not guilty, righteous, and just in the eyes of God.

3.      And Jesus, who lived a life of perfect unselfishness, calls those who follow Him to that kind of life as well.  You cannot read God’s Word without hearing the call to a life of unselfishness.

·         Philippians 2:3 tells us to “Do nothing from selfishness...”

·         Romans 2:8 warns us that those who are “...selfishly ambitious...” face the “...wrath and indignation...” of God.

·         2 Timothy 3:2 lists “...lovers of self...” which basically means those who are selfish, among the very worst of people.

·         James 3:16 reminds us that “...selfish ambition...” leads to “...every evil thing.”

·         Proverbs 23:6 says that we are not to “...eat the bread (which means to fellowship with or associate with) a selfish man...”

4.      Today, as we continue looking at some of those stories in Luke’s Gospel that are found nowhere else in the Scripture, we have come to a story that has much to teach us about the danger of selfishness.  Look at the last part of Luke 16. (Text – Luke 16:19-31)

T.S. – The temptation we face in trying to understand this story is to focus on what it teaches about life after death.  And there certainly are some important lessons in this story about that, but those lessons are secondary to the main point of this story.  In the larger context of Luke 16, it is clear Jesus told this story in response to the obvious selfish, self-centered attitude of the Pharisees, who by this time in His ministry were questioning everything that Jesus did.  This story must be read in light of Luke 16:14 which says, “Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things, and they were scoffing at Him.”  And in response to that, Jesus said to the Pharisees, “God knows your hearts.  He knows you are selfish and self-centered people.”  Then He told the story of the rich man and Lazarus to warn them of the danger of that kind of spirit.  From this story I want to point out to you why a life of selfishness is dangerous and why God instructs us to avoid that kind of life.

I.    Selfishness is dangerous because it diminishes our lives.

1.   One of the great lies of Satan is that the more I focus on me and the more I look out for myself, the better my life becomes. Actually, just the opposite is true.  The more we focus on self, the less fulfilling our lives are.  People who are preoccupied with self are generally the unhappiest people you will ever meet.

2.   Everything that Jesus says about the rich man in this story indicates he was preoccupied with himself.  Verse 19 indicates that nothing but the best was good enough for him.  He dressed in the finest of clothes.  Everyday was a feast day for him.  He lived a classic life of hedonism, pursuing pleasure as the way to meaning and fulfillment.  But there is no evidence that he found any meaning or fulfillment, either in this world or the next world.

·         It is interesting that absolutely nothing is said about the rich man’s life in this world except that “...he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, gaily living in splendor every day.”  Nothing about his vocation.  Nothing about his family.  Nothing about his spiritual commitments.  Nothing about anything he did to make the world a better place.  His life in this world was an empty life that made no positive impact on anyone or anything.

·         And certainly his experience in the afterlife was not positive.  He found himself separated from God and in torment.

      And one thing we can learn from all that is when we live only for ourselves, our lives are not enhanced; they are diminished.

3.   In his book on Leadership, Bill Hybels writes about Howard Hughes.  He says that Howard Hughes was one of the most self-willed, self-centered people who ever lived. He lived to satisfy his personal desires.

·         He wanted more money, so he parlayed inherited wealth into a billion-dollar pile of assets.

·         He wanted more fame, so he broke into the Hollywood scene and soon became a film-maker and star.

·         He wanted more sensual pleasures, so he paid handsome sums to indulge his every sexual urge.

·         He wanted more thrills, so he designed, built, and piloted the fastest aircraft in the world.

·         He wanted more power, so he secretly dealt political favors so skillfully that two U.S. presidents became his pawns.

      He was absolutely convinced that a self-centered, hedonistic life-style would bring him true satisfaction. Did it work?  You be the judge.  At the end of his life he was emaciated and colorless; with a sunken chest; fingernails in grotesque, inches-long corkscrews; rotting, black teeth; tumors; and innumerable needle marks from his drug addiction. Howard Hughes died, a billionaire junkie and insane by any normal standards, clinging to the illusion that a self-willed life is the way to fulfillment.

4.   Selfishness is dangerous precisely because it does not lead to fulfillment.  It diminishes our lives.

II.  Selfishness is dangerous because it blinds us to the needs of others

1.   The use of the name “Lazarus” in this parable is interesting.  Normally, Jesus did not use names for the characters in His parables.  The name literally means “he whom God helps” and perhaps Jesus used that name to let His hearers know in advance that even though the rich man did not help Lazarus, God would.

2.   Lazarus was a pathetic figure.  Notice how Jesus described Him in verses 20 and 21:

·         “poor man” – That is rather obvious, given where he was and what he was doing.

·         “laid at his gate” – The implication is that someone placed him there, meaning that he was unable to walk.

·         “covered with sores” – His body was a mass of ulcers

·         “longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the man’s table” – The insertion of the word “crumbs” is a little misleading.  The reference is probably to the pieces of bread that were used as napkins to wipe one’s hands after dipping meat in sauce or gravy.  The bread was thrown on the floor to be swept out.

·         “even the dogs were coming and licking his sores” – In other words, Lazarus waited with the dogs for the scraps to be swept from the banquet hall.

Jesus could not have painted a more pathetic picture.  One writer describes Lazarus as “...a filthy, festering beggar.” [The Gospels in Study and Preaching, p.34]

5.      The rich man in this story is not condemned because of what he did to Lazarus.  Actually, there is no evidence that he did anything to him.  Lazarus was not forced to leave the gate.  He was not forbidden from eating the scraps from the table.  He was not hit or kicked or abused in anyway.  Instead, the rich man was condemned for what he did not do.  And basically, what he did not do was even notice that Lazarus was there.  He was so wrapped up in himself, so selfish and self-centered, that apparently he felt nothing toward Lazarus.  No grief.  No sorrow.  No pity.  No sadness.  And he felt nothing because he saw nothing.  As Barclay says, “His was the punishment of the man who never noticed.” [Barclay, p.222]

6.      I wonder if that is a description of my life.  I wonder if there are people I come across everyday who are hurting, lonely, afraid, and overwhelmed, but because I am so wrapped up in myself I never even see their need.  That is one thing selfishness does to us.  It can cause us to be so focused on ourselves that we fail to recognize the needs of others.  That’s why the Bible tells us in Philippians 2:4, “...do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interest of others.”   

III. Selfishness is dangerous because it distorts our thinking about God.

1.      When the rich man died and found himself in the place of torment, he was able to look, presumably into heaven, and see Abraham who was cradling Lazarus in his arms.  Notice what the rich man did.  He made two requests, both of which are basically selfish requests.  Death had not changed the selfish nature of this man.

·         He asked for water to quench his thirst.  There is no indication that he cared about or even recognized the thirst of others in that place.

·         He asked for his brothers to be warned of the place of torment.  There is no indication that he was concerned that others be warned as well.

      What I want you to see in that is that his selfishness carried over into the spiritual realm.

2. And that is the most dangerous things selfishness does to us.  It distorts our thinking about God and our understanding of how we are to relate to God.  If we are characterized by selfishness and self-centeredness, instead of viewing ourselves as servants of God, we begin to view God as our own personal butler.
3. Do not misunderstand what I am saying.  God wants to do good things for us. The Bible is filled with promise after promise of God’s protection of and provision for His people.  But the deepest longing of God for us is that we know Him and live in daily communion with Him.  God’s greatest gift to us is the gift of Himself.
4. When Roy DeLamotte was chaplain at Paine College in Georgia, he preached the shortest sermon in the college's history. However, he had a rather long topic: "What does Christ Answer When We Ask, "Lord, What's in Religion for Me?" The complete content of his sermon was in one word: "Nothing." He later explained that the one-word sermon was meant for people brought up on the 'gimme-gimme' gospel. [Resources, 1990]. 
5. I understand what that chaplain was saying.  He was trying to discourage the view of God as our personal servant, bringing us what we want when we want it.  But I think I would have answered the question, “What does Christ answer when we ask, ‘Lord, What’s in religion for me?’” with a different word.  Instead of the word “nothing” I would answer with “everything.”  Because when we lay aside our selfishness and self-centeredness and truly seek God, we get everything.  That’s what the Bible says in Colossians 3:10 where we find this wonderful phrase:  “For in Him [Jesus] you have been made complete...” or as the Living Bible so beautifully paraphrases it, “You have everything you need when you have Christ...”
6. The great tragedy of a selfish, self-centered life is that it distorts our view of God causing us to miss the daily life of communion He wants us to have with Him.

Conclusion

1.      Every day we live we must choose between living a self-centered life or a God-centered life.

A self-centered life	A God-centered life
Diminishes us	Fulfills us
Makes us blind to people	Makes us sensitive to people
Distorts our relationship God	Enhances our relationship with God

      May we choose wisely!