Have Mercy On Me

Good Morning,

Luke 18:9-14 (NIV)
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: "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."

My most favorite prayer in the Bible, I think, we read here today. "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." It's one that I pray often, I'm afraid. But, it's also one that is simple and exactly to the point.

"Oh, Lord! Please, have mercy on me! Forgive me, please, for I have sinned."

The best part about this prayer that comes from my heart and then my mouth, is the fact that God not only hears my prayer, but...without a doubt...He answers my prayer and tells me, "Yes, my child, I will have mercy on you. I forgive you." And, it doesn't matter whether I have to pray this once or a hundred times in a day, the answer is always the same.

But, that being said, let's just take a look at the rest of this short parable for a moment.

The Pharisee is like the person we hear say something like, "Well, at least I didn't do _______ (fill in the blank) like John (or Mike or Pete or....) did. I'm sure better than that!" You know you've heard it. And then it's almost always followed by, "And, you know that I'm faithful with my tithes and I volunteer to help all the time." Maybe, like me, at some point have even said it. Saying something like that, pointing out that you didn't do this sin or that, letting people know that you tithe and give, is exactly like the Pharisees of old, isn't it? And Jesus isn't too kind with them in these verses. When Jesus says, "I tell you that this man (the tax collector), rather than the other (the Pharisee), went home justified before God," He's telling us that true and heart felt contrition is what God wants to hear from us. Why in the world would we expound on our own attributes when, of course, God already knows what we've done, not done, and what's in our hearts. This bragging about our "righteousness" is not only unnecessary, it just shows our pride; our sinful pride.

What we need to remember here is that we need to be much more like the tax collector and much less like the Pharisee. We need to be truly sorry for the sin in our lives and we need to show that true contrition in our prayers when we talk to the Father. And, we need to keep those right things we do close to the vest, so to speak, and simply allow God to see them and recognize them as He will. As Jesus put it so well and so clearly, "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

We need to take those words to heart and keep them clearly in our minds.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David