A Sermon on Luke 18:9-14
For this gospel lesson this week I want you to put on your First Century lenses. Or your First Century ears. I want you to do that because I think First Century listeners would have been surprised by this parable. Surprised because Jesus told a parable where the bad comes out on top and because Jesus is directing the parable to a specific group of people. A group of people who trusted their own self-righteousness. Could that group be us?
Jesus tells us that the reviled tax collector went home justified in the eyes of God and not the respected pharisee. This was a surprise ending in the first century.
We’re not surprised or shocked by this story now because we have heard it dozens of times. We have been conditioned to be critical of the pharisee. We are looking at this story from our lofty 21st Century vantage point where the humble the tax collector is the hero compared to the well-regarded pharisee.
Parables are like fishing lures: Full of attractive features like shiny surfaces, bright colors, noisy beads, different shapes-- all with a sharp barb hidden inside.
Only when the fish has fully engaged with the lure or the fly, and swallowed the hook that is, does the fish get the point.
When it comes to parables, we are the fish, and until the story lures us and we fully engage with it, we might miss the point. Let’s look deeper into this story.
We know this is going to be one of those pointy parables because Jesus puts us on notice of our own self-righteous folly when he directs the story to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt.
The Pharisees held a special role in first century Judea where they were notable for their piety. Their focus was on the priesthood of all believers. The home, not the temple, was the central focus of the pharisees’ religious life. The pharisees would have been teachers of the Torah and part of their job was to explain the Torah, to make the Scripture available to all. Pharisees were out in the world.
Pharisees were a mixed bag of people because, well, because they were people. Some opposed Jesus because he drew attention of the Romans with such large crowds. Some wanted to know more about Jesus’ teaching. Most of them really loved to argue as religious scholars. On the whole not bad people, right?
The tax collectors were collaborators with the Roman Empire. They collected taxes for the oppressive economic system. The tax collector was responsible for collecting a certain amount of money from a certain geographic area. Whatever money he collected in excess of what Rome demanded, he kept. Rome didn’t care as long as it received the amount it was due. Probably no one was hated as much in Judea as a tax collector. Tax collectors were often blamed for blatant unscrupulous overcharging for taxes.
Good guy versus bad guy; Pharisee vs. Tax collector.
On the face of the parable there is seemingly a clear choice of who is the good guy and who is the bad guy. But not so fast.
Before you go pointing fingers at this pharisee remember he did thank God for his life. And he did give thanks to God that he is not like other people, thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. But the pharisee does manage to remind God of what a good guy he is and all the good things he does do-- I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income. “Lord see how good I am!” the Pharisee might as well be saying.
The tax collector may be a sinner because of his cheating ways. The pharisee, while he has done good things, is also a sinner because of his arrogance and pride. The pharisee and the tax collector are both in the temple and both are praying to God—a good thing! Both men in the parable prayed to God. How do we choose one over the otherFaith requires prayer. And prayer is done best when we pray with humility, sincerity and persistence.
In our jaded world we are not surprised that the exalted should be found to be standing on feet of clay. We have so many examples in our world today of politicians, sports figures, entertainers, bright people who betray positions as role models through their arrogance and superiority.
We see it in ourselves also when we judge ourselves better than our neighbor, or the stranger, the poor, the hungry and the refugee. We see it in ourselves when look upon the migrant as a lesser being than ourselves. We see it in ourselves when we brag about ourselves and fail to acknowledge our own shortcomings. We see it in ourselves when we claim to be superior to others. We see it in ourselves when we overlook the fact that we are all created in the image and likeness of God, by God.
Jesus, the great fisher of people, is warning us of those barbs that await us- hiding among the bright colors and pretty feathers of the pride of our own self-importance.
We need to be humble in our prayers, but not proud of our humility. We need to be careful that we do not demand answers to all our problems as a special benefit and a reward for our exemplary way of life. It is always best to allow God’s will to be done rather than our own. Regardless of how good we are.
Yet, yet, there is redemption in both pharisee and tax collector. And us. The sin may be on us for judging one over the other. But they both appear before God in the temple. And God loves the pharisee and the tax collector. And us.
Peace be our journey.
