Scripture Notes: The Persistent Widow (Luke 18)

Jesus is the master storyteller. His parables are compelling, creative, and often shocking. At the beginning of Luke 18, Jesus offers the story of the persistent widow. This woman apparently has a lawsuit in progress. She has an adversary, someone who is trying to oppress her, and she wants justice. But the judge in the town simply does not care. He does not fear God nor any human being. He is going to do what he wants when he wants no msatter how it affects others. And in this case, he has no intention of giving justice to the widow.

But the widow keeps pestering him, over and over. She refuses to give up. She demands justice, literally in the Greek, vengeance or punishment for her adversary. This person has wronged her, and justice must be served. And as a widow, she has no one else to advocate for her. She can hardly advocate for herself, for a woman’s word holds no power in a court of law. Unless the judge acts with justice and mercy, she cannot prevail.

Yet the widow persists, to such an extent that the judge gets annoyed and even a little frightened. She keeps bothering him, and apparently things escalate to the point that the judge fears she might come and strike him. The Greek is literally give him a black eye. This wouldn’t look good at all. A distinguished judge like himself walking around with a black eye! It would be very difficult to explain. So justice and mercy and decency aside, the judge decides he will settle the widow’s lawsuit in her favor just to get rid of her, and to avoid embarrassment for himself. 

Jesus uses this little tale to make a point. If this unjust judge, who cares nothing for God or human beings, responds to persistence, how much more will the perfectly good, perfectly loving God respond to the persistence of our prayers. He will, Jesus declares. He will answer, and He will make sure justice is done speedily for those who cry out to Him. 

That word “speedily” might catch us, for sometimes it seems like God is anything but speedy in answering our prayers. God’s timing is always perfect, of course, but it is definitely not our timing. God often makes us wait and pray more, for as St. Augustine says, our prayers stretch us and make us able to hold more of the wonderful gifts God wants to give us. 

So like the widow, we must be persistent in prayer, knowing that we are not pestering an unjust judge but coming humbly and lovingly before our loving God so that He can stretch us out and then fill us up with all the best.

Scripture Notes: The Unexpected (2 Kings 5)

Naaman has everything going for him. He is a commander in the army of the King of Aram with a great deal of power and wealth and respect. But not everything is perfect in Naaman’s life, for he is a leper. This likely does not refer to what we call leprosy today, namely, Hansen’s disease. It is probably some kind of skin ailment. But in any case, it isolates Naaman from others; it is a blot on his otherwise satisfying life. And of course, he wants it gone.

So when a slave girl suggests that Naaman go to the prophet in Israel, Naaman jumps at the chance to be healed. But when he arrives, Elisha refuses even to see him in person. He merely sends a message, and a strange one at that: “Go and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean.” 

Naaman is highly offended at this unexpected treatment. Doesn’t this prophet know who he is? Doesn’t he realize that the great Naaman is to be treated with respect and deference? How can he just send a message like this and not even come out to greet him? How rude! And the message itself? Wash seven times in the Jordan? What? Naaman furiously declares that there are plenty of rivers in his homeland if he wants to take a bath. This prophet sure has some nerve.

Naaman decides to forget the whole thing. He is not going to go bounce around in a foreign river. But his servants reason with him. He would do much more if the prophet asked, they say. He would do all kinds of difficult things. So why not go have a bath seven times and see what happens? Naaman has to agree.

So he follows Elisha’s instructions, and the unexpected happens again. He comes out of the river healed and clean with his skin as soft and smooth as that of a young child. He is surprised to say the least, but he also comes to realization. Only the God of Israel could have done this. So this is the God he will worship for the rest of his life. Elisha refuses to receive payment, and instead Naaman takes two loads of soil home with him so that he can have a little piece of Israel on which to offer sacrifice to his newly found God, the unexpected extra delight of his healing from leprosy. Naaman is no longer ill physically or spiritually. 

Scripture Notes: On Fire (2 Timothy 1)

St. Paul likely wrote his second letter to Timothy at the very end of his life. Scholars think that Paul was probably in prison in Rome for a second time, facing charges that would lead to his martyrdom not long after this letter was sent. So this letter serves as something like Paul’s last will and testament to the younger man who had served him so well throughout his missionary years and who was now the bishop of the Church at Ephesus.

Paul tells Timothy many important things about the Christian life, and he begins by exhorting Timothy to “rekindle the gift of God that is within you...for God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim 1:6-7). In other words, Timothy must be on fire for God. He must allow the Holy Spirit to set him ablaze and to fill him with His own power and love and self-control. Timothy must open himself up to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and he must have the courage to embrace those gifts and allow them to change him from the inside out.

Fire warms and cheers the heart, but it also purifies and even destroys. The fire of the Holy Spirit burns off our imperfections and destroys our sins. And this can hurt, especially when we hold tightly to those imperfections and sins. But the Spirit can also inflame our love and devotion. He can spur us to reach out to others so that they can see His brilliant light within us and be drawn to Him.

So let us follow Paul’s advice and allow the Holy Spirit to kindle His fire in us so that we may experience His healing love and shine that brilliance to others.

Scripture Notes: Reality Check (Proverbs 1)

The first chapter of the Book of Proverbs gives us a sharp reality check. The author, traditionally King Solomon, tells us exactly what we need if we are going to truly flourish in this world and, more importantly, find favor with God and live within His will. 

The first thing Solomon does is invite us to get our priorities right. We need “wisdom and instruction” that lead us to “righteousness, justice, and equity” (Prov 1:2-3). We must learn prudence, knowledge, and discretion (Prov 1:4). We have to listen and discover how to work out difficult ideas and sayings using our reason (Prov 1:5-6). And how do we start? Solomon tells us: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Prov 1:7). We start with God. We pray to Him; we worship Him; we revere Him; we listen to His word; we humbly hear the wise people God places in our lives to instruct us. We submit to God, knowing full well that God is God, and we are not. That is the beginning of wisdom. 

Solomon does not stop there. He continues with a warning, urging us not to consent to the enticement of sin. He presents a vivid picture of what that temptation looks like and how sin appeals to our desire for wealth and recognition and belonging. But in the end, it only brings us misery. It catches us in a trap. So, as hard as it is, we must say no. We must not be fools who refuse to listen and scorn wisdom and good advice. We must not hate knowledge and turn our backs on the fear of the Lord. If we do, we will get exactly what we deserve: we will eat the fruit we have planted. 

We all need this reality check at times. We all get caught up in our own ideas and our own ways, and we try to make reality conform to ourselves rather than the other way around. But conforming ourselves to reality is wisdom, especially when we realize that God is our highest and best Reality.

Scripture Notes: Set Apart (Galatians 1)

As St. Paul opens his Letter to the Galatians, he establishes his authority as an apostle. There is a major problem in the Galatian Church (some so-called evangelists are trying to draw Gentile Christians away from the Gospel and into a doctrine of their own devising), and Paul needs to make the truth very clear. He has been sent by Jesus Christ Himself to preach the actual Gospel, the reality of Christian faith and life.

Paul recalls how he once persecuted the infant Christian Church. As a zealous Jew, he thought he was doing the right thing, trying to stamp out this new movement that seemed to him to be so horribly off course. But then Paul met Jesus Himself on the road to Damascus, and everything changed. Paul explains that “He Who had set me apart before I was born, and had called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son to me” (Galatians 1:15-16). Paul realizes that God has chosen Him, has set him apart for a particular mission. And Paul accepts. He throws himself into the life Jesus has given him. He becomes as zealous for Christianity as he was against it, perhaps even more, for now he knows the truth. 

Paul did not chase after Jesus. In fact, he persecuted Jesus as he persecuted the Church. Jesus chased after Paul. And He caught him. For Paul has been set apart for God. He has free will, of course, to accept or reject, but he chooses his mission. He says yes and receives the Gospel to spread to the world. Paul knows exactly how blessed he is to be set apart.

Scripture Notes: Ups and Downs (Psalm 30)

Psalm 30 is a song of ups and downs. The psalmist, likely King David himself, speaks of his confidence in prosperity. Nothing can move him, he thinks. He has God’s favor and is, therefore like a “strong mountain,” firm and stable. But then comes the crash. God seems to hide His face, and David is “dismayed.” His enemies close in around him, and he feels like he is about ready to go down to the netherworld, mourning and grieving and weeping.

But David does not fall into despair. He does not give up on God. Instead, he prays. He reaches out to God in his pain and bewilderment, crying for help. He is not afraid to ask God, “what profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit?” He cannot praise God there, he believes. So he begs God to hear him and be gracious to him, to be his helper, to raise him up from the depths. It is a heartfelt prayer of trust in God’s love and mercy. 

And God responds. He raises David up, turning his “mourning into dancing” and wrapping him in gladness. God saves David from his enemies and dries his tears, comforting him and restoring him. David, in turn, breaks out in praise to God. “I will extol thee, O Lord,” he proclaims. His soul reaches out in praise and thanksgiving forever, and he encourages others to join him in this grateful worship. 

For David has a new perspective thanks to his ups and downs. God’s anger, he explains, “is but for a moment, and His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” There are ups and downs in life. There always will be. There are times of suffering and pain, but these are designed to lead us to God, to imitate David in crying out to Him in prayer, and to allow Him to raise us up as He chooses, trusting in His love. And the love of God always triumphs in the end.

Scripture Notes: God’s Voice (Job 38)

Job says a lot in the book called by his name, and we cannot really blame him. He is suffering horribly. His whole life has turned upside down and inside out, and his friends, who are supposed to comfort him, end up scolding and mocking him instead. He is miserable, and he tells God all about it. 

This in itself is not bad. God can handle our questions and our complaints. He can handle our fears and our doubts. But Job does go a bit too far at times, especially when he questions God’s justice. Job wants to take his case straight to God, and he is absolutely certain that he is right and God is wrong. He wants a chance to prove it.  

In the end, Job does get his opportunity to stand before God when God speaks to him from a whirlwind. God does not give Job the answers he wants, at least not directly. Rather, He peppers him with questions. Hey, Job, do you know how the universe works? Were you there when I created it? Can you control it and order it and make it work? No? 

Job cannot answer any of God’s questions, and he quickly realizes that God is God, and he is not. And that is his answer. God sees the big picture. He understand the whole of creation in a glance. He puts all the pieces in place and holds the whole thing together. He knows the reasons why He does certain things and allows other things to happen. And because God is perfectly good, everything he does and allows is ultimately for our good. We just cannot see it or know because we are not God. That is the whole point. We have to trust God to know and do and allow what is exactly best for us because He does.