Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 18:9-14(NLT)
Two men went to worship; one was accepted, and one
rejected. The one was a Pharisee, a very
religious person, pillar of the community; the other was a Publican, the town
tax collector, certainly not the most popular guy on the block.
Publicans were Jews, but they were unacceptable to
their own people, because they worked for the Roman government taking an
exorbitant tax (and even more) from their Jewish brothers. The Publican was a despised "Benedict
Arnold!" The Pharisees were the
respected religious stars of the day.
The story’s conclusion should have been a slam-dunk
for the listeners – the religious guy wins, hands down! But Jesus’ punch-line pulled a switch…the tax
collector is the one who winds-up right with God, and the church elder becomes
the bad guy. What gives here?
Notice, please, the similarities and differences in
worship between a religious man, and a renegade; the renegade had humility, the
religious man had an “I” Problem.
They Both Stood
Both the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
"stood." The difference is in
the meaning of the word. In the case of
the Pharisee (v.11), the word carries a connotation of confidence. It is the picture of a man standing erect,
without any fear.
The Tax Collector also stood; his word meaning, "just barely there." The Tax man was slumped over, hardly daring
to lift his eyes heavenward.
So, the main difference in how a man stands, when he
stands before God, is whether or not he stands with humility or arrogance. Multiple times Scripture reminds us that
God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.[2]
They Both Prayed
Once again the difference between two men was
attitude. The Publican asked for mercy,
while the Pharisee was there to inform all within earshot (including God) just
how good he really was.
Both men told God who and what they are – and they
were both right! The Publican told the
Lord he was a sinner; he asked for mercy.
In the language of the New Testament, the man actually said he was the
sinner.
This was the attitude of Paul:
This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. 1 Timothy 1:15(NLT)
The Pharisee, on the other hand, simply told God that
he was good and didn't need mercy. He
listed all the wonderful things he did, and thanked God he wasn't like
ordinary men, especially the tax collector.
His prayer was an infomercial for God to watch; God was supposed to be
impressed with this good man’s goodness.
They Both Received
Jesus said that the tax collector went away from the
experience having received the forgiveness of God. The Pharisee also received something – that warm fuzzy feeling inside, that he had
once again done his duty. He'd been to
church, prayed, given, fasted, lived an honest life all week, and been faithful
to his wife.
In all, he was a fine example of a Godly man. (And didn't they all know it down there at
the church house!!) The only problem was
that he'd had no real meeting with God.
Herbert Lockyer said about this religious praying man, "He asked for nothing, confessed
nothing, and therefore received nothing."[3]
Applications
If you want to understand Pharisees, don't
look outside the church. Just look for
the people who tend to judge others and stay angry. You can recognize the
narrow mind. Some say a Pharisee's mind
is so narrow he could eat corn on the cob through a picket fence. However, in looking at the motives of others
in order to compare ourselves to them, we become Pharisees
ourselves. That was the religious guy’s
problem, comparing his goodness to the renegade. If you become like the Pharisee you will
remain as lost as he. The Publican
recognized he was a sinner, and asked for mercy. The Pharisee was just completely satisfied
with his own brand of religion. Pharisees destroy genuine evangelism,
which is telling others about the love of God.
Pharisees are more interested in how well they follow the rules. If you really want to do God's will, don't
tell God how good you are; tell others how good God is!
The
Case for Humility
A teenager once asked his mother what she got out of
church. The teen knew his mother thought
the sermons were often dull and the music uninspiring. And each time he asked her, she responded,
"I don't know. I just feel better
all week when I've been to church on Sunday."
Why did the mother feel better for having been to
church? When she was in church, she did
not have to be the caring mother, the dutiful wife, the responsible neighbor -
she could just be. She did not have to do
anything. Somebody else was in
charge. Somebody else was taking care of
her.[4]
Understand that despising the resident Pharisees won’t
make you any better than they; that was the “I” problem – the Pharisee despised
the tax collector for his lifestyle.
Instead, pray for yourself. A
person with genuine humility doesn’t compare himself to the best or worst of
humanity. A person of genuine humility
doesn’t compare himself to others at all.
Genuine humility rests in the care of God; it
understands that we are inadequate to save ourselves, or to make ourselves fit
company for being in the presence of God.
Persons with genuine humility come into worship with that understanding,
and they find genuine acceptance at the hand of God. When they leave, of course they feel better –
they feel, and know forgiveness.
So, if you have a tendency to be a Pharisee, and you’ve been a good boy, or a good girl
all your life, this would be a good time to have an “I” check.
How do you feel about the “bad” people? Have you asked for mercy recently?
If you don’t like the answers you heard in your own
heart, you can change positions…you can leave the confident stand of the
Pharisee and take up the humble stance of the Publican.
You stand in humility before God. You pray in humility, asking for mercy for
your sins. You receive His love and welcoming
embrace.
THAT’s how to put an end to the “I” problem!
Go to VIDEO
[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com
[2] James
4:6, 1 Peter 5:5
[3]Herbert
Lockyer, All the Prayers Of the Bible,
(Grand Rapids, Zondervan Publishers, 1959)
