David Bahn – Reflections

Jesus also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ ¹³ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁵ Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ¹⁷ Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

¹⁸ And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” ²¹ And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” ²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ²³ But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. ²⁴ Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those  who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁶ Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” ²⁸ And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” ²⁹ And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, ³⁰ who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

It’s hard to be humble if…You probably know how that line ends: …if you’re perfect in every way. But I’m convinced it’s hard to be humble in many different scenarios. If you’re a dedicated follower of Jesus and have tried to live a decent and godly life it’s hard to be humble. It’s hard to be humble if you’re constantly comparing yourself to others. It’s easy to miss the log in your own eye when seeing the speck in your brother’s or sister’s eye. If you have a position of responsibility in the church or at work, it’s hard to be humble. If you’re a boss. If you’ve got your life together. If your team is doing well. If your grandson is the captain of the football team. If you’re wealthy. If, if, if… It’s just plain hard to be humble.

Jesus tells the parable of the two men who went to the temple to pray. One is humble. The other is full of hubris. The disciples take upon themselves to police the children’s access to Jesus. They discover that their assessment of their importance – or of the importance of the little children is off by 180 degrees. The rich man discovers how difficult it is to rely on God rather than his wealth. He’s not able to humble himself to the extent needed to enter the kingdom of God.

Why is it so hard to be humble? It’s because we’re hard wired to self-righteousness, self-idolatry, and self-justification. Pride is the posture of the heart that refuses to need God. It’s the primal sin. And we’ve all inherited it. It’s as natural as blinking your eyes, as unconscious breathing.

And if we manage to tame the pride monster, we’ll all too easily become proud of our humility. What hope do we have?

Our only hope is Jesus who was perfectly humble and completely submissive to his Father. He became obedient even unto death for us. Now that he is exalted to the right hand of God. He is our righteousness, hope, and salvation.

The tax collector in Jesus’ parable went home justified not because he was impressive, but because he knew he wasn’t. He threw himself on the mercy of God—and that’s exactly where grace meets us.

Humility isn’t something we muster—it’s something that happens when we stand before the cross and realize what Jesus did to gain our salvation. There we find what we could never achieve on our own: the smile of God, the welcome of Jesus, and the joy of going home justified.