14 “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.”
Everyone will be humbled! We either humble ourselves, or in the end, God will humble us. It is our choice. This verse comes as the conclusion to the short parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. Jesus tells this parable to show that being confident in your own righteousness, your own goodness, will not get you what you think. Each person approaches God with an attitude. If we approach with self-confidence then we go away humbled by God and empty handed. If, by contrast, we recognize that we have nothing of value to offer the Creator of the Universe, then He gives us what we need, acceptance and forgiveness. You see, by humbling ourselves before the Lord, we receive what we don’t deserve: mercy and grace. It has been a hard fight over the years to try to remember and live this simple truth. My natural tendency is to claim a position of importance as something I have earned. I naturally think that I deserve better than I am getting. But I fully recognize that this is a lie. I do know my own weaknesses and failings. They are (as the Psalmist says) “ever before me,” right in my face. Although it is uncomfortable for me to live in this state of recognition, this is the state in which I live. I don’t deserve the good things that enter my life. I do deserve punishment and death. And because I am able to honestly face this fact, God gives me grace and mercy. If we try, as the Pharisee in this parable, to justify ourselves, to say our actions and attitudes deserve God’s favor, then we will be sorely disappointed. All our actions and attitudes are as filthy rags, menstrual pads, used toilet paper. If we think they have value, then we get that value in return. If we are willing to take the humble position, fully recognizing our own fallen nature, then we receive God’s full acceptance. The choice is ours. What are you going to choose?
The Arnold Journey 