We must be honest with ourselves (The Pharisee and the tax collector Luke 18:9-14)

We must be honest with ourselves (The Pharisee and the tax collector Luke 18:9-14)
One of the things that we try to instill in our children is that you should never expect to be rewarded for simply doing what is expected of you, you should expect to be rewarded for going above and beyond what is expected of you. For example, you do not get rewarded for being good at school because this is what is expected of you. Our society has become one where we have lowered the bar of expectations on our youth, and we have produced a generation of people who cannot be honest with themselves. Everyone cannot be the best, everyone cannot get the award, and it is not always someone else’s fault that things do not go your way. Sometimes you must look yourself in the mirror realize that most of the time it is your fault and that if you want to do better then you must work on yourself instead of blaming others. The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector really is a beautiful snapshot of what our society has become. Most people look around at others like the Pharisee trying to justify their existence and self-worth when really, we need to all be looking deep into our own hearts like the tax collector.
The tax collector was simply being honest with himself and with God, he knew he was messed up and had issue and he knew that he needed mercy. He did not try to hide it by posting a bunch of stuff on Facebook about how great his life was while really it was all falling apart. He did not walk into the church talking about how great everything was in his life, he just stood in the back of the church weeping and asking God for mercy. His heart was not set on looking good in public or even afraid of people thinking less of him, his heart was broken knowing that his sin had separated him from God. His heart was not worried about who was watching or how it would affect his personal life, he was only concerned about reconciling himself to God. We have created a society where in the eyes of most sin does not exist and everyone is going to heaven but is far from what reality is. Open your eyes to reality of your hearts condition, are you walking in fellowship with the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth or are you living in rebellion. Only you can answer this question honestly and only you can seek to rectify your eternal fate of your soul if Jesus is not the Lord of your life.