Entry
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector / Stop performing
What did Jesus mean
Stop performing.
Where did Jesus say this
Luke 18:9–14 — “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people — robbers, evildoers, adulterers — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God.”
A history lesson
To understand this verse, you do need to understand the context of what a Pharisee was in Jesus’s day. Think of a Pharisee as your local Bible teacher, but extremely devout, structured, and no-nonsense. To keep everyone in line, they start making up additional rules around the Bible. They do this because they want to make sure you don’t get anywhere near crossing the line. You could say it was preemptive; however, it got out of hand. Eventually, there were so many rules around religion that it made it hard to actually be religious. It’s like the movie Footloose. The local “Pharisee” made it illegal to dance because dancing could lead to “evil” — but correlation does not imply causation.
Tax collectors, on the other hand, could be seen as an extension of the modern-day IRS. They were bullies. They “bought” the rights from Roman officials to collect taxes in their jurisdiction. They were allowed to collect far beyond what was actually owed, which made them both rich and hated.
Words Behind the Words
The Greek word for justified is dikaioō, and in this verse Jesus used dedikaiōmenos, which is the perfect passive participle form of the word. Instead of fully breaking down what that means grammatically, just understand that it means something was completed and the effects of it are ongoing (like when you eat something and then you are full). The word itself means “to set right” or “to declare righteous.” Translation: the tax collector was declared right by God, and left the temple still in that state. The Pharisee had the opposite outcome.
What Jesus did not mean
Jesus did not mean that all tax collectors are good. He also did not mean that all Pharisees are bad. He’s specifically talking about spiritual posture.
One went into the temple with a closed mind and his hands clasped, telling God who he thinks he is.
The other went into the temple with an open mind and his hands outstretched, asking God for mercy.
One was performing, the other was not.
Where to start
This parable is both a lesson and a warning.
Don’t perform for God.
He knows when you’re lying. Be honest and vulnerable, so you can keep the door open and the connection strong.
Don’t assume someone is good because they present themselves as such.
Evil can dress itself up as righteousness. Just because someone is attached to goodness, doesn’t mean they are good.
What does this look like in the modern world?
You feel like a fraud and you should, or you don’t feel like a fraud when you should.
For example:
You’re new to the job. You don’t have on-the-job experience, but you’re pretty smart. So instead of asking for advice, you jump right in. Who cares if that other guy is smart. You’re smarter. (The Pharisee)
You’ve been doing the same job for a while now, and you know you’ve been slacking. The paycheck comes whether you slack off or not. But you’ve been second-guessing yourself recently. Should you try harder? (The Tax Collector)
In either case, Jesus is saying: keep the door open. There’s always room for improvement. There’s always something more to learn. When you shut the door, you’ve closed the door on growth.
Benefits
You stop performing.
You keep the door open.
Also said as: the Pharisee and the publican · God, be merciful to me a sinner · the Pharisee and the tax collector