The beloved physician Luke wrote how Jesus, “spoke this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican”, and in chapter eighteen and verse eleven of his book Luke wrote how Jesus said, “the Pharisee stood and prayed thus within himself, God, I thank you, that I am not as other men are” where we read:
The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
The verse reads, “The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you, that I am not as other men are,” Luke began with the words, “the Pharisee” or “the man who belonged to the sect that seems to have started after the Jewish exile. In addition to Old Testament books the Pharisees recognized in oral tradition a standard of belief and life” “stood and prayed thus with himself” which means “was standing and fixed in a place and made orations, supplicated, worshiped and made prayers toward”, “God” which refers to “the Godhead bodily and trinity which is comprised of God the Father, Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit” “I thank you” or “I, the Pharisee, express gratitude and am grateful” “that I am not as other men are” which means “that I, the Pharisee, exist unlike other people whether male or female”. Luke shared how Jesus said the “Pharisee” began his “prayer” by telling God how grateful he was that he was not “like” other people.
The verse continues, “extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.” Luke added the word, “extortioners” or “rapacious, ravenous and robbers”, “unjust” which means “unrighteous, sinful, deceitful and who deal fraudulently with others”, “adulterers” or “ones who are faithless toward God and ungodly”, “or even as this publican” which means “or also and indeed like this tax gatherer, collector of taxes or tolls and one who was employed in the collection of taxes”. Luke shared how Jesus said the “Pharisee” basically told God how he was not like other people who were “robbers, unrighteous and ungodly” like the “publican” who was also in the temple praying.
When we meditate upon Luke's words in this verse, we see how this “Pharisee” thought himself to be extremely valuable especially when compared to other people. He compared himself to “robbers, sinful people and those who were faithless toward God”, and he gave a specific example of how he was certainly greater than the “tax collector” who was in the temple with him. God knows the condition of every person, and there are “none righteous, no, not one” (See Romans 3:10) in His sight. God knows “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (See Romans 3:23), and everyone is in need of God's “salvation” through His Son Jesus. Those who think themselves “better” than others have not examined themselves according to the standard of “perfect Jesus”, and the sooner they realize their need for Him because of their own “sinfulness”, the sooner they will humble themselves and ask God to forgive them even as He does all who yield to Him.
Next time Luke shares how Jesus tells how the Pharisees prays, “I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all I possess”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book
“Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the
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Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms
Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County"
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All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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