July 29, 2018
Dearly beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, I greet and bless you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. The blessed word that the Lord has given for you today is from the book of Luke 18:13-14, “And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise 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, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” 2000 years ago, in the days when Lord Jesus lived on this Earth, He spoke to the people in parables as it would make it easy for them to understand.
The above, is one such parable that talks about two people who went to the temple of the Lord to pray. One was a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee went to the front of the temple and starts to exalt himself to the Lord. The tax collector stayed at the back end of the temple and prayed. He did not even have the guts to lift his eye up to heaven; he beat upon his chest and cried to the Lord saying ‘Lord have mercy on me’. Both of them went to the temple at the same time but the Pharisee boasted about himself whereas the tax collector humbled himself. Of the two, the tax collector found favor in the sight of God and he was blessed. He left the temple as a righteous man and also received mercy from God. The Pharisee went into the temple of God thinking high about himself and came out as a sinful man while, the tax collector went in as a sinner and as he humbled himself, he came out as a righteous man. The sin that the Pharisee did while praying was that he compared himself to the tax collector and boasted about himself. Secondly, he repeatedly highlighted all that he did for God. The bible says that God Himself resists the pride.
My dearly beloved, today you need to examine yourself and check if you are like the Pharisee or the tax collector. When you go to church, you must come out as a righteous person being forgiven by God and not as a sinner. When you humble yourself before the Lord and ask for forgiveness, He is gracious enough to forgive all your sins. You must never boast about yourself. God dislikes such people. When you pray, humble yourself before the Lord so that you will receive favor in the sight of the Lord.
God bless you.
Prayer:
Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. I pray that Your children may examine themselves today. Lord, may they learn to humble themselves in prayer. Forgive all their shortcomings and deliver them Father. The bible says that You give grace to the humble. I Pray that You may give Your children the grace to sustain them. Bless them Lord Jesus. In Jesus name we pray,
Amen.
