Are you a good person? Better than most? In this message, Pastor Eric Robertson shares a parable of Jesus that addresses the difference between those who are self-righteous and those who have through humility received the righteousness of God.  

 Luke 18: 10-14  

 Pharisees were the good guys. They were the only people in Jerusalem doing something about the Roman occupation. 

 Tax Collectors were traitors! They were Jews selected by Roman officials because they knew the culture and everyone's secrets. 

 Breakdown

 Vs 10:

 It would have been normal to see a Pharisee stand in the temple and pray, but very odd to see a tax collector there. 

 Vs 11-13 

 The Twist

 Vs 14 

 This is the reversal! This is the shocking end. If you were listening to this parable as Jesus told it, offense would be setting in, anger would be brewing. 

 The bad guy finds redemption and the good guy finds condemnation.

 Vs 9  To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable:

 Jesus is telling this parable to people who think they are better than they are. People, who through pride, believe that their efforts are enough to restore union with God. 

 Kingdom Truths from the Parable

  1.  Self-righteousness blinds us to our brokenness.

 Self-righteousness is a reliance on one's own perceived goodness, morality, or religious works to justify oneself before God.

 Self-righteousness is a sin that blinds us to our own brokenness. When you are looking down on everyone else, you can't look in the mirror.

 God is looking for more than compliance. He is looking for surrender.

 2. We are saved by grace, not good behavior.

 How you receive grace, shows you what you believe to be true about God. Those of us who feel like we need to work for or earn God's love may see God more like a boss. His grace flows from His eternal desire to be your Father.

 "Jesus did not come to change God's mind about us; He came to reveal the eternal truth that we are beloved."

 -Baxter Kruger

 In other words, God's grace doesn't purchase His love, it reveals it.

 Ephesians 1:4-5 

 Ephesians 2:8-9

 3. Pride Ruins, Humility Restores.

 Galatians 6: 3-4 

 The reason pride is so dangerous is that it removes our ability to be reliant.

 If you don't think you need help, you are at risk of rejecting the very thing required to save you...God's grace.

 James 4: 6-10

 Conclusion:

 The story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector is a warning to us. Jesus leaves us with two choices at the end: either remain humble and allow God to elevate us or get knocked down. Some of us require the latter. 

 But the scandal of the Gospel is that there is grace for the humble, and grace for the proud.

 Question: Who are you trusting in?