God Listens

The Rev. Joseph Winston

October 17, 2010

and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
G
RACE

Christ.1
Have you heard the story of the Super Bowl coach taking plays from a person
that never watched or even played a game of football and then winning the big
game? Of course not. It takes talent and a bit of luck for a head coach to get
that far. They do not get there by passing the buck. A fairytale like this has never
happened in the NFL and it never will.
Do you know the tale of the most powerful CEO in the world and where this
leader gets all their ideas? I have it on good authority that every bit of information
comes from an anonymous source that sends the tips in an email every week.
Believe it? No, you do not. A chief executive officer answers to boards and then
to stockholders. No sane person would make decisions based on some random
stream of thoughts.
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3.

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 What we have before us today is a story that is just as amazing as the other two.
This parable told by Jesus just does not happen in real life. A little background on
the culture of the day will help us understand why no one would ever expect to
see this parable occurring.
The judges that rule over Jerusalem and the surrounding territories, like the
one in today’s Gospel lesson, are put in places of authority by a foreign power we
call Rome that occupies the land. No one in their right mind would want to go see
them for two simple reasons: aiding and abetting the enemy.
If you could get past the part of helping the country that is forcing you to pay
tribute to them, there is is another small problem. No one has to tell you that it is
a long way from this backwater town to the bright lights of Rome. Then there is
the obvious reality that no one with any ambition wants to come here. These two
bits of information add up to one undeniable fact, the best judges, the ones that
really care about justice, the ones that everyone wants to see, are not here. They
are elsewhere. Why even get involved with this mess? It seems that it would be
better to settle your differences in some other manner.
An honest judge out here is an oxymoron, like jumbo shrimp, or safe risks.2
Everyone out here knows that corrupt judges seem to be a way of life. They have
access to unimaginable power by deciding who will win a case and who will lose.
It is not hard to imagine that a little bit of money might change the outcome in
your favor. Judges grant prestige to those who come out on top and countless
shame to those who come in a distant second place. You have heard that a well-
2
Oxymoron from the Greek ὀξύμωρον literally means “sharp dull.”

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placed campaign contribution cannot hurt your chances. Judges are men that know
first hand what it means to have it all then have it taken away. Just help them make
the right decision or face the music.
So, when Jesus said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared
God nor had respect for people (Luke 18:2).3 ” The audience turned to one another
and replied, “Tell me something new. Of course, they do not fear God. They are
Romans for pity’s sake. They hate our guts.”
The next line goes something like this, “In that city there was a widow who
kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my opponent’ (Luke
18:3a).4 ” It would have the audience rolling on the floor in laughter. Women do
not speak to men outside of their immediate family. Even more importantly, hon-
est and upright women, the kind you want your son to marry, do not have any
3
The Greek reads for “In a certain city there was a judge”, κριτής τις ἦν ἔν τινι πόλει. It con-
tains two indefinite pronouns (τις). More properly but more awkwardly the translation should read
“A certain judge in a certain city.” This person and location should be seen as “stock” characters
that everyone would know. Luke Timothy Johnson; Daniel J. Harrington, S.J., editor, The Gospel
of Luke, Volume 3, Sacra Pagina, (The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press,
1991), p. 269.
The author of Proverbs says the fear of the L ORD is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7).
The psalmist speaks of those who fear the L ORD (Psalm 15:4; 22:23; 25:12; 33:18, etc.) as the
upright ones. ibid. The author of Luke/Acts uses “God-fearers” (Acts 10:2,35; 13:16, 26) for the
Gentiles that follow Jesus. In other words, this judge is foolish and participates in shady dealings.
4
In all societies there are people at risk. This is especially true for widows in an world ruled
by men. If a person followed the law of God, it is expected that they would help a woman in need.
References from the Bible include Deuteronomy 10:18; 14:29; 16:11, 14; 24:19-21; 26:12-13.
Ibid.. Taking care of the widows becomes a reference to following the covenant in the prophets
(Malachi 3:5; Isaiah 1:17, 23; 10:2; Jeremiah 7:6; 22:3; Ezekiel 22:7). ibid.. If this is not done,
God will help the widows (Psalm 68:5; 146:9). ibid. This can be seen in Sirach 35:14-18 that some
see echoed in this parable. ibid..
The imperfect verb ἤρχετο translated as “kept coming” is used and it indicates repeated action.
ibid..
The phase “Grant me justice against my opponent” is traditional language used in the courts.
ibid..

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interactions outside of the home. This means that good women do not participate
in the market nor do they interact with the government. This is man’s work. The
only way a decent woman could make her case to a man outside her family is to
use other women. In the real world, a law-abiding widow would need to find the
judge’s wife and speak with her. If she won her case here, then the message might
be carried on to the male judge.
Then there is the ever-present reality of government bureaucracy. You never
have and never will directly go and see the man in charge. He is too important for
that. Right? You have to work your way past one bureaucrat to the next. And at
every step on your journey, you must make your case and convince them that only
the top dog can help. Today, both men and women hold the job of protecting the
person at the top. When this story was originally told, a man held each layer. This
means that a woman is not welcomed to present her case to the man in charge. She
never would make it past the buck private that kept all the riffraff at bay because
if she did, he would be out on his ear in an instant.
Anyone that defends themselves in court has a fool for a lawyer. This is what
we say today and it is just as true back then with one important detail that cannot
be overlooked. Schools that taught you how to argue your point of view are for
men only. A woman would not stand a chance against a professionally trained
opponent.
The shape of the world looks something like this. At the very bottom of the
pyramid are women, children, and slaves. What they think, what they want, what
they like and dislike, what they fear simply does not matter. Their job is providing

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every thing father of a family desires. One step up from this group are the men that
pledge their support to the city. While no where near as constrained as the women,
children, and slaves, they have been given their places and almost no matter what
they do, they cannot improve their lot in life. Their job is to make their superiors
comfortable. Somewhere near the middle of the pyramid are all the city leaders.
Men above them gave them what they have. In turn, they support the emperor of
Rome and do not glance down at who might be below them. There at the top of the
world, this one man known as the savior has the resources of Rome at his disposal.
Troops? Why they come when he calls. Riches? He takes them or they are given
to him. Power? The economic force and military might of this great country does
what he wants. Everything is stacked in his favor. You see he does not like to lose.
Trace the steps one more time as a message tries to works it way from the
very bottom all the way to the top: woman, then husband, next comes the city,
and way above them all is the emperor. At every stop, there is no reason to pass
it on to someone who might be able to do something about the situation due to
one simple fact. The man above you expects you to put up or shut up. From hard
experience you know that justifying your position to your superior is an expensive
proposition because bucking the system tells the man above you that you do not
appreciate his gifts to you. You will never be given another chance. More than
likely, a widow has no male relative she can speak to, so her message cannot go
anywhere at all.
By now, you might be thinking to yourself, “Thanks for the history lesson.
But we are different today. Woman have rights. They can vote, hold jobs, and

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even drive cars. What does this have to do with me?”
It is certainly true the world has changed dramatically in the last two thou-
sand years. In this country along with many others, women have the powers that
they could not even dream of during the Roman Empire. You must also admit the
following. We still have many organizations with lots of people at the bottom and
only one at the top. A football team has a head coach. A company has an executive
officer. A democracy has a president. So, we know what it is like working your
way through a system.
Consider what happens when you renew your driver’s license. You need to find
an office that is near you and try to guess the time when no one else will be there.
You make your way to the office and sign in. Up till now, this seems painless. If
it all goes like this, what is the worry? Next comes paying for the visit. No credit
card; that would be too easy. A quick vision test and you are given the number.
Please take a seat. When you hear the first number called and look down at what
is written on your card you know you have a long wait before you.
Do something like this a few times at the bank, and work, and at school and
you soon may believe that God works in the same manner. Hurry up and wait.
And just maybe you can see someone who can really help you.
There is a reason why Jesus presented this impossible tale to His followers,
something that makes as little sense as a professional coach passing on plays from
an amateur or a COE handing over the reigns to a greenhorn. He wants to tell you
that God listens to you.
Go back to the example of waiting in line at the driver’s license office. Can you

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move to the front of the line since you are a native Texan? No, you cannot. Does
your age factor into your place in line? Not at all. Do men get to leave sooner than
women? Of course not. It is simply first come first serve.
Imagine now that you are a woman living during the time when they could
not drive. Try as hard as you want, but you never can never legally get behind the
wheel. In a world ruled by men, a woman has the exact same problem. There are
limits on what you can do.
When Jesus first told this parable, women in the Roman world were almost
exclusively at the bottom of life’s ladder. They could not go to school, the market-
place was strictly off limits to them, and no matter what they wanted to do, they
could not speak to any males outside of their immediate family. Because of this
reality, justice for a widow came slowly, it at all. Interactions with the priest who
interceded for the gods were just as limited as those outside of the temples. Just
like in the world outside her house, a woman’s prayers, her innermost thoughts,
dreams, and desires had to go through a man before reaching the ears of the god.
Jesus tells women everywhere, that they do not need men to speak to God. God
listens to women.
Age like gender forms a hierarchy with some people above others. In the world
of the Bible, one respects their elders. This normally plays out in the form of
preferred treatment. Examples that come to mind include the older members in
a family having the best seat at the table, the elders in the town deciding what
happens, and valuing their wisdom of how the world actually works. This structure
makes the younger members of the family wait their turn. That is fine until you

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need access to someone in power. You know it is bound to happen that when you
want to talk, someone more important than you will be ahead of you. You hope
that when this happens, you do not need this man’s immediate attention. Jesus
tells the young and the old, the rich and the poor, that they all have equal access
to God. Speak, Jesus says, and God listens to you.
What still remains is the obvious distinction between a citizen and everyone
else. Normally, the only people able to receive justice in a Roman court are citizens
of the empire. If you happen to live outside those boundaries, a conquered people
for example, your chances of receiving an honest trial are slim to none. The Jews
fit into this category. They cannot get a fair shake in the courtroom. Before God,
all humanity has the same problem. We simply do not measure up. There is an
exception to this rule. God came to Abraham and promised to be his God. They
speak, God listens, and then acts on their behalf.
Practically no one here is a child of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We are of the
tribe known as Gentile, literally we are not of the family. Since we are outside of
the chosen race, the gift given to Abraham and his children forever is not ours.
This places a wall we can never scale between God and us. When it is our time to
plead for justice, God already knows the outcome of the case before it starts and
clearly speaks it for everyone to hear, “Guilty.”
We cannot change who we are and the verdict God gives each of us appears
to stand for all time. We need someone else arguing our case in the highest court.
Who will come to our aid? Who has experience winning trails in the Supreme
Court? Even if we could find someone, how will we pay this lawyer?

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 If you let Him, Jesus will take your case. Listen to His record. He has suc-
cessfully defended every client and this is not just in some lower court where the
outcome does not matter. He always wins. You might expect the cost for this legal
expertise to cost an arm and a leg. Let me tell you something. Jesus will take your
case for free. That is how much He loves you.
Have you heard the story of the major league coach that took plays from a
rank amateur and won the big game? Of course not, that never happens in the
real world. How about the COE that based the company’s successful business on
anonymous tips and the market share increased? Certainly, not.
One more. Do you know the story about the lawyer who wins all His cases
and gives you complete and total access to God, all at no cost to you? If not, let
me tell you.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”5

References

Johnson, Luke Timothy; Harrington, S.J., Daniel J., editor, The Gospel of Luke,
Volume 3, Sacra Pagina, (The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN: The
Liturgical Press, 1991).

5
Philippians 4:7.