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For our meditation tonight before 
the supper, Luke chapter 18, our text is verses nine to 14, 
a text we have looked at before, one that I think bears often 
revisits. Luke chapter 18, verses nine 
to 14, I'll begin reading in verse nine. Also, he spoke this 
parable to some who trusted themselves that they were righteous and 
despised others. Two men went up to the temple 
to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee 
stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you that I am not 
like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as 
this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give tithes 
of all that I possess. And the tax collector, standing 
afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but 
beat his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. 
I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather 
than the other. For everyone who exalts himself 
will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for your written word. We thank you for this wonderful 
parable and what it teaches us concerning the truth of self-righteousness 
or a condemnation of it, the corollary of despising others 
and a judgmental attitude. As well, we thank you for the 
fact that you are indeed merciful and that even publicans can find 
mercy and grace to be had in the Lord Jesus Christ. We know 
that His blood is precious and that it avails even to the foulest 
sinner. So God, give us ears to hear 
and hearts to receive these things and guide us by the Holy Spirit. 
Forgive us now for all sin and all unrighteousness. And we pray 
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, on Wednesday 
night, we looked at chapter 21 in our confession of faith, Christian 
liberty and liberty of conscience. And one of the things we noted 
is that the doctrine of justification by faith alone is sort of foundational 
to that principle. In other words, those justified 
freely by God's grace are to have that liberty secured for 
us by Jesus in the gospel of our salvation. But then we are 
protected from the machinations or the judgments of men. It specifies 
there that God alone is Lord of the conscience, and therefore 
we are not to be subject to civil or ecclesiastical tyranny. Insofar 
as the civil government teaches us something contrary to the 
Word of God, or the ecclesiastical realm teaches us something other 
than the Word of God, then we need to resist that. And the 
foundation, as I said, is justification by faith alone in Jesus Christ. Well, that's not all necessarily 
taught here, but you certainly see a connection between self-righteousness, 
self-vindication, and despising others. The things just seem 
to go hand in hand. This Pharisee is proud, he's 
arrogant, he's self-sufficient, and therefore he despises this 
publican, he despises this tax collector. As well, I think this 
sermon fits in well with what we heard this morning in our 
study in the Second London Confession, Brother Cam did a wonderful job 
there in chapter 11, theological or confessional treatment of 
the doctrine of justification by faith alone. So hopefully 
this will add to that or at least complement that for our edification 
as we come to the supper. Well, as we look specifically 
at the passage, I want to look first at the reason for the parable 
in verse 9. Secondly, the men in the parable 
in verses 10 to 13. And then finally, the point of 
the parable in verse 14 but notice first the reason for the parable 
there's a context and if you notice in chapter 18 at verse 
1 then he spoke a parable to them that men always ought to 
pray and not lose heart saying so he speaks that parable to 
endorse to command and to encourage constancy in prayer. And then 
dropping down to our text, we see that the context, probably 
one still somewhat connected to an attitude that is necessary 
in prayer vis-a-vis humility, but the particular occasion is 
that he spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves 
that they were righteous and despised others. And so there 
are two sins condemned by our Lord here. And as I said, they're 
typically inextricably connected. You usually don't have one without 
the other. And of course, the first sin 
is the sin of self-righteousness. He trusted, or rather to some 
who trusted in themselves that they were righteous. Not that 
they were the necessarily most holy people on the face of the 
earth, but before God, they were righteous. Before God, they were 
acceptable. Before God, they were in His 
favor. They thought that by virtue of 
their status as Jews. They thought that by virtue of 
their status as circumcised. They thought that by virtue of 
their status as being religious leaders, perhaps. They thought 
that because of who they were, they were therefore accepted 
by God the Lord. So they trusted in themselves 
that they were righteous. They trusted in their pedigree. 
They trusted in their heritage. They trusted in their works. 
They trusted in everything else other than our Lord Jesus Christ. You get a bit of a window to 
this in the book of Philippians. Philippians chapter three. The 
apostle there is condemning what he calls or what we call Judaizing. 
And Judaizing was basically trying to make Gentile believers in 
Christ Jews. In other words, the Judaizers 
would come along and say, it's good that you believe that Jesus 
is Israel's Messiah. That's commendable. That's awesome. 
That's great. But you also have to be circumcised. 
You also have to follow the Jewish calendar. You also have to take 
on the ceremonies of Moses. So part of Paul's polemic in 
that particular section in Philippians 3, which by the way, Philippians 
isn't a polemic letter like Galatians, but rather in that particular 
section, he is polemic. He says, beware of dogs, beware 
of the mutilation, beware of those who are trying to add to 
the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. So Paul gets autobiographical 
there in Philippians chapter 3. In fact, why don't we turn 
to Philippians chapter 3? As I said, it's a good window 
into, or explanation of, what Jesus is condemning in the present 
passage. So notice in Philippians chapter 
3, specifically at verse 1, For me to write the same things 
to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Beware of dogs, 
beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation. Dogs there 
are not canines. Dogs there are not your neighbor's 
pit bull. Dogs there are Judaizers. It was very commonplace for the 
Jews to look down upon the Gentiles, or the goi, as being dogs. So in a turn of play, or turn 
of words, or turn of phrase, the apostle says it's the Judaizers 
who are the dogs that you ought to be on the lookout for. So 
beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, and then beware of the 
mutilation. He calls them that because of 
their emphasis upon and their insistence that Gentile believers 
get circumcised. This is something looming in 
the background of the New Testament documents. You see it in full 
display in Acts chapter 15 at the Jerusalem Council. The Jews 
of that generation couldn't quite process the realization that 
Gentiles are coming to Israel's God through Israel's Messiah. 
And so when they insist upon circumcision, the apostle refers 
to them as mutilation. And then notice in verse three, 
for we are the circumcision. What's he telling us there? It's 
not an external right that God is looking for. It's the internal 
heart condition, circumcision by God's grace of the heart, 
regeneration, the new birth, the reality that one now looks 
to Jesus Christ in faith. So we are the circumcision who 
worship God in the spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no 
confidence in the flesh. Now here's where he gets autobiographical. 
Though I also might have confidence in the flesh. He at one time 
trusted in himself that he was righteous. And this is the reason 
why. Notice in verse four, he goes 
on to say, if anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the 
flesh, I am more so. Circumcised the eighth day of 
the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the 
Hebrews, concerning the law, a Pharisee. Concerning zeal, 
persecuting the church. Concerning the righteousness 
which is in the law, blameless. So on paper, Paul looked like 
that righteous man. On paper, Paul looked like a 
man that was accepted by God. On paper, everything was jot 
and tittle down the line for the apostle. But as he is refuting 
this idea of Judaizing, he then launches into this declaration 
of justification by faith alone. Verse seven, but what things 
were gained to me. All that stuff he's just piled 
up in terms of his religious resume. I have counted loss for 
Christ, yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence 
of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered 
the loss of all things and count them as rubbish that I may gain 
Christ and be found in him. not having my own righteousness 
which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, 
the righteousness which is from God by faith, that I may know 
him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, 
being conformed to his death, if by any means I may attain 
to the resurrection from the dead." I think that provides 
for us a good lens by which to interpret these persons in Luke 
18 verse 9. Also, he spoke this parable to 
some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous. As 
far as they were concerned, everything was okay. But as I mentioned 
earlier, note the corollary that oftentimes accompanies that self-righteousness. It says, and despised others. Now Jesus' point in the parable 
toward the end is that statement he uses on other occasions. He 
uses it in Matthew 23. He uses it in Luke 14, 11. We 
see it in Mary's prayer in Luke 1, 51 and 52. For everyone who 
exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will 
be exalted. So he is portraying for us this 
man who is filled with pride. He is portraying for us this 
man who's filled with pride that leads him to trust in his own 
righteousness, that leads him then to despise others because 
they don't quite measure up. They don't meet the grade. They 
are just subferior. They're not as good as he is. 
And so that's the particular context, and the sin, or rather 
the meaning of despising, to show by one's attitude or manner 
of treatment that an entity has no merit or worth or disdain 
that person. You get that in the parable. 
These two men are praying there. The Pharisee is congratulating 
himself, and all the while he is despising the publican who 
can't even look up into heaven, but he beats his breast and says, 
God, be merciful to me, the sinner. So that's the reason, the broader 
context, probably the idea of humility in prayer, coupled with 
constancy in prayer in Luke 18, 1 to 8. But then that brings 
us to the men in the parable. We've already got it. Pharisee, 
the hero. No, not to us. Let me just make 
sure I make that qualification. When I say Pharisee, if I was 
doing a word association with you, and don't worry, we're not 
going to do that. But if I did, you probably wouldn't 
think hero. You would think wretch. You would 
think legalist. You would think self-righteous. 
You would think a despiser of others. You already know the 
story. You already know the overarching 
flow of the New Testament and its indictment of the Pharisees. 
But in terms of the original context, in terms of the original 
audience, in terms not only of those who trusted in themselves 
that they were righteous, but any others that happened to be 
within earshot of our Lord. As far as the rank and file of 
Israel in the first century, they looked at these men as being 
heroic. They looked at these men as the 
leadership. They looked at these men as the 
ones that set the pattern or example for others to follow. 
So the Pharisee in the story is the hero. The publican is 
the hated one. Now, when we get to publican, 
it's simply tax collectors. Now, remember in the New Testament 
documents, in the Gospels of our Lord Jesus, we learn that 
tax collectors collaborated with Gentiles. They handled currency 
with pagan inscriptions and iconography. They took money from fellow Jews. 
They were often greedy and corrupt. They are linked with sinners. 
They are linked with heathen. They are linked with Gentiles, 
harlots, extortioners, unjust, and adulterers. That's what this 
parable sets forth. So again, original audience. 
We know he's not the hero in the story. Jesus is the hero 
in the story, but As far as it's concerning us, we think of that 
man as the good one. He went home justified. But again, 
original context. They'd hear Pharisee, they would 
think hero. They would hear publican, they 
would think hated one. Nobody likes a tax collector. 
There's nothing different in the first century from the 21st 
century. If CRA knocks on your front door, 
do you welcome him in, make him a cup of coffee or tea? No, you 
keep him on your porch no matter how cold it is and maybe shimmy 
him out so he's not under the overhang so that he can get snowed 
on or rained on. We don't like tax collectors, 
do we? They're not our friends. All 
they represent are takers of our money. So they're not the 
kinds of people that you would invite over for a nice cup of 
tea. So the two men in the parable. Secondly, there are similarities. 
Notice that both of these men went to the temple to pray, which 
I think indicates that going to the temple to pray is no sure 
indicator of saving grace in the heart. Just because you do 
the right things doesn't necessarily mean you have the right heart. 
So in terms of these men, the Pharisee was as far from God 
as a man could possibly be. Even though he trusted in himself 
that he was righteous, even though he prayed in great flowery prose 
about what a great fellow he was, he was nevertheless a stranger 
to the grace of God Most High. So never get the idea that, well, 
I go to church, I tithe, I show up once in a while, I carry my 
Bible, I engage in these sorts of things. Those are evidences 
true of a lively faith, but they're not necessarily the case. there 
is the case where all that glitters is not gold. And with this Pharisee, 
that is one of the things. So they both went to the temple, 
they both prayed, neither of which are sure indicators of 
saving grace in the heart of a man. Now let's look thirdly 
at their differences. Note first the Pharisee in verses 
11 and 12, and his manner and his prayer. his manner and his 
prayer. Notice in verse 11, it's interesting 
the way Jesus phrases this. Verse 11, the Pharisee stood 
and prayed thus with himself, right? I know that we pray by 
ourselves and obviously in the presence of ourselves, but our 
hope is that that prayer transcends ourselves and finds its way to 
God Most High. Perhaps the Lord Jesus is telling 
us that whatever this man is doing, he's not praying to God 
Almighty. Whatever this man thinks he's 
doing by way of religious observance, whatever pietism he is exercising, 
it's hollow, it's a sham, it's fake, it's not the real deal. He prayed thus with himself. This was his audience, this was 
his sort of pep rally, this was his sort of a time to shine as 
a great specimen of religious observance. And then notice his 
prayer. First of all, he thanks God for 
what he was not. I'm not necessarily against that 
in all instances. It's good to thank God that you're 
not Joseph Stalin. It's good to thank God that you're 
not Paul Pott. It's good to thank God that you're 
not something a whole lot worse than you could be practically. 
But that's not the spirit of his prayer. Remember, this is 
a man who trusted in himself. This is a man who thought that 
his righteousness was secure. This was a man who banked on 
his acceptance with God via his own works and via his own doings. So notice what he says specifically 
in verse 11. The Pharisee stood and prayed 
thus with himself, God, I thank you that I am not like other 
men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. Real champ there, isn't he? Great 
love and charity for somebody that's a miserable sinner right 
next to you. You don't even try to hide that? You don't even try to not look 
like you're despising others? You don't even try to mask your 
self-righteousness and your judgmentalism? No, he doesn't. As far as he's 
concerned, he's a wonderful human being because of all the things 
that he doesn't do. He's got an external righteousness 
that's blameless as far as others are concerned. It's certainly 
blameless as far as he himself is concerned. Notice, not like 
other men, I'm not an extortioner, I'm not unjust, I'm not an adulterer, 
and I'm certainly not like this tax collector. Brethren, if this 
is the posture, the attitude, or the disposition that we imbibe 
in prayer, we need our hearts checked. We need to come back 
to Luke 18, 9-14, and ask that very real and pertinent question, 
am I trusting in myself that I'm righteous, or am I trusting 
in an alien righteousness, even the Lord Jesus Christ? That language 
of Philippians 3, verse 9. being found in Him, not having 
my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that righteousness 
that is imputed to me and received by faith alone. That's the only 
righteousness that garners acceptance with God Almighty. And then notice, 
he doesn't stop for praising himself for what he was not, 
but then he goes on to boast in what he was. So not only am 
I not this kind of a wretch, but I'm actually this kind of 
a positive specimen of a human being. Notice in verse 12, I 
fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. Does he expect God to congratulate 
him on high? Does he expect God to start clapping 
his spirit hands and affirming him because of his greatness 
and because of his loyalty and because of his covenantal faithfulness? 
Is that what this man is looking for? Is he looking to be extolled 
by God? This man is a wretch, and this 
man is not alone. Turn back to the Gospel of Matthew. 
Matthew chapter 7. A similar disposition, but a 
different context. Matthew chapter 7, a passage that I think is oftentimes 
turned right up on its head. Notice in Matthew 7 at verse 
21, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord shall enter the 
kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my father in 
heaven. Now, brethren, I'm not going to spend a lot of time 
here, but the will of the Father in heaven is first and foremost 
to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. John 6, 40. This is the 
will of my Father, that you believe in Him whom He sent. So notice, 
not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom 
of heaven. The fact that they're saying, 
Lord, Lord, means it's some semblance of a Christian context. It's 
not dealing with Muslims. It's not dealing with Hindus. 
It's not dealing with atheists. He's dealing with persons who 
feel the familiarity at the throne of judgment to address the Lord 
Christ as Lord, Lord. We might think, well that's a 
good thing, yeah, but let's continue on. Verse 22, Many will say to 
me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, 
cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in your 
name? Where is their hope? Where is their foundation? Where 
is the basis upon which they hope to be accepted into the 
presence of God Most High? It's not on the Lord Lord. It's 
not on doing the will of the Father, which is to believe on 
the Lord Jesus Christ. It's on what they did, what they 
accomplished, what works they performed. That's the specifics. Many will say to me in that day, 
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons 
in your name, and done many wonders in your name? Notice that in 
verse 23, Jesus does not say, nope, you never did that. You're 
liars, you're deceivers, and for that, off to the pit with 
you. That's not what goes on here. They had, as far as we 
can tell, done these things. Judas was one of the apostles. 
Judas went out on a preaching tour. Judas came back with the 
others and said, well, you know, we saw Satan fall from heaven 
like lightning. We saw demons cast out. We saw 
persons come into the kingdom. So just again, because you can 
do certain things doesn't necessarily mean there is saving grace in 
your heart. Notice in verse 23, and then 
I will declare to them, I never knew you. It's not like I knew 
you at one time and then I stopped knowing you. No, I never knew 
you. Why? Or the disposition, depart 
from me you who practice lawlessness. They were sinners in need of 
faith in Jesus Christ. They were sinners in need of 
His blood and His righteousness. They did not have that. They 
had no foundation. They had no basis. They had no 
reason for acceptance other than their own works. And that's what's 
being condemned here as well in Luke chapter 18. Again, if 
you were the original context and you heard this man glowing 
in his report about himself on what he wasn't and what he had 
done, you'd say, yeah, he's fit, appropriate, and ready to go. 
He's obviously accepted by God. He's obviously got that righteousness 
necessary to enter into the kingdom of heaven. Notice, I fast twice 
a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. It is here that his self-righteousness 
becomes apparent. His tone is boastful. His tone 
is self-congratulatory. His tone is indicative of the 
fact that he banked his standing with God on what he wasn't and 
what he did. There is a fundamental problem 
with that reality. Our status, our standing with 
God is based on what Christ did, what Christ didn't do, how Christ 
obeyed the law in terms of his active obedience, how Christ 
went to the cross for us in terms of his passive obedience. He 
is more engaged in a period or a time of self-admiration than 
he is of worshiping and adoring and glorifying God Most High. 
Calvin says, we must not swell with confidence as if we had 
satisfied God. And next, we must not look down 
with disdainful contempt upon our brethren. So these two things 
are linked together. He trusted himself and he's righteous, 
and then he despises others. And that brings us to the publican. 
Same thing, his manner and his prayer. Note the manner in verse 
13. The tax collector standing afar 
off would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven. He stands 
far off and he doesn't raise his eyes to heaven because he's 
got nothing to admire in himself. There is nothing in him that 
deserves congratulations. There is nothing in him that 
warrants acceptance with God. In this, he's correct. In this, 
he's absolutely spot on. Well, in all of what he does, 
he is. But with reference to the contrast, 
the one proud, praying thus with himself, thank you that I'm not 
this, Thank you that I do this. God, just go ahead and congratulate 
me now. All of my fellows here, give 
me one of these and tell me what a great guy I am. The Pharisee, 
or rather the publican is humble. The publican is broken. The publican 
has the contrite heart that we read of there in the prophet 
Isaiah in chapter 66. The prophet Isaiah in chapter 
57 speaks of the Lord Most High as being the high and the lofty 
one, the one who inhabits eternity, but the one who looks upon the 
humble and the contrite in heart. And so this man is in a stark 
difference from the Pharisee. Notice he acknowledges, in terms 
of his prayer now, notice that he acknowledges what the Pharisee 
doesn't. He acknowledges that he's a sinner. And the tax collector, standing 
afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but 
he beat his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner." 
Now, in the New King James here, it translates it, a sinner. It's 
more proper to translate it as the sinner. As far as he's concerned, 
he's the only one before God right now. He's not suggesting 
he's the sole individual that occupies the face of the earth. 
But when it comes to prayer, unlike the Pharisee, who's praying 
thus with himself, trying to evoke congratulations from God 
and an audience, the publican is just the opposite. It's him 
and God. And he knows he can't fake it. 
He knows he can't pull a fast one. He knows he can't deceive. He knows that he can't enter 
in and plead his case. He knows he can't say, well, 
I haven't been this. Well, you actually are a publicist. 
I have done this. Nope, you're a publican. You 
take money from other people. You traffic with the Gentiles. 
You engage in those things that are lawless and wretched and 
rebellious. He knows all that. He's got nothing. He can't even look up into heaven. 
All he can do is beat his breast and say, God be merciful to me, 
the sinner. Ryle says, the publican did not 
speak for his neighbors, but himself. Vagueness and generality 
are the great defects of most men's religion. Not so with the 
publican. I am a sinner. Gill says this 
is his prayer, a short but a very full one, and greatly different 
from that of the Pharisee, in which is a confession that he 
was a sinner, a sinner in Adam, who had derived a sinful nature 
from him, being conceived and born in sin, and a sinner by 
practice, having committed many actual transgressions, attended 
with aggravating circumstances, a guilty and filthy sinner, a 
notorious one, deserving of the wrath of God and the lowest hell. 
He speaks of himself as if he was the only sinner in the world, 
at least as if there was none like him." You just hear the 
opponents of Christianity read John Gill and say, well, that's 
a pretty harsh indictment of that poor fellow. That poor fellow 
would absolutely 100% endorse that indictment. And he would 
tell John Gill, you've only scratched the surface. You don't know how 
filthy and notorious and how wicked and how evil I am. See, 
there's this fundamental principle in our religion. If you don't 
see sin for what it is, you'll never see the Savior for who 
He is. If you don't understand the preach, or the breach, or 
the problem, or the chasm, you'll never appreciate the bridge and 
the remedy. If you have low views of sin, 
you're going to have low views of the Savior. And interestingly, 
low views of the law also add to low views of sin and the Savior. Again, an inextricable link between 
the three. So he acknowledges what the Pharisee 
does not. He is a sinner. He acknowledges, 
secondly, what the Pharisee does not. He stands in need of mercy. He's not praying, God be merciful 
to me, set me on a better course, help me to be a better guy, to 
be a better me, to be a more faithful publican. No, I just 
need mercy. I just need grace. I just need 
forgiveness. I just need that because I'm 
such a wretch, because I'm such the sinner. As well, he acknowledges 
what the Pharisee does not, that God is merciful. The fact that 
he prays, God be merciful to me, the sinner, indicates more 
of a familiarity with the Old Testament than the Pharisee had. Remember the prophet Micah celebrates 
the glory of God Most High who pardons iniquity. Remember David 
counts the man blessed whose sin is not imputed to him in 
Psalm 32. David rejoices in the forgiveness 
of God in Psalm 51. David evokes the forgiveness 
of God in 2 Samuel 11 and 12. I have sinned against the Lord. 
Why does he say that? because he knows there's mercy 
with God. The Pharisee comes into the front 
door, parading his own righteousness and his own accomplishments. 
The publican, rather, can't even look up into heaven. He beats 
his breast and says, God, be merciful to me, the sinner. He 
reflects more of a knowledge of theology proper in terms of 
the perfections of God than does the Pharisee. He casts himself 
upon mercy. And that is the last point by 
which we see the difference. He acknowledges that there is 
mercy for him in Christ. When he says, God be merciful 
to me, literally, it's God be propitious to me. You've probably 
heard the definition of propitiation. You see it in the book of Romans 
chapter three. You see it in Hebrews as well. 
The idea of propitiation, 1 John also. Propitiation presupposes 
God's wrath. God is angry with the wicked 
every day, Psalm 711. God hates the wicked. Psalm 5 
verse 5. Well, when you start to figure 
out that you're the wicked, when you start to figure out that 
you're the sinner, when you start to figure out that you've missed 
the mark, well, then that comes into sharp relief. Well, then 
that must mean he hates me. Yes, that's precisely what it 
means. But there is forgiveness with 
thee that thou mayest be feared. The Pharisee had no concept. 
The Pharisee in his proud self-righteousness never saw his need for mercy. 
The publican, however, who had no self-righteousness, who had 
nothing to congratulate, who had nothing to admire, has nothing 
other than mercy to cast himself upon. Again, a reason why we 
preach against sin. Not so that we can make everybody 
feel bad. That's not the primary emphasis 
in preaching against sin. Well, you know, I spent 20 minutes 
preaching against sin and I really felt bad. Well, you know what? That's sometimes the necessary 
remedy to feeling good. And the good is the remedy that 
comes as a result of God's sovereign mercy and grace and kindness 
and pardon through our Lord Jesus Christ. The differences between 
these two men could not be more stark. This idea of propitiation, 
to cause to be favorably inclined or disposed, propitiate or conciliate. So wrath is targeted against 
the unbeliever. Propitiation speaks of the aversion 
of that wrath. Actually, it's not just the aversion 
or sending it away, but as we learn in Romans chapter 3, Christ 
was the propitiation. In other words, he satisfied 
divine justice in his work on the cross. That's why we eat 
this bread and we drink this cup. He took the wrath of God 
in himself that was owing to us. He satisfied that. He took 
the punishment. He received it in our place. 
This is what the prophet says in Isaiah 53. It pleased the 
Lord to bruise him. It pleased the Lord to crush 
him. Why? Because the Lord is vindictive 
as a father and engages in cosmic child abuse? No, because that's 
the means by which He saves His people from their sins. It was 
orchestrated by God. It was typified in the Old Testament. That ram caught in the thicket 
prefigured Christ on the cross. We see this all throughout the 
Bible. The maxim of Hebrews 9.22, without the shedding of blood, 
there is no remission. And so this man, this publican, 
understands himself to be the sinner. As a result of him being 
the sinner, he understands that he's under God's wrath. So what's 
his hope? It's not what I am not and what 
I do, but his hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood 
and righteousness. He would say, I dare not trust 
the sweetest frame, but I wholly lean on Jesus' name. Or to borrow 
from another hymn writer, he'd say, foul I to the fountain fly, 
wash me, Savior, or I die. Or he'd say, nothing in my hand 
I bring, simply to thy cross I cling. There's no hope without 
Christ. And that's what the publican 
has here. He may not know Trinitarian theology 
to the degree of Nicaea. He may not know all of the jots 
and tittles about blood atonement through the Lamb of God. But 
this much he does know, God is a just God, but God as well is 
a merciful God. And he is going to throw himself 
upon the mercy of that God and hope for the best. And then that 
brings us to the point of the parable. Note the conclusion 
in the first part of the verse with reference to the publican. 
With reference to the publican, I tell you, this man went down 
to his house justified rather than the other." Now, justified 
here means to justify, to declare it righteous. It's a perfect 
tense which looks at the completed state. It's the state of having 
been declared to be right. It's also called a theological 
passive. That means he didn't justify 
himself. It wasn't his what he wasn't, and it wasn't his what 
he did, but it was rather the righteousness of another. And 
so when it's said of Jesus, I tell you this man went down to his 
house justified rather than the other, that's what's in view. 
He now has acceptance with God. That's legal and forensic. It's 
not automatically transformed here. Transformation comes, moral 
character development comes in sanctification. Jesus is talking 
about the doctrine of justification. He is regarded as not having 
sin, not because he didn't sin, but because of the imputed righteousness 
of Jesus Christ. This man knew experientially 
what the divines at Westminster would pan in their shorter catechism. 
What is justification? Justification is an act of God's 
free grace, wherein he pardons all our sins, and accepts us 
as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ 
imputed to him, received by faith." So again, this man didn't know 
Westminster shorted Catechism 33 because it hadn't been written, 
but he certainly knew it in his own heart. The fact that he went 
to his house justified. He found acceptance with God, 
not based on his works, not based on what he wasn't, but based 
on the works and what he wasn't ofness of the other, the Lord 
Jesus Christ. And then I would suggest, before 
we leave the publican, he would have surprised those people. 
Remember, if the Pharisee was the hero in the story, and the 
publican was the hated one, for Jesus to say what Jesus says 
in 14a, you probably would have seen a lot of jaw dropping. Huh? What? Hmm? That would not fly 
in the original context. They would not say, oh, I knew 
that's where the story was going. I knew it, and I was rooting 
for him. This would have scandalized them, 
just like the cross scandalizes the Jews. It's foolishness to 
the Greeks. Paul says this in 1 Corinthians 
1. Why? Because Jews want signs. 
Greeks want wisdom. But we preach Christ and Him 
crucified. It's a stumbling block or a scandal 
or a scandaling block to the Jews. It is something that is 
offensive to self-righteous Pharisees who think that based on what 
they are not and based on what they do, they have acceptance 
with God. It's always offensive to self-righteousness 
when it's confronted with the fact that it's not that righteous. 
Have you ever had to rebuke anybody or reprove anybody in their sin? 
How does that usually go? Yeah, you're right. God be merciful 
to me, the sinner. Usually, we get defensive and 
I'm not saying, I know this. I wish I didn't, but experientially, 
I know this. Honey, what do you mean? I'm 
great. I don't do this and I always 
do that. I'm not as bad as the other guys in church. I don't think I ever say that 
because I don't think that. I think I am badder than the 
other guys in church. Not badder, but badder. There's 
that defensive reflex. There's that offense that comes, 
that scandal when you're told that you're not great, you're 
not righteous. That's one of the difficulties 
in preaching the gospel to sinners. I want to tell you about Jesus. 
You come to him and you'll have heaven and eternal life. Great, 
sign me up. Well, we first have to talk about 
this problem that you have. What problem? I'm good. I'm great. No, you're filthy. Again, how 
does that usually go? Thank you. I'm so glad for your 
assessment of my spiritual being before the Most High. It's usually 
not how sinners respond. Sinners don't like that. That's 
why the gospel is an offense. That's why the gospel does divide. That's why the gospel sends people 
screaming away, because they want what they want, but they 
want it on their terms. Lord, Lord, did we not? What happens in that sort of 
an arrangement? There's self-congratulations. But the gospel is designed to 
strip out the self-congratulations. What does Paul say in Romans 
4? Does Abraham have cause to boast not before God? He was justified by faith, not 
by his words, not something to be congratulated for. So when 
we move to the Pharisee, we know that he was not justified as 
Jesus tells us. I tell you, this man went down 
to his house justified rather than the other. He goes back 
to his house condemned. We saw, we learned this morning, 
the opposite of justification is condemnation. That's why Paul 
says in Romans chapter 8, there is therefore now no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus. Justification is the forgiveness 
of sins and the imputation of righteousness and thus no condemnation. Condemnation is when we don't 
have that justification. Condemnation is our just liability 
to the wrath and fury and judgment of God. And so the Pharisee goes 
home under condemnation. As well, he was rejected and 
he received the wrath of God, not because of what he wasn't 
or not because of what he did, but because he was indeed a sinner. 
That's the final point. It's all about absolute obedience 
to the law of God or the absolute obedience of Christ imputed to 
us and received by faith alone. In fact, Fisher says that. He 
says, so that if you desire to be justified before God, you 
must either bring to Him. Now listen, there's only one 
of two ways. Mormonism? Wrong. Jehovah's Witness? Wrong. Hinduism? Wrong. Islam? Wrong. Roman Catholic doctrine of justification? 
Wrong. You bigots! You prejudice! You haters! Brethren, in light 
of John 14, 6, we disavow our Lord when we don't adopt that 
attitude of exclusivity relative to acceptance with God. We're 
not supposed to do it as arrogant people. We're not supposed to 
do it in a vindictive manner. We're not supposed to be the 
sorts of judgmental people that we're reading about in this particular 
passage. But to try and tell a sinner 
or to tell a sinner that there's a couple of different ways to 
make it to heaven, no. I am the way, the truth, and 
the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." It 
is just that simple. So back to Fisher. It's either 
you obey perpetually, perfectly, exactly, entirely the law of 
God, or you look to the one who did that. So that if you desire 
to be justified before God, you must either bring to him a perfect 
righteousness of your own and holy renounce Christ or else 
you must bring the perfect righteousness of Christ and wholly renounce 
your own. Christ Jesus will either be a 
whole Savior or no Savior. He will either save you alone 
or not save you at all. You say, well, Fisher, that seems 
to be a bit overboard. Turn to the book of Galatians, 
a passage that we did look at this morning in our study in 
the Confession. Galatians chapter 2. The apostle 
waxes eloquent concerning the doctrine of justification by 
faith alone. You'll see that very specifically 
in verse 16, knowing that a man is not justified by the works 
of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. Even we have believed 
in Christ Jesus that we might be justified by faith in Christ 
and not by the works of the law. For by the works of the law, 
no flesh shall be justified. Could he make it any plainer? 
Could he condemn the approach that seems to want to mingle 
works and faith? No, Paul is as clear as Paul 
can be. Notice his statement in verse 
20. He says, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer 
I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now 
live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who 
loved me and gave himself up for me. I think we take that 
out of its context and put it into the category of sanctification. 
I think Paul's still dealing with justification here. It's 
a true thing in terms of sanctification. Christ lives in me. The Spirit 
indwells me. I seek by God's grace to be more 
and more conformed to his image. Paul is dealing with justification. And what is the very foundation 
of that justification? It is verse 20. I have been crucified 
with Christ. This is the language of Romans 
6, 1-4. Before Paul gets to sanctification 
in 5 and following, he begins with justification, pictured 
by the baptistry. You died. You were buried. You've 
been raised again. That's the foundation of your 
acceptance with God. That's what he's celebrating 
in verse 20. I have been crucified with Christ. There is no longer 
I who live, but Christ lives in me. In the life which I now 
live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who 
loved me and gave himself for me. Now, if you thought Fisher 
was overboard, listen to Paul in Galatians 2.21, So this attempt 
to mingle faith plus works means neither. It's either all of you in terms 
of actual obedience, 100% to God's revealed law, or it's all 
of Christ in terms of 100% obedience to all of God's law. That's what 
Paul says. That's what the emphasis is in 
justification by faith alone. And dare I say, it's a great 
emphasis, brethren. Do you hear what's being emphasized? It's not you plus. It's the plus. It's not rather Christ plus. It's Christ alone. Justification 
is by faith alone. That means it's not up to us. 
Now, again, sanctification, necessary category, follows consequentially 
on justification, the Spirit's work in us. based on Christ's 
work for us in justification. So when it comes to this reality, 
justification by faith alone is the only ground of comfort. 
It's the only ground of stability. It's the only ground of peace. 
Again, a passage that Cam pointed us to, Romans 5.1. After discoursing 
on the nature of justification by faith, he starts 5.1 by saying, 
therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with 
God. If you're justified by faith 
plus your works, that peace is gonna go like this, contingent 
upon your own works. You've had a bad day, no peace 
for you. You've had a good day, peace 
for you. But if you've had a good day 
and you derive peace from that, guess who gets the credit? You 
and your good day. The glory of the gospel is that 
Christ came to save us from our sins. He'll either be a whole 
Savior or no Savior. Machen comments on Galatians 
2.21. He says this verse is the key verse of the epistle to the 
Galatians. Now, Machen died, I think it 
was January 31st, whatever the year was, 30s, 40s, something 
like that, in a motel room in Bismarck, North Dakota. I can't 
possibly think of anything more miserable than that, but that's 
just how it went. And he sent a telegram, I think 
it was to Ned Stonehouse, one of his biographers. You know 
what the telegram said? So thankful for the active obedience 
of Jesus Christ. No hope without it. Those are 
some fine last words, brethren. Those are some fine last words. My hope is built on nothing less 
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. So Machen understood something 
about the beauty and the excellency and the glory of the imputed 
righteousness of Jesus Christ received by faith alone. That's 
not negating that he didn't rejoice in the blood atonement and the 
forgiveness of sins. But he says this verse is the 
key verse of the epistle to the Galatians. It expresses the central 
thought of the epistle. The Judaizers attempted to supplement 
the saving work of Christ by the merit of their own obedience 
to the law. That, says Paul, is impossible. Christ will do 
everything or nothing. Earn your salvation if your obedience 
to the law is perfect, or else trust wholly to Christ's completed 
work. You cannot do both. You cannot 
combine merit and grace if justification, even in the slightest measure, 
is through human merit. Then Christ died in vain. That is what Paul says in Galatians 
2.21. I do not set aside the grace 
of God, for if righteousness comes to the law, then Christ 
died in vain. Calvin says, if we do not renounce 
all other hopes and embrace Christ alone, we reject the grace of 
God. Luther says, for whoever seeks 
righteousness apart from faith in Christ, whether it be through 
works or satisfactions or afflictions or the law of God, is nullifying 
the grace of God and despising the death of Christ, even though 
he may speak otherwise with his mouth. The proof is in the pudding. If you're trying to mingle your 
works with Christ's finished work, you've entered into the 
Galatian heresy. You've entered into that construct 
that Rome has set forth, where you remove the distinction between 
justification and sanctification and make it one big glob. It's 
not only up to Christ, but it's up to you. And if you have a 
good day, you congratulate yourself. That's the way we treat the supper 
sometimes. I've had a good week. It's been a pretty good two weeks. 
Read my Bible. I'm all caught up on McShane. That leap year 
day helped me. There was no 29th this year, 
so perhaps you're a day ahead. Unless you took a day off. You 
should be a day ahead. I've checked all my boxes. I'm 
right up on my Bible reading. I've had some good prayer. Okay, 
I'll take tonight. Brethren, this isn't a reward 
for good behavior. This is a means of grace in which 
we remember the doing and the dying and the rising of the Savior. Don't be the Pharisee. Don't trust in yourself. Don't 
look to your accomplishments. Don't look to your achievements. 
Don't look to what you're not. I was being somewhat cheeky earlier. 
Thank God that I'm not Joseph Stalin. Again, there is a degree 
of truth to that. But when it comes to this idea 
of acceptance with God, it's by grace alone, through faith 
alone, in Christ alone. One more quote from John Murray 
that I think sets forth the distinction well. He says, justification 
by works always finds its ground in that which the person is and 
does. Thank you, Lord, that I'm not 
like other men. Thank you, Lord, that I engage 
in all these wonderful things. Justification by works always 
finds its ground in that which the person is and does. It is 
always oriented to consider a consideration of virtue attaching to the person 
justified. The specific quality of faith 
is trust and commitment to another. It is essentially extraspective. I love that word. Introspective 
is when we look in ourselves. That's what the self-righteous 
does. Extrospective means we look out, we look up, we look 
to the redeemer of sinners. And in that respect is the diametric 
opposite of works. Faith is self-renouncing. Works 
are self-congratulatory. Faith looks to what God does. 
Works have respect to what we are. It is this antithesis of 
principle that enables the apostle to base the complete exclusion 
of works upon the principle of faith." And that's his commentary 
on Romans 3, 27 to 31, a very wonderful passage of Holy Scripture 
that shows these things in great and vivid detail, where we learn 
that God is both just and the justifier of the one who has 
faith in Jesus. In Romans chapter 4, God justifies 
the ungodly. So again, this is not a reward 
for good behavior. This is not a time for self-congratulations 
or self-admiration. This is a time to rejoice that 
when by grace you saw your sin, you beat your breast, and you 
said, God be merciful to me, the sinner, and you went home 
to your house justified. That's why we eat this bread. 
That's why we drink this cup. That's why collectively, corporately, 
we proclaim the Lord's death till he comes, because that is 
the ground of our acceptance with God. It is faith in Jesus 
Christ. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for this parable, though brief, it does 
teach us so many things. And God, I pray that you would 
cause us to reflect upon these things, reflect upon the the 
manner and the prayer of the Pharisee and to guard our hearts 
against that kind of a mindset. Perhaps it even wells up in us 
now to judge him. Say, well, I'm not that guy. 
Lord, I pray that we would be faithful, that we would be upright, 
that we would be holy, that we would be governed by the power 
of the Holy Spirit. Lord, help us never to bank our 
acceptance with you on those things, but to always see that 
it's Christ alone, it's his righteousness, it's his blood by which we stand. And in this we rejoice, we give 
glory and praise and honor to you, And we trust that in the 
proclamation of the gospel, sinners all over this earth can come 
to you through the Son, confessing Him as Lord and Savior. And we 
pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, you can turn in your 
Bibles to Matthew chapter 26 as we move now to the Supper. 
Matthew's gospel chapter 26.