Todd's Road Grace Church would like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd Nybert. We are located at 4137 Todd's Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at 9.45 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services. For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nybert.

In Luke chapter 18, verse 9, we read, and he, the Lord Jesus, spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves, that they were righteous and despised others. I've entitled this message, A Parable to the Self-Righteous. Now, this is the only parable I could find when the Lord begins his parable by identifying the demographic to which he was speaking. Here's who this parable was addressed to, certain which trusted in themselves. that they were righteous.

This parable is addressed to the self-righteous. Now, who are these people that are described as self-righteous? There are some 8 billion, 100 million people living on this planet. And every single one of those people, including me and including you, could be termed as self-righteous. This is a parable to the self-righteous.

And I think that this is as good a definition of self-righteousness as you're going to find anywhere when the Lord says, He spake this parable unto certain that trusted in themselves. that they were righteous, and what always comes with that, they despised others. You see, they had a comparative religion. They would compare themselves with others, and they would consider themselves righteous and look down their nose at others. Now, any righteousness that I have that comes from self is self-righteousness. Any righteousness that you have, that comes from yourself, that you think God would accept and be pleased with, is self-righteousness.

Now, self-righteousness contradicts Holy Scripture. Romans 3, verse 10 says, there is none righteous, no, not one. So if I believe that I have a self-righteousness, I'm denying what the Bible says about me. There's none righteous, no, not one. Self-righteousness is the original sin.

What was it that Adam and Eve desired in the garden? If they ate this fruit, they would be as gods, knowing good and evil. They would be like God. They'd know the difference between good and evil, and they would choose the good over the evil and make them righteous. We'll have a righteousness equal with God's.

You know, even after the fall, He still blamed God for his sin. He said, the woman you gave me, she gave me the fruit and I did eat. Do you remember how he tried to cover himself with the fig leaves of his own righteousness to cover his, he never owned a sin before God. Self-righteousness is the original sin and self-righteousness is the most difficult sin to stamp out. Let me try to illustrate that.

Have you ever thought, I just don't feel saved. Well, why do you feel that way? Well, because I've had a bad day today. I've lost my temper. I've lusted in my heart. I've looked places where I shouldn't look. I've done things I shouldn't do. I just don't feel saved. If you didn't know those things, would you feel saved? Can you see this insidious sin, self-righteousness? Somebody says, I feel saved. I feel like I've had a good day. I've not lost my temper. I've read the Bible. I've prayed. I feel like I've had a good day. I've treated people well. I've been friendly. I feel saved. Why do you feel saved?

It's because of your behavior. That is self-righteousness. Now, if I am saved, it's because Christ died for me, not because of any personal righteousness I've worked out. Somebody says, well, at least I know I'm a sinner. It's kind of like saying, well, at least I know I'm a serial killer. You know, like we can even make a righteousness of our belief in being a sinner. Oh, self-righteousness is, it pops up everywhere. And self-righteousness is the most deadly sin. Self-righteousness is a sin? Oh yes, it's the most deadly sin. And let me tell you why.

It's not your sin that'll keep you from Christ. If you really believe you're a sinner, you'll come to Christ for mercy. There's never been anyone who really believed they were a sinner that he didn't save. It's not your sin that keeps you from Christ. It's your righteousness that'll keep you from Christ, that'll keep you from looking to him.

It is the most deadly sin. And this always goes with it, despising others, feeling contempt toward others, looking down on others. Oh, God hates self-righteousness because there's really no such thing, and it's so provoking to God. for a sinful man to believe himself to be righteous. You see, self-righteousness hates grace because grace doesn't give it any room to boast.

Electing grace, the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, according to election, might stand not of works. but of Him that calleth. Electing grace doesn't give the sinner anywhere to boast. It's God's choice. He doesn't choose us because we're good. He chooses us because He will. He's sovereign.

The redemptive work of Christ doesn't give us any room to boast in our works. If we're saved and stand before God, it's only because He put away our sins and died for our sins. We have no righteousness we can boast of. The new birth, God the Holy Spirit giving new life. We can't boast it's because of our free will or because of something we've done. It's because he birthed us into the kingdom of heaven. Grace will not allow a man to boast.

Self-righteousness says the work of Christ was not necessary for my salvation. You see, if righteousness came by the law, if it's dependent upon something we do, then Christ died in vain. It is only when I have no righteousness that I can trust Christ for righteousness. It's either only his righteousness or only your righteousness. You can't blend the two. It's only when you have no righteousness that you can trust Christ for righteousness. Now let's look at this parable that he spoke to certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others.

Verse 10, two men went up into the temple to pray. They both saw the importance of prayer. They both believed in God. Two men went up into the temple to pray. The one, a Pharisee, and the other a publican, one employed by the Roman government, a Jew employed by the Roman government to collect taxes from his Jewish brothers, and he was allowed to add to the taxes for himself.

If you owed 100, he could charge you 200, keep 100 for himself. He was protected by the Roman government in doing so. If you didn't pay up, he was kind of like a mafia figure. He had men who would come and make sure he got his money or beat you up if you didn't pay. Now, can you imagine what a despised man this was? He was lower than a prostitute to these people.

This was the most despised man in all of Israel, the tax collector abusing his Jewish brothers, stealing from them. And the Pharisee, a separated one, he was the most respected man. He was the most religious man. Paul said it was the straightest sect of the Jews religion, the most strict, the Pharisee, the righteous man, the moral man.

Two men went up to the temple to pray. They couldn't be more opposite, the Pharisee and the publican. Now let's listen to the Pharisee's prayer. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself. Now he stood up front, perhaps as close as you could come to the holy of holies in the temple without being in it. But I love the way the Lord points out, he stood and prayed thus with himself.

He thought he's praying to the Lord, but he wasn't. This was a soliloquy. He spake only to himself. Didn't get to God. Oh, God heard it, but he didn't hear it with favor. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank Thee. He's giving God the credit. God, I thank thee that I'm not as other men are. I'm not extortioner. I'm not unjust. I'm not an adulterer.

I'm not like this publican. He was aware of the publican in the back of the temple praying. He said, I'm certainly not like him. Perhaps he would have said, there go I but for the grace of God, but I'm not like him. I'm not like this man. And he talked about what he did. I fast twice in the week. I give tithes of all that I possess. And I'm sure people heard that prayer, and I'm sure people were impressed. What a man. He's not an adulterer. He's not unjust. He's not an extortioner. He gives tithes of everything. He fasts twice a week. What a man. And listen to the publican's prayer.

And the publican, the despised tax collector, Standing afar off, he felt far away. He felt unworthy to be there. He stood back in the back. Unlike the Pharisee, he stood afar off and would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven. But he smoked upon his breast, upon his heart. He knew his heart was the problem. I'm sure the publican felt, I mean, the Pharisee felt like he had a good heart. This man, no, I've got a bad heart. That's my problem. He smoked upon his breast saying, God be merciful to me, the sinner. the worst man alive. God be merciful to me. He wasn't thinking about other people's sins. He was thinking about his own. You know, a Pharisee is always thinking about other people's sins. Someone who sees their sinner, they're thinking of their own sin.

God be merciful to me, thee sinner, the worst man alive. Now look what the Lord says about these two prayers. He says in verse 14, I tell you, This man, beating on his breast, crying, God be merciful to me, the sinner, this man went down to his house justified.

Now you can bet that whoever was listening to this was shocked. They were even, scandal, this is a scandal, this wicked man, This tax collector, this unjust man, went down to his house justified, without guilt, having never sinned? Why, that's scandalous. How could he say something like that? And this Pharisee, this religious man, this moral man, this self-congratulating man, He didn't go down to his house justified. He went down to his house condemned. Why, this seemed scandalous. How can this be?

Now, these two men, are the two representative men. You and I are described by one of these men. I'm either the Pharisee, you're either the Pharisee, or I'm the tax collector. and you're the tax collector, the two representative men, like Cain and Abel, they actually represent the two religions. Did you know there are only two religions? Somebody says, no, there are thousands of religions. No, there are only two.

Works and grace. Salvation by what you do, salvation by what Christ has done for you. Salvation by works or salvation by grace? Now, I don't care what religion it is. If it's not the gospel, it's salvation by works. You take any of the world's religions, they're all in some way dependent upon you. Within Christianity, you have thousands of different denominations, most of which believe in salvation by works.

Salvation dependent upon the sinner. Now, these two men represent the two religions. Works and grace, the only way that public can be can be saved by grace. The Pharisee believed he was saved because of what he did do and what he did not do. You see. One is based upon what you can do. The other is based upon what you know you cannot do. The cans. And the cannots. The haves. And the have nots.

Those who are sinful, those who believe themselves to be righteous, the two classes of men. There are no other classes. These two men represent the two classes of men, the righteous and the wicked. And listen to this, the righteous all believe themselves to be wicked. And the wicked all believe themselves to be righteous. And these two men illustrate this so clearly. The righteous and the wicked. Now let's listen to the prayer of the wicked. Now this man didn't believe himself to be wicked, he believed himself to be righteous. But this is the prayer of the wicked. The Pharisee stood. boldness, and prayed thus with himself."

The Lord lets us know that this was not a prayer that was pleasing to God when He says He prayed thus with Himself. God wasn't listening to it, not in favor. Oh, He heard it in judgment. He's going to send this man to hell, but He didn't hear it in favor.

This man prayed, stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank Thee. Now, notice this man gives God the credit. I believe this man was probably reformed. God, I thank Thee. I'm not giving myself the credit. I thank Thee. That publican behind me, that's what I'd be if you didn't make some kind of difference. I'm giving you the credit for this. God, I thank Thee.

But notice he doesn't say, I thank you for your mercy. He doesn't say, I thank you for your grace. He doesn't say, I thank you for your son. He doesn't say, I thank you for anything, but this, you've made me different. I thank you that I am not as other men are. His assurance was his behavior. Not something that Christ had done for him. Not the grace of God. His behavior.

Look at my life. My life has changed. My life is different. I've got a changed life. I've got a good life. This is why I think God's done something for me because of what I do and what I do not do. Not only Did his good outweigh his bad? He had a surplus. I fast twice in a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. I'm certainly not an extortioner. I'm not a swindler. I'm not unjust. I'm fair and honest in my dealings. I'm certainly not an adulterer. I'm not guilty of sexual sin. I've been faithful to my wife. I've been faithful to my husband.

All of his hope was in that which he could see with regard to his own life. His religion was a religion of personal comparison. I'm not like other people. Now, if you're self-righteous, if I'm self-righteousness, it's because I've compared myself to someone else, and I think I'm better than they are. That's what self-righteousness is.

You see, if you really believe yourself to be a sinner, you won't think you're better than anybody. You won't be able to stand in judgment of anybody because you'll know, you know what's in your own heart, you know you're the most sinful man alive. And you'll know that it would be an act of base hypocrisy for you to look down on somebody as if you're better than them. You know that you're nothing in and of yourself but sin.

That's what a sinner is. He knows he's nothing but sin. He has no claims on God. I can't say God saved me because I did this or I did that. All I am is sin. The Pharisee didn't see anything like this. God, I thank thee that I'm not as other men are. There's no confession of sin, just a confession of how good he is, how his life has changed and different. Oh, I'm giving you the credit.

But his ground of assurance was not what Christ did, but what he did or what he did not do. Now, I would be remiss if I didn't say that everything he said was a lie. He was an extortioner. He was unjust. He was an adulterer. He was a very sinful man and just didn't know it. He thought himself to be righteous. Every self-righteous man is completely blind to what they really are. He was blind to himself.

Now, I'm sure the people who heard him pray were impressed with him, as he was with himself. But let's listen to the prayer of the publican. And the publican, standing afar off, would not so much as lift up his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me, thee, sinner. Now that word merciful is actually the word propitious.

God do something about my sin. Now when you see you're a sinner, you'll see that you can't do anything about your sin. You can't make it go away. You can't up and decide to stop sinning. You are evil, and you realize that, and when you see that about yourself, that's when you'll ask the Lord to do something about your sin, because you can't do anything about it. God, be propitious to me, thee, sinner. Now, somebody says, what does propitiation mean? That's a good question. It's a big word. What it means is a sin-removing sacrifice.

I will be propitious to their iniquities. I'll remove them. And because of that, their sins and iniquities, I'll remember no more. And the only reason God could forget something and not remember it is because there's nothing there to remember. That's what the blood of Christ has done. It has removed sin. He was manifested to take away our sins. In Him is no sin. Listen to this scripture. Now remember, he's asking God be propitious to me, the sinner. Being justified freely by his grace, Paul said, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation, a sin removing sacrifice through faith in his blood.

Now, how can I know if the perpetuatory sacrifice did something for me? Do I have faith in His blood, that perpetuatory blood that actually put away sin? Do you have faith in His blood? I'm going to quote some scriptures and I'm going to ask you if you believe them. Do you believe that by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, talking about into heaven itself, having obtained eternal redemption for us? Do you have faith in his blood? Do you believe by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified? Do you have faith in His blood? Do you believe that when He had by Himself purged our sins, He sat down at the right hand of God because the work of purging was finished, completed. Sin was put away.

Sin was propitiated. You see this man is saying, Lord, make the atonement for me. I can't make, I remember hearing a preacher once say, I'll put that sin under the blood. You can't do that. Only God can do it. He's saying, put my sin under the blood so there is no more sin.

Do you believe in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins? Do you believe the blood of Jesus Christ, God's son, cleanseth us from all sins? be propitious toward me. That's talking about the sin atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.

May I be found in him. Do something about my sin. Now here's what the Lord did about his sin. He said in verse 14, I tell you, this man went down to his house. justified. Now that's what the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ does. Everybody he died for is justified. Now if I'm justified, that means I don't have any sin. That means I stand before God without guilt. That means I stand before God perfect. I tell you that man went down to his house justified. That's the whole gospel. And I love the way the Lord gives no explanation for it. He just said he went down to his house justified.

I'm sure everybody was gasping in horror how scandalous that this man has been justified. And do you know that the whole Bible tells how that could be so? From Genesis 1-1 to Revelation 22-21 tells us how God can be just. and justify an ungodly sinner like that publican and an ungodly sinner like me or you. Here's how he does it. 2 Corinthians 5, 21 says, for he hath made him to be sin.

For us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. That publican went down to his house with the very righteousness of God, justified before God, and then he gives the unalterable law of the kingdom of heaven for everyone that exalts himself. That's what self-righteousness is. Shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself, like this publican did, shall be exalted. To receive a copy of the sermon you have just heard, send your request to todd.neibert at gmail.com or you may write or call the church at the information provided on the screen.