Humble

We are currently revisiting the story of Jesus as written by Luke. Our goal is to complete Luke’s account with the RESET series. In order to do that, we will periodically skip over a passage. Today, Jesus reminds us that it is all about our perspective.


Luke 18
9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”


Humble. The Pharisee was doing all the right things; but for all the wrong reasons. It’s all really a matter of perspective. The Pharisee was viewing himself through the lens of others ... searching for self worth by focusing on the faults of others. The tax collector was viewing himself through the lens of God ... acknowledging his own personal faults and finding self worth in accepting God’s love ... grace ... mercy. I think the real challenge is not switching lens in the middle of our journey. We have a tendency to begin with humble acceptance; but changing to prideful comparisons. What’s your perspective look like right now?