Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not become discouraged. [Luke 18:1 (NASB)]
Jesus told two parables about persistence. In the first, a man went to his neighbor’s home at midnight. Waking him, he asked for three loaves of bread because a traveler just arrived and he had no food for his hungry guest. Initially, the neighbor refused to open the door but, after tiring of the man’s persistent knocking, he finally gave him the bread. In the second parable, a widow kept badgering a corrupt judge with her appeals for justice against a man who has harmed her. Finally, worn down by her persistent pleas, the exasperated judge granted her request.
When we focus on the two people’s annoying doggedness rather than their just causes, it’s easy to misinterpret these parables. Hospitality for a traveler was more than good manners; it was required and a matter of honor for the host and his village. The man had a legitimate need that he couldn’t fulfill. With an empty larder and no quick-marts, he had to depend on his neighbor’s generosity.
Although the law commanded that widows be protected, they often were exploited. The judge (who “neither feared God nor cared about people”) expected a bribe that she couldn’t pay. Wanting the fairness, protection, and justice the law promised, persistence was the widow’s only weapon against the corrupt man. Having just causes, both people persisted in their pleas because they were powerless on their own.
We also misinterpret these parables when, rather than contrasting God to the reluctant neighbor and vexed judge, we compare Him to those men. Neither man was responsive and both had to be hounded before they’d even listen. Neither man cared about friendship or justice; rather than granting the requests out of love or concern, their motives were self-serving. The heartless neighbor and the godless judge just wanted the bothersome pleas to stop so they could get back to their own lives.
In contrast, God is neither a sleepy, grouchy, uncaring neighbor nor an unresponsive, greedy, corrupt judge. Jesus’ point was this: if an unwilling man can be convinced to meet the needs of a troubled neighbor and a dishonest judge can be induced to give justice to a poor widow, consider how much more willing our loving Father is to meet the needs of his children! He always has time for us and He hears us the moment we speak to Him. While others may fail us, God never will.
Although several Bible translations use “persistence” in describing these people’s pleas, the original Greek words were egkakeó, meaning not to lose heart or grow weary, in the parable of the widow, and anaideia, meaning shamelessness, in that of the neighbor. Rather than telling us we must pester God until He acts, these parables tell us that pestering God is unnecessary. It’s not because we haven’t gotten God’s attention that we pray steadfastly; it’s because we have! These parables tell us to pray with the tenacity and shamelessness of a believer who refuses to be deterred or discouraged by fear, disappointment, or dissuasion.
There is a difference between a fleshly stubbornness and a godly perseverance. The former insists on getting one’s will done in heaven, and the latter determines to get God’s will done on earth. [William Thrasher]
Devotions of the Heart 