Jesus told the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector to teach us how to pray. This daily devotional shows us how the tax collector prayed the right way.
Nuggets
- The tax collector’s prayer reflected what was in his heart; fortunately, it was after God’s heart.
- The tax collector knew salvation was received only by grace and justification through the blood of Jesus.
Devotions in the Luke’s Diagnosis and Prescription series
Devotions in the How Should We Pray? series
Let's Put It into Context #1
In the last devotion, we came up with the following nuggets:
- It is right for us to go to God’s house to pray.
- The Pharisee’s prayer reflected what was in his heart; unfortunately it was not after God’s heart.
- The Pharisee mistakenly prescribed to a works-based salvation instead of salvation by grace.
Let's Put It into Context #2
Publicans were seen as second-class citizens — if that. Because their employer was the Roman government, they were excommunicated. They couldn’t testify in court. Stapfer contended they had little more rights than the heathens. No fundamental Jew would talk to, let alone eat with, a publican.
Resource
Let’s see what we come up with through a deeper look.
The Humble Tax Collector Prayed
“But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even raise his eyes to heaven but kept striking his chest and saying, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner!’” (Lk. 18: 13 CSB)Bible Verse
The tax collector’s prayer reflected what was in his heart; fortunately, it was after God’s heart.
God only looks favorably on those who acknowledge they have broken His laws and commandments. He saves only those who are sorry for their sins and genuinely want to have His character.
In the last devotion, we said that we need to approach God humbly. But what does that mean?
Schmitt helped us out there. He wrote humility “… is when we acknowledge the infinite majesty of God and our own misery.”
Resource
That goes along with what we said in the last devotion. We have to determine what God is and what we are not. God is virtuous, perfect, and holy. We are not.
Part of me is going, how can people be so arrogant when they approach the Sovereign God. The other part of me is going, silly willy, I bet everyone does it at one time or another — at the very minimum — me included.
It amazes me sometimes how we think God is going to welcome our arrogance. Well, maybe welcome isn’t the right word. He is at least going to allow it.
We just finished the first batch of devotions on the attributes of God. We started with the list of what He is and we aren’t.
- Eternal and Infinite
- Unchangeable and Immutable
- Self-Sufficient/Self-Existent
- Mysterious and Incomprehensible
- Unified and One
- Sovereign
- Omnipotent and Powerful
- Omniscient and All-Knowing
- Omnipresent
- A Spirit
- Transcendent
- Pure
- Three in One
Our arrogance is pitifully small when compared to His attributes. Yet that is what we lead with time and time again.
Vaughan stated it succinctly. He wrote, “In these few words of the contrite soul there is AN ARGUMENT WHICH GOD WILL NEVER REJECT. It is the plea God loves.”
Resource
We know God’s mercy is the unexpected way God responds in love to our needs. Yep, God treats us in ways that we do not deserve. He doesn’t treat us in the ways we deserve. You would think that would cut down our arrogance.
Vaughan argued that we have to have the right view of what mercy is. Just saying the words isn’t enough. God has to accept our prayers.
Vaughan wrote, “If God, simply by an act of sovereignty, forgave a sin and remitted the punishment, it would not be mercy. Before God can show Himself merciful to a sinner He must receive a satisfaction and an equivalent. That satisfaction is Christ.”
Resource
Yes, God could just forgive everyone and not make us repent. He isn’t going to do that.
We’ve got to do our part. We have to know what we did wrong and be sorry for our wrong actions. We have to know God can fix it, and we can’t. We have to humble ourselves and come to Him.
Remember what we said in The Prodigal Son Returns Home. For every step we take towards God, He runs ten steps toward us. He isn’t going to make it impossible for us — but we have to be sincere.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Look at how the tax collector approached God. He didn’t feel that God would reject his request. He wasn’t reluctant.
I thought it was interesting how Talmage described the tax collector. He wrote, “He proved himself honourable, and there were a great many admirable things about him, and yet he utters this cry of self-abnegation.”
Resource
The tax collector proved to have moral character. What have we been talking about recently?
We are working on a redo for godliness. We are looking to redo our character to be that of God’s.
One way to do that is to be a moral person. We cannot, however, think that means to have worldly morals. We have to kick that up to spiritual graces.
What I hear Jesus saying about the tax collector was that he was being a moral person to honor God. He was using his moral actions to expand God’s kingdom.
Back to what Talmage said. The tax collector was a moral person, but his cry told us that he thought the exact opposite. Keep this in mind as we wind around to explain this.
Talmage made an interesting statement. “The Pharisee looked up; the publican looked down.”
When I read that, part of me said, “But we have to look up to God because He is higher than us.”
What Talmage was stressing here, I think, was that we have to humbly approach God. We have to be contrite about our sins. Our proud, entitled attitude has to be changed into a humble, repentant one.
But we have to watch the flip side of that. Bruce talked about being so contrite that we think we are justified in God’s sight, but we aren’t in our own.
Bruce wrote, “But a man who beats his breast, and dares not look up, and stands afar off in an attitude which seems an apology for existence, has some difficulty in trusting this instinct. To fear and despond suits his mood rather than to hope.”
Resource
We have to believe that God can and will save us when we ask. Even though we don’t deserve Him sending His only Son to die to pay for our sins, He did. He will not turn us away when we accept His gift of salvation.
We just have to accept it and grow from there.
What we are to get out of this is the tax collector’s total surrender to God. Talmage said he was earnest and humble.
The tax collector’s prayer was all about what God could and would do because he surrendered himself to Sovereign God.
Because the tax collector humbly asked for mercy, God granted his prayer. Gibson wrote that he showed his humility through his misery and sense of unworthiness.
Resource
We have to truly repent when coming to God for salvation.
Where the Pharisee led with his arrogance, the tax collector led with helplessness and faith. Let’s see what Jesus had to say about this.
On Being Justified
“I tell you, this one went down to his house justified rather than the other, because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Lk. 18: 14 CSB)
The tax collector knew salvation was received only by grace and justification through the blood of Jesus. Justification is the act through the merits of Christ that makes us free from sin because we are following God’s moral laws.
Winterbotham brought up an excellent point. It was not the tax collector’s humility and the words he spoke that justified him.
What Jesus said was, “… this one [was] justified rather than the other …” (Lk. 18: 14 CSB). Winterbotham felt, “Far as he [the tax collector] yet was from the kingdom of heaven, he was not nearly so far as the Pharisee, for he was in the right way.”
Resource
I had to laugh when Winterbotham implied that the tax collector was knocking on the door, but the Pharisee was missed the gate entirely and was heading the wrong way.
Glossary
But then I stopped short with Winterbotham’s next words. He wrote, “But never let us think that our Saviour meant this for an example of sufficient repentance. If the publican went back, as so many do after the same outbreak of self-reproach, to his exactions and extortions, to his tricks of trade, his petty deceits, and his unrighteous gains — if he went home from the temple to cook his accounts with the government, or to sell up some poor wretch who could not meet his demands; do you think that his beating upon his breast and calling himself a miserable sinner would avail him aught? Nay, it would but increase his condemnation, because it would show that his conscience was alive to his sin.”
Resource
But isn’t that what I am always saying? (Yes, I know I sound like a broken record sometimes.)
We have to be sincere in our repentance. Repentance has to be coupled with a change of heart and behavior. It can’t just be lip service.
Heintzeler said we become justified by our temperamental makeup. He noted that it needed to be a pious, believing disposition.
Resource
Being justified means we have been forgiven of our sins. We are now children of God.
Making the Connections
Only God can save us, and it is only through His pity and pardon. Nothing the Pharisee thought would save him could.
Our self-righteousness will not save us. Neither will our pride. In fact, it will keep us bypassing the gate and heading away from it.
Only ABCDing can save us. In order to become children of God, we have to admit that mankind was separated from God after the original sin, making us sinners; believe Jesus paid the penalty for those sins to become our Savior and Redeemer; confess God as Sovereign God; and demonstrate that commitment by submitting our lives to living our lives following His laws and commandments.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
How Do We Apply This?
So, how do we get to heart level? Schmitt helped us out with that.
- Only God can give us humility as it is one of the spiritual graces.
- We have to have the correct perspective. Being made in God’s image will mean nothing if we aren’t one of His children. While our souls are infinite, these bodies are not. While God does have plans for us, He really doesn’t need us. That said, He wants our relationships restored.
- God has splendor and majesty. He is Lord and Master. We don’t and aren’t.
Resource
What do we have to accept?
- We cannot justify ourselves — not even our actions performing religious ceremonies.
- We cannot change only our outside actions. It must be an inward change of heart and character.
- We cannot come to God with a prideful, entitled attitude. We have to come humbly.
- We must accept the mercy of God.
Resource
We have to come to God for salvation His way.
Father God. “Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love” (Mic. 7: 18 NLT). “For the honor of your name, O LORD, forgive [our] many, many sins” (Ps. 25: 11 NLT). “Have mercy on [us], O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of [our] sins. Wash [us] clean from [our] guilt. Purify [us] from [our] sin” (Ps. 51: 1-2 NLT). “LORD, don’t hold back your tender mercies from me. Let your unfailing love and faithfulness always protect [us]” (Ps. 40: 11 NLT). Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
If you have not signed up for the email daily or weekly providing the link to the devotions and the newsletter, do so below.
If God has used this devotion to speak with you, consider sharing it on social media.
Pingback: Recognizing Evil Thoughts by Praying – Seeking God with Elaine