BE HUMBLE | Tahlia McLeod

When I meet someone new, I love to ask them what their best ‘claim to fame’ story is. People love telling stories of the time they met their favourite celebrity, or how they are almost related to an Olympic athlete. But by far, some of my favourite stories are the ones where people are given access into a VIP area. Have you ever been to one? Your name might be on an invite list, or maybe you’ve been invited as someone’s guest? There are all this fancy food and all these fancy people in fancy clothes, and you are left wondering — how on earth did I get into this place? 

As you read through the gospel of Luke, you’ll find that many people were asking Jesus a similar question — how do I get into the Kingdom of God?  Some believed that their personal track record of doing the right thing was enough to get them in. Others believed that they were never going to get an invitation—that no matter how hard they tried, their track record would keep them out.   

In Luke 18, take note of the story that Jesus tells. It compares two men who are praying in the temple. One is a Pharisee, and one is a tax collector. Both are praying, but are praying very different prayers. 

Now for the crowd listening to Jesus’ story, it would have been a no-brainer at this point as to whose name should be on God’s VIP list: the Pharisee. He would have been found in the cool crowd of Jesus’ day! At the top of the social ladder, and part of an elite group who were chosen not only to study God’s word, but follow it to a T. As he prays, he is loud and proud, listing all the good things he’s done just in case they went unnoticed. 

The tax collector? One of the most hated people in town. Considered firstly a traitor for collecting taxes, and second, a sinful thief for taking more than what was required so that they could have some on the side! Not exactly the kind of person you would want to hang around. But as he prays, he is humble. There is nothing spectacular about the tax collector’s prayer, but what we discover is that as he cries out to God for help, and God listens. 

In this story and the chapters that follow, Jesus shows us that the Kingdom of God is not about you and I being good enough to reach up to God’s level. It’s about God reaching down to us. God isn’t impressed by people that have it all together, but by those who need and depend on Him. As you read Luke 18-20, see how the doors to God’s kingdom are wide open to those who are humble.