Devo Luke 18

9To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on
everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10”Two men went up to the temple to pray,
one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood up and prayed
about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers,
adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week and give a tenth
of all I get.’ 13”But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look
up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14”I
tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For
everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will
be exalted.”

Meditation:
1. This Pharisee went to the temple not to pray to God but to show off his own
good conduct. On the other hand, the tax collector went to confess and to ask
for mercy. Which person’s prayer is more like my prayer?
2. Repentance does not happen on our own. It is a gift from God and He
delights to give to all who ask. We pray this sinner’s prayer constantly to
ask for the grace of repentance. This is the prayer of tears. It will lead us to
receive God’s gift of forgiveness, cleansing and healing.
3. The sinner’s prayer “Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” This is the
second short prayer of the five that we’ve been practicing (p2). In my regular
practicing of this prayer, what have I experienced?
4. To conclude the QT today, pray this short prayer repeatedly. Practice to pray
this prayer often for a spirit of repentance in my heart.

Personal Note:
It is the person who acknowledge his or her sinfulness that there is salvation.  There is nothing I can do to earn forgiveness from God.  Have mercy on me God, a sinner.  It's not like I have know Christ for years that I do not need this.  This prayer of repentance is necessary for everyone including young and old Christians.  As I grow in my relationship with God, it is true that I become more Christ like (this should happen to all Christians).  The irony is that the more I learn and grow in my relationship with God, the more holy I find God to be and I realize more and more the sinfulness of my own nature.  Thus, the prayer of repentance is necessary.