Friday, February 9, 2007

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector, Part 29 of 44

TEXT: "Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 'Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 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. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I possess." 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." 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' " (Luke 18:9-14).

IDEA: Humility comes from seeing ourselves before God.

PURPOSE: To help listeners understand how to be humble.

If I said to you, "Do you think you’re a good . . ."

If I ask you, “Are you a humble person?” what would you say?

Can you think of anyone you might ask that question who would respond, “Yes, I think that’s one of my greatest virtues -- I’m really a humble person”?

Read again the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector found in Luke 18:9-14.

What is the application Jesus makes to those of us who hear Him (18:14b)?

(Where does humility come from?)

I. Does it come from looking inside you?

Is humility the same as an inferiority complex? Is it the same thing as a bad self-image?

Do you think Jesus was humble? Do you think He had a bad self-image or an inferiority complex?

II. Does humility come from comparing ourselves to other people?

If we compare ourselves DOWN, that can make us conceited, even proud. The Pharisee does that (v. 9) when he compares himself to the tax collector.

Look at it the other way: if we compare ourselves UP, does that work? It discourages us. It doesn’t produce humility; it just grinds us down.

III. Does humility come from looking up into the face of the God before whom we live?

The Pharisee and the tax collector were in the temple, and the tax collector sees himself before God.

Seeing God, he saw himself (the sinner), and seeing himself, he saw his sin, and seeing his sin, he cried out for mercy (on the basis of the sacrifice).

Humility in the Bible is always a Godward virtue. It is not a comparative virtue. It is not the virtue of the psychologically damaged or of those who feel inferior to others. It comes from really seeing what you are in your attitudes and your actions as God alone knows you to be.