There is a passage in Luke 18 that can be easy to read as simply a warning against pride.
But Jesus tells us exactly why He gave the parable:
“And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous…” — Luke 18:9
Trusted in themselves.
That changes how we look at the entire story.
Two men went to the temple to pray.
The Pharisee could point to the things he was doing right. He fasted. He gave. He wasn’t doing some of the things he saw other people doing.
The tax collector had nothing to present.
He simply cried:
“God be merciful to me a sinner.”
Jesus then says something incredibly important:
The tax collector went home justified rather than the Pharisee.
When We Trust Ourselves
Trusting ourselves doesn’t only affect how we see ourselves.
It can affect how we see other people.
If we trust our accomplishments, intelligence, finances, status, religious works, or abilities, we may begin comparing ourselves with others.
We may look down on someone who appears to have less.
Or we may resent someone who appears to have more.
But it can go even further.
Trusting ourselves affects how we respond to God.
When God’s Word tells us one thing but we think we know better, whose understanding are we trusting?
Proverbs 3:5 says:
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”
That Scripture became an important foundation for our discussion.
God Knows Everything—and Still Loves Us
There was another truth in this passage that led us directly to the Gospel.
God doesn’t only see what other people see.
He knows our hearts.
He knows our motives.
He knows the worst things we’ve done.
He even knows the thoughts we had but never acted upon.
And yet:
He still chose to love us.
Jesus still went to the cross.
He still took our place.
He still bore the penalty we could never pay ourselves.
That’s why the Gospel is so freeing.
Our confidence doesn’t have to rest upon whether we’ve done enough good things.
It rests upon what Jesus Christ has already done.
Even Condemnation Can Put the Focus Back on Us
We also considered something we don’t always recognize.
When everything depends upon us, we can become proud when we’re doing well—and condemn ourselves when we fail.
But both keep our attention on us.
The Gospel redirects our attention to Christ.
Our good works don’t save us.
Our past failures don’t have to define us.
Our hope is Jesus.
So the question isn’t:
“Have I been good enough?”
The better question is:
“Who am I trusting?”
The tax collector understood that he had nothing to offer as the basis for his justification.
His prayer was simply:
“God be merciful to me a sinner.”
And Jesus said he went home justified.
Don’t trust in yourself.
Trust God’s Word.
Trust His mercy.
Trust His wisdom.
And most importantly, trust Jesus Christ for your salvation.
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