The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
I think God is using these words to let me know that I’m no different than the Pharisee
Several things I observed from the Pharisee: he went to pray, he fasted twice a week, he did his tithes but he was self-righteous, he’s proud, he’s successful, and he’s judgmental
I could relate by comparing my attitude for the Sunday worship to the Pharisee’s attitude in the parable. Just like the Pharisee, at times I just go through the motion of worship and judge others at the same time.
- I participate in worship, give my portion of tithe, and serve as a money counter weekly.
- I try to justify my actions by comparing weaknesses of others
- If things were going well in my life, I would have less dependence on God cuz I felt that I had the power to control my life. So when things are well, my prayer life was in jeopardy
- I sometimes judge those that come to worship for their lack of participation
- I sometimes judge those that do not make offerings. This was hard not to do when we were short, sorry.
Hmm…this is pretty sad. I'm spilling my guts out... So with all that is said, why did God not strike me down yet? Well, He is definitely a patient, merciful and loving God. This was a wake up call for me.
I pray that God will continue to humble me and remind me that he is the ultimate judge. In God’s holy presence, we are all sinners and no matter what we do, we will always be sinners. It’s only through repentance to Christ that we will be cleansed and justified. I think knowing this fact and living with remorse will take us long ways in our Christian life.
But I see you growing in your faith. Don't forget what Pastor James said at the retreat... God is still working in us. We are His sculpture that is being made by the Perfect One. God accepts us as who we are. But God hates to see us being comfortable with where we are. We need to move forward with our faith through the power of Jesus Christ.
ReplyDeletethanks il, for a truly excellent blog. we've had a lot of seriously good posts, but i enjoyed this one maybe the most.
ReplyDeletewe are all judgmental at heart, and have a terrible habit of secretly comparing ourselves with others to see how we measure up.
but the only Person with whom we ever ought to compare ourselves is Jesus. all of us without question would be completely undone by that comparison, and rightly so.
Jesus's words remind us that we are exactly like that proud pharisee, and that we will never be "justified" in God's sight if we remain so.
may God grant us all a true and right picture of ourselves, that we might weep and mourn and repent as the tax collector did. he was the one who was exalted in God's sight, because seeing himself truly for what he was, he humbled himself.