Own Righteousness

Transcript:

The Lord is working in your heart, even when you don’t sense it. He’s not rejected you, because you got it wrong several times. Don’t worry! He’s still got you covered with His grace and mercy. All He wants from us, is a humbled heart that is willing to change….

Let’s read from Luke 18:9 – “Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to Heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Our worship, our relationship with God cannot be based on our efforts to prove how worthy or how qualified we are, to be in His presence. Is our spirituality based on how better off we are when compared to others? Do we constantly judge people who doesn’t share the same amount of faith like us? Jesus told this story of the Pharisee and the tax collector to shake the belief system of people who had great confidence in their own righteousness, who then, disregarded the need for grace and mercy of God in their lives. If anytime we see ourselves falling in this trap, be quick to return to Jesus and repent of our ways. This parable is a beautiful illustration of the heart of God. And also, an explanation on the posture of heart, God smiles at, and, Heaven rejoices in. As the tax collector humbled himself by acknowledging his ways and need for God’s mercy, he returned home justified in the eyes of the Lord.

Our relationship with God cannot be based on what we have done. It is purely based on the posture of our heart. Share on X

Let’s take time to introspect our walk with God…do we exalt ourselves by exhibiting a great sense of spirituality, while we scorn others for their simple ways? Do we have to take conscious measures to humble ourselves, rather than asking God to humble us? If we posture our heart in humility and say, ‘here I am Lord, you know my failures, you know my going out and coming in, you know every detail of my life. And now, I ask you to help me overcome the pride of my heart, all the self righteousness in my heart, help me overcome the self sufficiency, I’ve clung to, help me overcome this form of spirituality I claim to have.’ When we pray a prayer like that, we go back home justified and our worship will be accepted and celebrated in Heaven.