The first American to fill a bathtub was Adam Thompson of Cincinnati, Ohio. When doctors who heard of it, they predicted rheumatism and inflammation of the lungs. Some cities banned the new "bathtub exercise". Today no home is complete without a bathtub or shower. The crowd was wrong.
England once had a law forbidding anyone to drive a vehicle faster than four miles an hour without a person going before them with a red flag for safety. Today our cars and roads are designed to travel much faster than that. The crowd was wrong.
Westinghouse was called a fool for daring to think that he could stop a train with wind. Now Westinghouse air brakes are being used the world over. Again the crowd was wrong.
For eleven years Goodyear and his wife worked on vulcanising rubber. Everyone laughed at them, but today millions benefit from their work. The crowd was mistaken.
In the early 1950's the world hailed the first jet airliner, the "Comet", which cut travelling time by half. Several crashed and many were killed. The designers were wrong about the effect that speed and altitude had on aircraft structure. They learned from that mistake and today air travel is even safer than driving the car.
All of us are subject in various ways to public opinion - which may be right or wrong! We have experienced both State and Federal elections in recent months. Don't you think it's time opinion polls were banned during the period of an election? This unnecessary reflection of the opinions of some 2000 voters distracts us from the real issues. In many ways it affects lots of average voters. In the final count, the election itself is the only opinion poll that matters.
On the other side, you may have heard about the proud mother who went out to watch her son marching in the parade. "Look at that!" she commented to the lady next to her, "My Paddy is the only one in step!"
The teaching and example of Jesus were never based on public opinion. This was recognised by the people who said that he "wasn't like the teachers of the Law; instead, he taught with authority" (Mt. 7.29). Jesus cut through the debates and casuistry of his time to declare the timeless message of God.
We live in a time of unprecedented change. It is the era of space exploration. On the news this week we learn that the oldest astronaut, John Glenn, now in his seventies, is to return to space to conduct experiments on space flight and the ageing process. We are doing so many things undreamed of before. In some ways we seem much more in control of our environment. Yet rapid change has been accompanied by an increase in discouragement, in depression, in psychosomatic disorders, in suicides, in crimes of violence…
In today's reading about the unjust judge Jesus uses contrast to teach us about prayer and the nature of God. The key is in the opening and closing words. "Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to teach them that they should always pray and never become discouraged" (Lk. 18.1). "But will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes?" (v. 8b)
The key to a fulfilled life is our relationship with God. Some thirty years ago a survey of church attenders in Australia found that around 50% pray regularly and another 40% pray occasionally. What would the figure be today? Is there a correlation between declining levels of faith and prayer in society and the negative signs in health and social behaviour which are evident?
Ray C. Stedman commented, "Here Jesus boldly confronts us with an inescapable choice: We must either pray or faint, one or the other. Either we learn to cry out to an unseen Father, who is ever present with us, or else we must lose heart, to faint. There is nothing left for us then but to muster up the best front we can and make our way through life without fire and without hope. It is one or the other; there are no other alternatives" (Why Pray?).
Many of Jesus' parables begin with "The Kingdom of heaven is like…" The present parable, however, teaches by way of contrast.
God is not like an unprincipled, unwilling and selfish judge - who only gave the widow justice to regain his own peace and quiet! Elsewhere Jesus has taught that God is our heavenly Father who knows our needs before we ask him (Mt. 6.8). And with a "how much more" contrast between imperfect human fatherhood and the divine Fatherhood, he said, "Bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" (Mt. 7.11).
I recall years ago hearing about a group which was going to have a "prayer battery". I was never quite sure in which sense it was meant - whether openness to tap into the power of God or (more likely) an unrelenting assault on the throne of grace. It hardly seemed to fit the teaching of Jesus on prayer.
Jesus taught, in the Sermon on the Mount, "Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks will receive, and anyone who seeks will find, and the door will be opened to those who knock" (Mt. 7.8). The focus of Jesus was on our relationship with the Father who longs to give the very best to us. When the answer is delayed, it is not in any sense to deny this fatherly love, but that we may know it the more fully. Note James' comment, "You do not have what you want because you do not ask God for it. And when you ask, you do not receive it, because your motives are bad; you ask for things to use for your own pleasures" (Jas 4.2b-3).
So when we think about prayer, the issues are not: How do I make prayer work for me? What should my formula or technique be? - all of them questions that focus on me.
Jesus tells us to "pray and not be discouraged", not because prayer is the popular preferred option, but because our lives need to focus on our heavenly Father. This is why he asks that final question that some interpreters wrongly assume should be isolated from this parable. It embodies the real issue: "But will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes?" (Lk. 18.8b)
Ray Stedman comments, "… God is utterly faithful. There is nothing lacking from his side, there never has been. But, he says, let me ask you this question, is it possible, is it remotely possible that men prefer weakness to power, that they prefer anxiety to peace, a frenzy to rest, doubt to confidence, fear to faith, or malice to love? Is it possible that when the Son of man comes he will not find faith on the earth?"
Buderim Uniting Church is in the middle of our stewardship month. The basic issue isn't: How much should I give each week? nor How much can I afford to give each week? Rather, we need to consider: What has the Lord done for me? and What is my response to him?
I suspect a number of us watched the television coverage of the world half-marathon races in Uster, Switzerland. The men's and women's races were both won by Kenyans - both not so very far outside the course records. All competitors rightly received cheers of encouragement from the spectators. They maintained the effort and commitment towards their goal - the culmination of years and months of hard work and discipline. But, for the viewers, the images of their struggle and pain were interspersed with advertisements calling us to pander ourselves in one way or another.
I do not begrudge the rightful place of advertising in our society. But I fear greatly that too many of us are drawn away from Christ-centredness to self-centredness - wooed by the pressures to conform to unnecessary and unrealistic expectations and then trapped by the anxiety, discouragement, fear and depression that so often ensue.
Our Saviour calls us into a constant active relationship with our heavenly Father. He bids us to "pray and not be discouraged", to live by faith in the unseen God who is very much "our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble", as the old Bible puts it (Ps. 46.1 KJV).
The faith that the Son of Man will be looking to find on earth will be expressed in worship and praise and prayer. It will also be expressed in active fulfilment of the mission he has given us (Mt. 26.47). It will be clear to him in the prayerful and financial support we give through the local body of his people.
Too often we have barely scratched the surface of what God in his grace has given to us - and our level of giving suggests we have scarcely begun to trust God with all that we have and are.
Listen to the call of God in the second last chapter of the Old Testament, "Turn back to me, and I will turn to you. But you ask, 'What must we do to turn back to you?'… Bring the full amount of your tithes to the Temple, so that there will be plenty of food there. Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things. I will not let insects destroy your crops, and your grapevines will be loaded with grapes. Then the people of all nations will call you happy, because your land will be a good place to live in" (Mal. 3.7,10-12).
Don't be discouraged! God loves you and wants you to know his love. Pray - and live by faith!
Back to Sermons