FROM TODAY’S READING (3/29/2022)…
NOTE: The following is derived and edited from an article titled “10 Sins Jesus Condemns Most Harshly in Scripture” by Cortney Whiting (7/9/2019). The challenge is that of disciplined prayerful self-examination as opposed to a critique of others.
#2: PRIDE
Luke 18:9-14 (NLT) Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’
But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Proverbs 16:18 (NLT) Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.
Image: CC ("parableof pharisee and tax collector" by jimmiehomeschoolmom is marked with CC BY 2.0.)
