The Pharisee and the Tax Collector.

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector reminds us that we are all sinful and in need of a Saviour – even if we think we are righteous!

Are You Good Enough?

Are you good enough?  Is your perceived goodness based on being better than someone else?  That’s the subject of the parable we are looking at, and it may be one of the most important parables for the culture of today.  It is found in Luke 18 and was spoken to a group of people who not only thought they were good enough, but that they were superior to those around them.  Here’s the story.

The Parable of the Tax Collector and The Pharisee

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Luke 18:9-14

Good Enough Already

One of the biggest objections to the gospel from people who at least consider the reality of God, is that they are good people already.  When faced with the idea that all have sinned, we might hear, or even give a response like, “I’m not that bad,” or, “It’s not like I am a murderer.”  There are a lot of people that still hold to the idea that eternal life, heaven, is attainable by the quality of person we are, or by the good things we do. 

A problem with this, is that when we do come face to face with our wrongdoings, the only justification for our bad behaviour is to point out the worse behaviour of others.  We see this just about everywhere in the political arena, there is even a term for it, whataboutism.  The issue with whataboutism, is that it never seeks to address the problem at hand, just to distract and deflect from it, so that we don’t have to be uncomfortable over our mistakes.

The Sin of Pride

Jesus has spent the last few chapters of Luke talking to the Pharisees and other religious leaders about the sin of pride.  In fact, after the first lesson he gave them on this subject, in Luke 14, they immediately responded in Luke 15 by grumbling over the fact that Jesus was receiving sinners and tax collectors.  The parable Jesus is using here, directly addresses the pride of the Pharisees again, using an illustration that was literally just played out in real life. 

The Prayer of The Pharisee

As is common in many of the parables, the attitudes are exaggerated in such a way that the listener is compelled to agree with the point Jesus is making.  Reading the words of the Pharisee’s prayer in this parable, a person would have to be a true narcissist to accept the Pharisee’s words here as appropriate or good.  He is so puffed up, so full of himself, arrogant and cruel in attitude toward the tax collector.  And his character is so beautifully contrasted by that of the second man, who humbly acknowledges his faults and pleads with God for mercy. 

These are two extremes.  One who in the culture of their day was viewed as the example of righteousness, and one who was the example of evil.  What does Jesus say, the one who humbled himself was justified, while the other was not. 

Our Need of a Saviour

This is a critical component of the gospel because it reveals to us our individual need for the Saviour.  Paul writes in Romans 3 that

“all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 

Digging deeper into the letter to the Romans, we also find statements like “None is righteous, no, not one,” and “for by works of the law no human being will be justified in His sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.”  John writes something interesting in his first letter, saying,

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 

And also,

“If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” 

So, if we say and believe that we have not sinned we not only lie to ourselves, but we call God a liar, which if that were true he wouldn’t be God. 

We Have All Sinned

If we break down what all this means, essentially it would say that to declare ourselves sinless, is a sin against God.  We all have sinned, in our actions, in our thoughts, in our words, and that sin needs to be forgiven if we want to have any hope of escaping God’s judgment on sin.

There is a very special verse between the two passages I just read from John’s first letter.  1 John 1:9 says,

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 

I John 1:9

The Pharisee Was a Sinner

This is the point Jesus was making.  The Pharisee was a sinner.  His sinful pride was on full display in the parable.  The tax collector was a sinner, and he knew it.  Only one of these men prayed to God to ask for forgiveness, and as such, only one of these men received that forgiveness.  If we want to be saved, that is if we want to know that we will never have to suffer the penalty of sin, we must acknowledge that we have sinned and that only God can forgive it.  That’s why Jesus came.  He came to die for our sin so that by believing in Him we would never have to.  And that gift of salvation is available to all, to anyone who believes.  That’s why this passage is so important today.

No Man is More Valuable to God

There is a secondary lesson in this parable.  That lesson is that no man is truly greater than another, no one is more valuable to God than someone else.  In the varied cultures and societies around the world today we have found so many ways to divide people, so many reasons for claiming to be better than someone else.  People will claim superiority over others based on lifestyle, nationality or ethnicity, skin colour, political affiliation, gender, affluence, who, what or how to worship, and on, and on, and on. 

People across all these groups will be looked down on or mistreated by others of a different group.  They may think themselves better than others for different reasons, all the while forgetting one key, and common factor among everyone.  We are all sinners that Jesus Christ died to save.  No one is exempt from the penalty of sin, and no one is exempt from the offer of God’s salvation.  God loves each and every person in this world with the same love, demonstrated in giving Jesus to the world.

How To Treat Others

Here is how the Bible describes the godly way to treat all people.

In Romans 12 we read

“Let love be genuine…  Love one another with brotherly affection, outdo one another in showing honor.  Bless those that persecute you, bless and do not curse them.  Do not be haughty or arrogant, but associate with the lowly…  So far as it depends on you live peaceably with all.”

Romans 12:9-18

In Philippians it says,

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves…  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interest of others.” 

Philippians 2:3-11

Jesus gives a perfect example, in John 13, when the Son of God, the one who was involved in the creation of all things, stooped down to wash the feet of his disciples.  He said to them in Matthew 10:23

“The greatest among you shall be your servant.” 

Matthew 10:23

I believe that in order for us to live like this, always showing honor and respect to all people, we must first recognize God’s love for us, as sinners, and His desire to save us by sending His Son, Jesus.  Until we have experienced God’s grace in our lives, we won’t be able to selflessly extend that same grace to those around us.

What have you learned from the Parable of The Tax Collector and The Pharisee? What is your response to Jesus’ parables? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.