Skip to content

“Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 18:9-14 NLT

What Jesus knows about all of us

  • All of us are looking to find a sense of approval and self-worth
  • All of us are looking to find something to remove our guilt and shame
  • All of us are looking for a sense of righteousness
  • Jesus wants us to find all of these by learning how to live from the inside out rather than outside in

Two Men

  • A Pharisee: Literally “Separate ones”. Religious elite
  • A Tax Collector: Jews who collected taxes from the Jews on behalf of the Romans and extorted more than required to get rich.

Two kinds of people

  • The Proud
  • The Humble

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6 NLT

Two prayers

“The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself…” Vs. 11

“But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ Vs. 14

Two Paths

  • Performance

“Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else…” Vs. 9

  • Grace

“I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God.” Vs. 14

Two Choices

  • Will I choose to live from the outside in like the Pharisee?
  • Will I choose to live from the inside out like the humble tax collector?