Objection: Sometimes God Bears Long Before He Answers His People’s Prayers, Though They Cry Day and Night (Luke 18:7)
Let’s look at this entire passage to see the context of Luke 18:7:
Luke 18:1-8:
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
Some points should stick out.
The first is that in the very next verse after the one referred to in the objection, God said that He would avenge His elect speedily. So using the preceding verse to claim that God will NOT take action on your behalf speedily falls apart speedily.
The second is that the judge who wanted to get the woman out of his “input queue” was an unjust judge. He cannot represent God, because God is a just judge. The unjust judge might push her away for a while but then finally cave in just to get rid of her, but God is not like that! In fact, the contrast is that God, a just judge, will act speedily, and not push people away and base things on his own selfish convenience the way that an unjust judge would.
The third is that this is not a case of someone coming to receive healing or any other pre-purchased benefit. She was seeking just action against her adversary. Many Christians today are crying out day and night for justice in countries where justice for Christians is not to be found. God promises that He will avenge His elect speedily. A prayer to be avenged (and change the societal situation) is not a one-and-done believe-and-receive matter like receiving your healing when you pray.
God (and Jesus) never acted like the unjust judge when it came to sick people. We see that a blind man cried out for a short while, that Jesus stood still, summoned him and healed him. We do NOT read that the blind man cried out to Jesus for mercy day and night, but Jesus “bore long” with him and did not grant his petition until a later time. You cannot find a single New Testament example of God dragging out a healing like that, forcing the sufferer to keep begging and begging. So you can be sure that He will never do it in your case, either. Besides, healing is already yours as far as God is concerned. You can just receive it. You do not have to change God’s mind about your healing the way you might have to plead with and convince an earthly judge. God has already pronounced His judgment in the case of disease in your body – it is legally healed because of the physical affliction Jesus bore for your sins.
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