A Sinner Saved by Grace

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

A SINNER SAVED BY GRACE

Luke 18:9-14

9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 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. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' 13 "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.' 14 "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." 

NIV

There is a danger in thinking more highly of ourselves than we should, but to tell God how proud we are so much better, or more holy, or spiritual than another is definitely the epitome of exalting oneself. We have to be careful not to think we are anything, but a sinner saved by grace. We have seen this kind of prideful behavior in some believers and wonder why, and pray we do not engage in prayer with pridefulness like Jesus pointed out about the Pharisees. How can one of us be more righteous than another? Is not all our righteousness in Jesus, for He is our righteousness. Therefore, if we are in Christ, then we all have the same amount of righteousness. We think there could be a problem with pridefulness, not over righteousness, or spiritual matters, but when we think with our humanity. However, the point Jesus was making is when we pray in public, rather than in our private times with our Lord. This is when we are asked to pray in a gathering of believers, and if  wax on demonstrating how well we can pray, using all the right words, being eloquent in speech, and keep going on and on, even quoting to God what he has said, making ourselves look like we are more spiritual then others than we have become like that Pharisees. God does not require our eloquent words, but he does require a contrite heart. God have mercy on us, a sinner. It doesn’t matter how much qualification we have, our educational or financial level we possess, our position in life or in the body of Christ, or how much we do, or how many good deeds. What matters is we realize we need the mercy of God for us, sinners saved by grace.