Our courts are backed up for years, and most of them are due to relationship problems. For example:
(1) WE HAVE MARRIAGE RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS
When we see the way some husbands and wives act towards each other, it is hard to believe that at one time they stood at the sacred altar before God and man, and declared their love for each other in holy matrimony.
They should not have gotten married by the Justice of Peace, but by the Secretary of War!
Illus: Someone said, “Marriage is when a man and woman become as one; the trouble starts when they try to decide which one.”
We have marriage relationship problems in this country. But also-
(2) WE HAVE NEIGHBOR RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS
So often, someone in the neighborhood does something to cause the other neighbors to become angry. They can not understand what they have done to cause their neighbor to be so angry with them.
Illus: Donald MacDonald, from the Isle of Skye, went to study at an English university and was living in the hall of residence with all the other students there.
After he had been there a month, his mother came to visit him. She said to him, "And how do you find the English students, Donald?" "Mother," he replied, "they're such terrible, noisy people.
• The one on that side keeps banging his fist on the wall and won't stop.
• The one on the other side screams and screams all night."
“Oh Donald! How do you manage to put up with these awful noisy English neighbors?" "Mother, I do nothing. I just ignore them. I just stay here quietly in my room and I play my bagpipes."
Listen, any time you have people living together, working together, and worshipping together, you are going to have some serious relationship problems.
It is because of relationships that the Lord Jesus tells us this parable.
This is a story about a Pharisee and a Publican. Let’s look at:
I. THE PHARISEE
The Pharisees were the religious “Snobs” of their day. That is, these were very PROUD PEOPLE.
We can see this in this parable that the Lord is telling us.
Look at Luke 18: 9-12, we read, “And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.”
You do not have to ask a PROUD PERSON TO TELL YOU ANYTHING ABOUT THEMSELVES, they are going to tell you how great they think they are, even if you don’t want to hear it.
The parable of the Pharisee and the Publican was directed at those guilty of having two problems.
Look at Luke 18:9, we read they,
(1) “…Trusted in themselves that they were righteous,”
(2) “…and despised others"
Pride appears in many forms. Some of the more common appearances that we see pride on display, are in:
• Racial pride
• Spiritual pride
• Wealth pride
• Social pride
• Intellectual pride
The Pharisees were people who were so sure they were doing everything right spiritually, that they failed to notice their beliefs were taking them in the wrong direction.
During the time that Jesus walked the earth, the Pharisees were so sure they had the right spiritual understanding of everything, that their pride prevented them from recognizing Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah.
It was difficult for them to accept a Messiah that was only a carpenter’s son.
They were very proud people.
WHAT IS PRIDE?
Illus: Someone said, “Pride is an opinion of oneself that is too high; vanity.”
Illus: Holman’s Bible Dictionary has this to say about pride. It is, “Undue confidence in and attention to one's own skills, accomplishments, state, possessions, or position… Some of the synonyms for pride include arrogance, presumption, conceit, self-satisfaction, boasting, and high-mindedness. It is the opposite of humility, the proper attitude one should have in relation to God.
• Pride is rebellion against God, because it attributes to self the honor and glory due to God alone
• Proud persons do not think it necessary to ask forgiveness because they do not admit their sinful condition
• This attitude toward God finds expression in one's attitude toward others, often causing people to have a low estimate of the ability and worth of others, and therefore to treat them with either contempt or cruelty
Some have considered pride to be the root and essence of sin. Others consider it to be sin in its final form. In either case, it is a grievous sin.” (Holman’s Bible Dictionary)
The Word of God does not tell us we are to think highly of ourselves, but the Word of God does tell us not to think more highly than we ought to think of ourselves.
Look at Romans 12:3 “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly.”
Jesus warned others of the haughtiness of the Pharisees and Sadducees: they thought they were better than others, they were filled with haughtiness.
Look at Matthew 23:5-16, we read, “But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments. And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!”
Pride grows out the imaginations of one's heart, thinking that one is better than others.
The Lord taught that pride would be a problem especially in the last days.
Look at 2 Tim 3:2, we read, "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.”
It is because of the pride of the Pharisees, the Lord took time to give us this parable. But while the Pharisees no longer exist on the face of the earth, pride still very much exists!
Illus: Someone said that if you are in a social situation, and women are talking to each other:
• And one woman says, "I was hit by a car today," all the other women will say, "You're kidding! What happened? Where? Are you all right?"
• In the same situation with males, and one male says, "I was hit by a car today," I guarantee you that there will be another male in the group who will say, "Wait till I tell you what happened to me."
(Phil Donahue, Marriage Partnership, Vol. 8, no. 2.)
Pride makes us want to tell a greater story. Pride makes us feel that we have to be in the “Spotlight” of attention.
The proud person, no matter what others may have, always seems to have something greater!
Illus: In his book, The Witness, David Augsburger told an imaginary story about a man who had just arrived in heaven. Attracted by a large crowd, he inquired what was going on, "Oh, it's ‘show and tell’ time," came the answer. He was asked if he had anything he'd like to share. "Why sure," the new arrival quickly responded, "I'll tell about the big flood we had back in 1889 when I was a boy in Pennsylvania." "That will be fine," he was told, "but remember, Noah will be in the audience."
The proud always want to outshine everyone else if they can.
This proud Pharisee wanted it to be known, “I AM NOT AS OTHER MEN!”
He wanted to give the impression that he was not normal, he was EXTRA SPECIAL!
We have looked at the PROUD PHARISEE, now let us look at the other character in this parable the Lord tells us about.
II. THE PUBLICAN
• The PROUD boast of what they can do and what they have
• God's children boast of what God has and what He can do
The cure to pride is humility.
Illus: Augustine said, “It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.” (Saint Augustine (d. 480) bishop of Hippo)
Illus: Someone said, “We are more like Christ when we are humble than any other time!”
The Pharisee tried to justify himself, but only God can justify us.
The tax collector, who represented those despised by religious people, humbled himself before God and begged for mercy.
His prayer was heard by God, because he had remorse for his sins. He sought God with humility rather than with pride.
Look at verse 13, we read, “And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.”
• Pride can be seen in our facial expression. The proud Pharisee had PRIDE WRITTEN ALL OVER HIS FACE.
• But the humble Publican displayed humility in his behavior, in that he would not so much as even lift his eyes toward heaven, but smote upon his breast and pleaded for mercy.
Conclusion:
Notice, the Bible tells us that Jesus said there were two men who went up to the temple to pray.
But one of those talked with God and the other one talked to mankind.
That is, he used the temple and prayer as a means of exalting himself.
The proud person will even take the sacred house of God, and prayer, and use them as a means of exalting themselves. They do not care about desecrating the things of God, all they care about is themselves!
God did not hear the prayer of the Pharisee, the Bible said in verse 11, when he prayed, “Then Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself…”
Listen, the biggest waste of time in our life is when we tell the Lord how great we are. THERE IS NOTHING ABOUT US THAT HE DOES NOT ALREADY KNOW!
True humility will force us to lower our heads and cry, “God, be merciful to me a sinner!”
I. THE PHARISEE
II. THE PUBLICAN
