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The Lord’s Prayer.
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
This week we start a new study focusing on some of Jesus’ great parables, it is titled The Parables of Jesus Continue to Speak.
Today we are talking about Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.
Text
Luke 18:14 NKJV
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Scripture Reading
Luke 18:9-14 NKJV
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.
12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’
13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat 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 everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Prayer
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
Introduction
Attitude is what counts.
If we have the right attitude, we can receive a blessing from this message.
If we have a wrong attitude, we cannot receive any blessings.
This parable has a twofold application.
One is the spirit in which we pray, and the other is how to be saved.
In this message the attitudes of the Pharisee and the tax collector will be looked at.
- The attitude of the Pharisee.
This man had some remarkable qualities.
He did not do the things he was not supposed to do.
He was not a wicked person outwardly.
In his opinion, he had not violated the seventh commandment on adultery, the eighth on stealing, or the ninth on trustworthiness.
As his prayer continued, he probably informed the Lord of hid many other virtues.
He did do the things that were commendable.
He fasted and tithed, both of which were commanded.
He even went beyond these and did more.
And Jesus said some interesting things about this man.
Verse 14 says he was not declared right in the sight of God.
The reason was his attitude.
His prayer was within himself.
Look at verse 11, The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.
He prayed within himself.
He told himself what the grounds were on which he expected favours from God.
It was not a silent prayer but an audible one.
This man was his own God!
He compared himself to others.
This is always dangerous.
We are only to compare ourselves with God’s ideal.
He prayed in the spirit of self sufficiency.
The attitude of the Pharisee can be found in every person to a degree.
It is seen in attitudes toward each other and in the attitude toward the church.
2. The attitude of the tax collector.
The Bible makes no reference to anything commendable in his life.
The title tax collector, or publican in some translations indicates the opposite of that which is commendable.
The custom of his profession, and thus the reputation he bore, was that he stole and was dishonest.
Jesus said that this man was justified in verse 14.
We can take a lesson from this.
His prayer was a real petition.
He said, “God be merciful.”
God’s mercy was this man’s only hope.
His prayer was personal and direct.
He said “God be merciful to me.”
Each person must deal with their own sin.
His prayer was humble.
He admitted he was a sinner.
He stood far off and would not look up.
Guilty people always look down.
His prayer was from the heart.
He beat his breast, a sure sign of emotional stress and deep remorse.
Each and every one of us can learn some helpful lessons from this prayer.
No one who is proud can pray.
It has been said that the gate of heaven is so low that it is impossible to enter unless you are on your knees.
No one who despises others can pray.
You cannot rightly lift yourself above others.
You really pray when you see yourself in relation to God.
Conclusion.
Right now I want to ask you to examine your attitude.
If it is not right, please ask God to come in and change it.
Until next time
Stay in the Blessings
I really want to encourage you to be diligent with your Bible study time, because God has so much more for us than we can get from just going to church once or twice a week and hearing someone else talk about the Word.
When you spend time with God, your life will change in amazing ways, because God is a Redeemer.
Theres nothing thats too hard for Him, and He can make you whole, spirit, soul and body!
You’re important to God, and you’re important to us at www.refinerylife.org
When it comes to prayer, we believe that God wants to meet your needs and reveal His promises to you.
So whatever you’re concerned about and need prayer for we want to be here for you! Or even if you just want to say Hi, you can contact us
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