Refocusing on our Faith

This morning is our final message in the series of Refocus, in week one we see the need to refocus our passion, then in week two we seen that we needed to refocus on who Jesus is, then in week 3 we seen that we have to refocus in order not to hinder what God is trying to do, then in week 4 Pastor Wayne preached on the need to refocus our heart in order to have love, last week we looked at the need to refocus on our cross.

We seen that we need to truly surrender ourselves fully and completely to Jesus Christ and take up our cross and follow him, but that requires us to refocus on what the cross really means, it is not just something that we wear around our neck, but that it was a torture device, and it does mean to die to ourselves, our wills, our wants, our desires, in order to fully surrender to the will, ways, and plans of God.

This morning we are going to look at refocusing on our Faith. With that we are going to look at some Scripture that God has laid on my heart recently, it is just a few words out of the verse 1 of Luke 18, and if you do Facebook, you may have seen me post it.

But verse 1-8 will be our text this morning it is a parable that Jesus is teaching the disciples a lesson about not giving up, and some times we need to be reminded not to give up.

There are three things that we can learn from this parable in Luke 18:1-8 this morning, and these three things tie together, and really we will see how they all are tied together, in a way.

If you are able will you stand with me in the honor of the reading of God’s Holy Word:

Luke 18:1–8 CSB

1 Now he told them a parable on the need for them to pray always and not give up. 2 “There was a judge in a certain town who didn’t fear God or respect people. 3 And a widow in that town kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For a while he was unwilling, but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or respect people, 5 yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice, so that she doesn’t wear me out by her persistent coming.’ ” 6 Then the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 Will not God grant justice to his elect who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay helping them? 8 I tell you that he will swiftly grant them justice. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Pray

I. Need

Luke 18:1 (NIV)

1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

All the different translations pretty much say the same thing in this verse, some will say always to pray and not to faint, or ought to pray and not to lose heart, or always pray and do not quit.

But we get the point Jesus was telling the disciples the importance, the need to always pray and never giving up.

In the second half of chapter 17, Jesus had taught the disciples about the coming of the kingdom of God, and that it is not a visible thing, but it was in their midst then and it is in our midst now.

The kingdom of God is here now, it is us, we build the kingdom of God as people are saved the kingdom of God grows.

Jesus did tell the disciples that the days will come when they would long to see the Son of Man, that is Jesus, as believers, as followers of Jesus Christ, we should long to see Jesus Christ coming in the clouds with the trumpet sounding.

But Jesus also told them that there are going to be a lot of things that take place before that happens, and there are going to be things that will cause us to get discouraged, and things that will even lead us a stray if we are not careful.

Now I am just simply summarizing all of that in the second part of chapter 17, because then just goes into the parable in chapter 18, where we are told in verse 1, that Jesus told them this parable on the need.

After he tells them all these things about the coming of the Kingdom of God, and all the things that they will face, persecution, false prophets, times of simply wanting to give up, times of exhaustion, times of failure, times that they just do not feel like they can go any more, and times that they feel like they have done all that they can do.

Jesus gave them a parable on the need, the need to always pray and never give up.

Today we face so many things that cause us to want stay home, to do our own thing, to say is it really worth it, but Jesus is saying refocus your life, and always pray and never give up.

II. Persistence

Luke 18:2–5 CSB

2 “There was a judge in a certain town who didn’t fear God or respect people. 3 And a widow in that town kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For a while he was unwilling, but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or respect people, 5 yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice, so that she doesn’t wear me out by her persistent coming.’ ”

Here Jesus tells the parable, a parable is usually a short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle - according to Merriam-Webster dictionary.

Jesus tells the parable of this unbelieving judge and a widow, this widow was persistent in getting justice in her case.

We do not know what the case was or any details, but what we do know was that she was persistent in coming to this judge and asking for justice against her adversary.

Now in those days, we need to remember that woman had little to no standing in society and then this lady was a widow, therefore, she did not have a husband to stand with her in the court. This gave her even less standing.

Now the thing was the widow kept coming, the judge would just keep turning her down, would not listen to her, and put her out, but the widow did not give up, she was persistent, she kept coming back, over and over again.

Until the judge finally said, I do not fear God, or respect people, but this widow is pestering me, and to get rid of her I will just giver her justice.

The widow’s persistence paid off, she finally got what she was going for, the justice she was looking for, not because the judge ruled in her favor, not because the the case was determine in her favor, but because she was persistent.

The judge said, so that she does not wear me out by her persistent coming. He was tired of her coming to his court.

So many times, we go to the Father and pray for something, and issue we are having, for a loved one that we are not sure about their salvation, and we pray for them maybe a few times, but then we give up.

We say, God is not listening to me, or that person just is not going to get saved, but we end up giving up, Jesus said, always pray and never giving up.

III. Faith?

Luke 18:6–8 CSB

6 Then the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 Will not God grant justice to his elect who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay helping them? 8 I tell you that he will swiftly grant them justice. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Jesus said, listen to what the unjust judge says: he is telling the disciples, did you pay attention to what that unjust judge had said there.

He said, he granted the widows request because she was persistent, so that she would stop pestering him, and so she would leave him alone.

Jesus says, in verses 7, will not God grant justice to his elect - that is to his believer, his children - who cry out to him day and night?

He is asking the disciples that in a question, now remember he started this parable with the thought always pray and never giving up.

Will not God grant justice to his elect who cry out to him day and night? Will God not answer those who persistently pray to him crying out day and night?

Jesus then adds, Will he delay helping them? Will God be patient, will he take his time?

2 Peter 3:8–9 CSB

8 Dear friends, don’t overlook this one fact: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. 9 The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.

There are good reasons why God delays, or is patient, and it might be simply so that some do not perish but that people have that opportunity to come to repentance.

Then as he closes this lesson, Jesus makes this comment in verse 8, Luke 18:8

Luke 18:8 (CSB)

8 Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Jesus says, when the Son of Man comes, that is when he, Jesus comes will he find faith on earth?

Verse 8 is a closing statement for the section going all the way back to were Jesus is teaching on the coming of the kingdom in chapter 17 beginning in verse 20.

We must remember when Luke and the other writes of the Scriptures penned the words of the Bible, as the Holy Spirit spoke to them, they did not put chapters and verses, these were not added until beginning in 1227 AD, with chapters, then the Old Testament got verses first by a Jewish rabbi in 1448 AD, and then the New Testament in 1555 AD.

These chapter and verses though are not original and do not always go into the best of place, and with Luke 17 and 18 here we see that it kind of breaks up the thought or the teaching.

Jesus was teaching on the Kingdom of God, the second coming of Jesus, and then the need to be persistent in always praying and never giving up.

Persistent prayer and perseverance are necessary in order for God’s chosen ones to remain true to the faith until the Son of Man returns.

For us to refocus on our faith, we need to always pray and never give up, never give up hope, never give up the faith, never give up on Jesus, never give up our passion to see the lost come to salvation, never give up on seeing Jesus in glory, never give up on seeing Jesus coming in the clouds with the trumpet blowing, never give up on the mission and commands he has called us too, never give up on loving others, never give up on our relationship with Jesus, and the way we never give up is to always pray.

Jesus said will I find faith on earth when I come again, we are told in 1 Timothy 4:1

1 Timothy 4:1 CSB

1 Now the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,

We are told right there that some will depart from the faith, why will they depart from the faith, well they quit praying and gave up, and started paring attention to deceitful spirits and the teaching of demons.

We are also told in 2 Timothy 3:1

2 Timothy 3:1 CSB

1 But know this: Hard times will come in the last days.

We are told hard times will come, and then we are given why the last days will be hard, we are given a list of things people will be - lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, demeaning, disobedient to parents, and the list goes on.

When people quiet praying and give up the faith, the outcome is the list we are given in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, people will become wicked because they have lost their focus on Faith.

We must always pray and never giving up so that we can keep our focus on our faith, on Jesus.

No matter what life throws at you, how hard it seems like things are getting, how dark things seem to be getting, or how deep you feel like you have gotten in that tunnel, always pray and never give up.

When we pray, we are communicating with the one that is in control of all things, we are communicating with the one that created all things, we are communicating with the only one that can change the outcome of whatever it is we are going through, so always pray and never give up.

The moment we stop praying, is when we start to lose focus, and we begin to sink, we begin to quit, we begin to give up.

So always pray.

We are to follow the examples that Jesus gave us while he was here on earth and there are so many times that he would go up into a mountain or out into the wilderness, he would go where he could be alone and he would pray, talk to the Father.

Even moments before being arrested to be crucified, knowing what was coming, he told the disciples to stay and pray, as he went a little further to be alone and talk to the Father.

Because He always prayed and He never gave up.

This morning are you dealing with something that you feel like just giving up, something that you are just tired of, something that has you exhausted, that you just not sure how much longer you can handle it.

Refocus on your faith, be persistent, and always pray and never give up.

Maybe this morning you need some encouragement, you need someone to come beside you to pray with you, to support you in that prayer, to hold up your arms in that prayer.

Then come let us pray with you and for you, that we all may always pray and never give up.

I remember hearing a story of a woman that prayed for her husband for 60 years before he came to salvation, she always prayed and never gave up.

My wife’s grandmother prayed for her husband until the day she passed away that he would come to salvation, but it was not until after she had passed that he came to salvation.

We have to be persistent, and always pray and never give up.

Do not let satan, discourage you, Always pray and never give up.