Praying to God
Photo by Jeremy Perkins on Unsplash.
When you pray, are you praying to God or talking to yourself? Are you praying in order to trust and rely on your own righteousness, or are you praying because you trust and rely on the righteousness and mercy of God?
In Luke’s gospel account, Jesus tells the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector to address “some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt.”
Jesus said, “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.’” (Luke 18:9-11, NKJV).
The New King James Version says the Pharisee “stood and prayed thus with himself.” This Pharisee did not see beyond himself to direct his prayer to God. He compared his righteousness to the tax collector instead of comparing himself to a righteous and holy God. The Pharisee did not see his true heart condition and need, and trusted in himself instead of trusting in God.
In the end, Jesus tells us 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!’” Jesus said, “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.” (Luke 18:13-14, NKJV).
May we humbly make our request known to God in honesty and in humility, trusting and relying on our righteous God, who will hear our request and show us his mercy.
A Prayer for Preparation for Personal Prayer: “Holy Spirit, breath of God and fire of love, I cannot pray without your aid: Kindle in me the fire of your love, and illumine me with your light; that with a steadfast will and holy thoughts I may approach the Father in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ my Lord, who reigns with you and the Father in eternal union. Amen.” (#97., Book of Common Prayer, 2019).
Begin the month with a #dailydevotional. I have created a #devotional book for each month, a devotional for every day of the year, and offering them for #free by subscribing. Get a link to #Grow365: #October2022—A #Daily Devotional here: www.robbiepruitt.com.
Photo by Jeremy Perkins on Unsplash.
