Luke 18:9-14
It’s a pleasure to read and go through this parable in Luke with you. I have previously said Luke is a clear narrative of the witnessed Life, Teachings, Death and Resurrection of Jesus, who the believers call the Son of God and God’s chosen King. Luke also clearly claims that the Good News for all human-kind lies in knowing this Jesus, because Salvation and Relationship with God is found through Him.
Let me tell you why I love this parable. Because I find out that
God justifies the Unrighteous, Sub-Christian and the Humbled Sinner
It’s something that’s speaking to my heart lately, and even now as I talk. I know and feel and experience the angst of the Sub-Christian, the Un-Righteous and the Sinner humbled. From hearing God’s verdict and mercy, I can taste this sweetness. It’s also like someone taking away a 10tonne load off my back. I’ll explain more of how this parable applies to me, later.
Parables
Firstly, a short word on Parables. Luke chapters 12-19a is where our theologian-historian places Jesus’ parables. Jesus used these stories, to explain simple but powerful truths about God, about relationship with Him, about the Kingdom of God (yes, God is a Monarch, not a PM), about future events, about human behaviour, about God’s behaviour. All parables teach explore important godly issues; but parables also divide, as you will see. Some will get it, some won’t. Some will agree and some will treat it as rubbish. But that is the very intention of these parables. [reference]
Secondly, why think about Righteousness? This is the more important question. Why do we, upstanding moral citizens, need a parable on Righteousness? We’re alright. We’re okay. We’re fine by God’s standards, in comparison to our peers. We’re decent, common sense human beings, who love and are loved. We’re pretty right, right now and we’ll be alright if we ever had to face God.
As a reader of Luke (and of Scripture), I must disagree. Let’s go to Luke 5:31-32 31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Jesus’ analysis of decent, common sense human beings is nothing less than a final medical diagnosis: people are diseased. Not just physical disease, spiritual disease. In God’s eyes, we are sick, helpless to help ourselves or others. We are Un-righteous. We need Righteousness in God’s sight. Righteousness is three-sided: a legal, moral and relational [covenantal] right-standing with God. Rightly related to God and Right in God’s sight. That’s Righteousness. This leads nicely to the first character of our Parable today, who doesn’t see disease in himself, but goodness, morality, uprightness and health in full blossom all-round. He’s “alright.” I’ve called him the Super-Christian.
The Super-Christian
Let me read: 9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
Let me explain who the Pharisee was in His day. He was alright, in fact more than alright. He is someone with impeccable behaviour. He had community respect amongst the Jews. He had professional standing and is doing well in the eyes of the public. He is educated, learned in the Law of God. His words are wise. His actions are exemplary. He is very generous, especially in giving money - at least a tenth of what he owns, probably pre-tax, to the synagogue and the poor. Similar Pharisaic figures today would be churchmen, professionals who are environmentally conscious, generous with time and money, well-liked and respected people with lots of adoring friends and fans.
But his problem lies in his confidence, see v. 11. His Righteousness is found within himself, he stands by himself, his wears his life as the medal of Righteousness before God. Well why is this a problem you may ask? Shouldn’t we too feel great in our standing before God? Should we feel confident in what we’ve done so that we can stand justified, right and acceptable before ourselves, our friends, our family, our society, and if there is a judgment, before God Himself? From this Parable, this is a crucial problem to Jesus. Let’s look at the Pharisee’s prayer:
The most obvious thing to say is that by Biblical standards it is NOT a prayer.
- Firstly, God is not addressed. I know he says in v. 11 “God” but most of his declaration refers to himself: “I, I, I, I”. I thank you that I am better than sinners, that I fast and that I give.
- It is a public proclamation, not a private, intimate confession to God.
- His purpose is to boast before men and not to talk to God. His words are phrased for men’s ears and God is an attached, afterthought. God is not his primary audience.
- But the biggest problem is his blindness. He cannot smell any whiff of arrogance, or imperfection in himself. He doesn’t sense his own ridicule that you and I should find comical.
- And as a result he shows no mercy to sinners: they are simply not good enough. Not good enough for God and certainly not good enough for him. In fact their existence serves to prop up his own moral strength and makes him even more confident in his own righteousness. When Jesus said he came not for the “righteous”, he’s referring to the Pharisaic figure who is so self-righteous, so blind and so unmerciful.
- As a result, God is not pleased with a prayer like this and the attitude that lies behind it. You know God has been known to describe Super-Christian prayers and deeds as a stench in His nostrils and burden and a repulsion to Him? [find Isaiah, Ezekiel reference]
The Sub-Christian
Let’s contrast this with Tax-Collector, our Sub-Christian, the one whom I personally relate to and feel like. Let me re-read: 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ Look at his physical position. He distances himself from the Temple or God, he’s bowed and is very distressed about his own pitiful state. He feels rotten, if you told him “you look awful” he’d agree with you. He feels likes he has a heart-ripping cancer, tearing away his being.
Why you may ask? What is so sordid and wrong about the Tax-collector? Wasn’t Jesus friends with sorts like this and wasn’t Matthew (Levi) an ex-tax collector? Surely they’re just misunderstood decent, huggable friendlies? No. It’s not like a cartoon, friends. The tax-collector is our moral criminal, he extorts family, countrymen for unjust taxes, he works with the enemy against his own, and is the moral equivalent of a pimp, drug-pusher and not the ATO.
Yet it’s his prayer which delights God and his attitude that receives Righteousness before God. Firstly,
- It addresses God. God is the only good character in his sight, he turns to him, because he feels and knows he’s wronged and angered God. God knows all that he’s said, thought and done, and he’s ashamed of who he is before God. Yet because of God’s position, the tax-collector has no-one else to turn to. He pleads with God.
- His prayer is both private and public. Private and honest as it’s an outpouring of truth, the ugly, dirty truth of confession to God. Yet it’s public in that he humbles himself in the public’s view. This sort of publicity is not a boast, but a reflection of his true grief. To this Sub-Christian, he cares most of all about what God thinks of Him: if God knows he’s Un-righteous, what’s the big deal that his peers declare him as Un-righteous too?
- But Jesus praises his insight. He sees his condition truly. And that’s why he can ask for mercy. Only the diseased and sick will seek for help. If you don’t know or think there’s anything wrong with your body, you’d shun any doctor that comes to offer help.
- And oddly, God is pleased. The Sub-Christian walks away “Justified” before God (v.14) It is the lowly who are raised, the humble who is exalted. It’s the Sub-Christian, Un-Righteous and Sinner that God justifies, or declares Righteous.
** So what have we learned, what are we to walk away with after hearing this Parable? **
Jesus flips upside down our moral judgments and equations
For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. You see, God justifies the unjustifiable, God shows mercy to the undeserving and God esteems the humble and lowly. This moral code is out of this world, it is unethical. But it’s clear God does this. You should have questions on why is God allowed to do so? Is He immoral or unjust in doing so? How can He justify the Justification of Sinners? Does it mean that God wants us to sin? Etc. But one thing that is clear is that God can forgive and Justify the sinner, even if he’s a tax-collector, a pimp, a drug-pusher, a Sub-Christian, a Sub-Human!
We are often unknowingly the Super-Christian
Let me take
- Mainstream Australian attitudes. We hate tall poppies. We hate those who do well, who are rich, who are ahead of the game. We like those who go through hardships, who can battle on, who can cope. They’re not like us, who really know what it means to have it tough. And we, unlike the leaders, the politicians, the mining giants, the corporate leaders, we know what life is like. I see this as a moral superiority, a moral anger against the well-to-do. Of course it works from the top down as well. Those immoral breeds, those uneducated, drunken no gooders, those slackards, those dole-bludgers. It’s the same sort of moral superiority. Both sides think they’re Super-Australian, or true Australian, or better than the other. Even those in the middle, have our own sense of Superiority. But please, in light of this Parable, all forms of unfounded superiority is stupid. It really is.
- Then take Asian attitudes. Sometimes we take cultural pride in being Asian (for those who are), not in itself a bad thing, unless we really mean it as something superior. Oh those Aussies, those “guei-los”. Oh those Sub-continentals.It’s as if they’ve really got their diets, their dresses, their life-styles, their bank accounts wrong. But we really aren’t that much better than another, and our laughing at other cultures, is very unmerciful in light of this parable.
- But it’s Our Own attitudes (my attitudes), that must come under God’s word today. For illustration’s sake, I find my own ugly Super-Christian head popping up in the times of arguments: oh I am so right in my line of thinking, I can’t believe he can think otherwise! I don’t need to be gentle or merciful to that douche-bag! Or in the times when I’ve been wronged or hurt, this self-centred justification comes up again. I can’t believe she would say that or do that. He’s always doing this and annoying in his words, he’s just a repeat offender and will never change!
Friends, God knows how we all in our own way are Super-Christians and Super-human beings. I’m right, you’re wrong. I’m better, you’re a loser. That sort of attitude. And it’s not just an attitude. It’s a disease in our inner most beings that affect our whole beings and make us as unacceptable as the Pharisee in an all-night prayer. The worse thing is we are blind to it, by definition. God can see it, our close friends and family can see it. We can’t, I can’t. I need this parable to jolt me into realization.
So we are called to repent humbly
- We must turn, that is we must repent. God demands that His word is heard and acted upon. But where does Luke suggest we turn to and what direction ought we take? He doesn’t mince his words.
- To Jesus (Luke 24:46-47) 46 [Jesus] told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
- Repentance is called for and forgiveness is given in His name. There is no other. You must be asking, why is forgiveness only given in Jesus’ name and what does turning your life around look like as well? These are good questions and there’re answers, they lie in the Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus, God’s Chosen King. But know this: to all who ask [reference in Luke 11:9-10], Righteousness and Forgiveness is given instantaneously and freely and with love from God the Father through the Lord Jesus. That’s how the Sub-Christian, the Un-Righteous, the Sinful but humbled Tax-Collector walked home justified before God.
So I beg you…
Seek righteousness before God
- I know it’s difficult, but ultimately simple. it’s difficult because of our pride, blindness and doubt. But once you turn you will experience
- The sweet heavenly relief of acceptance with God, forgiveness from Him and friendship with Him. It feels terrible to admit guilt, or defeat because it says that we are imperfect and that we are covering, something, many things, that are unpresentable, not nice, very shameful within ourselves, like the dirty deeds of the tax-collector. And you’re saying to the world that they know, God knows and you know that you are Un-righteous.
- But once you’ve made that confession and turned to God for refuge, the relief is so sweet. How sweet is it? More sweet than making up with lost best friends, more sweet that the sweetest romantic love and more sweet than any success because the Righteousness, the guilt-free, shame-free, declaration of “Made Right” in God’s sight and at the Judgment in the whole world’s eyes: that’s worth the laughs and the sniggers of the proud, the Super-humans who’ve got it right by themselves. That’s worth the short-lived humiliation when you’ve received the approval of God and pleasure of God. Walk home righteous before God now.
- I have the most sincere, heart-felt and sympathetic warning to those who don’t “need”. Don’t be blind. I was blind, many have been blind, but listen to Jesus and see that you haven’t got it right, not according to any man’s standards, not by God’s standards and not even by your own. There is a separation, a gulf between God and all of us who once were Super-Christians, Super-humans, Super-Women, Super-Men, so vast that it’s called Hell. But Hell’s not the end of the story: you too can walk home Righteous now, and receive the warmth and gracious gift of reconciliation and relationship with God, who is our Father. Because He is the:
God, who justifies the Sub-Christian, the Un-Righteous and the humbled Sinner
