Never Give Up

One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’” Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?” [Luke 18.1-8]

For all the "formulas' Christianity has concluded will cause God's power to manifest, this passage, along with the story in Luke 11.5-10, both indicate that persistence is paramount.

Persistence is something our culture does not understand much. I must include myself in this.

Persistence defies reason. How many times can one run into a brick wall before deciding, "it's not going to move"? Reason is the enemy of persistence. The voice of reason defuses the power of persistence. Reason kills persistence.

There is really little to expound about persistence except to say, "Don't stop!"

Can I just be transparent? I have prayed repeatedly about an issue with my body over the past few years. My neck has become a source of constant pain and has become immoveable (stiff). This condition literally affects all my activities, including sitting at a computer writing the articles I write every day. I cannot raise my head up enough to look people squarely in the eye. It hurts to hug people. Kissing my wife is near impossible from most any position. I hate to go to a retail store because attempting to see items above chest-high is practically impossible and extremely painful. Blah, blah, blah... 

The voice of reason tells me my infirmity is just the way it is and it is the way it will always be. While powerless Christianity encourages me not to lose hope, it assures me at least it will be better in heaven. Of course, there is always the idol of medicine that promises much of what God offers in the way of healing, but it does so at the cost of faith in God ALONE (not to mention the incalculable material cost of procedures and drugs). The Bible on the other hand tells me that I should not give up. Which of these reveals the kind of faith Jesus taught? The last one - the Bible.

Reason invades my faith though. Reason complicates faith and also confuses faith with all manner of stipulations and spiritual protocols. This should disturb us to our core because of Jesus' statement: But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith? Reason, at its core, is an accuser, just like Satan, who more often than not, inspires it (especially in matters where the Bible clearly says "simply believe"). Reason refuses to accept the idea of God's favor in exchange for nothing but simple faith. Reason postpones God's promises. Reason, like Satan, is just a killing, stealing and destroying God-damned lie. 

Too much?

Reason should make us mad because it prevents us from receiving all that God has availed to us. It certainly made Jesus mad! After Martha and Mary presented all their reasons about how if Jesus had been there, Lazarus would not have died, it pretty much ticked Jesus off. They still didn't get it - they still didn't believe for themselves.

Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance. “Roll the stone aside,” Jesus told them. But Martha, the dead man’s sister, protested, “Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.” Jesus responded, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believe?” So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.” Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!” [John 11.38-44]

If reason so angered Jesus, and Jesus is God in the flesh, should we not take a bit of a stance against reason ourselves (if we call ourselves believers)? Let me help you... Yes, we should.

So then, how do we combat reason? With unyielding persistence (and, a touch of anger at the onset of reason will go a long way)! We should keep praying for needs, whether ours or those of others. We should verbally rebuke reason when it presents itself. Our basis should be this: God has it. Our motivation should be this: He said I could have it. Our commitment should be this: I will not stop asking until I get it.

Father, help us yield only to Your Word and the voice of Your Holy Spirit. May we have Your attitude, and even anger, about reason. May Your power manifest in and through us as we persistently believe!