|
"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.
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
mericiful to me a sinner."
Luke 18:10-13
Come As You
Are!
Jesus spoke this
parable to certain people
who trusted in
themselves to be righteous.
You see, the
Pharisee did not go to the temple to
pray to
God, but to announce to all within
earshot
how good he was!
But the tax
collector (publican) humbly went in
recognizing his
sin and begging for mercy.
Self-righteousness is dangerous!
It leads to
pride, causes you to find fault with others,
and prevents you
from learning what
God can teach
you.
The publican's
prayer is a role model for us today,
because we are
all in need of God's mercy
EVERY DAY!
Don't let pride
in your achievements cut you off from God.
We should come to
God just as we are,
but in humble
repentance.
And when the
human spirit comes to Him,
knowing that
anything it receives will be out of God's
mercy,
then repentance
has done its proper work!
God promises to
forgive and forget,
and to take you
into His heart and teach you
that all of His
kindnesses are due to His mercy.
What more could
we ask?
"I tell you,
this man went down to his house justified
rather
than the other:
for every one
that exalteth himself shall be abased;
and he that
humbleth himself shall be exalted."
"Lord Dictated
Them"
| 
