Various messages
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by
Randy Smith
Pastor, Grace Tabernacle
South Belmar, New Jersey
There is an individual amongst us this morning that has brought me much concern. If he's not stopped, he could ruin the church. He's running around telling people that we have an obligation to follow the commandments as they're revealed in the Bible. Doesn't he know that we're free from the law and now living under grace? His rules and expectations have created a burden for this church, which are too difficult for any of us to bear. I prefer to follow the spirit of the law as the Bible says. His tactics are sheer legalism if you ask me! I rarely mention personal names from the pulpit, but I feel I need to expose this legalistic man before further damage is done. His name is....Jesus Christ.
I hope you will excuse my sarcasm, but this line of reasoning is not uncommon to many in today's church. For the next two weeks, I'd like to discuss with you the much-misunderstood and greatly abused topic of legalism as we continue our series entitled "Church and Home Unity." Legalism is a deadly sin that can destroy unity. Furthermore, it's an error that can keep people from experiencing the joy of the Christian life by holding them under unnecessary bondage. Moreover it sends many apparently devout followers of God straight to the pits of hell.
Regarding legalism, Pastor Ray Stedman once said, "I know of no affliction in Christendom which is more widespread, and more devastating in its destructiveness, than this" (Stedman, Legalism, sermon). Arthur Wallace commented, "Legalism is...Satan's most effective means of infiltrating and undermining the work and witness of the church" (Wallace, The Radical Christian, p. 155).
But as I fictitiously stated in the introduction, much of the church throws this term around without any biblical understanding whatsoever of its reality. I've witnessed it right here amongst some in this flock. Sadly, based on some current definitions of legalism, Jesus Christ is the biggest legalist who ever walked the planet!
Since such a suggestion is nothing but blasphemous, we must initially consider what is expected in the life of a believer, but often mistaken for legalism in the life of the church.
1. LEGALISM - WHAT IT IS NOT
Legalism is not obedience to Christ's commandments
Jesus Christ has become our new Lawgiver. He expects us to follow Him in wholehearted obedience. In Luke 6:46 He said, "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" Understanding our freedom in Christ (Jn. 8:32, 36) is contingent upon understanding our slavery to Christ. Paul (Rom. 1:1; Gal. 1:10; Phil. 2:7; Tit. 1:1), James (Jas. 1:1), Jude (Ju. 1:1), Peter (2 Pet. 1:1) and John (Rev. 1:1) all gratefully acknowledge themselves as a "bondservant" of Jesus Christ. He is our Lord. He is our Master. As Christians we are commanded to do as He says. We have been set free to do as He says. Anything less robs our joy and fails to display our love for the Savior. "If you love Me, (Jesus said) you will keep My commandments" (Jn. 14:15).
You wouldn't believe the number of people who have sought to abide by these expectations of Jesus Christ, only to be called legalists by other people who profess to be His children. Instead of rightly encouraging these individuals in their Christian commitment, these obedient saints are discouraged (by being wrongly critiqued as legalists) in their pursuit of doing what God desires.
Our Lord said, "Be holy, for I am holy" (Lev. 11:44). He remarked, "The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age" (Tit. 2:11-12). In John we read, "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (Jn. 3:36). We are called to "discipline (ourselves) for the purpose of godliness" (1 Tim. 4:7).
When someone, whether they identify themselves as a Christian or not, takes what God commands His children and not only shuns it, but condemns it under the sin of legalism, they are clearly performing the work of the adversary. Simply put, they are functioning as a mouthpiece for Satan.
Paul said, "If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing" (1 Tim. 6:3-4a). In 2 Timothy 3:5 he said these wolves in sheep's clothing "(hold) to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; avoid such men as these." The last thing God wants is people coming into His church and telling His flock that it is legalistic to obey His Word.
Because of this massive deception within the church of Jesus Christ, many people are more afraid of being deemed "legalistic" than they fear displeasing the Lord though unholy conduct. Beloved, if we are filled with the Holy Spirit, our greatest goal should be (Colossians 1:10) to "walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God" desiring daily to be conformed further into the image of Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:29).
We should want to use the freedom that has been purchased for us by Christ (1 Cor. 7:22-23) to escape the shackles of sin that previously held us in bondage for so long. How can we as God's holy children desire to continue in the filth of sin, the same sin that placed our Savior on the cross, the same sin that brings about the wrath of God and would have sent us to hell. And then proudly call it a display of "grace" or "Christian liberty" or "New Covenant living" and oppose others who disagree by calling them legalistic?
The warped mentality is as old as the Scriptures. Romans 6:1-2, "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?" Paul continues, "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness" (Rom. 6:15-16)?
Regardless of what many think, we are not legalists when we obey Jesus Christ, on the contrary, we are Christians.
Legalism is not adopting strong personal convictions
The Bible is clear as to what God expects from His children. For example we know that it is wrong to steal (Eph. 4:28), fornicate (Heb. 13:11), and lie (Pr. 6:17), and it is right to minister (1 Cor. 12:7), evangelize (2 Tim. 4:5) and pray (Rom. 12:12). We should all share and agree upon these general convictions.
However, God leads His children at times in different ways. We are all individually guided by the Holy Spirit, our own conscience and general principles in the Word of God. This in turn develops personal convictions within our own heart. These convictions, which are not based on direct commandments from the Bible, are nevertheless based on biblical principles and are both acceptable and expected for the Christian to hold.
For example, many of the commandments for spiritual purity are written in a very general fashion. Such an approach by the Holy Spirit may be frustrating to those of us who want a lists of do's and don't's (a Christian book of Leviticus if you will), but it is actually a very wise tactic in the counsel of God. You see, the avoidance of many specific rules not only enables the Scriptures to transcend time and culture, it also forces us to depend on the Spirit's inner guidance for direction and not approach our relationship with God as if it were a spiritual checklist to be completed. Though "check-list religion" is very appealing to our flesh, God our Father wants us forever seeking His guidance and growing in a relationship that is not mechanical or stoic or distant, but one that is intimate and relational and vibrant.
Let's take the popular commandment from Philippians 4:8. "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things."
For me, this verse has always served as a wonderful grid to sift my actions as to whether they should be pursued or rejected. It's helped me take all those gray areas of life not mentioned in the Scriptures and personally determine which ones I believe will further glorify God in my own individual walk with Him.
For instance the verse teaches we are to pursue the things that are pure. Let's single that down specifically to sexual purity. Obviously the sexual sins of adultery, homosexuality, fornication and bestiality are impure. The Scriptures clearly identify those impure sins by name. But what about visiting a strip-club or attending an X-rated movie? Would that be impure? I believe we would all say "yes," even though neither of them are mentioned specifically in our Bibles. What about an R-rated movie? What about a PG-rated movie with some occasional nudity? Is that impure? What about going to a nudist beach? What about wearing a skimpy bathing suit at the beach? What about going to the beach in general? What about even driving down Ocean Avenue during the peak summer season knowing well in advance what you're bound to see? Would any of these be impure activities in your estimation? How did you come to that conclusion? What about having another adult of the opposite sex alone with you in your home when your spouse is not present? Is that impure? What about your conversations with the opposite sex? When do they get a little too personal or a little too friendly? When has the line of purity been crossed? How far should singles go in their physical contact with their boyfriends and girlfriends? What magazines should you read and what television shows should you watch? Is it impure to even own a television? What about the use of the Internet? Is there any impurity there? Where do you personally draw the line? Where does your family draw the line?
Some convictions are established as our conscience applies general biblical admonitions. Some convictions are established as a safeguard to prevent sinning. In Romans 13:14 we read, "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts." All of us should be well aware of our spiritual weaknesses. We should do whatever it takes to eliminate any stumbling blocks that may cause us to fall in these vulnerable areas. We are to aggressively take the necessary actions to eradicate even the possibility of sin. These become strong convictions.
Jesus Himself made this principle clear when He said, "If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell" (Mt. 5:29). And "If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell" (Mt. 5:30). Though abused by Christians throughout history, Jesus is not calling for a literal interpretation, but rather calling His children with extreme seriousness to do whatever it takes to avoid personal sin.
That's why I personally know of families who have removed their television. I know of adults who will never touch alcohol again. I know of singles that promise to abstain from any physical contact until their wedding day. I recently conducted a Christian wedding where the couple kissed for the very first time at the conclusion of the ceremony. Are these people weird? Are these people wrong? Are these people legalistic if they keep their convictions to themselves?
James 4:17 teaches, "Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin." We must not violate our conscience and therefore me must not critique people with strong convictions. We must not quench the work of the Spirit in their life. We may not share their convictions, but we must encourage them as they encourage us in their pursuit to glorify God. We must do whatever it takes to prevent our Christian freedom in some of these areas from be the stumbling block they are trying to remove. The Scriptures teach we must always limit our own freedom in Christ if it means upholding another in their conviction (Rom. 14-15).
Legalism is not establishing guidelines for church conduct
The best example I can think of in this area would be the church in Corinth. The place adopted an incorrect view of the Charismatic gifts, which eventually led to more of a circus environment than a church service.
Paul in his first letter to the church needed to step in and institute some guidelines. He needed to establish order: 1 Corinthians 14:26, "What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification." 1 Corinthians 14:31-33, "For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all may be exhorted; and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets; for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints." 1 Corinthians 14:40, "But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner."
He needed to establish some specific protocol for tongue speaking: 1 Corinthians 14:27-28, "If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret; but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God."
Order reflects the character of God. Order preserves our witness to the lost. 1 Corinthians 14:23-25, "Therefore if the whole church assembles together and all speak in tongues, and ungifted men or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are mad? But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you."
Unfortunately, if Paul had said these things to the church today, especially some in some Charismatic circles, he would no doubt be labeled a legalist. God expects us to conduct sensible, self-controlled and intelligent worship that is edifying to all without restraining God-wrought emotion as the Spirit of God brings to our heart the Word of God.
Therefore, such convictions cause us to say, "You can't dance around the pews during a worship service because you will be drawing all the attention to yourself." Such convictions cause us to say, "We will not serve alcohol at our church fellowships because it will cause some within this church to stumble." Every church needs to establish general guidelines based on biblical principles in love to honor a God of order and bring edification and encouragement to the people of His flock during worship. These guidelines need not be legalistic.
2. LEGALISM - WHAT IT IS
So it is not legalistic to pursue obedience to God's Word. It is not legalistic to pursue personal convictions providing we keep them to ourselves. And it's not legalistic to establish guidelines for church conduct. But what is the sin of legalism? With the time that remains I'd like to answer that question.
"Big L" legalism
The first type of legalism is what I refer to as "Big L" legalism. "Big L" legalism is any attempt to earn your salvation by contributing your works to the work accomplished by Jesus on the cross. In others works, it's a "Christ-plus" message.
The best example in Scripture is found in Paul's letter to the Galatians. After a successful missionary endeavor (Ac. 14:27), a certain sect, commonly called the Judaizers, infiltrated the region of Galatia and began to demand the new Christian converts to abide by the law of Moses in addition to the work of Christ to achieve salvation. Their motto is recorded in Acts 15:1. "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved."
Paul was shocked! Galatians 1:6-7, "I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." Such teaching flew in the face of the true Gospel. Therefore Paul wrote this blessed epistle to once again present the true Gospel and correct their error.
As for the true Gospel, it is one of grace, resting solely in the sufficiency of Christ's work on the cross to forgive our sins and justify us in the sight of God. Galatians 2:16, "Nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified." Galatians 2:21, "I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly."
You see, the moment you add anything to the work of Christ, you have fallen from grace. Galatians 5:4, "You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace."
Paul makes it clear that we must either rest entirely on grace or reject Christ and attempt to fulfill the law in completion by ourselves. Galatians 3:10, "For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.'" Galatians 5:3, "And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law."
But combining works and grace to achieve salvation is unacceptable legalism with devastating results. Galatians 1:8-9, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!"
Therefore "Big L" legalism is attempting to add our works to the work of Christ to merit our salvation. Do you believe that you are saved based upon grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone? Or are you guilty of legalism, like the Pharisees (Lk. 18:9-14; Mt. 23:13-28) who believe that salvation is based on your works, either in part or in whole? The legalist believes his forgiveness and acceptance with God is based on performance to a certain self-proclaimed standard. The Christian, unlike every other religion, understands he cannot earn God's love and simply accepts it through the work of Christ. That's why we call it "Amazing Grace."
"Little "l" legalism
"Big L" legalism may not be too common in the evangelical church but "Little l" legalism is often running rampant. "Little l" legalism may accept salvation by grace alone, but then believes extra-biblical standards are necessary for godly conduct and sanctification. "Little l" legalism is often seen developing as a personal conviction which is fine, but then elevating that conviction to a corporate mandate and expecting compliance from others in the church as well which is wrong.
Paul addressed this problem in his letter to the Colossians. "Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day--things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God. If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, 'Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!' (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)-- in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence" (Col. 2:16-23).
Today our legalist concerns have changed a little. They usually revolve around: dancing, alcohol, children's schooling, dress, music, spending, celebration of holidays (especially Christmas and Halloween), television, movies and Bible translations.
For example, if I have a conviction that it is wrong to own a television, that is perfectly fine and I am not a legalist (although many in today's church would incorrectly assess me as one). However, the moment I begin to tell people that it is a sin to own a television, I have become a legalist. And the moment I condemn you personally for owning a television is the moment I have added the sin of judgmentalism (Mt. 7:1-2).
Often these people are godly individuals who are only seeking purity for the church. However, we must remember that it is equally wrong to add to the Word of God as it is to subtract from the Word of God.
This morning we first examined what is often confused for legalism. It is not legalistic to pursue biblical obedience and expect it from other Christians as well. Additionally, it is not legalistic to hold personal convictions or establish corporate rules for greater and more orderly worship. Then we examined the true biblical definition of legalism - "Big-L legalism" and "Little-l legalism." As the Lord permits, next week we'll conclude the sermon by discussing the dangers of legalism, especially as they relate to the unity of the church, and some practical solutions to overcome the sin of legalism in our own lives.
Legalism - Part 2
by
Randy Smith
Pastor, Grace Tabernacle
South Belmar, New Jersey
Some taught others in the church it was wrong to enjoy sleep and a comfortable bed. They used to wake themselves up in the middle of the night with bells and often sleep in extremely uncomfortable clothes to avoid the so-called "worldly" pleasure of sleep. Some taught it was wrong to enjoy eating food. They often fasted so much their bodies became so thin and weak that they ruined their health and/or died at very young ages. Some taught it was wrong for men to look into the face of a woman when talking to her. Many taught it was worldly to laugh. Others taught it was wrong to own property, land or material possessions. In the 1800's, the wearing of a black coat and a wig by a minister was viewed as almost a command of God in the U.S. amongst Protestants. During the same time, some Protestant churches taught it was wrong to kneel in prayer. Others taught that kneeling in prayer was the only acceptable way to pray. Churches have had rules against women's prayer meetings, lay preaching, preaching without notes, church choirs, the use of organs in churches, cooking or riding a bike on Sundays, and hundreds of other things.
We may laugh at these legalist stipulations from yesteryear's church, but I wonder how many future Christians will do the same when they look at the many man-made rules of our generation that we've also elevated to biblical mandate.
It just goes to show the sin of legalism is nothing new. Jesus battled it in His debates with the Pharisees, and Paul confronted it in many of His epistles. Legalism has brought terrible destruction to the present church, and legalism will no doubt plague God's people until the time of our Lord's return. So due to the prominence, not to mention the confusion and seriousness of this sin, I have decided to preach a two-part sermon, as we continue our series entitled "Church and Home Unity," in order to boldly confront this error head on.
By way of review, last week we covered what legalism is not. Most in today's church are familiar with the term, but unfortunately most in today's church apply the term incorrectly. Without exaggeration, I can say their use of legalism is as equally damaging as the sin itself.
I praise the Lord for the woman who came up in tears after the conclusion of last week's message because of the Spirit's conviction of her own shortcoming in this area.
First of all, legalism is not the pursuit of personal godliness as it is commanded and accomplished in us by the Triune God. Jesus Christ as our Lord has called us to a life of obedience (1 Pet. 1:14) following His own example as He was "obedient to the point of death" (Phil. 2:8). We are to be "imitators of God" the Father (Eph. 5:1) who is holy and set-apart from sin (Lev. 20:26). We are indwelt with the Holy Spirit who seeks to make us godly by conforming us into the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29).
Yet unfortunately, many God-honoring believers have sought to abide by these expectations only to be called legalists by other people who profess to be God's children. I cannot overstate this error! When someone, whether they identify themselves as a Christian or not, takes what God commands His children and not only shuns it, but condemns it under the sin of legalism, they are clearly performing the work of the adversary. Simply put, they are functioning as a mouthpiece for Satan. God does not care for people running around His church telling His people that it's a sin to act like Christ.
Furthermore, legalism is not adopting strong personal convictions. Some clear biblical convictions should be shared by all as many biblical commands are black and white. However, the Spirit and our conscience lead us individually in the gray areas based on general biblical principles. Naturally we will all land in different places with respect to: Alcohol, music, children's schooling, dress, spending, celebration of holidays (especially Christmas and Halloween) and entertainment. Provided you keep them to yourself, there is nothing wrong with personal convictions in these areas. You are only seeking to follow your conscience and glorify God in all aspects of your daily living (1 Cor. 10:31). You are not a legalist!
Finally, legalism is not establishing guidelines for church conduct. Though it can be abused to squelch all religious affection, there is nothing legalistic about preserving order and self-control in the worship services. There is noting legalistic about creating a worship environment that is edifying for all and honoring to God. Last week we saw how Paul spent an entire chapter (1 Cor. 14) instituting worship principles for the out-of-control Corinthian church.
Although these three areas are often confused for legalism in today's church, last week I provided the true biblical definition of legalism by breaking it down into two categories: "Big-L" and "Little-l" legalism.
"Big L" legalism is any attempt to earn your salvation by contributing your own works to the work accomplished by Jesus on the cross. In others works, it's a "Christ-plus" message. The true Gospel, by which we are saved, is one totally by grace through faith whereby the individual rests solely in the sufficiency of Christ's work to forgive sins, remove wrath and justify the ungodly in the sight of God. To ignore grace or combine our works to grace is "Big-L" legalism.
The consequences are disastrous! Even before explaining that the true gospel was one solely of faith (Gal. 2:16), the Apostle Paul said, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed" (Gal. 1:8-9).
"Little l" legalism, possibly more common in good churches today, may accept salvation by grace alone, but then believes all must follow certain prescribed extra-biblical standards for godly conduct and favor in God's sight. "Little l" legalism often begins as a personal conviction (which is fine), but then elevates that conviction to a corporate mandate expecting compliance from others in the church as well (which is wrong). There are often people who would never dream of subtracting from the Word of God, but have no problem adding to the Word of God and judging others who fail to comply with their standards, pressuring them to blindly adopt their burden or making them feel unholy and impure for failing to go along.
So far all that I have said was simply a review from last week. Now as we conclude this message and prepare our hearts for the Lord's Supper, I wish to cover two key aspects on the subject of legalism: First, it's dangers and second, it's solution.
1. LEGALISM—ITS DANGERS
For some of you, legalism may still appear to be somewhat innocent, but let me attempt to convince you how deadly both "Big-L" and "Little-l" legalism really are both for yourself and your church.
First of all, they lead to or result from the general sin of pride.
For starters, take for example the prideful sin of self-worship. As fallen human beings, the debt we incurred against God was our desire to steal His glory. Those who commit the sin of "Big-L" legalism to get saved or "Little-l" legalism to be sanctified are clearly falling into this trap. Instead of acknowledging that our salvation and sanctification are completely from God, we want to take some of the credit. We want to praise ourselves. We want to believe that we contributed in some way. We want to take the glory that rightly belongs to God and reflect it upon ourselves. As prideful, self-worshiping individuals, we have great difficulty in saying that our relationship with God is all of grace.
Thomas Schreiner concurs. "Legalism has its origin in self-worship. If people are justified through their obedience to the law, then they merit praise, honor and glory. Legalism, in other words, means the glory goes to people rather than God" (Schreiner, The Law and Its Fulfillment: A Pauline Theology of the Law, Baker, 1993, p. 15).
But God said, "I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another" (Isa. 42:8a). God is offended when people seek to take credit for work that is rightly His and in doing so rob Him of His glory through self-worship.
Legalism also falls into the prideful sin of self-reliance. This is closely related to the sin of self-worship. Self-reliant people say, "What must I do to earn God's favor?" They fail to understand they can't do anything to earn His favor. They fail to understand their own sinfulness and the utter holiness of God. They fail to understand grace and the glorious fact that salvation is a gift. They think they can somehow contribute. They think God in some way can use their help. They depend in part on their own strength, wisdom, righteousness and/or intuition.
C. J. Mahaney in his excellent book, The Cross Centered Life said, "The implications of legalism are staggering in their arrogance. Legalism claims that the death of Jesus on the cross was either unnecessary or insufficient. It essentially says to God, 'Your plan didn't work. The cross wasn't enough and I need to add my good works to it to be saved'" (p. 25).
Listen beloved, God wants us to lean wholly on Him, trust Him for His strength and depend on His promises. Therefore God is forever seeking to wean us from the sin of self-reliance. However, I believe none of us are fully aware of how deceptive the sin of self-reliance really is. We fall into the trap of the Pharisees. And like them, we can even extol self-reliance because it can appear so pious.
John Piper brings out the danger of self-reliance's deceptiveness by comparing it to the sin of alcoholism. Most of us would say alcoholism is a far deadlier sin than legalistic self-reliance but listen: "Let us not be deceived by outward appearances. Satan "disguises himself as an angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14). He keeps his deadliest diseases most sanitary. He clothes his captains in religious garments and houses his weapons in temples. Legalism is a more dangerous disease than alcoholism because it doesn't look like one. Alcoholism makes men fail; legalism helps them succeed in the world. Alcoholism makes men depend on the bottle; legalism makes them self-sufficient, depending on no one. Alcoholism destroys moral resolve; legalism gives it strength. Alcoholics don't feel welcome in the church; legalists love to hear their morality extolled in church" (Brothers, We Are Not Professionals, p. 155).
Additionally, legalism leads to the sin of self-righteousness. Since the legalist believes God's favor is based upon his self-determined standards, it's only natural that he will judge and condemn and look down upon others who fail to live up to his extra-biblical regulations.
They keep wine in their refrigerator! She doesn't pray on her knees! He was on the boardwalk without a shirt! They were dancing at the wedding! He cuts his grass on Sunday afternoon! She doesn't wear a dress to church!
I almost fell into this trap a few weeks ago when I was reading Disciplines of a Godly Family by Kent and Barbara Hughes. After finishing this enjoyable book, I noticed the appendix, which suggested movies appropriate for the Christian family. A few titles were ones that Julie and I have banned from the Smith household. How easy it would be for me to look down on this family and question their credibility in writing the book because they choose to watch E.T. and totally dismiss the other 90% of the book that needs application in our lives. Such an attitude would be self-righteous legalism.
Legalism can leads to the prideful sins of self-worship, self-reliance and self-righteousness, and let me give you a fourth one, self-belief. The Gospel is simple! The Apostle Paul said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Ac. 16:31). However, the moment we get legalistic and say, "That's sounds too simple to be true" or "I need to add to God's word," we have fallen into the sin of self-belief. Regardless of how much the world teaches us to believe in ourselves, God wants us to believe in Him with child-like faith and simply take Him at His Word. God gave us the Scriptures as a sufficient revelation of Himself. They are not there for us to pick and choose what we want to believe or use them to reinforce our own preconceived ideas and preferences. When we judge the Scriptures rather than allowing the Scriptures to judge us, we fall into the sin of self-belief. We extol our wisdom over the wisdom of God.
Besides these four "self" sins of pride, allow me to briefly present three more ways legalism assaults a relationship with the living God.
Legalism leads to a fear of losing God's love. Permit me to give you a test. Possibly you have fallen into this trap.
Let's say you had a spiritually rich week. I mean, it was one of those weeks where everything clicked in your relationship with God. A mountaintop experience if you will. Great devotionals every day. A few evangelistic opportunities. A week of faithful service at VBS. You really felt the nearness of God's presence. And here you are on Sunday morning as the culmination of a great week, excited to meet corporately with God in worship.
Then let's pretend next week doesn't go as well. Your prayer time pushed aside by other activities. You yell at your husband and discipline your children in anger. You exchange Wednesday's prayer meeting for a movie that violated your conscience. And then comes Sunday morning. God appears so distant. You're convicted about your sins. You even debate going to church, but confess your sins and ask God to mercifully accept your worship.
Now here's the big question: Which Sunday did God love you more? If you pick one over the other, you have you fallen into the trap of performance which is the sin of legalism.
As I said earlier, legalists are self-focused. They are far more aware of their own sins than what Christ accomplished on the cross. God wants you to look to Him more than you look to yourself. There is absolutely nothing wrong with self-examination, but as one wise pastor once told me a few years ago, "For every finger you point to yourself, point ten to Jesus Christ."
We must understand that God's love for us is based on the work of Christ. We didn't earn it; we simply received it. It is undeserved on our part, but unconditional on His. I think many Christians have it backwards. We do not avoid sin in fear of losing God's love; on the contrary we look to God's perfect, unceasing and infinite love as a motivation to avoid sin. God's love is the impetus that compels us to give ourselves to Him (2 Cor. 5:14). For those in Christ Jesus, there is nothing we can do to make God love us more and nothing we can do to make God love us less.
Legalism also leads to loss of joy. If we are focused on rule keeping, if we are focused on earning God's acceptance through our efforts, if we are focused on trying to meet the convictions and standards of others, God becomes a gloomy killjoy and the vibrant relationship we desire with Him becomes dull, distant and difficult to bear. As we spin the plates of legalism, our Christian walk increasingly becomes a burden with the continual addition of another plate. And to keep the plates spinning, we'll focus more on the plates, our legalistic rulebook, than our intimate and exciting and joyful walk with the living God.
Finally, in addition stealing you joy; legalism steals the assurance of your salvation. There is no pain worse, no burden heavier and no care darker, than to wonder if you are in a right standing with God. The legalist lives in this constant state of tension.
Since the legalist lives by his own efforts, he never knows if he does enough to be favorable in God's eyes. There's always a good deed that is left undone. There's always a sin that needs confession. And since he bases God's acceptance of him according to his own standard, a "this side of the line behavior," he feels condemned when he makes one wrong move and continually questions his standing with God.
2. LEGALISM—ITS SOLUTION
As we conclude, let's look to the solution to overcome the sin of legalism. Actually, we've already covered the solution by simply reversing all the material we've covered thus far.
First of all, you must look to Jesus. You must rightly understand what God has done for you in Christ. You must understand that God's favor and love are not conditioned on your obedience, but rather on the obedience of Jesus Christ in His sacrificial and substitionary death on your behalf.
To overcome legalism, the cross must always remain at the center of your lives. The gospel must always be of "first importance" (1 Cor. 15:3). We must live everyday, not just the day we were saved, in the light of the gospel. We must continually preach the gospel to ourselves, because we have a tendency to drift into a performance-orientated mentality. Justification with God for Paul was not only a point-in-time event; it was also a present reality! He said, "For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly" (Gal. 2:19-21).
The legalist loves to boast in his own self-righteousness. The Christian loves to boast in the righteousness of Christ imputed to him through the cross. "But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world" (Gal. 6:14).
Second, we must walk in the Spirit. Legalism, judgment of others and condemnation of others are all sinful deeds of the flesh. Galatians 5:16 says, "Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." When we walk in the Spirit we will manifest the fruit of the Spirit, which is love- love for God whereby we desire to overcome the sin of legalism (Rom. 6:1-2), and love for others whereby our convictions do not become their burdens (Jas. 2:8; 4:11-12; 5:9).
Paul rebuked the legalistic Galatians by saying, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery" (Gal. 5:1). I hope you're convinced. Legalism is a yoke of slavery we impose upon ourselves and others. But with the help of God and desire for His glory, we may cast off the burden of legalism and turn to Jesus Christ who provides true freedom - freedom to avoid sin, freedom to obey Christ and freedom to love others. "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another" (Gal. 5:13).
How to Overcome Sin
by
John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved.
Copyright 1991
The question is, "How do I kill sin in my life? How do I do it?" Let me give you some little principles--very basic, very straightforward.
If you live by the Spirit and are headed towards eternal life because of your salvation, the Spirit in you gives the power to be killing the deeds of the flesh. The question is, "All right, how do I do that? I agree that the power is there, that's the bent of my life, that's the way I am going, I want to see the Spirit do more and more and more of it. How do I get to that point? How do I get that victory? How do I get that pattern established?
How can that become habitual? What do I do?"
1. Recognize the Presence of Sin in Your Flesh.
Do you know (I believe with all my heart) why most Christians are most commonly defeated by sin? It is because the sin has so totally deceived them, that they never really get to the point where they honestly evaluate its reality. They are not dealing with the issue. You spend so much of your life justifying your sin as a quirk of your personality or a product of your environment. You spend so much time sugar-coating your habitual kinds of sins as simply idiosyncrasies of individuality, or some prenatal predilection that your mother had, or whatever. You have become so good (we all have) at coating over the reality of our sin that we don't see it, so we don't deal with it because we "flat out," number one, don't even recognize it for what it is. Any kind of spiritual victory begins when you identify the enemy. I
mean that it is the same old story, "If you don't know what you are shooting at, how are you going to hit it?" How am I going to eliminate from my life what I don't even identify as needing to be eliminated?
Sin is not only wicked, it is deceitful. It is deceitful! And it's there, believe me it is there. John Owens was right, he says [of sin],
It has no doors to open.
It needs no engine by which to work.
It lies in the mind and in the understanding.
It is found in the will.
It is in the inclinations of the affections.
It has such intimacy in the soul.
It's there! But inevitably it's covered up. Do you remember when David said, "Protect me from secret sins, hidden sins?" And to kill it you have to recognize it, you have got to search it out. Psalm 139 is a good verse, verse 23 (Psalm 139:23), remember this? "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my thoughts; and see if there be . . . " what? ". . . any wicked way in me." Help me see my sinfulness. I want to recognize it for what it is. I want to get to the root of it. That's what is so fallacious about contemporary psychotherapy, it's that instead of having to deal with the reality of your present spiritual condition, it wants to drag you in the past and find somebody else who is responsible for your problem. You must deal with whatever is debilitating your life--that is you. And don't be deceived about how good you are. Believe me, your sin is there, and it is wretched and it spurts forth between the cracks of your supposed righteousness. It comes out in anger and bitter words, unkind thoughts, criticisms, self-conceit, lack of understanding, impatience, weak prayers, immoral thoughts, and even overt sins. You have got to know your weaknesses.
Haggai the prophet, chapter one, twice, verses 5 and 7 said, "Consider your ways! Consider your ways!" Take a good deep look at yourself. 1 Kings 8:38 says, "Know the plague in your own heart." Know the plague in your heart! And Paul in Ephesians 4:22, talks about deceitful lusts. You have to begin by examining your own life to see the reality of what is really there.
2. A Heart Fixed on God.
Second step. In order to gain this victory, its triumph, and to see the power of the Spirit of God begin to give you the power over the unredeemed flesh that you desire, that God desires, you must have a heart fixed on God. A heart fixed on God. The Psalmist said in Psalm 57:7, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed." What do I mean by that? Undivided devotion to God! That's that wholeness in spiritual life where I am given wholly to God. What do I mean by that? What I am really saying in this context is, you can't have sin in one area. You can't just sort of clean up a lot of it but leave it in one area. You can't starve it out and kill it in one spot and feed it so it lives in another spot. If it lives anywhere it will crawl all over everywhere. It is the most noxious, fastest growing weed in existence. It will not confine itself to one flower bed, it'll be everywhere. The Psalmist said in Psalm 119, verse 6, "Then shall I not be ashamed." When? When will you not be ashamed? "When I have respect unto all thy
commandments." My life isn't going to be right, my life isn't going to be without shame until I give proper respect to every command of God. And that is to deal with every issue of sin in my life. The only unashamed life is the life of one who is totally fixed on God; everything has been dealt with.
3. Meditate on the Word.
Meditate on the Word. The filling of the Spirit is equated in Colossians 3, to letting the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. When the Word controls you, when it controls your thinking, when it is there as the Psalmist said, "To meditate on day and night," when it is there hidden that "I might not sin against God," then you have a control factor in your life. The way to kill sin in your life is to feed it Scripture. It's a poison. It'll poison sin. Just feed a sinful life Scripture--it will poison it! Whatever really controls your mind, controls your behavior; so you learn to close out the garbage and you feed the sin, the remaining sin, in your life a steady diet of God's glorious truth and it poisons sin. And so you must give yourself to the Word. You must saturate yourself in the Word. You must hear the Word preached and taught. You must learn it yourself and you must meditate on it day and night.
4. Commune with God in Prayer.
These are so very basic. Fourthly, and very important, commune with God in prayer. Commune with God in prayer. This sort of circles back around to the first point that I gave you. True prayer gives the heart a sense of its own vile character and renews the hatred of sin. True prayer does that. John Owens said, "He who pleads with God for the remission of sin also pleads with his own heart to detest it." Somewhere along the line, in your own prayer life you need to get honest. You need to get honest. And you need to begin to say to God, "I want you to reveal my sin, I want you to stir it up in me. I want you to show it to me. I want you to blow away the dust that is covering it. I want you to peel off the things that have been hiding it away in my life, so that it becomes manifest and visible to me. I want to see the reality of my sin. I want you to show it to me just the way it is." That's part of your communion with God.
When you pray to God--that is an honest confession. You can say you confess your sins, but until you pray, "God show me all the sins of my life, reveal all of them, uncover every little corner of my life. Bring it up and may it become as detestable to me as it is to you, and may you give me the strength to see it go away." Those are the kind of prayers that are the true prayers of repentance. I have always believed that when you really confess your sins there is a little P.S. that you add to the end of it, when you say, "Lord please forgive me for that sin," and you always add, if your confession is true, "and Lord may I never do that again." That's my heart's cry. And then prayer exposes secret sins. Prayer weakens prevailing sins. Prayer finds strength in fellowship with the Holy God to kill sin in our lives.
What must I do if I am to know victory over sin? First, I have to recognize the sin in my life. Don't kid yourself, don't gloss over yourself, don't underestimate your wretched condition as Paul didn't in Romans, chapter 7. And then fix your gaze wholly on God and become totally devoted to Him, so that everything in life, center and circumference, is Him. As the Psalmist said in Psalm 16, "I have set the Lord always before me," and that is the only way to live. And then it is also equally essential that you cultivate a knowledge and understanding, and a deep comprehension and application of Biblical truth, and that you spend time in honest prayer before God, bringing the truth to life in His presence. And in those kinds of simple spiritual exercises comes the death of sin. Then there is a fifth and last in this little pattern of victory.
5. Cultivate Obedience.
Now we go out of that private place, where you looked for your sin and where you fixed you gaze on God. And where you meditated on the Word, and where you communed with God in prayer, and we move into the public place and now the pattern of your life is set on a course of obedience. Paul said, "I haven't attained," I love this, "but," he said, "I press towards the mark." I haven't reached the goal but I am on the path. What path was he on? The path of obedience. Peter said, "Our lives should be characterized," 1 Peter 1:22, "by obedience to the truth." And we walk a path of obedience. If you want to engage yourself with a real battle with sin, just set your course, day-by-day, moment-by-moment, one step at a time, on a path of obedience. At first it seems hard, at first the progress seems slow, but you stay with it and eventually you become habitually obedient. Habitually obedient. It becomes a habit! You stay on the path that God has laid out in His Word. That path will lead you to grow in grace, to perfect holiness, to renew the inward man day-by-day, and you'll train yourself towards godliness.
Now, it would be fair, I think, to ask a final question, and that is, "How am I doing on this?" How can I do a little inventory and say to myself, "Soul, Soul, how are you doing? How's this working out? Are you doing these things?" Just ask yourself some simple questions.
A. How's my zeal for God?
Is my heart cold towards God? Has sin made me indifferent to times of communion with Him? Do I have little or no interest in His presence? In the glory of His name? Do I love His Word? Do I love His law? Can I understand what the Psalmist meant in Psalm 119:136, when he said, "Rivers of water run down my eyes, because they keep not thy law." Do I have such a love for God's law that I am devastated when His law is disregarded? Do I earnestly contend for the faith? Do I live to uphold truth? To live it? To proclaim it? What level is my zeal at?
B. Do I love the Word?
Do I find myself drawn to the Word? Almost pinned to it by some divine wrestler who has me on the canvas and I can't get up until its truths have become my own convictions. Do I find myself indulging in the deep things of the Word? Ask myself this, "Self, do you love the time of prayer? Do you love the place of confession? Do you eagerly rush into the place where you can confess your sin and ask God to do the self-examining process by the light of the Holy Spirit, so that every dirty thing can be brought to light. Do you seek that? Do you delight in worship? Is it your great longing to be here with God's redeemed people? Is it precious to you to spend the Lord's Day in the church? Is it your soul's highest delight to sing His praise and know Him better, that you might offer Him honor?" Or do you say with the Jews of Malachi's day, "What a weariness worship is!"
Ask yourself this, "Are you sensitive to sin in the church? Are you sensitive to sin in the world? Does it tear your heart up when you see sin around you any where? In your own life?"
You see those are just the basic principles I gave you, just flipped around and turned into self-examining questions. Spiritual victory is there if you recognize that you are not under any obligation to sin. If you recognize that the Spirit of God has already bent you towards life, and so He's already killing sin in your life, and the power to kill all of it is there. Then all you need to do is tap into the means, and I gave you simple principles by which you can begin to do that in your life, and a little test by which you can examine where you are.
I don't know about you but I want to have a life of virtue. I want to have a life of joy. I want to have a life of peace, and I want to have a life of usefulness to God, and this is the path to that life. And may God give you the strength to walk it; and may through you walking it faithfully, God bring glory to His own name. That's the purpose of everything.
Let's bow together. Father, confirm to our hearts these truths, that we might be all that you want us to be.
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