Dr. Tony Evans speak about how God’s law guarantees believers certain rights that they can depend on when they’re facing problems or pain. This is Dr. Evans’ sermon titled: “Claiming Your Legal Rights” and is taken from the 10-part series “The Key to Spiritual Victory.”
Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative, chaplain of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, and author of over 100 books, booklets & Bible studies. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on more than 1,300 US outlets daily and in more than 130 countries.
many of us have been around pollution or
passed by polluted sites that had a
stench to them and we had to breathe it
and it was very uncomfortable we’ve
often said what is that smell if we
weren’t sure what it was all we knew was
it was very disconcerting very
uncomfortable so we quickly desired to
pursue good air clean air uncontaminated
air so that we could function it’s hard
to function when the when the air is
putrid when it has been contaminated by
that which causes a loss of sense Jesus
had been talking about the decay and the
culture and how that decay was a decay
of death it was the smell of rottenness
and in the last verse of chapter 17 of
the book of luke when the disciples
wanted to know when is this return that
you’re going to make what is this
judgment on the culture going to occur
he says in the last verse where the body
is there also the vultures will be
gathered says when you see a corpse that
has died and rigor mortis is setting in
vultures circle waiting for the demise
in order that it might pounce on them
and render judgment to the to the
decaying or diseased or dead body he
talks about vultures circling around
this thing called death it is clear that
you and I live in an environment in a
world that has been contaminated by sin
bringing about a smelly way to live
a polluted world which leads Jesus to
identify a widow a woman to make an
astounding principle that I want to
leave with you today in this polluted
society where death rains and vultures
gather he told them a parable he states
the premise of the parable upfront he
says in verse 1 and all times men ought
to pray and not to faint some of your
versions read others were other versions
read lose heart
the idea is quitting throwing in the
towel saying I can’t take it anymore too
faint means to come become weary or
discouraged and want to give up as
anybody ever fainted you can’t take it
anymore you don’t know how much longer
you can endure this because the
circumstances hovering around you the
vultures that are hovering around you
are indicating a situation that is dead
or dying and you see absolutely no hope
the air is stale in this stale air Jesus
says I want to tell you men should
always pray and not faint in other words
when the air is stale you gotta rise
above it to where the clear air is men
are always to pray and not to faint that
is you know air is stale because you are
breathing your nostrils are taking in
the sense and you are breathing
regularly
so you are smelling stale air regularly
in terms of when you’re in a putrid
environment because you’re breathing it
and so there’s no way to get away from
it because you’re always breathing he
says men are to always pray and not
faint
in other words prayer is to be like
breathing the only time when you are
conscious about breathing is when it’s
hard to do it we breathe all the time
but don’t think about it until there’s a
problem if there is an asthma problem or
an allergy problem or some problem that
creates the need for additional oxygen
breathing now becomes a conscious
activity because it’s being interfered
with he says men ought to always pray
and not faint mid are to always be in
communication with God because your
ongoing breathing in prayer will keep
you in good air even though you may be
living in a bad atmosphere where the
vultures are circling there are people
here together today where the vultures
are circling around your life and ready
to pounce on your situation because
death has set in things don’t look like
they will ever get better things don’t
look like they will ever change things
don’t look like they will ever work out
for you and all you see are things going
downhill and the vultures circling ready
to pounce on you and do you in coming
off of that Jesus says to his disciples
men are to always maintain contact with
God like Bree it should be so normal
that you’re doing it even when
not conscious you’re doing it because
it’s a orientation not just a position
prayer is not just getting on your knees
it’s not just clasping your hands it’s
not just closing your eyes it’s not even
just mouthing words prayer is an
atmosphere of operating you are
operating in connectivity with God or as
the word we’ve looked at this Wednesday
last Wednesday abiding this is your this
is the air I breathe the song says I am
in constant contact with God which means
that you are praying more than you know
you’re praying so sometimes we’re
praying and we’re praying and we
identify the formal times but there
ought to be informal time because if
prayer is an atmosphere if it’s a
breathing then that means you’re in
contact with God as a normal way of
functioning not just as a scheduled
activity that you do if there’s this
orientation he wants men to always pray
and not think that’s his thesis his
major point where God is interfaced with
as a way of life not as a not simply as
a schedule they ought to be that the
time in your closet a scheduled program
that leads him to a story that he wants
to tell about this that is extraordinary
and most of us have read the story many
times but perhaps there is something in
here that you may never have seen before
yet I believe it is the it is the
epicenter of the point of the parable
and will totally change your life my
life if we grasp it in a certain city
we’re told there is a judge who does not
fear God nor men in other words he
doesn’t care what God thinks and he
doesn’t care what people say
because he is the judge during biblical
times it was a lot like Western times
when there would be the circuit judges
and the and the Western towns would wait
for the judges to come to hold trials
and the judges would go from town to
town to town and they would hold the
criminals and that’s in the in the town
jail until the judge came to render a
verdict so they were circuit judges and
so these judges would go from town to
town to town to mitigate cases relative
to issues that had popped up in the town
so there is this judge but we told
something about the judge that the judge
is an unrighteous judge in other words
he does not operate legally he does not
operate according to the rules he makes
up the rules as he goes and he doesn’t
care what God thinks or what rules men
have passed he’s going to do his own
thing judges like this were easy for
bribes the wealthy could always be set
free because the wealthy could buy their
way out of their problems and since he
wasn’t righteous he could easily be
bribed so we’re told that there is this
judge he’s going to render judgment but
he’s not going to do it righteously so
that’s the man and he doesn’t care what
God thinks he doesn’t care what man says
there is also a widow in the story is a
woman she’s been married most likely
their children we don’t know that for
sure but we know that her husband has
died now when Jesus tells the story he
picks the weakest scenario he can pick
because in the Bible the lowest of the
low are the orphans and the widows from
Genesis to Revelation when God wants to
make a point about the lowest of the low
he will pick orphans and widows
this widow had a number of problems
based on biblical history first of all
there was little protection for women
women were not viewed as high as
valuable as they were created to be and
that was the the norm of the culture not
only that but she has no husband so
there’s nobody to stand in for her she
must stand on her own in addition to
that widows in the Bible are normally
postured as being poor without financial
resources because there’s no husband
providing so she’s out on her own in
addition to that the fact that she has
to plead her own case means she has
nobody in her circle of influence who
can stand up for her she must stand up
for herself so here we have a woman out
there by herself on her own trying to
make it now the situation is that there
is something or something has happened
in which she has been wronged something
has happened that needs to be addressed
legally something has gone wrong perhaps
it had to do with money perhaps she was
ripped out of some of her husband’s
estate we don’t know what the specific
issue is nor do we need to know his
point was that this widow needed legal
intervention say legal intervention she
needed the law to work for her she
needed the law to mitigate between her
and some situations she faced that could
only be addressed legally so there is
this Widow in the city who keeps coming
to the judge saying give me legal
protection from my opponent I have got
somebody in my sphere
who’s working against me and who is
opposing me and he’s doing it
illegitimate Lee there is somebody in my
life doing me wrong my opponent and I
don’t have the power to stop them I’m a
widow I don’t have a lot of money and
they’re coming up against me and I need
the law to work for me I wonder if
there’s anybody here who’s in a
situation that’s coming up against you
and the folk was supposed to be able to
help you
unavailable to you she goes to the judge
because she says she needs here it is
legal protection I can’t protect myself
I need the law to protect me judge will
you intervene on my behalf so that I can
get my opponent off of my back and get
justice in my situation verse 4 says for
a while the judge was unwilling the
judge says I don’t want to be bothered I
don’t want to be bothered with the widow
I don’t want to be bothered with your
problem I don’t want to be bothered
about your opponent I don’t want to be
bothered I don’t care about your
situation because I don’t even care
about God and I don’t care about people
and you’re the lowest of the people a
widow so I really don’t care about you
so for a while
it says he was unwilling to hear her
case although she had a legitimate case
stick with me here it says but
afterwards he said to himself self even
though I do not fear God
pagan judge and I do not respect man yet
because this Widow bothers me
that means is nagging me after all she’s
a woman
let’s give the benediction this woman
the judge is a man this woman is getting
on my nerves
thus we say she is driving me nuts he
says I don’t respect God I don’t respect
man I will give her legal protections a
legal protection according to verse 3
she was thinking legal protection say
legal protection can’t keep that in mind
I’m going somewhere even though I don’t
feel God I don’t feel man otherwise if I
don’t do something about this lady’s
problem she’s gonna keep coming to me
cuz she won’t let me go every time I
show up she shows up every time I have
another persons case she brings up her
case this woman won’t let me go she
won’t get off my back and if she keeps
coming what’s this she will wear me out
anybody ever been worn out my woman
I hope you sitting by yourself mister
brother just raise his hand like that he
says this woman is going to wear me out
the Greek word wear me out literally is
rendered give me a black eye give me a
black eye the issue was not that she was
going to punch him out to give a black
eye meant to ruin my reputation to give
a black eye means to ruin the person’s
reputation
if this woman keeps coming she is going
to ruin my name so this is what the
woman was doing in order to ruin his
name that meant she would have to be
telling other people about the unjust
judge because they ruin somebody’s
reputation you’re ruining their
reputation among others so evidently
this woman would show about a court
scene and say this judge is not right he
ain’t right I’ve been having a problem
and he won’t get my problem he’s not
right
she said he knows he’s not right he’s an
unrighteous judge he doesn’t care about
God nor man
he doesn’t want everybody to know he’s
not right he just won’t he – no he’s not
right and if this woman keeps coming
it’s gonna be clear to everybody I’m not
right and I don’t want to look not right
to everybody so to get this woman off my
back to get home Adam my grill
to get her off of me what I am going to
do is I am going to give her legal
protection say legal protection I am
going to address her situation so that I
can get her off my back so that I can
save my reputation let me say that again
man I’m going to get her off my back so
that I can save my reputation I need to
say that one more time
i’ma give her legal protection not
because I want to give a little
rejection not because I care about this
woman I want off my back I want to
protect my reputation so therefore I’m
going to intervene in her circumstances
now that’s the parable that’s the point
now Jesus wants to apply it why are you
telling us this Jesus in this place of
bad air where the vultures are circling
we’re to maintain constant contact with
with with God and you tell us the story
about a judge and a widow woman what’s
the point and the Lord said verse 6 hear
what the unrighteous judge said in other
words pay attention to the unrighteous
judge now the widow is critical to the
story but to get the part of the story
pay attention Jesus said to what the
unrighteous judge says I don’t fear God
I don’t fear men but this woman is
driving me crazy
and she’s going to ruin my reputation
pay attention to that Jesus says and
then make a contrast here’s the contrast
verse 7
now will not God bring about justice for
his elect who cry out to him day and
night and will he delay over them long
Jesus says this listen to what the
unrighteous judge said cause he says if
you if you miss what the unrighteous
judge says you’ll miss the whole point
he says an unrighteous man who didn’t
care about God he didn’t care about
people he didn’t care about legalities
he didn’t care about justice he cared
about his reputation he cared about his
name and not being a nag to death by
this woman he was out to protect his
name and in order to protect his name he
had to respond to this woman because
this woman was giving him a black eye
messing up his name his reputation he
had to do something because as bad as he
was he cared about his reputation he
says not if a wicked judge cares about
his reputation and he wrong but he still
cares about his reputation will not God
who’s not an unrighteous judge he’s a
righteous judge will not God verse 7
bring about justice bring about justice
for his elect the widow was a stranger
to the judge the elect are not strangers
to God the elect are God’s chosen ones
they’re God’s children you and I who
belong to Jesus Christ make up God’s
elect if an unrighteous judge who
doesn’t care about God nor men will
bring legal protection to a stranger to
protect his reputation
much more will God bring about justice
to his children his alack says he is the
righteous judge and does care about
justice and will he delay long over them
now what I want to draw your attention
to is afraid that I’ve been asking you
to repeat legal protection see it’s easy
to read the story and twice in the story
the word legal protection is raised
twice and its cousin is raised in verse
7 justice she was seeking justice
through the legal protection of the law
but it’s put another way the issue for
the widow was not whether the judge like
me it was not whether the judge knew me
it was not whether the judge felt sorry
for me
the issue on the table was the law I
need you to bring the law to bear on my
situation because I’m being unjustly
treated by my opponent I need legal
intervention may not always pray and not
faint but what gets God’s attention is
not simply in feeling sorry about you in
the situation you’re in it’s not merely
I’m seeing you cry it’s not merely him
seeing you’re depressed what brings
heaven down to earth in the vulture a
situation you may be facing is calling
down your legal right the issue was your
legal right see what the woman had she
did not have the judge on her side she
had the law on her side
and even though the judge didn’t care
about the woman she kept bringing up but
the law says and when she brought up the
legal thing he had to deal with that
comes for him not to address the law
wants to kill his reputation because the
judge was obligated to the law now let
me explain what I’m trying to say here
today what I’m trying to say here is
that God who cares about us we’re part
of the elect
who’s righteous has concerned about his
law that is God has obligated himself to
his own word God has obligated himself
to what God has said himself God is
tethered to his own law God can’t do
what the unrighteous judge was trying to
do because God by nature is
righteousness righteousness is the
divine standard so God is tethered to
his own standard so God is always going
to operate in concert with his own law
now the woman calls for legal protection
watch this now because she knew she had
the right to it
in other words let me put it another way
if she didn’t know what the law was if
she didn’t know that the law they were
rules in the law book to deal with the
situations he was facing she wouldn’t
have been able to call on the law cuz
she wouldn’t have know the law applied
it was her knowledge that there is a
righteous law in the book that deals
with my opponent situation and I’m going
to the authorized person the judge to
render the law on my behalf that took
her to nagging the judge she can nag the
judge even though the judge didn’t care
about her coz she knew what was written
that was in the law book that applied to
her
situation not to know what was written
is not to have a basis to appeal to the
judge cuz remember it says she wanted
legal protection she wanted something
that would come from the law to act on
her behalf
hold your finger here turn back a couple
of pages to Luke chapter 13 in Luke
chapter 13 it’s the Sabbath the Sabbath
was the law was one of the Ten
Commandments Jesus a certain woman verse
11 for 18 years had a sickness caused by
a spirit and she had been bent double
bent over and could not straighten up
and Jesus saw her he called her over and
said to her woman you are freed from
your sickness he heals her on the
Sabbath and he laid his hands on her and
immediately she was made a wreck again
and began glorifying God but the
synagogue officials indignant because
Jesus had healed her on the Sabbath
began saying to the crowd in response
there are six days in which work should
be done so come during them and get
healed and not on the Sabbath so they’re
saying Jesus you’re out of order for
healing this lady on the Sabbath Jesus
then says to them you hypocrites does
not each of you on the Sabbath untie his
ox and his donkey from the stall and
lead him to get water and this woman was
this and this woman here it is and this
woman a daughter of Abraham not just
this woman I want to tell you who this
woman is she is a daughter of Abraham
who Satan is bound for eighteen long
years should she not have been released
from this bond
on the Sabbath day watches now you
hypocrites you will release an ox on the
Sabbath from being tied up so he can get
some water I come to release a woman
who’s been tied up for 18 years on the
Sabbath you’re upset about me releasing
a woman when you’re not upset about you
releasing a donkey let me tell you Jesus
says why I release this woman I release
this woman because this woman he says is
a daughter of Abraham watch this now the
Sabbath was the law given under Moses
Abraham precedes Moses he says there is
a legal relationship I have to this
daughter because there was a covenant
made with Abraham by God that God would
bring healing to his people in covenant
with an Abrahamic agreement when the
problem came from a spiritual source
weird that the woman was bent over
but her medical condition watches now
was tied to a spiritual condition it
said Satan had so messed up her life
that is showed up physically and she had
to walk been over it wasn’t just because
of her age it wasn’t just because of
calcification in the back it was because
the devil had so intervened in her life
that her physical problem was tied to a
spiritual dilemma but the lady had
something that’s a chief priests didn’t
understand
she had a legal relationship Todd as a
daughter of Abraham and because of the
legal relationship it overrode the
Mosaic law
that says you can’t do this on the
Sabbath but if you don’t know your legal
relationship then you can’t call on your
legal relationship to deliver you from
of some of us happening problems
situations circumstances and messes for
18 years and we wonder why God hasn’t
come through yet because we have not yet
appealed to our legal right but why
haven’t we appealed to our legal right
we don’t know our legal right and if you
don’t know the law you can’t appeal to
the law the widow knew the law and says
because the law is in place I am going
to bring the law to bear if an
unrighteous judge will submit to the law
even though he doesn’t that regard for
God and regard for man how much more
will a righteous God who is committed to
the law appeal to the legal cause of his
people we get and we pray but what we
don’t do is pray legally in other words
we don’t make God have to appeal to his
own law we come with generalities and
vague things that have nothing to do
with nothing bless my day bless my
family that’s my food that’s my
situation
bless me as I Drive that’s me as I ride
those are cute cute sees he says when
you’ve been jacked up for 18 years when
life has just messed you up when you
like the widow and you have no place to
turn you need to know you’re right
everybody in here is an American citizen
you need to know your rights if somebody
wants to search your house and doesn’t
have a court-ordered right to come in
there you need to know your rights you
need to know your rights that you have a
right to a lawyer if you are are
arrested you need to know your right cuz
if you don’t know your right and a
policeman arrests you who doesn’t fear
God and doesn’t fear man he could jack
you up if you don’t know your right but
when you know you’re right
then you can call with authority on that
which you deserve because of your legal
status he says men ought to pray but not
in some vague way the best way to pray
is to call God to have to respond to his
own word to call God to have to respond
to his own truth God and see the best
way to pray is God here let me show you
God this is what you said you said this
let me read it to you God you said this
case you forgot God you said this I
don’t know if you read it lately God but
you said this you wrote this so I’m
talking to you about what you said you
say well what difference will that make
he tells you at the last verse verse 8 I
tell you that he will bring about
justice for them quickly however when
the Son of Man comes will he find faith
on the earth he says some of us have
been waiting a lot longer than we should
be waiting some of us have been
struggling a lot longer than we should
be struggling why because we’ll talk to
God about stuff but we will not call on
God in terms of his law in terms of what
he has written and God is committed
first and foremost not to your feelings
not to your circumstance his first and
foremost committed to his rules his
regulations his guidelines and his law
that’s why I love the suit the woman
came and she verbally publicly rendered
out what the judge was supposed to be
doing because he’s concerned about his
reputation so she is why watch this now
watch his word decree what should be
done what is mark eleven say he says if
you will say to this mountain a mountain
in the Bible is an impossible situation
to climb over that’s what a mountain
means it’s a circumstance you can’t get
over it’s a hump you can
/ it’s a situation you can’t fix it’s a
problem you can’t solve it’s a situation
that you can’t change that’s a mountain
he says if you will say to this mountain
speak it see decree your deliverance but
before he said speak it a couple of
verses before then he says is it not
written so before he says because you’ll
just go up to situations say go bye-bye
gone disappear hocus pocus no huh
it says before is it not written and
when Jesus says is it not written then
he comes and says you can speak to this
mountain so here’s what you’re supposed
to do you’re supposed to look at your
situation look at your opponent look at
your mountain look at your bed over
situation then find out what God says
about your situation says about your
mountain says about your bent over
situation then you’re supposed to speak
to your Mountain speak to your situation
speak to your scenario and tell the
situation what God said tell the person
what God said speak to it in the name of
the law and will not God move swiftly
verse eight says won’t he show up quick
won’t he come out of nowhere won’t he
show up in a way you never expected if
he can get you to function legally with
him to function based on his revelation
not just based on how you feel not just
based on the fact his head not just
based on the fact that you know I’ve
been in this a long time you could be in
there for another 18 years unless you
remember you’re a daughter of Abraham
and that you have legal rights to be
picked up when the devil has bent you
over he says men are always pray like
this
men are always talk to God like this and
he says and when you relate to God like
this you will see him move swiftly
that means swiftly means all of a sudden
swiftly means out of nowhere truthfully
mean where did that come from
that’s what swiftly means for the Bible
says in Isaiah 46 that God will
establish his purposes the Bible says in
job chapter 22 verse 28 decree what God
is to do and so that God can get it done
so you ought to speak to your situation
but in the name of God by your words you
ought to speak his words into the
situation cuz God is not bound to what
you think he’s not bound to what other
folks think he’s not bound to how you
feel he’s not bound however folk feel
he’s not bound to what you’ve been
raised to believe or what other people
think you ought to believe he’s not
bound to your mama he’s not bound to
your daddy he’s not bound to your
friends he’s not bound to your coworker
he’s not bound to your supervisor he’s
not bound to your neighbor he’s not
bound to your governor he’s not bound to
your president he’s bound to his own
words and that’s the only thing that he
will commit himself to somebody ought to
be willing to pray now somebody ought to
be willing to call on him now day and
night night and day you ought to get up
and say that’s what you said you ought
to go to bed and say that’s what you
said I’m holding you to what you said
and he said that he can see that you’re
appealing to his law day and night I
know where you will see divine
intervention let’s stand