Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity
2 Timothy 3:14 – 4:5 Luke 18: 1-8
Poor old Hamlet. He is standing there musing over a problem. He has a question and is seeking an answer. “To be, or not to be”. Way back in 1600, as a result of the playwright William Shakespeare putting pen, or quill, to paper, actors playing the part of Hamlet have stood on the stage and asked that question. In the 425 years from the time that the words were first spoken who knows just how many times those words have been uttered.
Let us now look at the gospel reading. A judge is in a predicament. Being a judge he should be above temptation, he should be strong enough to avoid corruption, he should be a person without blemish, a model citizen, one people could rely upon and trust. It is likely that he was not a Jew. Any court dispute would have had three judges. One chosen by the accuser, one by the accused, and one appointed by Herod or the Romans. However, those, such as this last one, were notorious for being open to bribery.
The judge possibly feared for his safety. Physical violence was possible, even from this lady who was a widow. By being bothered, or by repeated visits from the widow, the judge feared being worn out. This could be translated as exhausted or even being given a black eye. The means of receiving the expected exhaustion or black eye could be by assault and battery or by wearing him to sleep. Either way he feared for his safety and gave in to the demands of the widow.
Jesus is saying that God will grant justice to those who call upon him. This is where we must look at how we contact God. A letter is no good and the phone is neither. We have to use prayer. The ideal is to find a quiet place and to speak to God, allowing him time to speak back to us. Bring before him your wants and needs, your fears and worries, and also your thanks and gratitude. Lay all of these before him so that he may act. Then listen. Use your every senses to allow God to make contact. And, as it says on the tube of toothpaste, repeat (adding that one word doubled sales in an instant, so the story goes).
We are encouraged to contact God regularly, pray to him regularly. It is right to ask for the same things, to give thanks for the same things. God receives all of our petitions. He also acts upon them all. But, not necessarily as we might expect. It is often quoted that a parent, may say no to a child wanting to do something, especially if there is an element of danger involved. We cannot always expect that for which we are asking. Often a father has to refuse the request of a child, because he knows that what the child asks would hurt rather than help. That is just how God is. We cannot expect to know what will happen in the next hour or day or week. God knows what is good for us. For this reason we should not give up in prayer.
At the end of the reading the question is asked, “will faith be found on Earth?” If we continue to speak with God, if we regularly pray to him, our faith will grow. Then, at the time when the Son of Man comes, he will find faith and love. Like Hamlet, we need to continue to ask our questions. We, however, ask of God, placing before him our needs. And then to remember, “Thy will be done”.
Collect for the Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God,
increase in us your gift of faith
that, forsaking what lies behind
and reaching out to that which is before,
we may run the way of your commandments
and win the crown of everlasting joy;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.