Text: Luke 18:9-14
Introduction: If I were to give this message to you today a title, it would not come from the main text I want to look at today, but from a supporting text I want us to look at right now. One of the principles we should use when we study the Bible is to let one text interpret another. If we have trouble with one text, another can help us understand the meaning of it. In this case, both texts I believe, are straight forward, and pretty easy to understand. One though, does give us a practical example of the other. The first passage I want us to look at is in the book of James chapter 5:13-18:
Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.I've always wanted to pray powerfully. My understanding of what it means to pray powerfully has changed a little over time. I want us to look at an example of prayer given to us by Jesus, so that we can understand what it means to pray "The Prayers of a Righteous Person." The example is found in the book of Luke 18:9-14:
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.”
In this parable, Jesus teaches us what it means to be a righteous man praying by showing us an example of a man whose prayers were answered. In studying this man, we will come to see that our prayers are made effective when we first appeal to God for mercy because of who we are. We also see an example of how we shouldn't be. Let's take a look at the people to whom Jesus told this parable.
I. A Parable with a Purpose
When Jesus gave this parable, he had a specific target audience in mind. These people have two characteristics that we need to look at as a warning. I would even contend that it's very easy to be a person who displays one or both of these traits. In America today, I would say that we even teach people to have one of these traits, and we glorify those who display the other. The text says that Jesus told this parable to people who trusted their own righteousness, and treated others with contempt. Those two ideas kind of go hand in hand. If you trust your own righteousness, you will treat others with contempt. I think that most people will at some point in their life trust their own righteousness. It's what our society teaches people to do. People say things like Find your own path to God. Trust your heart. Go with your feelings. One of the highest virtues our society has is to find our own way, and trust it to lead to our God. Once someone else finds a different way, we will treat them with contempt.
A. The Parable had a target audience
1. Trust in Self
2. Hold others in contempt
B. Familiar Image: Matthew 6:5,6
C. Similar message: Matthew 6:7-13
II. The People involved
A. A Pharisee
1. Knows his place
2. Says his prayer
3. Gets what is coming to him.
B. A Tax Collector
1. Knows his place
2. Says his prayer
3. Gets what is coming to him.
III. How will you pray today?
A. Will you humble yourself?
B. Will you Confess your sins?
C. Will you call out to God for a clean conscience? 1 Peter 3:21
Conclusion:
Everybody here agrees that prayer is important, and that praying correctly is something we all should strive to do. We want to pray powerful deep prayers that accomplish good. Today we've seen an example of a prayer that gets work done. It's also incredibly simple. It acknowledges sin, and asks for forgiveness. If you want to be a righteous person, I want you to know you can pray this prayer too. You can call out to God for a clean conscience in baptism. It's God's way! Will you do it today?
Here's the sermon video:
