Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of Scripture from The book of Luke.
Luke 18 ⁹ And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
¹⁰ Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. ¹¹ 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.
¹² I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. ¹³ 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. ¹⁴ 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.
First of all, in this passage the proud Pharisee was commending himself, which means to speak very highly of oneself and to praise with approval. But no matter how much people exalt themselves, each of us will have to answer to God for the things that we have done, whether good or bad. Many people are filled up with so much pride that they actually believe that nothing they could ever do could prevent them from inheriting eternal life! Others feel that they are a very religious and decent person who is worthy of salvation, yet at the same time, they won’t submit to the teachings of Christ. Rather than allowing themselves to be judged by scripture, they turn themselves into their own judge and jury. Think about an earthly judge who administers the exact same penalty for a certain crime that people commit, yet if they were the defendant on trial, they would treat themselves very differently. This is the crux of standing in judgment over yourself. Many people judge themselves worthy of the Kingdom of heaven, but they refuse to repent of their sins. Scriptures are clear that unless they repent they will perish, no matter how they pat themselves on the back. Pride is a killer, but religious pride is even worse!
“Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.” Proverbs 16:5
Like the proud Pharisee, Capernaum was filled up with spiritual pride, exalting themselves into the heavens, but refusing to repent of their sins.
“And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.” Luke 10:15
The entirety of the Christian Life is about humble submission to the will of God. It is walking daily in the teachings of scripture and learning to please Him in everything. But in order to enter eternal life, the choice will be completely up to Him. After all, He is the one who will make that final determination if we actually served Him from the heart. Some people will boast proudly of their own achievements and pat themselves on the back, but ultimately will be rejected at judgment Day simply because they never did the will of God from the heart.
Matthew 7 ²¹ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. ²² Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? ²³ And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
We long to hear HIS words, well done thou good and faithful servant!
“His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” Matthew 25:21
The Apostle Paul didn’t compare himself to those who commended themselves. He didn’t even judge himself, knowing that it is the Lord’s approval that we must obtain in order to enter into eternal life.
2 Corinthians 10 ¹² For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.
2 Corinthians 10 ¹⁷ But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
¹⁸ For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.
2 Corinthians 3 ¹ Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? ² Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men: ³ Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
1 Corinthians 4 ³ But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. ⁴ For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.
Paul didn’t live his life as though he had already obtained eternal life. After all, the Christian Life is a race that is not completed until judgment Day when the rewards for service are finally given.
“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12
The Apostle Peter warned the church about spiritual pride. Rather than puffing each other up, they needed to humble themselves under the mighty hand of God.
1 Peter 5 ⁵ Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and givth grace to the humble. ⁶ Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.
Not everybody who professes to be a Christian is truly sincere in their heart. Some of them are only involved in the Christian faith to be seen by others.
Matthew 6 ¹ Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. ² Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
Romans 2 ²⁹ But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
No matter what people say about you, and no matter what you say about yourself, in the end, it only matters what the Lord Jesus thinks of you. Did you walk according to His will? Were you humble enough to repent of your sins? Were you obedient to the teachings of scripture? These are the things that matter most of all. We must seek the praise of God, rather than men, and avoid at all costs, the vanity of….
……Patting Yourself on the Back
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious goups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.❤️
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