Luke 18:13, “And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner!’”
If you grew up going to church there is a good chance you can identify this verse as part of the parable about the Pharisee and the tax collector. Both men went down to pray, the Pharisee spoke about all the good deeds he had done, whilst the tax collector couldn’t even look up to heaven because of his shame. We see in verse 14 that he (the tax collector) left “justified rather than the other.”
Half of the parable focuses on the humility of the tax collector. He was ashamed of his sin, and he understood his inferiority in comparison to God. He did not attempt to justify himself and his sin because he was aware that he was guilty and only God could justify him. Because of that he was commended by God (verse 14).
On the other side we see a Pharisee. The Pharisees were the “spiritual leaders” of the day. The Pharisee came to God with a spirit of pride. He did not know his heart and he did not seek God. We know this because his prayer was in regard to his “good deeds”. If he knew his heart, or if he sought God’s face, he would be overwhelmed by his sin like the tax collector was. His issue was he compared himself to another man rather than comparing himself to Christ (Luke 18:11).
If we look at it from the outside it makes sense that the tax collector would be ashamed of his sin. After all, they were hated by the Jews (their own countrymen) because they essentially were thieves. The Pharisees on the other hand were lifted up by the Jews and looked at as the example of a holy life. Jesus was speaking to the Jews during this parable so undoubtedly, this parable would make sense. At least it would until Jesus stated that the tax collector was justified rather than the Pharisee. But as we have seen, the reason the tax collector was justified was because of his humility, while the Pharisee was not because of his pride (verse 14).
I am sure the Jews were shocked when they found out that the hero in this parable was the tax collector and the villain was the Pharisee. However, for those of us who have grown up in church, we already know who the hero is. We know that humility is the key and we need to come to God with a humble spirit rather than an arrogant spirit. We have that knowledge because we have been to church and heard it preached, or read it in our bibles. We can read that parable and immediately know the lesson Jesus was teaching. But here’s the thing, that doesn’t mean anything if we don’t practice this truth. Knowledge is good, but action is necessary.
Do you identify with the tax collector because you recognize your sinfulness in comparison with God or do you identify with him because you are supposed to? Do you shake your head at the Pharisee’s prayer because you understand the arrogance of it, or because you know that you’re not supposed to pray like him? I can only answer those questions for myself, and unfortunately, I fear that I pray and act like the Pharisee more then I pray and act like the tax collector.
Look at the prayer of the Pharisee. He focuses on his “good deeds” like fasting twice a week and giving tithes (verse 12) and he compares himself to other sinners like the tax collector (verse 11). Can you identify with that? Do you do personal devotions, go to church, and pray so that you can feel good about yourself? Perhaps you just want to check it off your list? Or maybe you just want to maintain your image as “spiritual”? And do you compare yourselves to other people to make yourself feel more holy? Do you listen to sermons and identify that sin with someone else you know rather than focusing on your heart and your own sinfulness?
The prayer and heart of the tax collector is what Jesus wanted us to truly replicate, not just know that we ought to replicate. He understood his sinfulness, he understood God’s infinite holiness, and he was broken over it. He was poor in spirit because he recognized that no matter what he did he would be helpless to change. He was completely reliant on God.
Knowledge is not action. We may know how we ought to act but it is another thing to take action. We know that the tax collector was justified, but how many of us have the humility to compare ourselves to God and see how desperately we need Him? Or how many of us compare ourselves to others so that we can feel better about ourselves and push back at the prodding of the Holy Spirit?
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