Importance of Persistence (Parable of the Persistent Widow + Neville Insights)
“Only persistency in the assumption of the wish fulfilled can cause those subtle changes in your mind which result in the desired change in your life. It matters not whether they be "Angels", "Elisha", or "reluctant judges"; all must respond in harmony with your persistent assumption.”- Neville, Power of Awareness, Chapter 22
“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary. For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!” – Luke 18:1-5 NIV
“Here, to pray means to give thanks for already having what you desire.” – Neville, Power of Awareness, Chapter 22
This morning a family member asked me to attend a church service with them, and although I no longer attend services regularly, I decided why not. During the pastor’s sermon, he discussed the importance of persistence in faith and prayer for ourselves, for others, so on and so forth. He referenced the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8), and how the widow demonstrated the “formula” for how to receive the things we’re seeking. He mentioned how even if something takes months years, etc., it is important to remain persistent. Although I didn’t necessarily agree with his perspective, it made me re-think about this parable from a more metaphysical POV.
We know that time is not linear, and that everything exists in the eternal present. Therefore, persistence cannot be thought of in terms of linear time. As Neville pointed out, Jesus was referring to persistence in the state/assumption of already having the thing desired. The widow refers to the feeling/knowing that you already are who you desire to be. She’s a widow because there’s no physical evidence to the senses that support her (i.e. a husband). The “unjust judge” cannot be a man, but reality itself. The parable states the judge did not “fear” God nor cared what people thought. The Greek word for fear in this context is phobeó, which means “to treat with deference or reverential obedience”. Reality itself is neutral and reflects what we are aware of being. The “adversaries” are anything that suggests you aren’t already the person you desire to be (thoughts, circumstances, opinions from others, the world etc.).
Long story short, Jesus used this parable to emphasize the importance of persisting in the assumption that you already are the person you desire to be, not persisting in time. That’s a key difference. One of my favorite quotes from Neville comes from "Feeling is the Secret”: “You are already that which you want to be, and your refusal to believe this is the only reason you do not see it.” I believe the gospel writers were trying to convey a similar point using this parable.
Source:
https://biblehub.com/greek/5399.htm
(Disclaimer: scriptural interpretations are my own based on my understanding influenced by Neville and other spiritual writers)