WHAT IS VISIBLE?

Saturday: 16th November, 2019

Reference text: Luke 18:1-8
Luke 18:5 but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’

For professionals who are identifiable by their uniform such as nurses, pilots or police officers, people often see the uniform and position before even the person in them. That is an unconscious determinant.

We are presented with two interesting yet unique characters in the Gospel today: a judge who feared neither God nor man and a widow intent on getting justice from her adversaries. Both individuals lived in the same city, hence we could propose the existence of some ‘distant familiarity’. Even then, it is still surprising that this widow kept going to this one judge and no other.

If he wasn’t the only judge in town, then surely she would have heard some of the rumours and stories about the character of this judge, or maybe not? Was she just ignorant or indifferent? Aloof or plainly, did not care? We will notice she paid no attention to what others thought of the judge but was focused intently on presenting her case at each encounter.

Often, even though we know and hear side-stories or rumours about others, we still tend to have some trust in the systems to which they belong. We hear of corrupt officials but still run to the police when in danger. We know politicians may not always present a full picture, but we vote for them trusting them to become agents of change. Our expectations don’t always lie with individuals, but with the offices they hold.

It matters not what people say because there is a distinction that should always set you apart. It is the sure thing which will draw people to you regardless of the word on the street, even sometimes what you think of yourself. That trait is your place a child of God- an office which others must clearly see. In our text, in spite of everything, the widow always had sight of a judge. Therefore, I also ask- when people look at you, what and who do they see?

#sly