Rightiousness

CALL TO WORSHIP

We meet in the presence of God, who creates us in love, redeems us through faith and sustains us with hope. We come with joy, and we come with sorrow, sad at our failings, grateful for God’s acceptance. May we know God-with-us as we join in worship.

Hymn 175:Here I am to Worship

PRAYERS

Beautiful God, you astound us with your love and your grace, your abundant welcome and your faithfulness. You are constant and ever-present. We worship you today and will ever sing your praise. Amen.

Lord, we are sorry when we have considered ourselves in any way superior to others you have made. Forgive us when pride becomes the centrepiece of our lives, and open our eyes to see where this is a danger. We repent of our assumptions and tendencies to claim the moral high ground, to judge rather than to love, to use our words as ways to trample on others’ worth. Forgive us and restore us, for in puffing ourselves up we let your people down. In Jesus’ name, restore us. Amen.

God, who forgives all who are genuinely sorry, cleanse our hearts and make us new. We cherish your grace giving us a fresh new slate. May the words we write upon it be honouring to your name. Amen.

Collection

Hymn 504: May the mind of Christ my Saviour

READING

Sirach 35:12–17 ESV

“Give to the Most High as he has given to you, and as generously as you can afford. For the Lord is the one who repays, and he will repay you seven fold. Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it; and do not rely on a dishonest sacrifice; for the Lord is the judge, and with him there is no partiality. He will not show partiality to the poor; but he will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged. He will not ignore the supplication of the orphan, or the widow when she pours out her complaint.”

Luke 18: 9-14

Luke 18:9–14 ESV

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Hymn 495: Dear lord and Father

SERMON

Our first reading reminds us of who God is no one can bribe or parlay will him, it reminds us that what we have is given by God, and his grace is not something that can be bargained with.

Our second reading give an account of God’s forgiveness.

Who remembers a great example of status in a comedy sketch very old now it was back in 1966, “I know my place” which had the very tall John Cleese, he had a bowler hat and rolled up umbrella, next to him was the middle sized Ronnie Barker, with white collar and trilby, on the end was the very small Ronnie Corbett, he had a flat cap and overalls, John Cleese was literally looking down on the two Ronnies, with Ronnie barker looking up to John Cleese and down and poor Ronnie Corbett who said at the end of each sentence “I know my place” although I think his last line was “ I get a pain in the neck”

Maybe we might wish to be something like the Pharisee, standing tall because society judges us to be ‘righteous’. We probably don’t want to be like the tax collector cowering in a corner.

But Jesus’s parable challenges us about such attitudes. he points out what is really important. What matters, Jesus says, is honesty: in recognising our shortcomings and in having the courage to own up to them and seek God’s help to overcome them. Then, perhaps, we will recognise out true worth – and that of others – before God.

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector: The Pharisee makes for an easy target. He’s so obnoxious and arrogant and self-assured you can’t help but love to hate him.

The tax collector, on the other hand, in reality should be the one we ought to despise. Remember in Jesus’ day, (and perhaps today) tax collectors were little more than white collar thieves. Given the chance, they’d sell their own mothers’ homes if the owed tax. Yet, in this parable we take pity on the tax collector because he’s contrite and beat down by his own feelings of unworthiness. We naturally root for the underdog.

The twist of the parable is that, in condemning the Pharisee because he’s such a show off, we condemn ourselves: “God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men…” In this way, we are just as guilty as he is. And that’s the point – in judging others, we judge ourselves – just as Jesus taught his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount:

“Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged. For with whatever judgement you judge, you will be judged, and with whatever measure you measure,

it will be measured to you.” (Matthew 7:1-5)

The question is how can we keep from judging others? How can move from judgment to compassion? That’s what I’d like for us to think about in the sermon this morning.

First, let’s take a closer look at the Pharisee. Luke says he’s standing in the Temple by himself. Now, there’s some debate about the translation here. The phrase could read, he was standing by himself praying, or it could read, he was standing praying to himself.

The Pharisee doesn’t confess his sins. He doesn’t pour out his heart to the Lord. He doesn’t ask God for strength or help or guidance or mercy. He merely reports to God all the reasons why God ought to be proud of him. “It would seem that the Pharisee is both standing by himself and praying to himself.”

But let’s be fair. The Pharisee prays, “I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get.” (vs. 12) Now that’s more than the Law required.

He also says that he gives a tithe of everything he earns. In the book of Deuteronomy, we read, “You shall surely tithe all the increase of your seed, that which comes forth from the field year by year.” (14:22) If you take that literally, you could make a case for limiting your tithe only to your crops. In other words, you’re not obligated to give a tithe from, say, the sale of your sheep.

But it’s not enough for the Pharisee to satisfy the minimum requirements of the Law; he gives a tithe of all his income. This man’s not only righteous, but he’s also super-righteous.

And so, he stands by himself. But again, let’s be fair. He may be standing by himself because he doesn’t want to associate with such low-lifes as this tax-collector, and he may be standing by himself because nobody else feels worthy to stand by him. He’s in a league of his own.

So, not to take away from the prideful manner of the Pharisee, let’s give him credit. He worked hard to get where he was and, if we were honest – except for his lack of humility – we wish others were more like him. Raymond Bailey says,

“Pharisees make good elders, stewards, or deacons. They are the ones who do the work of the church and provide the financial support necessary to support religious institutions. Pharisees were devoted to God and righteousness, and most of their faults were the result of over-striving for holiness. Their zeal was often misguided, but at least they had zeal in their desire to please God.”

What’s important is to ask: What is it that makes us work so hard to please others in the first place? I suspect it has to do with our need for approval, and that it starts in early childhood: “Look at me, Mum! See what I can do.” “Look, Dad. Aren’t you proud of me?”

Children want to bring home good report cards; youths torture themselves to excel in sports; young adults work hard to get a higher education, then a higher-paying job. It has to do with our need for recognition and reward, and with approval and affirmation.

And, taken in moderation, it’s a good thing. It’s what makes the world go around. But add a healthy dose of insecurity, and it can become a recipe for disaster – where, no matter how much you achieve, you can never do enough.

In our parable the Pharisee my not think he’s better than everyone else, but – perhaps under nether – he doesn’t think he’s as good. What seems like a superior attitude is actually an inferiority complex in disguise, which, if you’re not careful, can lead you to look down on others and think to yourself, “Thank God I’m not like them.”

In reality those who are most comfortable in their own skin tend to be the most gracious toward others.

Try this: Next time you’re around somebody who seems overly cocky and self-assured, who thinks he’s better than everyone else and you feel your blood beginning to boil, think of the Pharisee in the parable as a little boy locked up in a grown-up body who’s still trying to win the approval of his mommy and daddy.

Grandmas always have good sayings one was, “He’s as good a man as he knows how to be.” Well, let’s think of the Pharisee in this way: He was as good a man as he knew how to be. He had been so tightly scripted that all he knew how to do was try to win God’s favour by keeping all the rules. And, if this is the case, we have every reason to feel sorry for him, rather than condemn him.

The tax collector, on the other hand, couldn’t even lift up his eyes to God. He beat his chest in guilt and shame. And if you knew anything about tax collectors in Jesus’ day, you’d say, “For good reason.”

I said at the outset that they were white collar thieves. They were worse than that. They were among the most hated and despised members of the Jewish race. They ranked somewhere just below murderers and prostitutes. They were not welcome in the synagogue. Their money was not accepted by other Jews. Their word was not allowed in a Jewish court of law. They were, for all practical purposes, outcasts.

This was due to two reasons: They were notoriously corrupt, and, as far as the Jews were concerned, they had sold out to Rome.

The office of the tax collector was sold at public auction to the highest bidder. It amounted to a license to steal. Taxes were imposed on every possible asset and commodity. There were property taxes, poll taxes, import and export taxes, sales taxes, tolls on roads and bridges and trade permits. There was even a death tax. It all sound familiar, doesn’t it?

The cost of running the Roman Empire was high, and the people were expected to pay their taxes. But to add to their burden, tax collectors could set the rate at whatever level they could get by with, and whatever they collected over and above what was due to Rome, they kept for themselves. Driven by greed, tax collectors exploited the people and became extremely wealthy as a result.

So, according to Luke, the Pharisee wasn’t the only one standing off by himself. So was the tax collector. And it wasn’t because he felt better than anyone else. He felt worse.

It was also because no one in his right mind would have stood by him. You would’ve kept your distance, as well. If you’d been a greeter at the door, you would’ve thought to yourself, “What’s he doing here? Who does he think he is? The very idea!”

We’ve all known people like that, haven’t we? And I don’t just mean crooks, who ought to be put behind bars – but worse – I’m thinking of those who prey off of the elderly and the poor and gullible – folks you wouldn’t want to buy a used car from or ask for a loan.

The world is full of con artists, cheating people out of their pensions, so you must be on guard all the time. Jesus said,

“Behold, I send you out as sheep

in the midst of wolves.

Therefore be wise as serpents,

and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)

Today, it’s hard to know who to trust. And that in itself can lead to making judgements of a different sort. When we condemn the Pharisees of the world for their self-righteousness, and we condemn the tax collectors of the world for their unworthiness. Earl Marlatt hit the nail on the head when he wrote,

“Are ye able, said the Master,

when a thief lifts up his eyes,

That his pardoned soul is worthy

of a place in Paradise?”

Jesus said the tax collector went home justified because he confessed his sinfulness and threw himself on the mercies of Almighty God. And, while that may sound just great, had we been there, we would’ve said under our breath, “Yeah, well, just don’t let it happen again.”

The offence of the parable is that there’s no indication that the tax collector wouldn’t go right back to his unscrupulous ways. Yet, he went home justified – that is, counted as righteous, even though, God knows he wasn’t.

And this is the point: Only as we see ourselves as the tax collector in the parable – saved by grace through faith – are we able to find the depth of God’s grace and move from judgement to compassion.

The story is told of a young chap who came to church about thirty minutes late – just after the preacher had started his sermon. He walked down the centre aisle all the way to the front and sat down on the carpet.

He was hardly dressed for church. He wore these ripped jeans, a sweatshirt and trainers. He had an assortment of rings and piercings all over his body, as well as numerous tattoos.

When he walked in you could feel the oxygen sucked out of the room. “Oh, my Gosh,” the people thought to themselves. They sat there in stunned silence. The preacher froze in mid-sentence. No one knew quite what to do.

Finally, one of the elders got up from the back and walked down the aisle to where the young man was sitting. They figured it was going to be a scene, but then, the young man had it coming to him, didn’t he?

The old man walked with a cane, and it took him forever to get to the front of the Church. But when he got there, he did something no one expected. He propped his cane on the end of the front pew and very carefully lowered himself to the floor until he was sitting on the carpet beside the young man. Then he motioned to the preacher and said, “Go on with your sermon. I’m sure it’s a word we all need to hear.”

This is what I hope you’ll take home with you today: No matter what your sin may be – self-righteousness, unworthiness, or any number of other things in between – there is mercy and pardon for all those who call upon the Lord. The Good News is, when you know the extent of your own sinfulness and realize that, by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven, you can be just as forgiving of others.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Hymn 370: Breathe on me breath of God

Offering

PRAYERS OF THANKSGIVING AND INTERCESSION

Merciful God, thank you for your care for us; thank you that you love it when we are honest before you, thank you that we can bring ourselves to you, in the full knowledge that you know us, you hear our sincerest cries, and you care for each one of us. Amen.

Father, we come before you with well-chosen words. From the comfort and calm of our ordered lives, we are composed as we remember the misfortunes of others. We weave words to describe their despair, to ask your blessing upon their need, your healing upon their hurt, your light in their darkness. Yet more potent than all our well-schooled phrases is the cry for mercy on a sufferer’s lips. Mercy for the sick in body or mind! Mercy for those who cry out in grief! Mercy for all who cower in fear! Mercy for the hungry! Mercy for those with nowhere to lay their heads! Maybe, sometimes, we have cried these things from the depths of our own need. Today, we cry on behalf of all your suffering children. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayers, and may our cries come unto you. Amen.

Hymn 545: Be Thou my Vision

BLESSING

You, O Lord, are here among us. You call us by name, and you never give up on us. We feel humble, because you are so awesome. We place all our hope and trust in you. Give us courage to boast about your love for us, wherever we go, today and always. Amen.