Thursday Thoughts for Parents | "Do You Measure Up?"
This post is based on Riley Spring's sermon, Do You Measure Up?, given on May 6, 2018.
Pastors College student Riley Spring preached a message on Sunday from Luke 18. In this passage, Luke records a parable of Jesus’ that highlights and contrasts two men and the posture of their hearts before God. The Pharisee—who Jesus’ audience would view as the good man in this story—prayed a prayer of thanksgiving for all his own goodness. The tax collector, on the other hand, recognized his own acute sinfulness and cried out to God for mercy. After he finished the parable, Jesus proclaimed that the tax collector, rather than the Pharisee, was the one who went away justified.
As Christians, it’s easy to see how desperately needy we were before we were saved, but we can begin to forget that we are still continually dependent on the Lord’s abundant grace in our everyday lives. We’re not meant to—nor are we able to—live our lives independent from God’s active grace working on our behalf. As believers, let us continually humble ourselves before the Lord, acknowledging our own neediness before him. As parents, let us model for our children—in our prayers, exhortations, and conduct—a posture of the heart that embraces and glories in our dependence on our Good Father.
Read Luke 18:8-14, and consider the following questions:
- What did Jesus say was the difference between the Pharisee and the tax collector?
- Why was the tax collector able to go home justified?
- How does the temptation toward self-sufficiency sneak into your own Christian life?
- How is it helpful for Christians to daily recognize their own neediness before God?
For further reading on the Christian’s temptation toward self-sufficiency, see CJ’s short blog post from a few years ago entitled, “Self-Sufficient.”
[Post by Tyson Ziegler]
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