Lucas 18
Matthew Henry · Citado em PreceptAustin
Lucas 18
Henry - This parable has its key hanging at the door; the drift and design of it are prefixed. Christ spoke it with this intent, to teach us that men ought always to pray and not to faint. At all times (pantote) they ought (dei) to pray (proseuchomai) and not to lose heart (egkakeo) - This answers the "when" of prayer. At all times which is a clear statement that we should pray whenever and wherever. On every occasion. This is re-emphasized with the phrase "day and night" in Luke 18:7+. There are no exception clauses. Prayer is to be like breathing. We are to breathe at all times or we suffocate. Similarly, we are to pray at all times lest we "suffocate spiritually," and specifically in context so that we do not lose heart. In this context it the idea is continual prayer(recurring frequently, especially at regular intervals), not continuous ( continuing in time or space without interruption), nonstop prayer. Wiersbe on at all times - It certainly doesn’t mean that we should constantly be repeating prayers, because Jesus warned against that kind of praying (Matt. 6:5–15). Rather, it means to make prayer as natural to us as our regular breathing. Unless we are sick or smothering, we rarely think about our breathing; we just do it. Likewise with prayer—it should be the natural habit of our lives, the “atmosphere” in which we constantly live. Prayer is much more than the words of our lips; it is the desires of our hearts, and our hearts are constantly “desiring” before Him, even if we never speak a word. So, to “pray without ceasing” means to have such holy desires in our hearts, in the will of God, that we are constantly in loving communion with the Father, petitioning Him for His blessing. Take your choice: do you want to pray—or faint? (Borrow Be courageous Luke 14-24) In sum one might put it this way...PRAY OR PASS OUT! Or as someone else has said if your knees are knocking, then kneel on them! Robert Stein on why we need to pray at all times - In light of the context in Luke 17:22–37+, the content of this prayer is no doubt “Your kingdom come” (Lk 11:2+; cf. also Lk 21:36+). Because of the delay in the consummation of the kingdom (cf Lk 18:7), it is especially important for persistent prayer to characterize the Christian life. This will insure that a community of faith will exist when the Son of Man comes (Lk 18:8+). (See Luke: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition) Guzik on at all times - Jesus did not mean that we should always have our knees bent and eyes closed in prayer; but we must always be in what is sometimes called the spirit of prayer. Paul mentioned this idea in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 when he wrote, pray without ceasing. It’s hard to measure how much good such constant prayer would do, and how much bad it would keep us from. (Luke 18) Constable on at all times - The reference to “all times” or “always” indicates that the interval between Jesus’ present ministry and His future return is in view (Lk 17:22–37+; cf. Lk 18:8+). This was, then, instruction concerning what the disciples should do in the inter-advent period in view of Jesus’ Second Coming. When He returns, Jesus will balance the scales of justice. John Piper uses the illustration: Faith is the Furnace in your life. Fuel = Grace; Shovel = Prayer. If you set down your shovel…your burner goes out! Keep shoveling! Shovel without stopping; pray without ceasing. Brian Bell - How can we pray always? What is prayer? Not just uttering words. It’s the urge of the life towards God & spiritual things. It’s the setting of the mind on the things above. It’s every detail of every day being mastered by that urge. Be careful not to confuse Jesus' call to at all times pray with His condemnation of the long, repetitious prayers He described in (Mt 6:7+). The difference is one of "quality" not "quantity." Stated another way God is more concerned with the strength of our prayers than the length of our prayers. We are not heard for our “many words,” but for our sincere “cry.” Richards writes that “Always” in the Bible does not link time with eternity. It is a word that focuses attention on experience within the world of time and space. “Always” may direct our attention to that which is stable over a period of time or to that which is to be experienced continually. When the issue is God’s relationship with us, “always” reminds us powerfully that God is present at every moment in time and thus is with us constantly. When the issue is our relationship with God, “always” calls us to continual commitment and to consistent holiness." (Expository Dictionary of Bible Words: Regency) In Luke 21:36+ Jesus gives a similar instruction clearly in the context of the imminency of His Second Coming “But keep on the alert (cf Lk 21:28) at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape (cf Jesus' words here "not to lose heart") all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Lucas 18
Henry - The scope of this parable likewise is prefixed to it, and we are told (Lk 18:9) who they were whom it was leveled at, and for whom it was calculated. He designed it for the conviction of some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. Henry is right to emphasize that this parable which is often taken as primarily about prayer, is in fact primarily about righteousness, false and true. To miss that is to miss Jesus' intent of this parable. Who trusted in themselves that they were righteous - This is the ancient version of the self-esteem movement and all of its variations! In context, Jesus is speaking especially to the leaders of the "self righteousness" movement, the Pharisees (Lk 18:10). Earlier Luke had recording Jesus had addressing their self-trust... Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed (hupselos) among men is detestable (the literal idea of the root word is that which emits a foul, disgusting odor! External religion without heart change is a stench before God!) in the sight of God. (Lk 16:14-15+) Comment: Jesus is contrasting their external righteousness, their righteousness before men with their lack of internal righteousness before God. He then proceeds to demolish their high esteem and internal righteousness, calling it "detestable in the sight of God." Jesus is saying that God is not fooled by their external acts, for He Alone can judge the motives, thoughts and intentions of a man's heart (see 1 Cor 4:5, Heb 4:12+).
Lucas 18
Henry - They were such as had, 1. A great conceit of themselves, and of their own goodness; they thought themselves as holy as they needed to be, and holier than all their neighbors, and such as might serve for examples to them all. But that was not all; 2. They had a confidence in themselves before God, and not only had a high opinion of their own righteousness, but depended upon the merit of it, whenever they addressed God, as their plea: They trusted in themselves as being righteous; they thought they had made God their debtor, and might demand any thing from him; and, 3. They despised others, and looked upon them with contempt, as not worthy to be compared with them. There is an interesting principle here - The person who is self-righteousness tends to view others as lacking what the "self-righteous" person thinks he has (but he is deceived of course). This begs the question, do you (I) frequently/occasionally view others as contemptible or less esteemed (in God's eyes) than ourselves because they are not as "spiritual" (Woe!)? Steven