The Parable Of The Pharisee And The Tax Collector
Rev. Philip A. Gunther
“In the eyes of Christ a person confessing sin is nearer to true goodness than a person boasting of his goodness.” (F.F. Bruce, Theologian)
Pray And Do Not Give Up
The setting is as follows: Jesus had just finished telling His disciples a parable “to show them that they should always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1). In it the Lord taught the value of persevering in prayer because “God [will] bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry to him day and night” (Luke 18:7).
The parable that follows, the parable of The Pharisee And The Tax Collector, which we want to look at this morning, is linked to Jesus’ parable about persevering in prayer. Specifically, the parable of The Pharisee And The Tax Collector deals with the attitude with which we offer up our prayers: “[For] without the proper spirit, our perseverance in prayer will be for nothing (Mark Copeland, The Parables Of Jesus).”
The Parable
“To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable” (Luke 18:9).
Jesus is going to direct His parable specifically at those in the crowd around Him who were self-assured, convinced, of their own moral purity and ethical standing. They were so very proud of their perceived moral standing before God and consequently looked down their noses at most everyone else.
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ’God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ’God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:10-14).
Two Men
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”
A Pharisee was a member of the Jewish faith set apart to maintain and further the divine cause (Craig Evans, Luke). They were layman zealous about keeping the Scriptures, the oral law and traditions pure. They were the pious ‘church-goers’ of their time who attended every Scripture study and rigorously sought to obey every law of the faith. Pharisees knew how to pray. In fact, “they applied themselves to the art of prayer (Emil Brunner, Sowing And Reaping: The Parables Of Jesus).”
We today have grown accustomed to thinking negatively of them as soon as we hear their name. However, Pharisees were highly respected and looked up to in their community. They were the ‘deacons’ or ‘elders’ of the church so-to-speak.
We need to see them as honored members of the Jewish community in order to fully understand this parable. They were the good guys; the best of the best of Jewish citizenry. It is important to remember that Jesus is speaking of one specific Pharisee and not the whole group.
A tax collector was at the other end of the spectrum. He would have been perceived by the community as the worst of the worst of Jewish citizenry, perhaps even lower. Tax collectors, in the Scriptures, were Jews who worked for the ruling Roman authorities. They were considered both extortioners and traitors - extortioners because they were notoriously noted for collecting more taxes than was owned and pocketing the difference – and traitors because they served the occupying power of Rome. Again, Jesus was speaking of one specific tax collector and not the whole bunch.
Remember, as the parable opens we must view the Pharisee positively – he’s the hero. The tax collector is to be viewed negatively – he’s the bad guy.
Two Prayers
“The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ’God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get’” (Luke 18:11,12).
The Pharisee: “O Lord, it’s hard to be humble when I see how rotten others are compared to me. Thank you Lord I’m not like those people, you know, people who steal, who do bad things and who cheat on their wives or even like this guy over there who works for Revenue Rome. Yes Lord, I am one of the very, very few who does more than even the Law requires – you know, I give a tenth of all I get to the temple while everyone else just gives a tenth of their income. I also go without food and water, I fast from sunrise to sunset twice a week and not just once year like most other folks. Yes God, thank you that I am not like these other people.”
"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ’God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:13).
The tax collector “slumped in the shadows” (The Message), way at the back of the temple, out of sight. He wouldn’t even lift his eyes to heaven as was common amongst those who came to pray but rather, he pounded his chest over and over again crying, “God have mercy on me, a sinner.”
Two Outcomes
"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14).
The tax collector went home from the temple “justified before God” – forgiven. He received a new right standing before God. He had received the blessing King David spoke of in Psalm 32: “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him…” (Psalm 32:1-2). The Pharisee went home not having been justified before God. He went home with nothing. Why the two different outcomes?
Like Filthy Rags And Wind
Note the spirit with which each prayed:
Pharisee
- Considered himself morally and religiously superior than others
- Despised those whose spiritual caliber was perceived to be less than his own; he praised himself and condemned his neighbor
- Exalted in his own religious practices
- Trusted in his own good deeds to make him acceptable to God
- Acted as if God owed Him something for his goodness
- Failed to see his sin and therefore, his own need for God
- Measured himself to others rather than to God who is absolute in holiness; he built his self-worth on the moral failings of others
- Lacked a humble and contrite (repentant) heart
How sad that this Pharisee, zealous for the faith and well-versed in the Scriptures, had somehow overlooked passages like Isaiah 64:6: “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” Or Proverbs 20:9: “Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin?” Or Proverbs 3:34 as recorded in James 4:6: “God opposes the proud….”
Tax Collector
- Recognized the holiness of God; he knew the great gulf that lay between himself and God – “[he] stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven”
- He recognized the sin in his life; he didn’t hide it or deny it. He recognized his need for God’s grace and pleaded for it – “[he] beat his breast and said, ’God, have mercy on me, a sinner”
What is the spirit you bring to prayer? What is the attitude of your heart when you speak with God?
The Bible says, “God gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). “Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up” (James 4:10).
God told the prophet Isaiah, “I live in that high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I refresh the humble and give new courage to those with repentant hearts” (Isaiah 57:15).
Remember Jesus’ own words in this parable: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14).
How Shall We Then Pray?
What does the Lord’s parable teach us about the spirit with which we are to pray? What is the attitude of our heart when coming before God?
Pray with a spirit of humility recognizing that we are sinners saved by grace (Ephesians 2:8). Pray knowing that even the privilege to come before God is a gift (Ephesians 3:12). Pray knowing that God will turn away a prayer saturated with pride, selfishness and the defamation of others. God will welcome a contrite prayer, a prayer which is honest about our spiritual state, our need for God’s grace.
“The sacrifice you want is a broken spirit. A broken and repentant heart, O God,you will not despise” (Psalm 51:17; NLT)
Pray knowing that it is to an absolutely holy God we speak (Isaiah 6:3). Pray knowing that God will hear a plea for mercy, help and forgiveness no matter who you are or what you have done (1 John 1:9,10).
Pray the prayer of the tax collector for he went home right before God.
