(Jesus) told his next story to some who were complacently pleased with themselves over their moral performance and looked down their noses at the common people: "Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax man. The Pharisee posed and prayed like this: 'Oh, God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, crooks, adulterers, or, heaven forbid, like this tax man. I fast twice a week and tithe on all my income.'
"Meanwhile the tax man, slumped in the shadows, his face in his hands, not daring to look up, said, 'God, give mercy. Forgive me, a sinner.'"
Jesus commented, "This tax man, not the other, went home made right with God. If you walk around with your nose in the air, you're going to end up flat on your face, but if you're content to be simply yourself (to humble yourself), you will become more than yourself." Luke 18:9-14
Discuss
1) Describe the two men in the story. How were they alike? How were they different?
2) Which kind of prayer is easier to pray?
3) Which prayer did God like better? Why?
4) What does it mean to "humble yourself?"
Final Thought
We may not pray a prayer, like the Pharisee did, out loud, but how often do we think prideful thoughts...think we are better than other people, that we deserve good things because of our good behavior, think we are smarter, prettier, more talented...think that surely God should reward someone like us. When we think this way we are fooling ourselves. The truth is we all sin, we all make mistakes, think wrong thoughts, say wrong things, do wrong things. We all need Jesus to enter our lives, clean us up and change us from the inside out. We all need to be humbled...to stop thinking so much about ourselves and instead think so much about God.
Prayer
Song - Amazing Grace
(maybe talk through the verses with your children before you sing this song...help them understand we don't "deserve" anything from God but praise Him, because of His grace we have all that we will ever need)
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