Humble Faith last in a 4-part series on Faith Luke 18:9-14 Sunday, October 27, 2013 The Rev. Sharon Snapp-Kolas, preaching Scripture. Prayer. Opening. The famous actor Gregory Peck was once standing in line with a friend, waiting for a table in a crowded Los Angeles restaurant. They had been waiting for some time, the diners seemed to be taking their time eating and new tables weren't opening up very fast. They weren't even that close to the front of the line. Peck's friend became impatient, and he said to Gregory Peck, Why don't you tell the maitre d' who you are? Gregory Peck responded with great wisdom. No, he said, if you have to tell them who you are, then you aren't. I. The parable. We have preconceived notions about the Pharisee and the tax collector. We view the Pharisee as a rule-bound religious insider, someone who feels the need to tell them who he is, because he isn t. We see the tax collector as humble and repentant, the hero of the story. In the first century, the Pharisees were a group who were trying to make the Jewish law accessible to everyone; they were trying to make it possible for all people to be observant followers of the Torah. Tax collectors, on the other hand, collaborated with the Roman government. Sometimes Jews, sometimes foreigners, they extorted money from hard-working people, skimming off the top for themselves. So the parable isn t about the tax collector being good and the Pharisee being bad, or vice versa. The parable does not describe either man as being good. Leonard Sweet writes, Ironically, the Pharisee treats God as a debt collector and the Tax 1
collector, who IS a debt collector, treats God as a Savior. The Pharisee lists his many achievements, in confidence of God s approval. The tax collector stands far off, too ashamed even to come near to God s holy place. He rests all his hopes on God s saving grace. One rabbi said, If there are only two righteous men in the world, I and my son are these two; if there is only one, I am he! It reminds me of two friends who were talking; one said, We're the only two honest people left in the world, and sometimes I'm not so sure about you! II. Humility and other people. It s hard to be truly humble. Remember that classic old country song, Oh, Lord, it s hard to humble, when you re perfect in every way As soon as we try to be humble, we are in danger of spiritual pride. We become proud of our humility and point out our neighbor s lack thereof. One wonders if the tax collector didn t first cry, repentantly, God, be merciful to me, a sinner! And then, with his next breath, God, I thank you that I am not like that Pharisee! I m so glad I m too humble to pray as prideful a prayer as that self-satisfied Pharisee over there. It s interesting to imagine the two men constantly trading places in the story in a never-ending, circular dance between pride and humility. I went to a rock & roll, contemporary style church on vacation a while back, an independent church. The printed materials stated with pride that the church was not a part of any denomination. No, this was a true, praying, bible-believing church that really believed in Jesus. Reading through the materials, I got a picture of a church that viewed itself as being humble and simple and real and no-frills not like those uppity, self-righteous, mainline churches. I thought to myself, My denominational church is a true, praying, bible-believing church that really believes in Jesus! And I felt an odd mixture of hurt at being misunderstood, and a sense of pride, that I would never criticize other churches as this one did. I felt that they were being 2
prideful, and gave thanks to God that I was not like them! It s so tricky and convoluted, this humility vs. pride business. Living out a humble faith is challenging. At every turn we are tempted to be prideful, even if it s only to be proud of our lack of pridefulness! It can make your head spin! III. Humility and God. There s a story about a man who came to the gates of heaven to be greeted by St. Peter. Peter asks the man if he can give a brief history of his life with an emphasis on the good deeds he had done in order to gain entrance into the kingdom of heaven. You will need 1000 points to be admitted, Peter tells the man. This will be a cinch, the man thinks to himself. I've been involved in church from the days of my youth. Then he begins to list his activities for Peter. He was an officer in his youth group, served in every possible position he could as a youngster. Was on the Church Council and every committee the church had to offer. His list was extensive. Very impressive, Peter smiles at the man. An angel standing with them also smiled and nodded as he tallied the points and then whispered in Peter's ear. Peter tells the man: "This is quite striking -- we seldom see men of your very good works. You will be pleased to know that you have 327 points! Is there anything else you can think of? The poor soul breaks into a cold sweat and begins to reach deep for every single act of kindness he could think of. He listed them as the angel scratched furiously on his angelic clip board and nodded his head in admiration. Peter looks at the clip board and says, This is quite exceptional! You now have a total of 402 points. Can you think of anything else? The distressed guy strives to recall good deeds -- like the time he helped a little old lady across the street. He finally arrives at a grand total of 431 points and cries out... I am sunk! 3
There is no hope for me! What more could I have done? O Lord, all I can do is beg for your mercy! THAT, exclaims Peter, Is a thousand points! So also, the tax collector in Jesus' parable finds his hope in the grace and mercy of God. The problem with the Pharisee is not that he is a bad person. He gives to the poor. He is the go-to person for spiritual leadership. He is a well-respected pillar of the community. The Pharisee s problem is that he does not acknowledge his dependence on God. We are all utterly dependent on God. Every minute aspect of our lives is the result of God s activity in the world. You remember the three omni s : omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. God is allpresent, all-knowing, and all-powerful. God is everywhere; God knows everything; God has power over all things. To believe that we are in control of our lives is to believe an illusion. C. S. Lewis once said, A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and of course, as long as you are looking down, you can't see something that's above you. Humility is about seeing ourselves in proper relationship to God, knowing that God is bigger and greater than anything we encounter in life. God is bigger and greater than we are that s the starting point. Humble faith is a faith that sees the reality of our relationship with God. God is the Creator; we are creatures who exist only through God s creative acts. God is our Savior; we are sinners in need of salvation. God is our Comforter; we are hurting and empty, in need of comfort and the overflowing power of God s Holy Spirit. Closing. Jesus says, I tell you, this [tax collector] went down to his home justified rather than the [Pharisee]. 4
We are justified when we acknowledge our dependence on God. We are justified by God s grace alone. For by grace you have been saved through faith, Paul says in Ephesians 2:8, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. To repent and be saved to be justified -- is to say out loud: My life is in your hands, God. I turn it all I turn it ALL over to you. Have mercy on me, a poor sinner. I don t know what the heck I m doing. I ve made a mess of my life, past and present. Without your help, I am sure to make a mess of my life in the future, as well. I turn it all over to you. I depend on you, Lord, from this day forward. The Iona Community in Scotland has a song called, Sing Hey for the Carpenter! in which worshipers are invited by Jesus to Come with me, come wander. They celebrate the liberation that comes from leaving behind false things that were once a source of meaning and comfort. Part of the chorus celebrates the carpenter Jesus leaving his tools. It continues, Sing hey for the Pharisees leaving their rules! Sing hey for the fishermen leaving their nets! Sing hey for the people who leave their regrets! Laura S. Sugg comments, Notice that followers also leave their regrets. This is affirming, since the humility of the tax collector does not require wallowing in self-loathing. The liberation of knowing that God is merciful and loving means that we can leave behind our reliance on our achievements in work or in our faith community. They have their place but not at the center of our relationship with the God of the cross and the Friend of the poor. Do we really trust that God is in charge? Do we have a humble faith that allows us to leave our tools, our rules, our nets -- even our regrets -- in order to follow Jesus? May it be true for you and me, today and always. Amen. 5