It’s easy and tempting to read the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector and presume that I am safe from self-righteousness and that the account is given for someone unlike me.
In truth, all men tend towards self-righteousness (it’s called “pride,” in its most basic form). And that tendency is dangerous.
Self-righteous people — whether 1st century or 21st century Pharisees — forget (or fail to acknowledge, or just don’t recognize) that righteousness has never been on our own. Righteousness has always been a gift from God that comes through faith. This was the word of the Old Testament prophet Habbakuk:
Behold, as for the proud one,
His soul is not right within him;
But the righteous will live by his faith.
And not only is this the word of the prophet, but Paul and the writer of Hebrews both also quote it to make the same point: righteousness is a grace gift that comes by means of faith. And the grace comes through the cross of Christ — Christ endures the humility and curse of the cross, suffering for our unrighteousness, so we might have His righteousness. As John Piper notes, “What God requires, Christ provides.“
And the great, ironic tragedy for the self-righteous person is this: because they presume to be righteous, they have no real hunger for God’s righteousness and will therefore not be satisfied by Him. They are in danger of missing the blessing of being dissatisfied with their own self-righteousness and yearning for His perfect righteousness.
Words of Grace 