Feeling proud of oneself to the extreme where one believes that they are better than others has been part of fallen human nature from the beginning. We see this characteristic a lot in the business and academic worlds. Unfortunately we also see it in the religious community, as well. We don’t have to look too far in church to see some people who feel they are the spiritual elite. They are always so busy, figuratively speaking, polishing their halos, thinking they are God’s special little angels and so much better than their neighbor. Jesus had something to say about these folks, which is the subject of our Gospel reading today.
Jesus frequently visited the city of Jerusalem, and was often in and around the Temple, where He would teach the crowds. While being around the Temple so often, Jesus would observe the people who came there, and especially noticed their attitudes. All throughout His ministry, the Lord had pointed and called out the Pharisees on their hypocrisy and religious pride, and this short parable was another instance where He showed their true character before God.
As the parable begins, Jesus told of two men who came to the Temple to pray (vs 10). One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. As most of us know, the Pharisees were a Jewish religious group, and they were very meticulous in following the Old Testament Law. They were often very quick to point out anyone who failed to keep the Law as strictly as they did, and they were also very critical of Jesus and His disciples. The Pharisees had a lot of power and authority in the local synagogues and among the people. They were held in high esteem and considered very righteous, religious, and spiritual. Tax collectors, on the other hand, were generally despised by both the Pharisees and local people. They were known for being corrupt, and looked upon as traitors to the Jewish nation because of their association with the Romans.
As Jesus told this parable, the listeners would have expected the Pharisee to be extolled, and the tax collector condemned, not the other way around. Jesus described the Pharisee, pointing out how he came into the Temple, and gave God a review of how good and holy he was, and how scrupulously he kept the Law, even to the smallest matters (vs. 11-12). Jesus told of how proudly the Pharisee felt, as he compared himself with others, particularly the tax collector who entered at the same time. Then Jesus described the tax collector’s actions when he came into the Temple. This man, with his head bowed and contrite, knew and readily admitted to God that he was a sinner (vs. 13). He cried out to God for His mercy.
The Pharisee did not really come to pray to God. He came to talk about himself, not to thank God. He came to declare how glad he was that he was not like other people. The Pharisee went home just as he had come, unrepentant and full of himself. The tax collector’s action showed deep contrition, and a sense of personal unworthiness. He did not look for any good works of his own, but rather he looked to God for His mercy. He alone of the two went home forgiven and justified.
The Pharisee revealed that his entire hope lay in his not being as bad as someone else. He lacked any sense of his own unworthiness and sin. A sinner, utterly devoid of personal righteousness, may be declared righteous before God instantaneously through an act of repentant faith, such as with this tax collector. Even the most fastidious of human righteousness, such as the Pharisee’s, falls short of the divine standard. Sinners are justified when God’s perfect righteousness is imputed to their account. That was how the tax collector was saved and the Pharisee was not.
Don’t fall into the comparison trap. Self-righteousness leads to pride, causing a person to despise others, and prevents them from learning from God. A sense of personal superiority is not a good reason for thanking God. The Pharisee thought that because of his “good” life, he was justified before God. His posture demonstrated his pride and arrogance. In contrast, the tax collector humbly confessed he was a broken man and a sinner. D. L. Moody rightly said, “He who kneels the most, stands the best.” Only those who come to God with an authentic, repentant heart will obtain a right standing with the Lord.
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