Luke 18

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0:00 Yeah, Cain and Abel and that song that you read for us called the worst tips. We've got a rough morning, I'll grab you guys. That song, we didn't pick that song, that song's assigned to us. The story of Cain and Abel, we didn't pick it up to Simon's list. I don't know, you gotta work through that on your own. I want to look at the Gospel, neither one of those stories. I want to look at the Gospel reading that they are sign-crossed, which is in Luke chapter 18.

0:31 Luke chapter 18. And Jesus is telling this story. A couple things jumped out right away. Luke chapter 18 verse 9. He tells a parable. I mean, I know people tell stories to teach, but maybe two, three, two years ago we went through a bunch of parables for Jesus.

1:09 And they're amazing. Parables are amazing. If you want something to study, just like find something that was through the parables. And it's amazing to me that Jesus could make up these stories seemingly like on the spot. I mean, they're informed by all this knowledge, but he makes up these stories that are kind of pissy and like to the point, right? They're not long. But they're so rich. They're simple, usually to understand, but they're deep in need. You can just keep going down into the parables and pulling stuff out.

1:42 And you have the church has been going into the parables of Jesus and pulling throughs out for life in every generation, under every authority in every country, the parables translate somehow. He makes up the story, which is like goes across time and space and culture and communicates deep lasting truth. It's mind blowing when you think about what Jesus accomplished with these parables. In Luke records, maybe more parables than anybody. You record the bunch of them. It's interesting that he does, you know, because we think that Luke maybe wasn't in that first period of followers that Jesus, that he was like maybe a first generation,

2:27 but maybe he linked up with Paul in the missionary journeys and acts and then goes back and interviews people who knew Jesus when he walked around like Mary and some of the friends. And so these parables took root in all those people. Right away. They remembered the story because it hooked with them. And so Luke records a bunch of them. And then Luke chapter 18, the gospel ring, they signed for today, starting at verse 9. And he has a parable that they encourage us to look at the church does. It starts like this. He also called this parable to some who trusted themselves that they were righteous, trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with consent.

3:09 Okay, it's there's some context to the parable right off the bat. And it's important because parables are not allegory. It's not like there's a one to one. It's not like one big metaphor. Parable is a story that has one point of connection. It's important to as much as he can. Remember the context that they were in the beginning. This is why little tag at the front from Luke is very helpful because these are the people to whom Jesus addressed the parable.

3:41 He addressed it to people like this. He told this parable to some who trusted themselves that they were righteous and treated others with consent. There's two qualified fires there. They trusted in themselves that they were righteous and being enough. Okay. Think about the story with the kids. Canes figures my offering is good is to the warrant what it needs. I gave you something good. And he's trying to earn that's trusted in themselves around like he said and treated others with contempt. Looks down the nose. This is like a very natural process by the way.

4:23 If you're working really hard to earn favor. If you and I see God as someone looking over our shoulder and tallying up our good and evil. And because of that we don't give up the fair. We just work really hard to tally more good than evil. It's really hard. There's enough hard things in life to figure out. When these stack up being holy enough for God doing more good things than God on top of that. It's a lot of work and it's very easy living under that system to resent the heck out of it.

5:11 But if it's God looking over your shoulder counting up your good and evil under working so hard to be good. The best reward you get is looking at people who are not looking at positive and judging them. Because at least if you can never run on treadmill you can never win on at least you run better than the guy next to you. This is natural. When I read that I thought about the passage that we read a couple weeks ago remember where Jesus says take the law out of your own eye before you try and address this talk in the other.

5:52 And when we talk about that a couple weeks ago I read it for the first time differently I always read it. Like what do I have to do to be able to speak to the person next to me? Oh, deal with the law in my eye. Cool. Done that on to the next step. That's how I always read deal with the law again the blanking your own eye before you address the fact in your neighbors. But when I read it again the person that had the blank in their eyes didn't know they had a blank in their eyes. In theory I may have a blank in my eyes and I don't even know it. These are the same deals of blank in your eyes before you address the suspect in your neighbors. Maybe not as a requisite like step one and then step two. Maybe like hey don't most of the other people can you got enough problems on your own.

6:40 And so I think as we go into this parable we can see who is who is addressed to may say well that's not me. But there is maybe a more fruitful way to approach the parable. You know at times this is actually me. I don't have to think too many days in the past before I remember feeling emotion content.

7:12 There's enough going on. There's enough contention that each of us come across content in our days weeks and months. He told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with contempt. He said that verse 10 to men went up to the temple to pray one a Pharisee the other a tax collector.

7:44 Remember the tax collector here. Raise your hand as you've heard someone talk about tax collection in the gospel for most of us. Really quick tax collectors are from the guys in the culture. They're turn coach. They're doing so. I'm working for the grown in. They make money on extortion so they they're working for the occupying government. Their job is to collect taxes. Anything above the minimum that they can collect. They keep for themselves. So taxpayers get rich.

8:15 Extorting the country on behalf of the occupying country. Not great news. And then the Pharisees are the lawkeepers of the church. They understand all the nuances of the 613 laws and the laws outside of those laws in order to keep them from breaking the laws. They're really good church folks who keep all the rules. The Pharisees stand by himself. Pray. God. God.

8:45 I thank you. That I am not like other men. The store owners on death. Adults. Or even like the tax collector here. They're missing me. I fast twice a week. I give ties of all that I get. He's a stop stone prayer. You get the point. He's praying out loud. And he talks about how great he is. And nothing really about God. He ends up. Goes up to the temple to pray.

9:17 He's praying meaning we're talking to the God of the universe. He walks up. He stands by himself. There's no one around. So we can see who's uttering this prayer out loud. And says, Lord, I thank you. Actually, he says, Lord, I thank you. I am so great. Like I'm not like any mange to the general people. I'm not like these torturers. I'm deaf. And I'm not even like that guy. He points a guy out. So I'm not like him.

9:47 I thank you. Many names a couple of things that he does. Right? I tie a ten of all that I get. Now verse 13. Or I fast close speaks. But the tax collector. Standing far off. We're not even lift up his eyes to heaven. But he's his blessing. God be merciful to me.

10:20 I don't know if you pray very often. You know, prayer takes all kinds of forms. But it's worth mentioning. Whatever form it takes, it's worth it. Prayer is built on this acknowledgement, recognition, and then moving past acknowledgement and recognition that there is a God outside of you. Prayer moves past, acknowledging there is a God. I recognize that. And into action that says, the God can connect with me.

10:54 The will incline is your will listen to me. The God is accessible for me. So what happens in the option of prayer? And it takes a base level of confidence or hope that there might be a God who would listen. There are a lot of things in your day that are much more tangible than prayer.

11:30 That are much more like a trait cause and a fact. You know, if I'm overwhelmed and I watch a side fell, I don't have to think about how I'm overwhelmed anymore. I can just laugh a little bit. If I'm tired and if I'm like exhausted and I drink just a little bit,

12:07 the things that are driving my exhaustion received and energy services again. There are a lot of things in your week that are much more like cause and a fact to deal with the things of life. Like where we learn that we can control the challenges, the difficulties, the joys, the sense whirling emotions of life.

12:41 We all have these little tools that we can use that turn things on and pull things back where we sit in control. Prayer is this deep recognition, acknowledgement, and an option on the hope that there are some things that we are not in control of. That there might be a God who's in control and knows what God is doing and is favorably disclosed to listening, respond to the motivations of my part. The machinations of my mind, the fears of my future, the hopes and desires of my dreams, the paradigms and problems of my children, that there might be a God who would listen.

13:24 Prayer is this in the self-righteous church person turns it into a game. We played here very mechanistic, very cause and fact. I feel it's emerging so freaking hard and not getting anywhere. I'm going to put everybody else around the ground a little bit, but I feel that's a little bit higher. This is not prayer.

13:54 Prayer is a recognition of God and the tax collector lumped appropriately with the unjust and the extortionate actually plays. Goes up to the temple and actually plays. You don't have to go to the temple. This side of the resurrection of Christ, the ascension and the Pentecost, the spirit of God, lives in Him.

14:33 We live, move and have our breathing, have our breath. You swim in the water of the spirit of God. And especially as we gather in this, we know He promises to be where we are right here. The presence of God is with us now. You don't need to go anywhere. The presence of God meets you in the shortest scripture, in the encouraging words of the faithful. You have to go to the temple. God is available to you all the time.

15:05 And the tax collector takes them up on the opportunity unless you were happy. Verse 13, but the tax collector standing far off would not even lift up his eyes to heaven. But be his breath saying God be merciful to me tonight. Verse 14. I tell you, Jesus, Jesus, I tell you, this man went down to his house dressed the conduit rather than the other.

15:40 For everyone who exalts himself will be humble, but he who humbles himself will be exalted. Okay, rectify with the real church word, but like when you think about this for a second, it is mind-blowing. They go to the temple because at the time Jesus is walking around on earth, there is a place where God is. God is in the temple, in the Holy of Holies, above the arch of the covenant where the mercy is healed. If you want to go connect with God, you walk into the presence of God as opposed to Jesus.

16:12 Without Him holding it, it's overwhelming your sins. You get as close to the defense and you make an offering. And says, Lord, there is justice required for my sins. Put, take the justice out here instead of on me. And then when you do that, God's righteousness is satisfied, holiness is given to you. And you are justified. You are in right standing with God. Jesus, two people who understand, apply, and live in the temple, this resistance, says an extortioner and an unjust tax collector.

16:46 He says, Lord, walk sin has a conversation with God that no one else knows He has, and He walks out in right standing with God. It does not say He amends His behavior. It does not say He itemizes His problems. It does not say that He left His life of sin. And now that Jesus is saying, let's not be those who look on others with contempt. As a matter of fact, let's not let's know that sometimes the unjust, the extortioner, those who look on the contempt walk away in right standing with God, and the church people don't even know how crummy they are.

17:31 This is consistent. The whole story of Trifka, God works more comfortably with the unjust and the extortioner, with the ones overwhelmed by their failure than the ones in the innards with their success. And, uh, there he does he know now.

18:06 I don't want to be an extortioner. I don't want to be unjust. But good heavens, I would like to be justified by God. I would like to be in right standing with the God of unity, the creator of heaven and earth, the sustainer of life, the protector of the future.

18:42 I would like to be in right standing with that. So where is it, right? What is it about the tax collector? I'm amazed over and over again at how comfortable God seems to be with sin. I mean, Nathan read the song where he's on the signal. But over and over, though he, throughout the first scripture, God marks the line and says there is behavior that is out of bounds, he continues to jump over those lines and work with the people on the wrong side over and over again.

19:26 If this is right behavior, but you know what, these are my people. And just keep doing that over and over again. So, though I think God is probably more comfortable with your sin than you are. Not that your sin is no big deal. The reason God can continually cross over these lines is not because the lines don't matter.

19:56 It's because the solution is cosmic in quote and eternal in significance. The cross of Christ is sufficient for your injustice, your extortion, your content. Oh, more usually God is more comfortable with your sin than you all, not because your sin is no big deal, but because you are so enamored and infatuated with your failures and shortcoming.

20:33 And so you have such a small glimpse of the gospel, of the cross of Christ. And God recognizes the cosmic significance and says I can handle your shortcoming. These do not intimidate you. So, to be justified with God, it is not required that we are a tax structure or unjust. Don't go out and find more injustice, more extortent opportunities in order to be justified with God.

21:07 You have enough. This is the trick. You see, it's not that the tax structure was such a sinner and the Pharisee wasn't. The Pharisee had plenty of sin in his life to be on the wrong side. He's a sin think he did. The answer to being justified to be in right standing with the creator and the sinner of life, the protector of the future, the accomplisher of salvation, the answer to be on right is to be fully aware and acknowledging that there is a God.

21:57 Who does what you can now. And acknowledging, knowing and opting on the reality that though there is a God who does everything that you can now, over and over again, your sure you make a better one. Over and over again, though God has laid out, here is the best way for you to live. Live with me as God, you as people, you're like, that's a nice idea. I make a better gun.

22:27 Over and over again. And the tax structure walks into the temple into a conversation with God and recognizes, I'm a man. God, please give me the free gift of mercy and he gets it. The town structure says, I mean, the parents, he says, look at how great I am. Don't make a good team. I've done more good than bad and he gets nothing. Right standing with the creator of the universe, the author and protector of life eternal is available to you.

23:07 All it requires is such a recognition of God. There is a God, it is not you. So and live likewise, just to follow it for God. There is a God in the world and he's not you. And in large and small decisions, we pretend that it is. Because we have such little, atomized, controlled things, because we've got him.

23:41 The tax collector knew he did now. He walked away just to follow it. One conversation just to follow it. I want to pray that we can be people who like the tax collector and turn our God in prayer and we walk away just to fight. Hey Lord, thank you for the terrible from the mouth of the Christ. Thank you. In bold and faced in this one that likes the tax collector, we recognize you are God and we are not.

24:21 We would drop all of our little schemes to control and manipulate the world and trust you. We are forgetting this restoration and justice against him this month. And Jesus name your prayer.