Rather Than the Other
Luke 18:9–14
Luke sets the context in verse 9:
“Now He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and viewed others with contempt.”
Jesus is about to tell a parable. Luke doesn’t tell us what the parable will be about but only states to whom the parable is spoken. Jesus tells this parable to those who trusted in themselves. What are they putting their trust in themselves for? The parable will make the answer clear, but in short, Jesus is about to teach those who trust in their own righteousness to be accepted by God.
Take a moment to reflect: Are you someone who believes your righteousness is enough to earn God’s acceptance? Consider this: If the Bible’s teachings about heaven and hell are true, where do you think you would end up if you were to pass away today? And, more importantly, why? Do you truly believe you possess enough righteousness to be deemed worthy by God?
Not only will Jesus teach those trusting in themselves, but His intended audience is those who “viewed others with contempt.” When one is up high, everyone else will look small. There’s an infatuation with one’s worthiness that is repulsed by filth from common folks. Jesus is teaching those who not only think too highly of themselves but also despise others.
Jesus begins the parable:
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”
The parable begins by introducing us to two people. One is a Pharisee. Pharisees were the most influential and religiously pious group of Jews who emphasized meticulous observance of God’s Law (from both Old Testament texts and extra-Biblical texts) to attain righteousness and favor with God.
The other is a tax collector. Tax collectors collected tolls, tariffs, and taxes and were notoriously dishonest. They were representatives of the Roman government and would often resort to extortion, making them hated by their own people.
There could not be two people more different from each other than these two, yet they are both doing the same activity; both went up to the temple to pray.
The Pharisee
His posture was to stand, which was the normal posture in that culture when praying. Luke adds that his prayer was “in regard to himself.” Here’s his prayer:
· “God, I thank You that I am not like other people”: The Pharisee thanks God for being different. On the surface, this sounds good.
· “Swindlers, crooked, adulterers”: His business and personal morals are righteous. He doesn’t cheat or lie in his business dealings and is sexually moral.
· “Or even like this tax collector.” Apparently, the two men were close enough to see one another. When the Pharisee sees the tax collector at the temple, he is repulsed by his sinfulness and thanks God that he is not like the tax collector.
· “I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.” Not only does the Pharisee have a moral righteousness in his business dealings, but he is religiously moral. He fasts and tithes.
The Pharisee’s prayer is one of giving thanks to God for making him morally righteous. It does not include asking for anything from God. In his eyes, he has all that he needs. But remember, Jesus is telling this parable to those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous. Therefore, the Pharisee is in trouble.
The problem is not that he is not morally righteous — he is. The problem is that he is placing his trust in his own moral righteousness! The Pharisee trusts in the God-wrought morality in his life as the grounds for his acceptance before God. He looks at the work God has done in his life and sees that he is moral in his business, marital, and religious affairs. Then, he places his trust in that moral righteousness inside of him.
To circle back, his prayer was “in regard to himself.” Look at how many times he talks about himself in this prayer:
1. I thank You…
2. That I am not like…
3. I fast…
4. I pay tithes…
5. I get.
In this brief prayer, the Pharisee mentions himself on five different occasions. His trust is in his righteousness, and his boast is in himself.
The Tax Collector
Jesus begins describing the tax collector with the contrasting word “but.” The tax collector:
· “Was even unwilling to raise his eyes toward heaven”: He can’t look up to heaven because his head is too heavy with the knowledge of his shame and guilt. This tax collector prays with his head bowed out of reverence to God and awareness of His holiness.
· “Was beating his chest”: This was a common expression for mourning or contrition (see Luke 23:48).
· “Saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’”: Unlike the Pharisee, the tax collector is not looking inside himself for any confidence or acceptance before God. He’s begging God to show him mercy out of his conviction that he is a sinner. Those who are freshly aware of their sin are those who will cherish grace and mercy.
Seven words is all the tax collector could utter in his prayer. He prayed as a humble and contrite man, begging for God’s mercy. And mercy was shown to him.
Jesus’ Conclusion
One last friendly reminder: Jesus is telling this parable to those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous.
Jesus ends the parable by telling the crowd that the sinful tax collector was the one who “went to his house justified,” not the Pharisee. “Justified” is a legal term in which the judge declares one to be just or righteous. All of the Pharisee’s law-keeping meant nothing in the eyes of God. Rather, a sinner pleading for mercy is a sweet melody to God’s ears. With nothing in his hands to commend him, the tax collector went to his home pure and justified.
Jesus ends this teaching by stating, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” The Pharisee exalted himself and boasted in his own inner righteousness, but then he was humbled to be still found guilty of his sins. Contrary to the tax collector who prayed with a heart of humility and contrition, he was then exalted by being declared justified.
The gospel still amazes me. It’s simple yet powerful. Remember that you are a sinner, and ask God for His mercy. God showed mercy to sinful rebels by giving His Son to live and die in our place. What do you do to receive His mercy? Confess your sins to God and beg Him for His mercy, as the tax collector did.
