Luke 18:9-14 - The Pharisee and the tax collector

The Pharisee and the Tax collector.
There are very few more famous stories and in many ways we may be over familiar with it. Don’t think you know it all the more familiar we are with something in the bible we need to turn all our mental effort on it.
It is not spoken to the Pharisees it is spoken concerning the Pharisees – He’s not out to get at people.
V9 is analogy.
This is something here which is like something there.
And it is meant to speak to us today.
It was to people in front of him who were like you and I.
So he speaks to the crowd now we often think this has got nothing to do with me.
There’s the attitude of go get em Jesus. Nothing we like less that someone who thinks they are better than the rest of us. But this story has got everything to do with us.
Now there is a connection between the stories in chapter 18.
So at the end of the chapter we have the blind beggar who cries out to Jesus have mercy and the people tell him to shut up but Jesus stopped and said what do you want.?
In v15,16 that Iain will speak on next week you have the crying babies brought to Jesus and the disciples keep them away he’s far too busy but Jesus says bring them to me.
2 stories of people who have no right to come and yet Jesus says I want them to come.
He’s not telling the stories chronologically according to when they happened he is telling these stories to make a point.
The widow last week had nothing to commend herself, she was completely helpless.
Now you see the thread of the stories – Who can come to God? – the thread that ties this chapter together in all of the stories bar one is this, the people who can come to God have nothing to commend themselves.
There was no one weaker than a widow in our Lord’s day.
I have a 4 week old baby and there is no one weaker than a baby.
How about a blind beggar he can’t do much.
And each time Jesus tells them to come.
So you when you come to this parable the one we’re to look out for is not the Pharisee but the tax collector.
Maybe you are saying I’ve got nothing to come to God and God is saying you are the one I want to come.
1. The characters of the 2 men.
Now if you go by the stereotypes it’s far easier to have sympathy with the tax collector or the publican as he is often told.
But as we look at the story we are not to despise this Pharisee.
His religion has done a great deal for him.
Look at the passage.
He is not greedy – not an extortioner, he never rips people off, his expenses claim wouldn’t get exposed in the Daily Telegraph, no claiming for a mortgage that doesn’t exist.
He’s never done an injustice, he’s treated people fairly.
He’s not an adulterer – he’s faithful to his wife and is a family man.
Ask yourself those 3 questions
Greedy?
Just?
Faithful?
I guess if we went out on to Ealing Broadway and asked people those 3 questions they’d get pretty annoyed.
Are you greedy?
Ever been unjust? Just in the small things
Are you faithful?
There would be very few.
Now this man’s religion has done quite a lot for him.
He fasts – twice a week he goes without food that is more than the Jews.
He tithes which means he gives a tenth of his income to God.
His religion has reached his stomach and his wallet.
And a religion that never reaches someone’s stomach or wallet is not a real conversion.
It must touch those things.
Some of us are very greedy and if our conversion hasn’t touched our food habit sit’s not much of a conversion.
So the Pharisee can look God in the eye and say my religion has done more for me than it has for many of us.
Let’s look at the tax collector
He is without doubt a most miserable unpleasant person.
He collects taxes.
He’s not Al Murray the friendly pub landlord.
He is a tax collector living in an occupied territory.
Where the rulers auction out the right to get taxes saying this is what we expect to get at the end of the year. What you charge is up to you.
The tax collectors are people who’ve sold out to the authorities and of course most normal people don’t know what to pay so he’s going to be able to make a lot of money.
Con men.
You know how we view people who rip of pensioners.
It’s not simply that you wouldn’t want to see him at your church on Sunday you wouldn’t want to see him in the week.
The collaborator with the enemy is the most unpleasant of all people.
He’s an unpatriotic ma.
So here’s a man whose religion has done a great deal for him and that is a man who is a rogue and rip off merchant.
The first man is not accepted and this man is.
It seems totally unfair.
Is God turning everything upside down.
What is going on?
Secondly let’s look at the hearts of the 2 men.
The Pharisee in v11 he prays under his breath says another version he wasn’t boastful and this is what he felt.
His heart if full of praise and thanksgiving – is there anything wrong with that?
The other man has no joy, he is in agony and has woken up to what he is like and he can’t even get near the temple.
It’s written in his eyes – is there any hope? – Lord please – he beats his breast.
So in one man’s heart there is religion and in the other’s there is agony but he is the one accepted.
Now this is meant to shock us and the shock is for our benefit.
On the day when we meet with God many of us are going to have tremendous shocks – 5 minutes after death.
Jesus is saying let’s get our shocks out of the way now.
The truth is religion is not a bridge to God but actually a barrier.
Do you see how the devil uses religion – religion is not a blessing it is a curse.
So you might think what on earth are we doing here – We’re here to tell you that being a Christina is a life of faith it is trusting a God of grace.
It is losing confidence in ourselves and putting our confidence in the grace and mercy of god.
That is what faith is.
That is how we begin the Christina life and that is how we go on in the Christina life until the end.
Thirdly and lastly let’s look at the faith of the 2 men
What has happened to the faith of the first man?
He is not trusting in Jesus he is trusting himself that he is righteous.
That is quite normal I’m trusting myself.
That’s the ordinary person in the street I’m living my life to the best of my ability, a decent life. This man is putting his trust in religion, you might be putting it in your money or career
But this passage is saying we don’t come to God by what we can do.
We are saved we come to God by what God has done for us at the cross. By Jesus dying in our place
That is how we live as Christians we realise that the only reason we know god is because of what he has done for us.
When we begin to look at how he’s changed us we begin to look down on others who he hasn’t changed.
That is the road of the Pharisee.
In the famous sermon on the Mount the end of that sermon ends with these people who come to Jesus on the day of judgement and say I’ve done this, I’ve done that, look how I’ve changed for you. And Jesus says depart from me I don’t know you.
They are terrifying words.
Their trust like this man was not in god but in themselves.
That’s where their faith is.
What about the 2nd man.
He hasn’t got much, very little but slowly he is finding his way to true faith.
Which is to lose confidence in myself and to put my confidence in a God of grace.
To come to God I’ve got to lose confidence in myself.
This man has done that he realises he’s got nowhere to turn.
He has seen what he is really like he is truly helpless.
It is a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the living God but what else can we do apart from put ourselves in the hands of the living God.
God have mercy on me a sinner.
Is there surer evidence in all the world that you are a Christian than conviction of sin – that is the safest way to know God is working in your heart this afternoon.
Everyday we need to realise this.
You may say well I’m a hypocrite well you’re welcome here, I’m greedy you’re welcome, I’ve even been unfaithful well you are welcome. If you realise that your only hope is to trust in Jesus Christ.
God be merciful to me a sinner – if that’s you, you’re on the right road and that is road we tread as Christians from the beginning to the end.
So where’s your faith? In yourself or In God?