Trinity Text: Luke 18:9-14
[9] And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
[10] Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
[11] The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
[12] I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I possess.
[13] And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
[14] I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Perhaps no account in the New Testament is as familiar as the account of the Pharisee and the Publican is. When we hear about these two people, we tend to identify with the publican. We compliment ourselves on our humility and look down on the Pharisee for his despicable pride without realizing that, if we think that way, we are no better than he is. Pride in any form is always wrong; especially should we be proud that we are humble. “Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:12
Ordinarily, people tend to dislike someone who is stuck on himself. The Pharisee, however, was different. He did everything right. He was a “fellow well met,” a respected member of the community. He had never been charged with adultery, embezzlement, or disorderly conduct. He was serious about his work and about his church. He contributed generously and attended the temple worship religiously. He gave the appearance of being wholesome and generous. The Pharisee was the type of person that people in America would call a good Christian, someone who trusts his ability to keep the 10 Commandments and who goes to church.
When the Pharisee prayed, however, we get a different view of him. There was nothing Christian about him. Although he prayed loud and long, he made no mention of Jesus Christ or the forgiveness that He brings to our hearts, and that is what it means to be Christian. He didn’t ask God for anything. He told God and He expected Him to listen. Listen to his words, ”I thank thee that I am not as other men are; I fast; I give tithes of all that I possess.” Five times he uses the pronoun ”I,” describing all the things he does, but never once the word, “me,” pleading for the things God could do for him. In his prayer He wanted God to know how good he was, as if God didn’t know that; or perhaps he was praying for the benefit of others who might be listening in.
One certainly cannot doubt his sincerity. When the unbeliever tells you that he doesn’t need church, that God will take him to heaven if he tries to be good, he isn’t pretending. He actually believes that. So it was with this Pharisee! This man was sincere about what he said. He felt that he could do more than God had demands. The law of Moses required the Jews to fast once a year on the day of Atonement; he fasted twice a week, every Monday and Thursday, to commemorate when Moses is said to have ascended Mt. Sinai. The Law of Moses required him to give a percentage of certain things; he gave the church 10% of his total income.
“He trusted in himself that he was righteous.” He based his hope of heaven, his righteousness, on the way he lived. While he may have led a good life in the eyes of men, in the eyes of God, his righteousness was worthless. Jesus is very plain about that. “For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed [the righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20. His righteousness was worthless because it did not come from a clean heart. His heart was evil and overcome with pride. This Pharisee felt that he really did not need God because he was a god unto himself. The 10 Commandments did not frighten him, but merely encouraged him in his self-righteous notion that he could keep every one of them.
There is one thing about pride; it leads us to make comparisons, to compare ourselves with others. Men don’t impress others by saying, “I try hard,” but rather, “I try harder than the other guy. His work may be good, but mine is better. His sales practices may be questionable, but what I do is completely unselfish.” Isn’t that how the Pharisee presented himself? “I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.” I am better. “I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I possess.” Compared to “other men,” he felt he was a saint and he thanked God for it. “God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are.” He trusted that in himself he was righteous before God instead of trusting in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Consequently, when he left the Temple, he went home unforgiven and condemned.
The Pharisee wasn’t the only one in the temple. There was also the publican, though you might never know it from where the publican stood. He felt that he didn’t deserve a place in front of the altar. He knew people hated him. They hated all tax collectors because they had a reputation for cheating. He might have wished that he could be as righteous and holy as the Pharisee was. It is a good thing, however, that he could not read the heart of that Pharisee and know all the rotten things the Pharisee thought about him. He had nothing to brag about. Contrariwise, he had everything to be ashamed of. He was ashamed of his sins; he was ashamed of his ungodly behavior. He could not even muster the courage to look up, to face God, but with a gesture of sorrow, he cried out, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” All he had to offer God was a broken heart and a contrite spirit. His only hope lay with what God had to offer him. His faith rested, not on wonderful works, but on God’s precious promise of mercy to repentant sinners. Though he doesn’t mention Jesus by name, it is inconceivable that he did not know Him. For it is only through faith in the blood of Jesus that we have the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins. How did it come down for the Publican? “He went down to his house, justified,” with a clean conscience and a joyful heart.
In the final analysis, it doesn’t much matter how we look in the eyes of men. What counts is how we look in the eyes of God, “Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7. Pride is an inbuilt part of the human heart. “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool,” Proverbs 28:26, writes Solomon. Out of the heart, says the Savior, comes nothing good. Greed, dishonesty, cheating, and adultery are a part of our inner nature. We cannot be the way God wants us to be. Pride crops into our lives without our knowing it. How easy it is to pride ourselves on the fact that we go to church on Sunday or that we try hard to lead a Christian life or that we put money in the envelope. How easy it is to feel that we are better than others, that we are in a different class. Pride is so deeply rooted in our hearts that it leads us to commit sins that we may not even be aware of. “Who can understand [his] errors,” writes the Psalmist. “Cleanse thou me from secret [faults].” Psalm 19:12.
What does it mean to be humble? It means to give up our pretensions. It means to see ourselves, as we really are, weak and unworthy sinners. Isn’t it true that with each new day we seem to be getting worse instead of better? We keep right on making the same mistakes. We fail to control our tongue, our anger, or our lusts. We cry out with the Apostle Paul, “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.” Romans 7:19. We should be embarrassed and ashamed. Like the publican who did not have the will to raise his eyes to heaven, may we plead with crushed and bleeding hearts, “God be merciful to me a sinner.”
In response, holy God in heaven for Jesus’ sake looks down on each repentant sinner, and says, “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called [thee] by thy name; thou [art] mine.” Isaiah 43:1. Could anything be more wonderful than that? The overwhelming love and mercy of the Lord can only move us unworthy sinners to thank and to praise, to serve and obey Him, not for how good we are, but for how good He is to us.