The Importunity of Faith

The story opens with Jesus teaching the crowd that had formed around him. The crowd included some Pharisees, teachers of the law, and people from “every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem” (Luke 5:17). Luke further tells us that “the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick” (Luke 5:17). Into this scene come four men, carrying their friend, a paralytic, on a mat. They were hoping to see Jesus. However, the crowd was so thick that they were unable to make their way in to see Jesus. So, the men came up with an ingenious plan. They ascended to the roof, removed a few tiles, dug a hole in the roof, and lowered their friend right in front of Jesus. Luke tells us that “When Jesus saw their faith, he said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven’” (Luke 5:20). Jesus would go on to heal the man, telling the man to “get up, take your mat and go home” (Luke 5:24).

One thing I find interesting in this story is Luke's statement that Jesus “saw” their faith. I often think of faith as something private, personal, and inward. How does someone “see” the faith that is in my heart? Nevertheless, we are told that, in some objective way, Jesus “saw” the faith of these four men. So, what does faith look like? From this story, I believe faith looks like perseverance. Jesus saw their faith when he saw their perseverance.

This should not surprise us. There are many stories in the Gospels of people whose faith was expressed in perseverance, even to the point of importunity. Importunity is the act of begging or asking persistently, even to the point of being annoying, pestering, and troubling. Importunity is a perseverance in asking that will not be denied or put off. It persists even in the face of difficulty, delays, and even public censure.

There are several examples in the scriptures of people who were persistent and importunate in their asking. For example, in a previous post, we looked at the Syrophoenician woman who, after being ignored and rebuffed by Jesus, persisted until her prayers were answered. There was also the blind man who sat by the side of the road. Upon hearing that Jesus was coming, he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Luke 18:38). Those who stood near him rebuked him, speaking to him sternly and telling him to be quiet, but that only made him cry out all the more. He persisted until Jesus called him and healed his blindness. Finally, there was the case of the woman with the flow of blood. Her condition not only caused her to be “unclean” but also made all she touched unclean. Yet she risked the wrath should anyone find out her secret as she pressed through the crowds that she might touch “the fringe of His cloak” (Luke 8:44) and be healed. All these, and others in the scriptures, demonstrated the importunity and persistence of faith. For them, their persistence was the visible evidence of their faith.

Furthermore, Jesus told two stories to teach us that we should, at all times, “pray and not become discouraged” (Luke 18:1). The first was the story of the unrighteous judge who feared neither God nor man. Yet, when the widow came daily asking for justice, he relented lest, “by continually coming she will wear me out” (Luke 18:5). The second story was that of a man who, when a friend of his came late at night, went to his neighbor’s house asking to borrow some food to offer his friend. Unfortunately, his neighbor had retired to bed and, initially, refused to get up and give him some food. Yet, Jesus tells us that “because of his shamelessness [in persisting in asking] he will get up and give him as much as he needs” (Luke 11:8). Shameless, importunate, and persistent prayer is the outward evidence of inward faith.

E. M. Bounds [1] sets forth two reasons why we must remain persistent in prayer. The first reason is that we might overcome the many hindrances to answered prayer. Bounds writes, “In these parables of importunate praying, our Lord sets forth, for our information and encouragement, the serious difficulties which stand in the way of prayer. At the same time he teaches that importunity conquers all untoward circumstances and gets to itself a victory over a whole host of hindrances.” [2] Prayer is powerful and, as a result, it is natural to expect obstacles and hindrances to arise when we pray. However, when we do experience hindrances, it’s not as if God is playing “hard to get,” but rather it is the working of unseen forces mounting an attack against us and our prayers. Consider the case of Daniel, who set his heart and mind to fast and pray. For twenty-four days, Daniel fasted and prayed, waiting for an answer from God. Finally, an angelic messenger arrived, bringing hopeful news to Daniel. The angel told Daniel, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was standing in my way for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia” (Daniel 10:12-13). From the first day Daniel prayed, he was heard, yet the answer to his prayers was hindered and delayed. Nevertheless, Daniel persisted in prayer, and in time his answer came. How often do we miss out on the answer to our prayers when we fail to persist in them and give up too soon? Persistent prayers are prayers that press through obstacles and hindrances until the answers finally arrive.

The second reason one should persist in prayer is that persistent prayer changes us. E. M. Bounds writes, “Importunate prayer is a mighty movement of the soul toward God.” [3] He continues, “prayer is the only way in which the soul of man can enter into fellowship and communion with the source of all Christlike spirit and energy.” [4] When we spend time in prayer, when we persist in pressing through all that hinders our prayers, our spiritual man or woman is strengthened in God, and we are increasingly, prayer by prayer, conformed into God’s image.

Paul tells us that, “we all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18). One way we gaze upon the Lord is through prayer. When we persist in prayer, our hearts are turned towards the Lord, and beholding him, we are transformed into his image. Prayer not only allows us to access the Kingdom of God but also conforms us to the kingdom and remakes us in the image of its king. Prayer, persistent prayer, is transformative.

E. M. Bounds summarizes his thoughts on persistent prayer, reminding us that: "Importunate praying never faints nor grows weary; it is never discouraged; it never yields to cowardice, but is buoyed up and sustained by a hope that knows no despair, and a faith which will not let go. Importunate praying has patience to wait and strength to continue. It never prepares itself to quit praying, and declines to rise from its knees until an answer is received. … There can be no question but that importunate prayer moves God, and heightens human character. If we were more with God in this great ordinance of intercession, more brightly would our faces shine, more richly endowed would life and service be, with the qualities which earn the goodwill of humanity, and bring glory to the name of God." [5]

How about you? When faced with difficult times, can people “see” your faith through your persistent pursuit of God, especially in prayer? Have you learned to be importunate in prayer? I would love to hear your thoughts. You can leave a comment below. You can also stay up to date by subscribing to email updates on my home page.

David R. Robison

[1] E. M. Bounds was a chaplain in the Confederate army during the Civil War. He is the author of the book, Power Through Prayer.

[2] E. M. Bounds, “Prayer and Importunity,” Sermon Index, https://sermonindex.net/pdf-text/pdf/e/em-bounds--prayer-and-importunity.pdf.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] E. M. Bounds, “Prayer and Importunity (Continued),” Sermon Index, https://sermonindex.net/pdf-text/pdf/e/em-bounds--prayer-and-importunity-continued.pdf.