PRIDE VERSUS HUMBLENESS
Luke 18:9-14
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RELIGION AND CHRISTIANITY
V: 9 " And He also told this parable to some people who
trusted in themselves that they
were
righteous, and viewed others with contempt."
Notice that the
Lord's audience is those who trust in themselves.
A. Jesus used this
parable to show us the mind set of a proud, religious person.
1. We should
not confuse religion with being a Christian.
2. You can be
religious and a Christian.
3. You can be religious without being a
Christian.
4. Religion can
be anything you believe in and are devoted to
doing
consistently.
a. You can
be religious in going to work.
b. You can
be religious in buying the latest fashions.
c. You can
be religious in reading books.
d.
Christianity is being religious in loving God and following His commands.
5. Those who trust
in themselves are religious about themselves.
B. In this case, both
men knew about God and the Law.
1. The religious
person held himself in high esteem
2. He trusted in
himself and not the Lord.
3. He claim himself
to be righteous.
4. He hated
those who were not like him.
A COMPARISON OF TWO HEARTS
V:10 "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a
Pharisee and the other a tax
collector.
A. The Pharisee was
the religious person. The tax collector claim no religion.
1. They both
were praying people.
2. They both
knew the place of prayer was the temple.
3. One knew to
pray to the one true God, and one only knew to boast.
B. They both had
something to pray about.
1. They both
were compelled to come to the temple and pray.
2. They both had
something on their heart that only God could handle.
THE PRIDEFUL PRAYER
V:11-12 "The Pharisee stood and was praying this to
himself: 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust,
adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 "I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I
get."
A. The Pharisee was religious in talking about his goodness.
1. He knew the
commandments and he told the Lord how he had kept them.
2. He knew the legal aspects of the Law, but didn't
understand the spiritual aspects
of the Law.
3. He made God a party to his position.
a. He thanked
God that he was not like other folk.
b. He consider
himself to be better than other folk.
c. Actually,
out of ignorance, he was thanking God for his sinful behavior.
B. His prayer was not a prayer, but his boasting to God of
how good he was..
1. He thought God
needed to hear how bad other people were.
2. His standard
of righteousness was himself.
3. He thought to
himself that other sinners didn't measure up to him.
4. The Pharisee
made his religion the standard by which others should live.
C. The Pharisee named the sins of everybody but himself.
1. By his
standards, the tax collector was a sinner.
a. He judged
all tax collectors as sinners.
b. He failed
to consider the heart of the tax collector standing next to him.
2. The only way
the Pharisee could lift himself up, was by pointing the finger
at the tax
collector.
3. The Pharisee
fail to consider that when you point your finger at someone else,
you got four
of your fingers pointing back to you.
a. He had the
finger of pride pointing to him.
b. He had the
finger of false accusations pointing to him.
c. He had the finger of selfishness
pointing to him.
d. He had the
finger of hate pointing to him.
4. You cannot beat
someone without doing some damage to
yourself.
D. The Pharisee mention some sins he was not guilty of, but
fail to mention
the sins he was committing by judging his
brothers.
1. The Pharisee
failed to mention that all have sinned and fall short of the glory
of God.
2. He failed to
mention that he was born in sin and shaped in iniquity.
3. He failed to
understand that we are not justified by works.
GOOD BY MY OWN STANDARDS
E. By the way Lord (Verse12), I know I am good, because I tithes and
fast twice a
week.
1. The Pharisee
thought he was doing God a favor by tithing and fasting.
a. Tithing was an obligation to support the
temple and the priest.
b. Fasting
was his time to reflect on the goodness of God.
2. The Lord said, "I
would rather obedience than sacrifice."
3. He was so sure
of his self righteousness that he was blind to his sinfulness.
4. He was so full
of himself, that he saw no need for God's mercy or to
ask for
forgiveness.
5. His prayer was
thoughtless and selfish because he thank God for himself and
not for the
goodness of God.
HUMBLENESS BEFORE
THE LORD
13 "But the tax collector, standing some distance away,
was even unwilling to lift up his
eyes to heaven,
but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the
sinner!"
A. The tax collector
knew he was a sinner and owned up to his guilt.
1. He humbled
himself before the Lord.
2. He considered
his sins so dreadful that he would not look up at the Lord.
B. He beat himself into submission.
1. He confessed
his sins.
2. He asked for
forgiveness.
3. He asked God to
be tolerant with him.
JUSTIFIED BY THE LORD
14 "I tell you, this man went to his house justified
rather than the other; for everyone who
exalts himself
will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."
A. The tax collector came to Christ a sinner;
but left with a clean slate.
1. The tax
collector came to Christ confessing his sins, but left forgiven.
2. Jesus approved the humbled behavior of the
tax collector.
3. The tax collector
recognized that the only way he could be free of his sin was by
the mercy
of the Lord.
4. The tax
collector had a repentant heart.
5. He came to
the temple a sinner but he left justified by the Lord
CONDEMED BY HIS ATTITUDE
B. The Pharisee came
to the temple a sinner and left a sinner
1. He came with
his pride and left with his pride.
2. He came with
his self-righteous behavior and left with his self righteous behavior.
3. He came
condemned and left condemned.
4. He came to
talk, but not to pray.
5. He came to
talk, but not to listen.
6. He came in
the dark and left in the dark.
GOD LOVES THE HUMBLE, BUT HE HATES THE PROUD
Rev. M. Mitchell
Asst Pastor Of Greater Macedonia
Baptist Church
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