This Week\’s Sunday School Lesson, \”Pride Verses Humbleness\”, 5/15/2016

 

PRIDE VERSUS HUMBLENESS

 

Luke 18:9-14

 

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RELIGION AND CHRISTIANITY

V: 9 \” And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they

were righteous, and viewed others with contempt.\”

 

Notice that the Lord\’s audience is those who trust in themselves.

1. Jesus used this parable to show us the mind set of a proud, religious person.
2. We should not confuse religion with being a Christian.
3. You can be religious and a Christian.
4. You can be religious without being a Christian.
5. Religion can be anything you believe in and are devoted to

doing consistently.

1. You can be religious in going to work.
2. You can be religious in buying the latest fashions.
3. You can be religious in reading books.
4. Christianity is being religious in loving God and following His commands.
5. Those who trust in themselves are religious about themselves.
6. In this case, both men knew about God and the Law.
7. The religious person held himself in high esteem
8. He trusted in himself and not the Lord.
9. He claim himself to be righteous.
10. He hated those who were not like him.

 

A COMPARISON OF TWO HEARTS

V:10 \”Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax

collector.

1. The Pharisee was the religious person. The tax collector claim no religion.
2. They both were praying people.
3. They both knew the place of prayer was the temple.
4. One knew to pray to the one true God, and one only knew to boast.
5. They both had something to pray about.
6. They both were compelled to come to the temple and pray.
7. They both had something on their heart that only God could handle.

 

THE PRIDEFUL PRAYER

V:11-12 \”The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: \’God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

12 \”I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.\”

1. The Pharisee was religious in talking about his goodness.
2. He knew the commandments and he told the Lord how he had kept them.
3. He knew the legal aspects of the Law, but didn\’t understand the spiritual aspects

of the Law.

1. He made God a party to his position.
2. He thanked God that he was not like other folk.
3. He consider himself to be better than other folk.
4. Actually, out of ignorance, he was thanking God for his sinful behavior.
5. His prayer was not a prayer, but his boasting to God of how good he was..
6. He thought God needed to hear how bad other people were.
7. His standard of righteousness was himself.
8. He thought to himself that other sinners didn\’t measure up to him.
9. The Pharisee made his religion the standard by which others should live.
10. The Pharisee named the sins of everybody but himself.
11. By his standards, the tax collector was a sinner.
12. He judged all tax collectors as sinners.
13. He failed to consider the heart of the tax collector standing next to him.
14. The only way the Pharisee could lift himself up, was by pointing the finger

at the tax collector.

1. The Pharisee fail to consider that when you point your finger at someone else,

you got four of your fingers  pointing back to you.

1. He had the finger of pride pointing to him.
2. He had the finger of false accusations pointing to him.
3. He had the finger of selfishness pointing to him.
4. He had the finger of hate pointing to him.
5. You cannot beat someone without doing some damage to yourself.
6. The Pharisee mention some sins he was not guilty of, but fail to mention

the sins he was committing by judging his brothers.

1. The Pharisee failed to mention that all have sinned and fall short of the glory

of God.

1. He failed to mention that he was born in sin and shaped in iniquity.
2. He failed to understand that we are not justified by works.

 

GOOD BY MY OWN STANDARDS

1. By the way Lord (Verse12), I know I am good, because I tithes and

fast twice a week.

1. The Pharisee thought he was doing God a favor by tithing and fasting.
2. Tithing was an obligation to support the temple and the priest.
3. Fasting was his time to reflect on the goodness of God.
4. The Lord said, \”I would rather obedience than sacrifice.\”
5. He was so sure of his self righteousness that he was blind to his sinfulness.
6. He was so full of himself, that he saw no need for God\’s mercy or to

ask for forgiveness.

1. His prayer was thoughtless and selfish because he thank God for himself and

not for the goodness of God.

 

 HUMBLENESS BEFORE THE LORD

13 \”But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his

eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, \’God, be merciful to me, the

sinner!\”

1. The tax collector knew he was a sinner and owned up to his guilt.
2. He humbled himself before the Lord.
3. He considered his sins so dreadful that he would not look up at the Lord.
4. He beat himself into submission.
5. He confessed his sins.
6. He asked for forgiveness.
7. He asked God to be tolerant with him.

 

JUSTIFIED BY THE LORD

14 \”I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who

exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.\”

1. The tax collector came to Christ a sinner; but left with a clean slate.
2. The tax collector came to Christ confessing his sins, but left forgiven.
3. Jesus approved the humbled behavior of the tax collector.
4. The tax collector recognized that the only way he could be free of his sin was by

the mercy of the Lord.

1. The tax collector had a repentant heart.
2. He came to the temple a sinner but he left justified by the Lord

 

CONDEMED BY HIS ATTITUDE

1. The Pharisee came to the temple a sinner and left a sinner
2. He came with his pride and left with his pride.
3. He came with his self-righteous behavior and left with his self righteous behavior.
4. He came condemned and left condemned.
5. He came to talk, but not to pray.
6. He came to talk, but not to listen.
7. He came in the dark and left in the dark.

 

GOD LOVES THE HUMBLE, BUT HE HATES THE PROUD

 

Rev. M. Mitchell

Asst Pastor Of Greater Macedonia Baptist Church

5510 West Sam Houston Parkway

Houston Texas