Luke 18:13
"And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner."
Here was one instance where it says, "standing afar off." Some interpret this as an indication that he wasn't even in the inner court but in the outer one. He dared not even approach; he dared not even look heavenward. This was not just a religious ritual—this was a true cry unto the LORD. Not just for a specific sin, but for Mercy, You won't even have a clue what this means unless the LORD has been pleased to be your Teacher. It's not an emotion, it's an understanding of this sinful flesh and who I am before a Holy God.
We are sinners, but, it's for such that Christ came to save, and that's the glorious part of this. It's like Paul said, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15). Any in whom the Spirit of God has done His work of Grace, that is all they can see of themselves, "I am that sinner." If everybody else in the world had been righteous and me the only sinner, it would still have taken Christ coming to pay my debt. That's just how grave and grievous that sin is before God. But that's what this sinner was saying, preeminently sinful. Here's another interpretation of it: devoted to sin.
I often hear people say things like, "Well, I used to live that way. I used to think that way. That's what I used to be but now, thank God, I'm..." Well, you're lying then. You're just like that Pharisee: “I thank God I'm not like other men." What you're really saying is, "I thank God I'm not like those others." Listen to people’s testimonies; often, they focus on what they were and what they are now. But if we belong to the LORD and He has taught us, we will never get over being the sinner. Ever!
The closer we get to the Light, the more we see this corruption within us. Grace that is greater than all my sin! It must be that the LORD continues to show us just how sinful we are. If we ever have that little self-righteous thought of, "Hey, I'm improving," all the LORD has to do is open our eyes a little wider, and realize, "Whoa, wait a minute here!"
Think about the stench of this old heart. No matter how much you treat it, it still sins. Devoted to sin, That means exceedingly wicked. That's what he was saying. "I am the exceedingly wicked one." Given the test, none of us would naturally answer that way. But have you ever—or do you now—see yourself as the exceedingly wicked one, bent on nothing but sin?
There are some moralists, legalists and even so-called “grace” people who will take issue with you for saying, "That's my testimony." Yet, it was Paul's testimony too. As he said, "Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do" (Romans 7:17-19).
The HOPE for the publican, or any lost sinner that God has purposed to save is in the finished work of the LORD Jesus Christ alone. He is the saved sinner’s Mercy. “I tell you, this man went down to his house JUSTIFIED, rather than the other” (Luke 18:14).
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