An Audience of One

 오늘의 말씀

 

누가복음 18:9-14

9. 자기가 의롭다고 생각하고 다른 사람을 멸시하는 사람들에게 예수님께서 이런 비유를 말씀하셨습니다.

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 

 

10. "두 사람이 기도하려고 성전에 올라갔는데, 하나는 바리새파 사람이고, 하나는 세리였다.

"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

 

11. 바리새파 사람이 서서 이렇게 기도하였다. '하나님, 저는 다른 사람 즉 사기꾼, 죄인, 간음을 행사는 자와 같지 않고 이 세리와 같지 않은 것에 감사를 드립니다.

The 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.

 

12. 저는 일 주일에 두 번씩 금식하며 모든 수입의 십일조를 바칩니다.'

I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'

 

13. 한편, 세리는 멀리 서서 감히 눈을 들어 하늘을 보지도 못하고, 다만 가슴을 치며 말했다. '하나님 이 죄인을 불쌍히 여겨 주십시오.'

"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. 내가 너희에게 말한다. 이 사람이 저 바리새파 사람보다 의롭다는 인정을 받고 집으로 돌아갔다. 누구든지 자기를 높이는 사람은 낮아지고, 자기를 낮추는 사람은 높아질 것이다."
"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." 

 

 

I LOVE PRAYER. It is a love chat with my Father. It can be a time to share my pain, offer gratitude for blessings and provision, request protection for loved ones, or just express joy as I worship. But that's private prayer. Public prayer can be a little trickier. Have you ever been to a Bible study, committee meeting, or gathering of any type where everyone took a turn to pray aloud? Sometimes it feels more like a performance than a conversation with the Most High one. At other times it can seem like a competition to see who can be the most eloquent or dynamic pray-er. It is tempting to pray for the audience of many who are around us rather than to the audience of the one who is above us. Another hazard is that of using prayer as a vehicle for gossip: "Dear Lord, I ask you to bring John back to his wife . . . help her to forgive him for cheating with that other woman . . ." Yikes! God wants us to pray to be in fellowship with Him, to learn to trust Him, and to advance the Kingdom. Gossip and piety do not accomplish any of those. When we pray, we should place ourselves in fellowship with God, not in competition with those around us.

 

Diane Markins

 

Before you pray today, spend two minutes centering your mind on God.

 

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* eloquent[^|eləkwənt] : able to use language and express your opinions well, especially when you are speaking in public

* hazard[hǽzərd] : a thing that can be dangerous or cause damage

* piety[páiəti] : the state of having or showing a deep respect for sb/sth, especially for God and religion