Confession and Absolution

Spurgeon uses the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector to argue that genuine, acceptable prayer before God looks exactly like the tax collector's prayer — not polished, boastful, or priest-mediated, but spontaneous, solitary, heartfelt, and directed to God alone, with the confession "God be merciful to me, a sinner" implicitly leaning on the atonement of Christ as the only ground for hope. He makes clear that this is not just a prayer for notorious sinners but for everyone, including church members and even the preacher himself, since all have sinned against light and love in ways that make the word "sinner" perfectly fitting on every set of lips. He then describes the absolution the tax collector received — immediate, complete justification before God, with every past sin blotted out and the righteousness of Christ placed upon him in an instant — and urgently invites every person present to use this very prayer right now, promising that God has never turned away any soul who sincerely cried it from the heart.Sermon delivered by Charles Spurgeon on October 3, 1858.