Sermon: Persistence

2013 10 20 Persistence from John Knox Kirk on Vimeo.

A sermon preached at John Knox Kirk of Kansas City, Missouri on October 20, 2013.

Jeremiah 31:31-34
and Luke 18:1-8

One of the things that gives me life,

is turning again and again to the stories of the Bible.

 I say this not just because we encounter God there… in that engagement

though that’s a big part of it.

But these stories in the Scripture are endlessly fascinating.

So many twists and turns and nuances and layers.

Take, for instance, this Parable:

the parable of the Unjust Judge, some call it

or the parable of the persistent widow.

 There is this judge, says Jesus. We know about judges in Israel.

Their role is to maintain a reasonable harmony in the community,

to decide disputes fairly and impartially.[i]

 Jewish law is clear, however: there is a particular responsibility

for such judges…and the whole nation

to protect the rights of the poor—

often described through the shorthand of the

widows and the orphans and

sojourners in the land.

 

So there is this Judge, says Jesus

and there is this widow. And here lies the plot:

the widow as the main character immediately

raises the stakes for this judge.

Any God-fearing jurist would feel obligated by the law, by Torah

to take particularly good care of her.[ii]

 

The problem is that this judge is not God-fearing.

This judge, the text tells us, isn’t particularly interested in justice at all.

He really just wants her to go away.

But the widow won’t take “no” for an answer.

 

She keeps coming back, and coming back

day after day after day, resolutely pressing her case,

until finally the judge breaks.

The way my particular bible translates this moment

misses the particular force of the widow here,

and my bible has a great footnote that offers another rendition

of that verse:

The judge says to himself:

“Because this widow keeps bothering me,

                                    I will grant her justice,

                                             so that she may not finally come

                                                      and slap me in the face….”

Or, as Eugene Peterson puts it

in his paraphrase of the Bible called The Message:

         I’d better do something and see that she gets justice—

                  otherwise I’m going to end up beaten

                                    black and blue by her pounding.”

 

A Persistent Widow, indeed.

So he breaks, and eventually,

despite his callousness and despite his lack of integrity,

he gives the woman what she demands:

Justice. Or making things right again.

 It was through HER persistence that Justice eventually happened,

that brought the one responsible for giving it to his knees

and that brought about God’s intention—

that the poor and marginalized might be cared for.

 * * *

What is this parable all about then?

Well, on one level, Jesus tells us: it is about The Need to Pray, Always.

And also about how we ought not Lose Heart

 But there’s always more to it than just the obvious.

 

Parables are always about the indwelling of the realm of God in our world.

And this Parable one is no different,

and in some ways the broader context is explicit about it

in ways that other parables sometimes aren’t.

 Just before his telling this story, according to Luke,

Jesus is talking to a crowd of Pharisees and Disciples

who are asking about the coming of the Son of Man

and the new world God has promised.

I sometimes wonder if Jesus is being worn out by their persistence, too,

the constant yearning for things to be made better.

But if so, Jesus shows no signs of that.

Instead, Jesus tells them that the “Kingdom of God

is not coming with things that can be observed,

nor will they say ‘Look, here it is’ or ‘Look, there it is!’

For, in fact” Jesus says, “the kingdom of God is within you….”

 “The kingdom of God is within you….”

 

And then after a rather long apocalyptic discourse with his disciples,

where Jesus hints to himself as the fulfillment of the kingdom…

Jesus tells us this little parable about

the importance of persistence in prayer

and not losing hope.

I think that context is important.

To a people who have been waiting for centuries for God

to make things right,

who are living under the strains of the Roman empire

and who long for the glory days of Yahweh

back in Judea and Israel,

these faithful,

who have been praying for what seems like forever….

they ask Jesus what gives.

And Jesus tells them that their longed for Kingdom

won’t be the kind of thing that they will notice so easily

but, rather, something that will happen within THEM.

And then he tells them to keep praying….

* * *

There’s got to be more to the story than just this.

Its not the kind of response they were looking for.

I’m not sure it’s the kind of response, if I’m honest

I would be looking for either.

I don’t know about you, but I get pretty exhausted,

when I think about all the things that need to be made right

with our world:

The millions of kids in our country

who are food insecure.

Not to mention the ones right here

in South Kansas City or Johnson County

or nearby.

 I met with a pastor this week from Ottawa, Kansas

who said 60% of kids at their school

qualify for free or reduced meals at school.

That’s three out of five kids,

and my heart aches and my head boggles.

 And I’ve been praying pretty hard about that.

 

Then there’s the military operations that continue

in Iraq and Afghanistan,

and action in Libya and Somalia

and conflict in Syria

and rumblings about Iran….

 And I pray pretty hard about that.

 

And then there’s all the people I love

or the people that they love

who are receiving Chemo or Radiation

or antidepressants

or transfusions

lifegiving treatment, all of it…

And I pray pretty hard about that.

 

And then theres the political mess

and worry about the economy

and my own 9-5 work

and my family’s schedule

and I pray pretty hard about all of that stuff too.

 And I can get pretty exhausted by all of it,

and by all of that praying,

and I can begin to wonder what gives, Jesus?

* * *

On the face of it, the typical reading of this passage is that

persistence pays off.

And I believe in sticking with it when it comes to prayer,

even when such prayers don’t get answered

in the ways WE think is best.

 

But I think this Parable may be MORE about God’s persistence

God’s willingness to stick with us

God’s desire to tough it out with us

God’s unflappable commitment to shalom—

to peace, to harmony, to justice

no matter how tired we get.

 See, I’ve come to learn that there’s persistence, and then there’s persistence.

Or, to put it another way, not all persistence is created equal.

That guy who insists on tailgating me during rushhour, he’s persistent.

 The nagging cough that seems to be lingering around my home

passing from one child to the other, particularly at night,

that’s persistent.

The Chief’s pass rush: Tomba Hali and Dontari Poe and Derrick Johnson

they’re persistent, too.

A particular joy to watch this year, at least for me.

But all those things will pass away, eventually.

 

And then there’s the persistence of God:

There’s the persistence of a father who had two sons,

and when one son squanders his inheritance

and reaches the depths of poverty and heartache

the father is there to welcome him back

with outstretched arms.

Or the persistence of the shepherd who had a hundred sheep

and who, after losing one, wouldn’t rest until he found it,

and after finding it threw a party:

“Rejoice with me! For I have found my sheep that was lost!”

Or the persistence of a woman who had ten silver coins,

and upon losing one,

turns on all the lights, sweeps out every dark dusty corner

doesn’t rest until that coin is found.

 

These, too, are parables that Jesus tells us about the realm of God.

The way God doesn’t quit, even when we quit on God.

The way God is relentless in searching for us when we are lost.

The way God’s love will never, ever, ever quit.

The way God is steadfast and unyielding and even persistent.

 * * *

So, maybe this story before us is pretty obvious,

about our need to keep praying and not to lose heart.

 But as I think about Jesus and the stories he tells us about who God is

and I think about this widow,

how she cries out for justice

to the one who is responsible for giving it to her

but who doesn’t seem to care one bit to do so

SHE reminds me of God.

 

Doesn’t SHE remind you of God?

That widow, as steadfast and unyielding and persistent as she is:

That widow reminds me of the God we find in Jesus

pushing and prodding and urging and sweeping

and welcoming and throwing a party

when grace abounds and

justice is meted out

and the lost are found again.

 * * *

I think Jesus is up to something here.

 

When we get tired, or worn out, or beaten up by this imperfect world of ours

when we get frustrated by seeing injustice seem to win out

or the hungry going without food

or the orphan and widow being mistreated

Jesus is saying: YES! And God is too!

but God doesn’t give up!

God will keep beating the drums for justice

and will keep working on peace

and God wants us to keep on doing so too.

 * * *

Sometimes it takes stories of persistence to remind me of how God

is still working, in our day,

with God’s own unflappable persistence.

 

Davion Only wasn’t so sure about going inside

St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church that Sunday morning.

 “Miss! Hey, Miss!” he called to his case worker, who was driving

as they pulled into the church parking lot.

“I don’t [know if I] want to do this anymore.”

         He clutched the Bible someone had given him in a foster home.

The case worker, Connie, told him “You’re going to be great”

as she straightened his donated white tie

and flattened the collar on his too-big, donated black suit.

 Only was born in prison.

And his life had been a constant shuffle through the foster care system.

His mother—a drug addict and convicted thief—

died earlier this year while still incarcerated,

and there had never been suitable guardians for him among his relatives.

 So he was a ward of the state, and at 15 was struggling.

He was angry. He let his grades suffer. He pushed people away.

 But when his mother died, things changed for him.

He says he no longer had any excuses. He couldn’t blame her any more.

 He needed to do something to find someone in his life.

Someone who would want him. Someone who would love him.

 So there he was, at the doorway of St Mark Church

with his caseworker.

 This was his idea, Connie would say later,

his way of “Putting himself out there”.

 Davion stood before the 300 member congregation.[iii]

“Without looking up, Davion wiped his palms on his pants,

                  cleared his throat, and said:

         “My name is Davion,

and I’ve been in foster care since I was born.

         I know God hasn’t given up on me.

                  So I’m not giving up either.”

 “I’ll take anyone. Old or young, dad or mom

                  black, white, purple. I don’t care.

         And I would be really appreciative. The best I could be.”

* * *

 And right there, the God who has a particular heart for widows

and orphans and sojourners

all of those particularly struggling and hurting

stood beside Davion and showed us all a glimpse of the realm of God.

 

Case workers report that they have had 5000 people call

from around the country asking about Davion,

most of whom ask about adoption,

and those who work with orphans report a nationwide uptick

in interest because of Davion’s persistence.

* * *

There are so many principalities and powers out there

that are indifferent to God’s realm,

that don’t really care about the poor’s claim for justice

that resist doing anything to make their lives better.

 But God, Jesus tells us, God doesn’t give up.

If we have eyes to see it,

God is working right now, tirelessly, to work out the realm of God

in our world.

And God urges us not to give up,

as tired as those principalities and powers make us

to not stop praying and to not stop looking

and to not stop EXPECTING God to be doing this.

 THAT is the whole point of PERSISTENCE in prayer:

to keep our heart and our eyes and our minds attune

to not just our longing for justice and for peace

but also to the GOD who longs for these things too

so that when we see it we can shout: look! There!

The Kingdom of God is Among us!

 Because, with a life of prayer, we can SEE it:

In the gift of a meal and quiet presence

to a friend who just lost a spouse

In a kind word to a friend who just got mocked in gym class

In patience offered to someone who needs a break.

 Right there! The realm of God breaking forth….

 

It takes a certain kind of persistence: ours, and God’s.

So may we not only commit to trust God

by persisting in our prayers and lifting up to God our hopes

for a better, more loving, more peaceful world,

but may we also work to see God’s

endless, tireless work in our world to make this come to be

and may we take up that work as our own.

 May it be so.

Amen.