02/24/2020
Legalism, License and Humility
legalism
1. excessive adherence to law or formula.
2. dependence on moral law rather than on personal religious faith.
"stress obedience apart from faith and you produce legalism"
license
1. freedom that allows or is used with irresponsibility
2. disregard for standards of personal conduct
humility
1. freedom from pride or arrogance
2. a modest or low view of one's own importance; humbleness.
Legalism doesn’t work. It’s not a matter of not being done right or not having the right set of rules. It is thinly veiled “works for salvation”. It makes you very judgmental of others that don’t hold to your set of rules. The pharisees are blatant examples of this. They were so concerned with rules and regulations that they completely missed the grace that was literally right in front of them. In the end their legalism nailed Christ to the cross and doomed them to hell. Legalism leads to self-righteousness, arrogance and, in the end, judgment.
He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life. II Corinthians 3:6 NLT
But the people of Israel, who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping the law, never succeeded. Why not? Because they were trying to get right with God by keeping the law instead of by trusting in him. They stumbled over the great rock in their path. Romans 9:31-32 NLT
For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. Romans 3:20 NLT
Then he said to them, “You like to appear righteous in public, but God knows your hearts. What this world honors is detestable in the sight of God.” Luke 16:15 NLT
License diminishes or masks our sinful nature. It causes God’s holiness and the substitutionary atonement of Christ’s death for our sin to be minimized. Thinking that since we are saved we can do whatever we want. It creates an ‘entitlement’ attitude that we deserve certain things because we are somehow better than others but we are called to be salt and light in a world of darkness.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16 ESV
You say, “I am allowed to do anything” but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything” but not everything is beneficial. Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others. So you may eat any meat that is sold in the marketplace without raising questions of conscience. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.” If someone who isn’t a believer asks you home for dinner, accept the invitation if you want to. Eat whatever is offered to you without raising questions of conscience. (But suppose someone tells you, “This meat was offered to an idol.” Don’t eat it, out of consideration for the conscience of the one who told you. It might not be a matter of conscience for you, but it is for the other person.) For why should my freedom be limited by what someone else thinks? If I can thank God for the food and enjoy it, why should I be condemned for eating it? So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. I Corinthians 10:23-31 NLT
How can we be salt and light if we don’t act any different than the world and how can we keep our “good works” from turning into legalism and judgment of others? Humility
Humility set’s our thinking right. It changes our perspective from ourselves and helps us to focus vertically on God and horizontally on others. It exposes our true sinful nature compared to God holiness and shows that the only way we can stand is within Christ’s righteousness. Humility builds confidence, not in ourselves but in God and the truth in the Word. Humility and boldness seem to be opposites but true humility is where we meet God, where he can give us strength and boldness that is beyond ourselves. Confidence that everything written in the Word is true and a boldness to proclaim that truth without any reservations or doubt at all and know that what God says He will do. I have ran from humility and done all that I can to avoid it, I’ve witnessed the same in many other people. That attitude causes people to turn to legalism or license. People will do anything and go to great lengths to keep from feeling humbled. But the truth is, in humbleness we can find true strength and power.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. II Corinthians 12:9-10 ESV
When we humble ourselves we can have assurance that we will not fall into the traps of legalism or license. Then we can be effective, bold not arrogant, speak truth without condescending judgment and truly be salt and light.
And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Deuteronomy 8:2-3 ESV
Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. Psalm 25:8-10 ESV
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matthew 23:12
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God
so that at the proper time he may exalt you I Peter 5:6 ESV
