To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—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. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” - Luke 18:9-14
It always amazes me just how much depth and power Jesus can pack into one little story. There is no doubt that Jesus was a master storyteller, and I have often wondered what it must have been like to sit and listen to him tell the stories that we read in the gospels. I am sure that in reading translations and being separated by centuries, we probably miss out on much of His humor and wit. But Jesus did not tell such stories merely to clever or witty. He never told a pointless story. The parables of Jesus were always full of meaning and directed at a particular audience. In this case, Jesus was directing His parable at those who were confident of their own righteousness. What does that mean?
The word “righteousness” is not a word that we use very often in our culture today. My guess is that you probably have not had casual conversation with a friend in which you talked about righteousness. Most of the time we use the word in a pejorative sense, “that guy is so self-righteous.” (When I was in high school in the mid 80’s, it was not uncommon to hear somebody say, “Dude that is so righteous.”)
From the Biblical perspective, righteousness has everything to do with approval and acceptance. I have a friend whose son was recently accepted to West Point. Just in case you don’t know, this is a really big deal. The application process is extremely thorough and many outstanding young men and women are rejected. When my friend got the acceptance letter in the mail, he was filled with joy and pride in his son. There was a deep sense of satisfaction that his son was accepted and approved of by such a prestigious institution. This is close to what the Bible means when it talks about being righteous. It means being in a right relationship with God. It means the deep sense of satisfaction in knowing that you are accepted and approved of by God.
But the truth is that righteousness is a real problem for most people, though they would not use that term. Most people live with a vague sense that they are not accepted or acceptable. Most people live their lives trying to earn the approval of God and of others. In fact, righteousness is a universal problem for all human beings. We all want to know that we are “good enough”, that we are accepted and loved, but we walk around with the nagging suspicion that we are not. In the movie “Rocky” (the first one, the only really good one), Sylvester Stallone, Rocky, is explaining to his girlfriend Adrian that he doesn’t even care if he wins the big fight. He says that he just wants to go the distance - to be standing when the final bell rings. If he can make it to the final bell, he says; “then I’ll know for the first time in my life, that I’m not a bum.” What is he talking about? He is talking about the universal human need for acceptance and approval; he is talking about the problem of righteousness. We all have this problem. It often takes different cultural forms, but it is always the same root issue – righteousness.
Two Questions:
1. Where does your approval come from? Who or what are you looking to in order to feel accepted?
2. How is that working out for you?
Jeff Frazier
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