Grace and Peace to you from God our
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord and Savior sanctify you in
the truth; for His word is truth. Amen
Twenty-Second
Sunday after Pentecost (2010)
Jesus Saves
Sinners such as Me!
Luke
18:9-14 (ESV)
He also told this parable to some who
trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with
contempt: [10] "Two men went up
into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. [11] 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. [12] I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.' [13] 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!' [14] 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."
[15] Now they were bringing even infants to
him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
[16] But Jesus called them to him, saying, "Let the children come to me,
and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the
In
last Sunday’s sermon we heard how God wants us to always pray so we will not
lose heart. Thus, in the Gospel Reading for last Sunday our Lord reminded us
that as long as we turn to Him in prayer, true prayer, prayer which puts God’s
Will before ours, prayer which turns to God in all humility, prayer which seeks
His intervention in our lives, then the gift of faith that He has so mercifully
given us will remain strong in us and continue to lead us everyday in living
the baptized life of contrition and repentance. In today’s Gospel Reading, our
Lord continues this theme as He places emphasis on prayer, opening our hearts in
with the parable of the Pharisee and the publican praying in the
Each and everyday of our lives we are beset by one temptation to sin after another. Often, we too easily succumb to these temptations, falling into sin from which we posses no human ability to overcome. Yet, far too many believe they in fact do have the ability in and of themselves to overcome their sin and thus make themselves right with God. Such as these we see in the character of the Pharisee pictured in today’s Gospel. Yet, our Lord shows us clearly in the life of the publican, only Jesus can Save a Sinner such as Me.
In the character of the Pharisee, our Lord Jesus shows us those who only trust in themselves. However, their self-idolatry goes far beyond conceited love of self and their feelings of superiority based on their works-righteous attitude. Men such as these are convinced that they have God’s verdict in their favor. Not only do they believe that they have God’s favor, but they believe that they alone amount to something, in fact, they amount to everything before God. However, the only ground on which they can base such an opinion is the shifting foundation of their human flesh and effort. Therefore, in order to justify their self-importance they must condemn others; they must consider others as nothing. Thus, they raise themselves up by putting others down.
Jesus
tells us of, “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other
a tax collector” (v. 10). Pilgrimages such as these occurred at regular
hours everyday. Thus, these men came into the court of the men for their act of
prayer-worship. As is common in the parables of Jesus, He gives us a glimpse of
the extremes in the life of the Jewish people. One, the Pharisee, stood at the
pinnacle of holiness, the other, a publican, stood out as the lowest form of a
wicked outcast. Moreover, Jesus places these two not in some non-descript city
of Judea, instead, they are in Jerusalem and they are not in some out of the
way synagogue, they are in the Temple; the most holy city and the most holy
place. There they come presenting themselves to God. Thus, Jesus takes us
inside the
Much today, as in the days of Jesus, the Jews have fixed prayers which they pray everyday. However, free prayers are also offered. The parable of the Pharisee and the publican shows us these men offering a prayer solely from their hearts. In the prayer of the Pharisee we see evidence of just what a true case of full-grown self-righteousness and work-righteousness looks like. In the Pharisee the type is Jewish, but it can be easily translated into a full display of Christian self-righteousness and works-righteousness. Moreover, Pharisee’s were known for offering long prayers, and one would suspect this Pharisee to be cut from that mold. However, our Lord Jesus shows us what is essential in this man prayer; He shows us the heart of the Pharisee’s prayer and therefore, He shows us the heart of the Pharisee.
As Pharisee were want to do, this Pharisee takes a stand all by himself, most likely in a prominent place so all could see and hear him. He begins to pray. Not in a soft, subtle voice so that only he could hear knowing that God hears all prayers. No, he begins to pray so that all within ear-shot could hear what he had to say. He wanted to be admired by others therefore it was essential that others knew of his great righteousness. His thankfulness to God for his good fortune is nothing more than a boast of his self-evaluated goodness. Thus, his prayer is not a true prayer of thanksgiving; it only appears so, for not once does the Pharisee thank God for what God has done for him.
He
prays, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust,
adulterers, or even like this tax collector” (v. 11). Although there is
a thank you here, is not a thanksgiving for what God has done for him, instead it
is a self-congratulating thanks for what he has made of himself. It was all his
effort, his work that saved him from becoming like one of those mentioned in
his prayer. However, because of his self-centered, work-righteousness attitude,
the Pharisee has made himself worse than anyone on his list and he has thereby
made it more difficult for him to obtain true salvation. The Pharisee was
measuring with a human rule and not with the rule of God’s Word. Moreover, he
was guilty of doing this in the most holy place in this most holy city; he was
guilty of doing this in the
Standing
in this most holy place, the Pharisee speaks out so all could hear as he proclaims
self-absolution from his sins. There is no confession, no repentance, only
merit based on his works; crowing that he has done even more than God has
commanded. Proudly he addresses those in the
Our Lord then turns our attention to the image of another non-descript man standing all alone in the shadows of court of men. Jesus tells us, “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!” (v. 13).
Here
is the complete opposite of the Pharisee. Not wanting to attract attention to
himself (although the Pharisee had spotted him) he stood as far from the
Sanctuary as possible trying to fit in with the furnishings of the
No bragging, no boasting; only humility of the highest order. The Pharisee thought of others as sinners, but this publican thought only of himself as the sinner. This is a mark of true contrition. He does not take comfort in the truth that there are even greater sinners than himself; rather he sees only himself before God, and he alone is the sinner who is unable to answer to God for his sins. Here our Lord Jesus shows us a clear and pure form of confession. The publican stands in the Temple, crushed by the law, confessing with the Psalmist, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions” (Psalm 51:1 ESV) and “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment” (Psalm 51:4 ESV).
Although
the Pharisee might disagree, this publican, this sinner, is in the right place
for sinners; he is in God’s
The publican prays that the sacrifices which God had ordained for sin in the old covenant would blot out his sin so that God can once again extend His grace and favor to this poor, miserable sinner. Thus, he prays with the full force of faith, believing that God is true to His Word and that He will be gracious and merciful forgiving his sin. It is this faith that is his sole refuge of contrition, bringing him to God in His Temple.
The faith of the publican rests solely on the Old Testament sacrifices for sin. However, we know that such sacrifices were only a type pointing to the one, final sacrifice for sin; the crucifixion death of our Lord Jesus on the Cross of Calvary. There, upon that accursed cross our Lord Jesus poured out His life’s blood paying the price for the sin of all men; He and He alone was the full propitiation for all sin.
Jesus
then says, “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” (v. 14). In these words of absolution, our
Lord Jesus makes it clear God alone justifies. Moreover, this was accomplished
by our Lord Jesus’ death on the Altar of the Cross. This is the central
doctrine of Holy Scripture, the sinner’s one hope of salvation; God declares a
sinner justified by faith in the life, death, and resurrection of His Son,
Jesus Christ; Jesus Saves Sinners such as
Me!
That the publican was acquitted and the Pharisee was not is self evident in these words of Jesus. The Pharisee put himself on a high and grand pedestal of self-righteousness and works-righteousness, which are contrary to God. God could not allow this lie to endure. The Pharisee had spurned God’s true righteousness for sinners; faith in His Son, Jesus Christ and had claimed for himself a sham righteousness which leads only to oblivion. The publican, on the other hand, had been humbled by the law, which filled him with contrition, leading him to make a true confession before his heavenly Father. He turned only to God, in faith, for the forgiveness promised to all who believe and repent.
This parable provides a powerful vision of ourselves; a vision which reminds us; only Jesus Saves Sinners such as you and me. Amen.
Let us pray, Lord God, heavenly Father, You have sent us Your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ, as a propitiation for our sin. Thus, I implore You, holy Father, have mercy on me, a poor miserable sinner! You have called and sent my pastor, in Your name and stead, to hear my confession with Your ears of mercy, while forgiving me with Your own voice. Help me not to neglect Your gift but to lay hold of it with an eager confidence rejoicing that in Your words of absolution I knew that You are creating in me a clean heart and restoring to me the blessed joy of Your salvation. We pray for this in the name of Your Son, Jesus who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
May the Peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.