Cry to Him (Luke 18:1-17, Jeff Kliewer)

Let's pray. Father God, again, thank you for the gospel. Thank you that Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. God, I need your grace. I need your mercy. And every one of us who sit here that are covered by your blood, that know forgiveness of sin, recognize that we need you.

We need your forgiveness. And we thank you for the provision that we have, a savior who came to die, who rose from the dead, who is alive, and now defeats sin and death, giving us power over sin, that we don't have to walk in it any longer.

Father, we are your people. We are your sheep. And yet, God, you have left us here, not as orphans, your spirit inside of us, your spirit with us. Yet Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. And Jesus, until you come, we are here to pray, to seek your face, like we're doing right now, calling on your name, depending on you for everything that we have, for life and Godliness, knowing that apart from you, that we can do nothing.

You are the vine. We are the branches. We need you. So right now, God, we call on you. And my prayer is that you would take over this sermon, that your word would speak, not me. Lord, let me simply echo your words and bring clarity to what you have already said.

But Lord, let your word sound forth this morning, that we would be changed by it forever. We need your word. Thank you again for this worship service. Thank you for this time that we can just be quiet before you and listen to your word.

Thank you for this worship service, Lord. Take over in Jesus' name. Amen. Around the year 2010, I was a missionary in the inner city of Philadelphia. And I was working and doing a number of different ministries there.

But a desire began to rise in my heart to be a lead pastor. I had had opportunities to preach. And whenever I preached, I would get feedback that I should be preaching, and that it was something that people encouraged me to do.

And so something began to rise in me that I wanted to preach weekly, to lead even. I thought, you know, God, would you use me to lead a church to pray and to evangelize and to send missionaries? Is this a desire that you have for me?

This desire became very strong. And many of you know how I came to this church to pastor. There's some neat things that came about. But not many of you know that something else happened in 2010. When I had that desire to pastor, I actually applied to some churches.

I looked online, and there was an evangelical free church in New Jersey that was looking for a pastor. And I put together all the best representation of myself that I could, trying to make myself look so good on the resume.

And found my best sermon I ever preached, and I sent it off. And I sat waiting to hear back from this particular church. It was in Central, somewhere in New Jersey. I won't identify where it was. And I heard crickets.

No response. And I looked into other opportunities. And every time I looked, it just didn't seem like there was any open door. But all this while, from that time on, 2010, approximately, until 2016, I kept praying, because deep in my heart, I still had that desire to pastor.

Just there were no open doors. So I waited. And I bore down into the ministry that I was doing. And we began to work with the Vietnamese church to get the second generation of Vietnamese believers to establish in the church.

And that was successful. And now they have a good young pastor that is working with the Vietnamese church. And that was exciting. And then we got involved with Calvary Chapel in Philadelphia. And we built a partnership with them for a couple years.

But meanwhile, we were living in New Jersey. And I would drive into the city to do that ministry. And all the while, I was praying for an opportunity to pastor. But years were rolling by. Six years. Until one day, I went for a jog in the neighborhood.

And I ran by the Mount Laurel Evangelical Free Church. And I tapped the sign as I was running. And I prayed for this church. Not that I would be the pastor, but for this church. Because I had heard that there was no pastor here at the moment.

And when I got home, I was just walking along. And I was standing in front of one of the elders' house. And I began to pray for the church again. And in that very moment, while I was praying for MLEFC, a text message came into my phone from a good friend of mine that said, would you be interested in preaching at the E-Free Church one Sunday?

And I said, yeah, I would. And I did. I came and I preached that one time. And then the church invited me to come to audition, in a sense, to become pastor. And the door just fell open. And everybody voted unanimously.

And my heart was 100 in as it is to this minute. But you know what it taught me? That we can't force the hand of God. We have to wait on the Lord. And prayer is an interesting thing. Because what I began praying for in 2010 couldn't happen by my own effort, as much as I grabbed for it.

It wasn't God's time. And yet I prayed and I prayed. And I waited. And I tried to stay faithful and grow where I was planted, until he called me. A text message came into my phone without me seeking the opportunity.

And the door opened. And I praised God for it. I see that he answered prayer. But immediately, that's the message of Luke 18. It's a parable of a persistent wit. Let's turn there now. A God-centered disciple prays day and night.

We've talked about being God-centered. Living a life that is connected to God all the time. Not just Sunday morning. Not just for an hour here and there. But day in and day out. Night and day. Focusing on God.

Praying. Prayer is God-centeredness. It's taking your attention off of your ability to do something. Taking your mind off of your stuff that's so busy. And turning your attention to heaven. Prayer is God-centeredness.

Today we're talking about prayer from Luke 18. Sometimes answers don't seem to come. But we must learn from this parable. Because this is how we grow as disciples. This is how we grow in the truth. Luke 18, 1 through 8.

And he told them a parable. To the effect that they ought always to pray. And not lose heart. He said, in a certain city there was a judge. Who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, give me justice against my adversary.

For a while he refused. But afterward he said to himself, though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because of this widow, she keeps bothering me, I will give her justice. So that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.

And the Lord said, hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to his elect who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.

Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? In verse one, we learn that Jesus is telling his disciples a parable. He's teaching them. And the effect that it's to have is the message of the parable.

This is the meaning of it. That you, believer in Christ, ought always to pray and not lose heart. Turn with me to Proverbs chapter 13, verse 12. Answers to prayer don't come as speedily as we would hope them to come.

It's easy to lose heart. Proverbs 13, 12 says, hope deferred makes the heart sick. But a desire to fill is a tree of life. Hope deferred makes the heart sick. When you get your hopes set on something, when you have a desire that your heart is leaning toward, if it takes a long time for that thing to come true, for that hope to turn into a reality, into real life, the heart begins to grow sick.

You long for something, but you can't have it. You pray and you seek, but it doesn't seem to come. The natural condition of the human heart is to harden up against God. And so the result of that is prayerlessness.

You say, you know what, I prayed for this for a long time, but it hasn't happened. I keep praying for this loved one who's walked away from God, but he never comes back. I keep asking God to heal me of this thing, but I'm still sick.

You pray and you pray, and hope deferred makes the heart sick. But verse 12, the second half says, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. When you see an answer to prayer, especially one that you've waited on and you've prayed for a long time, when everything comes around and you see God's answer to prayer, it just, it's a jolt of energy into your body.

It's a tree of life, it's life to your bones. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. Luke 18, verse one, Jesus knows this reality. Jesus draws on this reality to exhort us not to lose heart.

You see, brothers and sisters, there's a danger in the Christian life. You pray and you pray, but you don't see the answer that you're looking for. It is possible for a believer to grow distant from God.

Because you've been asking for something and it hasn't happened yet, he's made you wait. And you stop praying. But a prayerless Christian is an oxymoron. Prayer is the very heartbeat of Christianity, relating to the God of the universe who made you.

It's part of what it means, what it is to be a Christian, is to have a relationship with God. And yet our souls can get dry, and our prayer life can dry up. So Jesus says, I'm gonna tell you a parable of this, that you ought always to pray and not lose heart.

Don't let your heart become sour and deflated. How's your prayer life today? How did you talk to God this week? Was it all week long, or just intermittently? Just before a meal, just before bed? How was your prayer life this week?

Here's what Jesus would say to us. Verse two, he said, in a certain city, there was a judge who neither feared God, nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, give me justice against my adversary.

For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because of this widow, because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.

The parable teaches us that sometimes the answer does not come right away. The widow, in this case, had to ask multiple times. Pray the same prayer over and over again, if you will. Christians often have to pray the same prayer over and over again.

But notice verse six. And the Lord said, hear what the unrighteous judge says. So the judge speaks something to us. The unrighteous judge teaches us that if you keep asking, if you keep praying, the answer will come.

Keep asking, keep seeking, keep praying, according to the will of God, the answer will come. But not only that, verse seven, and will not God give justice to his elect? Who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them?

Notice two things about verse seven that's different from the unrighteous judge and the pleading widow. Number one, will not God, will not God. In the parable, you have an unrighteous judge who's really only interested in himself, his own self-interest.

But we're not talking about an unrighteous judge anymore. Now, the conversation has turned, will not God? If even an unrighteous judge can get worn out by continual praying, what will God do if he hears continual prayer?

If you keep praying, we're talking about the creator who has all power to do what he wants. We're talking about God who's righteous and just and he hears the pleas of the widows and those who are suffering.

He has compassion. He's not the unfeeling, unrighteous judge. We're talking about God. And notice the second thing in verse seven. Will not God give justice to his elect? We're not just talking about a righteous God who simply cares for this one and that one and kind of hands out good things like rain.

Rain falls on the just and the unjust elect because God is good and he waters the earth. But notice the stress of this verse. Will not God give justice to his elect? Who are the elect? He's chosen, chosen, picked out.

Electos is the Greek. God has picked out or chosen for special favor, a special affection. Turn with me to Romans chapter eight where we see a similar teaching and similar language actually. Paul might have been drawn from the words of Christ.

Romans 8, 33. Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. It's a question. Ask it now. Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. The idea here is that you have a God who predestines according to verse 30 and then he calls and it's all him actively who then justifies and glorifies a person.

God does all of these things. And verse 31 says, what then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Verse 32, he who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all.

How will he not also with him graciously give us all things? And then our question in verse 33, who will bring any charge against God's elect? Paul the apostle is teaching us something that I hope none of us missed today.

That if the God that we worship has so loved you and I who believe in Jesus, that he gave his only son to die on the cross and rise from the dead. If that's the God we're talking about, how will he not also with that give us all things?

This morning and study the scriptures. Because we believe that Jesus has come into the world, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, walked among us, laid his life down on the cross and rose from the dead.

We sit here for this reason. We sit here because he has so favored us, so chosen us that we heard the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation and happily believe we were marked in him with the seal, the promised Holy Spirit.

And if these things have happened to us, we have that new birth spoken of in John chapter three. If God would do that to call us out of the world, that we would believe in his one and only son, then we sit here this morning under the favor of a loving God.

And your heart is crying for something this morning. Maybe you have a longing like I have. Someone here might have a desire to go to the mission field but you think how could I ever be equipped to go to the mission field?

If God would give you his only son, he would be pleased to send you to the ends of the earth if that's his will. He will put desires in your heart according to his will and you begin to pray for those things.

You say, well it's my desire that my son come back to the gospel. And I've been praying for him but it hasn't seemed to happen. We serve a God that would be pleased to draw your son home. But has your heart become deflated?

Because you haven't seen it happening yet. Have you been praying for your wife? Have you been praying for your child? Have you been praying for your mom or your dad? And you think there's no hope. The God who gave his one and only son favors you.

Does that mean you can ask for a Lamborghini and he'll be pleased to give it to you? No, there's some deeper teachings in the scripture about how to ask, read the book of James. Not to spend it on your own pleasures, not for selfish gain.

But as your heart is calling out to him day and night and he's transforming you into the image of Christ and your desires are becoming like his. Don't you know that as you sit here this morning you have power and favor with God?

It's not your power, it's his power, his desire to answer your prayers. And yet so often we sit prayerless because our hearts are deflated. How will he not, along with Christ, give us all things? Verse 32, we're in Romans 8 for a minute.

He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? The God who justifies is also our God. All that we need, pilgrimage in this world, how do we know that we'll make it safely home and be provided for along the way?

Notice already, he speaks in the past tense of us being glorified with Christ. Until that day, we need to learn to pray like children of God. Keep reading, verse 34, who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died, more than that who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? How many of y 'all have felt some of that recently? Have you felt persecuted?

Have you been hungry? Maybe hungry for something that you asked for but it hasn't come to pass? As it is written, for your sake, we are being killed all the day long. We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

The guy who wrote this knew what he was talking about. The Apostle Paul had received 40 lashes on his back, five times, near to death. He'd been shipwrecked on multiple occasions, beaten and left for dead, stoned and left for dead outside of Lystra.

And yet, listen to how he talks about God. Verse 37, no, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Look at verse 38, for I am sure that neither death nor life, neither angels nor rulers nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

Let's turn back to Luke 18 and recognize what Jesus is saying in verse seven. We are talking about a God who loves his children. And if this God would send Jesus to die for you and for me, how will he not also love with and give us all things that we need for life in God?

So he tells us to pray and not lose heart. Will he delay long love of them? Now, the answer to that question is, in our minds, it kind of looks like he's delaying a long time. You know, six years felt like a long time to me when I was praying for an opportunity to preach.

But in God's timetable, that was just, what have you been praying for for a long time? It's not long to God. Keep praying, keep asking, because look what we're told in verse eight. I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily, quickly.

When you look back on this 10 ,000 years from now, and we're all together in heaven celebrating the things that God did on earth, especially our focus still on the cross, the cross of Christ, we'll see that those answers to prayer were quick.

Just looking back on life and thinking about things that I prayed so long ago, and now they've come to pass. Sometimes we forget, don't we? Do we forget the track record of God's faithfulness? How many times has he answered your prayers?

How many times have you cried to him, and he answered? Don't forget the faithfulness of God. He doesn't delay, he comes speedily. And now in verse eight, he ties this to his second coming. Remember, chapter 17 was, the second half of 17 was about the return of Christ.

When he comes to set up his kingdom, and that day of the Lord, which is a day of judgment on those who don't believe him, it's a horrible day. But for us, it's a day of rescue and escape from wrath. In verse eight, he says, nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

So he tells them this parable to teach them that they must keep praying. And I have to say this. When we gather as a church to pray on a Sunday night, and especially the first Sunday night of every month, which tonight is, this place should be full.

This place should be like it is now, filled with worshipers, why? Because we understand that God answers prayer. We believe that God listens to the prayers of his people. Faith on earth. I hope Jesus comes back on a Sunday night, and finds the church praying all across the world.

When he comes, will he find faith on earth? Verse nine, we have one other parable, one we've already mentioned today. He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves, that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt.

So now, who's he talking to? No longer to the disciples. He's noticing some murmuring. He's noticing some self-righteousness in the listeners, and he directs them with the parable. He directs this parable to them, I should say.

Verse 10, two men went up into the temple to pray. One a Pharisee, and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus. God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjealous adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I give. But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner.

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be. It's another parable about prayer.

Two men went up to pray in the temple. One came with a self-righteous attitude, and looked down on others. The other came with a humble heart, recognizing sin inside of himself. And he beat his chest, and he lowered his head, wouldn't even look up at heaven.

He bowed before God, and he said, be merciful to me, a sinner. When's the last time that you wept while you were praying? Could be while you're by yourself, driving in your car, but just aware of how short we fall from the glory of God.

When's the last time you cried before God in prayer? And beat your chest, and laid prostrate on the ground, and a contrite heart, he will never turn away. And a wounded or a broken neck, he will not snuff out.

If you know that you're a sinner, you're ready to pray. Call on a God that can wash you clean in the blood of Christ. Pray, confess your sin. Sometimes people feel unworthy to pray. I was listening to a college show from, it's called Slick Answers, and the host of it is Matt Slick, who again is gonna be here in October.

He's an apologist from Christian Apologetics Research Ministry, but the person who called in said this, I wrote it down, do you have any hope for me? I feel as though I cannot repent, like I am the guy in the iron cage in the pilgrim's progress.

I hear the gospel, but it offers no hope. I pray, and my mind condemns me. I believe the gospel, but struggle with sin. And while I never renounce Christ with my words in my mind, my actions are contrary to God.

I hate my sin, but I find I cannot repent. Has God abandoned me? How do I find peace and forgiveness for my sin? Or do I have an eternity of suffering ahead of me? And how do I deal with knowing that?

Matt Slick listened to this question. It's a desperate plea, and it's an honest plea. Some of us would say, look, I'm not denying Christ, but if I'm honest about my life, I deny Christ with my actions.

I do what I hate. With my mouth, I come to church and worship God, but when nobody's looking, I worship myself, and I give in to temptation. So am I really saved? Matt Slick heard this question, and his answer surprised him.

Matt said, I could have written that yesterday. Matt Slick said, I could have written that. Now, here's the apologist that people write into to get the answers to life, but here's a humble man that says, I feel like that, too.

And he wasn't afraid to admit that over the air. He said, I could have written it yesterday. And he said, look, we all have things before God, and we're quiet about it publicly. And then he gave this illustration.

He said, there were two men in the water. One body was dead, and the other was struggling, but barely standing afloat, and someone threw a lifeline down, and the dead man just floated there. But the other man was flailing and flailing, trying to get it.

And he said, if you're flailing, reaching for Christ, that's a good sign that you're still alive. Are you struggling with your sin? Do you still hate your sin? Are you fighting it tooth and nail? That's a good sign that you are alive, because dead men don't fight sin.

Confess your sin with honesty before God. Be like the tax collector, who, although he was a wicked man, he's working for the Romans against the people of God. Yet on that day, he came before God with humility, and he beat his chest and said, have mercy on me, a sinner.

That's how we need to be praying every day. When's the last time you confessed your sin? Pray like the tax collector, not like the pharisee. Finally, a quick illustration from children. Just three verses.

I think Luke arranges his text to underscore the points that he's making, so one parable ties into the next. And here, an event happens. Luke arranges his gospel so that he'll tie it together. Verse 15, now they were bringing even infants to him, that he might touch them.

And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. Did you catch that? People are bringing children, even infants, to Jesus, and the disciples are pushing them away. Don't bring the kids around here. We're trying to talk about serious stuff.

Trying to talk about God. This is too important for the kids. But verse 16, but Jesus called them to him, saying, let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.

Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child, shall not enter. Beautiful illustration of what we're trying to say. Come to Jesus like a child. Humble, not exalting yourself.

Just desiring to be with Jesus, no other agenda. That's how we pray. That's how we come to God. We must humble ourselves like a child. So in closing, when the church gathers to pray, all those who know their desperate need will have a reason to be here.

Amen? Whether the need is external, like the widow who's deprived of justice, or internal, like the tax collector who knows his own sin. Maybe your struggle is external. You're praying for somebody or something.

You need to pray, and keep on praying. Or it's internal. You're struggling, you're battling something. The answer is to come and pray. We all have needs that we cannot meet on our own. So we cry to him.

At the prayer meeting tonight, I'm encouraging parents to bring your children. And what I'd like you to do, what I do with my kids, is for every year old that they are, they can pray for two minutes. So we're gonna pray for an hour as adults.

But a 10-year-old can pray for 20 minutes, and a six-year-old for 12 minutes. My thinking is this. If our children never see us praying, if they never learn what a prayer meeting is, how will they know to do it?

In fact, it's becoming a lost art in America, isn't it? The prayer meeting? Very few attend prayer meetings across this country anymore. But how weak is American evangelicalism, if we're honest with ourselves?

Pray, bring your children. After that, somebody will stay out there and supervise. We'll pick somebody each time to watch the kids once they've had their time in prayer. But come to the prayer meeting.

Let the children come to me, Jesus says. Let's teach them how to seek God in prayer meeting. And teenagers, you as well, are welcome to come. Please come. We need to learn how to pray and to seek His face.

So I'm gonna close in prayer. I'm gonna ask the worship team to come on up. We ought to keep on praying and not lose heart. We ought to pray humbly, seeking Him, recognizing that we cannot do this on our own.

Maybe you feel like some things in your life are falling apart. It's because you're trying to hold it together yourself. Come and pray to the one who's able to do what you can't do. Depend on Him. Depend on Him for grace.

Let's close in prayer. Oh, Father, we do call on your name. And Lord, I can testify that you have answered prayer. You favor me with a special love. You call me your elect, not because of any merit in me.

In fact, quite the opposite. You looked on a wretch and you chose me out from among wretches. And you had mercy on me. You were gracious toward me. So much so that you gave your only son to die for me.

And so now, God, I come to you like a father, a good father. If I ask you for bread, you won't give me a stone. Or for a fish, you won't give me a snake. You give good gifts to your children, especially your Holy Spirit.

So, God, we pray for your Holy Spirit to come over this congregation of people, of sinners. We can't do this on our own. We need you. Lord, our hearts are so prone to wander. Our prayer light can just dry up.

We can lose heart. We can become dry. But right now, Lord, we pray that your water, your renewing, cleansing water of your Holy Spirit would come on us to revive us again. I pray right now you revive prayer lives.

For those who have stopped praying, I pray they just wake up and begin to call on your name again. For those who have drifted into sin and are entangled once again, I pray that you set them free, that they would beat their chest in confession and repentance.

That you, great deliverer, great savior, save them again from the snares of the devil. Teach us to pray. Teach us to pray. And we thank you for your election, for predestining us, for calling us, for justifying us, for glorifying us.

Thank you, God, for your grace towards sinners like us. We're a thankful people this morning. We're God-centered people this morning. We pray.