The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable:10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
This parable is for those who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else:
First the parable tells us about prayer.
Second the pride and humility in prayer.
Third Justification of the prayer.
First the parable tells us about prayer.
In Matthew 6:5, Jesus says how not to pray - "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
Here in the parable, the prayer of the pharisee was one that of the hypocrite prayer. But the tax collector humbled himself in front of God.
Second the pride and humility in prayer.
The pharisee said "I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.". This is pride and the pharisee might not even be aware of this. As there is no one perfect in God's law, everyone stumbled in the way. We need to humble our self and please God with our Faith. We need to have the attitude of the Tax collector - to say - ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
Third Justification of the prayer.
God's ways are different (Isaiah 55:8), We look at the outer appearance of man (1 Samuel 16:7). But God looks at the heart. In the parable, since the Tax collector humbled himself and asked for mercy - his prayer is received and justified. But the prayer of the pharisee was that of an hypocrite. Those he might have done good things, because of his attitude toward God wasn't proper his prayer will not be accepted.
This parable teaches us that Grace, Mercy is a free gift from God and that cannot be obtained by just doing good. God expects these good things to be done no matter what, but the most important aspect of our life should be to know that God is in control of everything. He is the potter and we are clay (Isaiah 64:8) Therefore we should humble our self before him, then God will have mercy
upon us. Our attitude should be like Jesus who humbled himself, even to the point of death
on cross!
Philippians 2:8
New International Version (NIV)
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Have A Blessed Day Ahead
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