Sermon for The Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, August 16, 2026.
It is not by works but by faith that you are saved. This is what Paul teaches us in Ephesians 2:8-9. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
This is what Jesus taught us today in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. Exalting ourselves—boasting about what we do—is not only not able to save you but actually works against you. “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled…” (Luke 18:14)
Thanks be to God that we all can confess the words of the tax collector. “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” And thanks be to God that what Jesus said of him, he says of us as well. What did Jesus say about the tax collector? “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified…” (Luke 18:14)
Thanks, and praise be to Jesus!
When we look at today’s epistle reading, we see why we can’t boast of anything. What does Ephesians 2:1 say? “For you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”
If we’re looking at ourselves apart from Jesus, apart from our baptism into Him, apart from our communion with Him, there is nothing to boast about. Even the outwardly righteous things that we do, if done without Christ, are the works of a child of wrath, a son of disobedience.
But again, thanks be to God that you are not apart from Christ. You ARE united to Him in baptism, and you ARE in communion with Him through the faithful reception of His Body and Blood in and with the bread and wine of His Holy Supper. And this is His work, as we read in Ephesians: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”
Christian, our God is gracious and merciful. Know this. Don’t doubt the grace of God. His grace saved you. His grace is seen on the Roman cross where Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was killed for you. Slain for you. The crucifixion of our Lord is God’s rich mercy and great love put on display.
The tax collector prayed, “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” and God was merciful to him. In the story, Jesus says, “he went down to his house justified.”
That story is about you. You are a sinner. And God is merciful to you. You will go down to your house today justified. You are justified! Christ has forgiven you of your sins. You live in the bountiful grace of God. By it you are saved. Through faith. Amen!
There is another story—not a parable, a true story, historical—that reinforces Christ’s parable of the tax collector. It’s the story of a murderer. A man with blood on his hands. A fugitive who we would say deserved the death penalty. His crime had left him all alone in life, separated from his family, without work—finding work in his industry was out of the question; his crime was so heinous. He had nowhere to call home. Yes, this man was a killer. He was evil. A sinner to be sure! And he had a reputation. People knew what he did. And we might find it hard to have sympathy for this guy, given that he was a murderer, but he truly feared for his own life. He could be anywhere, and someone might kill him. Of course I’m talking about Cain. The first murderer. The man who killed his own brother out of jealousy.
He couldn’t boast of his works. He was guilty. Like you and me, he was a sinner through and through. And what did our Lord show Him? Mercy. In his great despair, Cain prayed to God, saying, “My punishment is greater than I can bear?” (Gen. 4:13). Different words, but the same cry as the tax collector. The same thing you cry to the Lord: “God, be merciful to me a sinner!”
And what was the Lord’s reply? Mercy. He said, “‘If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.’ And the YHWH put a mark on Cain, lest anyone who found him should attack him.” (Gen. 4:15)
God branded Cain. Just like He branded you. What’s the brand? The cross. When you were baptized, you received the sign of the cross both upon your forehead and upon your heart to mark you as one redeemed by Christ. “By grace you have been saved” (Eph. 2:5). “God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses [just like Cain], made us alive together with Christ… and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus… For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:4-9).
Amen.
Rev. Tyrel Bramwell 
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