Category Archives: Legalism

What I am Thankful For

Posted on November 25, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

This year, I am thankful for something quite odd in today’s culture. I am thankful for a God who is, without apology, jealous and controlling.

Yes, I am thankful for a God who demands absolute loyalty and obedience from his servants and children, a God who is intolerant of anyone seeking to rival him in his glory, especially in terms of power over others, or even over ourselves.  I am thankful for a God who is a perfectionist in the extreme, allowing not the slightest spot, blemish, wrinkle, or stain into his spiritual presence in Heaven.

I am thankful for a God who has decreed a death penalty for any and all infractions of his law without exception, who cannot be moved to change his mind and change the rules based upon an emotional appeal to hard circumstances, but always carries out his decrees. I am thankful for an obstinate God who never changes his ways, never changes who he is and what he believes, never waivers on what he hates and what he loves, for any reason.

I am thankful because this God is just, reliable, trustworthy, and dependable, powerful enough and willing to protect us from harm and avenge us of wrongs.

I am also thankful this God looked down on a world that hates him for all of the above things that I would praise him for, saw that this world was full of everything that he hates, saw that we were hopelessly unable to ever measure up to his standards, all of us condemned to die and that our spirits, though designed to dwell in a body of flesh and to be in his presence, would be left disembodied and spiritually separated from his presence for all eternity.

I am thankful that this god so loathed by the world, so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son to pay the penalty of our sin and die in our place, so that we could be washed clean of our sin and purified in his blood. I am thankful he sent his Holy Spirit to dwell in us, so we can learn to walk in his way rather than continue to follow after the corruption of the mortal flesh we will trade one fine day for new, immortal, sinless and flawless bodies worthy to be with Him.

I am thankful that my God is both simultaneously a Just, Jealous, Holy, Unwavering, Unmovable, Unshakable, Authoritarian King of Kings and a Loving, Merciful, Good, Gracious, Patient, Gentle, Humble Savior and Redeemer.

I am thankful that the power of sin has already been defeated on the Cross and that it is only a matter of time before this long cosmic war is over and the last battle fought. I am thankful that, by grace, through faith alone,  I can stand with the Creator of the Universe in the battle against sin and overcome rather than rebel, wallow in sin, and find myself cast out with the Lawless One. I am thankful that God has begun a good work of eradicating sin and imperfection in me and that he will continue to carry out his work in me until the day of His Coming.

I am thankful even us rebels who have betrayed our Heavenly citizenship again and again, going the way of the enemy culture all around us, can always  humbly bow our knees to the King of Kings and be reconciled to him and forgiven.

Posted in Bible and Theology, God's Character, God's love, Gospel, Grace, Legalism, Post-Modernism, Sin and Holiness

Does the Bible Advocate Mind Control/Group Think?

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” (Philippians 2:1-2)

Paul writes these words from prison, where he is facing the possibility of being executed for treason due to his preaching that Jesus Christ is Lord, not Caesar, who claims deity and demands to be worshiped. Paul first seeks to reassure the Philippians that God is using his imprisonment to advance the gospel, and that he rejoices at this even if others are preaching it out of rivalry with him. He also reassures them of his own predicament, saying he is prepared to die and gain Heaven, but is expecting deliverance to continue his ministry on Earth.

Now he turns to how they can encourage and comfort him (likely answering a question), and says they can do so by “completing his joy” and being of the same mind. This references back to what he rejoiced at in the prior chapter: Christ being proclaimed. He doesn’t want them to all be clones of each other. He wants to see their whole church grow to full maturity in Christ, and as an outgrowth of this for them to all be at peace with each other and obtain doctrinal harmony. From the perspective of the Jewish rabbinical tradition that Paul comes out of, he wants to see his own disciples mature to be like the rabbi Jesus that he has himself learned to be like and walk in the footsteps of.

Again, this is a mutual one another condition: both the teacher and the student are called to love one another as Christ loved us and be humble, not acting from conceit or rivalry. The overseer (be it pastor, employer, parent, or spouse) is to be looking out for the flock’s interests, not telling the flock not to look out for their own interests while the overseer looks out for their own interest, acts like they think you were put on this earth to worship/serve them, and conceitedly equates all of their beliefs with the mind of Christ everyone should have. These abusive overseers will point out Paul told his flock to imitate him, but Paul was imitating Jesus and they clearly are not.

Likewise, the spiritually abusive will tell you to count others more significant than yourself, while positioning themselves as being the most significant person in the church. Doing that evidences that they hypocritically count themselves as the most significant person in the church.

Keep watch and do not be deceived if you encounter these lies from the wolves in sheep’s clothing  who steal God’s sheep for themselves and devour their flock. If our churches, families, and para-church organizations are going to seek to obtain the goal of being one mind, we must all be seeking God’s mind. Those who would have you submit to them must prove they truly have the mind of Christ and indeed humbly count themselves least by being the servant of all rather than the controller of all. They must in their actions intimate Christ, who washed his disciples’ feet and gave even his literal life for those he would rule.

Posted in Abuse, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions

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Untwisting a Scripture Abusers Pervert

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

“Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” (1 Peter 3:8)

Peter just finished advising employees (or the ancient equivalents) on how to conduct themselves with their employers, and wives and husbands on how to conduct themselves in the marriage relationship, so it’s possible “all of you” here means “all of the persons in the previous specified roles.” In other words, if you’re equally yoked in business*and marriage with a believer, both parties are exhorted to be of one mind equally, to have sympathy and brotherly love for each other, to be tender-hearted towards each other, and to be humble of mind in how they view and treat each other.

This is not a picture of submission-dominance at all. This is a picture of different roles and different functions, but equal power and equal respect for one another, working together, lifting each other up mutually, not one person crushing the other under their feet. Any man who tells you to submit to him while he uses you to wipe his feet is being a hypocrite and in trouble with God. Peter warns husbands in particular in verse seven that husbands who don’t treat their wives with the respect due a co-heir in Christ will find their prayers are hindered. So we know how Christians in authority treat the people that they are called to serve (not to oppressively rule over!) is a really serious matter to God.

Unity of mind likewise is often misused by spiritual abusers, who like to claim it gives them the right to be the group mind and to threaten with hell anyone in their “care” who dares to think differently than the spiritual abuser on any topic under the sun. Instead, consider Peter also requires humility, compassion, love from the leader as well as the follower. True godly unity of mind must require open, mutually respectful discourse between all parties and humbly and prayerfully seeking the mind of Christ together.

*Peter doesn’t specify instructions specifically to employers, but he does instruct all believers to honor all people, love their fellow Christian, and to live as people who are free rather than as slaves. It apparently did not need spelled out further to him that Christian employers should respect their Christian employees as their brothers in Christ and their fellow servants of God. Instead he focuses on the employees of non-Christian, abusive employers, in a day when you were under contract to work for him until he sold your contract.  His advice to do good and endure suffering in oppressive circumstances does not give the spiritually abusive the right to mistreat their fellow believers and turn around and demand their fellow believers endure it without complaint.

Posted in Abuse, Bible and Theology, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions

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Claiming the Victor’s Crown? First, Get in the Game!

Posted on August 5, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

“The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:130)

Some view the bible as a random list of dos and don’ts we’re expected to obey for no other reason than, “God says so.” Others agree, but feel the blood washes the dos and the don’s away rather than our guilt for breaking them, and view the bible today as being a warm fuzzy book full of hope and promises of salvation, healing, protection from harm and our enemies, and promises if we have enough faith, we’ll be given every desire of our heart.

Eventually, these latter “Arm Chair Christians” encounter the harsh reality of trials and the pain of reaping the fruits of sowing to the flesh. So they declare the promise in faith. To their shock, it’s not there to claim. At that point, these simple folk sometimes wisely re-read their bibles seeking where they went wrong, and God sheds light on the fact the promise hinged on their obedience. The danger they face at that moment is the temptation to go overboard and become legalists, obeying from fear rather than from trust and love. It can be addicting when living by God’s principles changed their lives for the better, maybe even saved it in the earthly. Runners face the hazard of losing sight of the grace that enables us to run. We must guard against this, or we’ll be disqualified.

Other Arm Chair Christians keep ignoring the bible’s wisdom on how to live, faithfully claiming the victory, and wondering why they don’t have it. Christians in the race try to gently point out to these folk that their sin is causing their woes and they need to repent of it to get the victory. The unwise ones accuse the runner of judging and may arrogantly compare themselves to saints who waited for decades or until eternity to receive.

Still others may well be in the race as a mere recreation, but when the race inevitably becomes difficult, they can become so disheartened, they give up altogether and become atheists or agnostics.

God’s word isn’t an authoritarian list of random do’s and don’ts that have no rhyme or reason besides “I said so.” Nor is it a list of warm fuzzy promises from a cosmic Santa Claus who doesn’t even keep a list of who’s been naughty anymore.

The bible makes promises, good promises, it is full of hope. But following Jesus is not without life’s struggles and hardships. Battling the flesh and the enemy’s attempts to derail us can make life even more difficult for Christians. If we don’t seek understanding in the bible’s pages for how God designed us to function and seek to grow in grace and wisdom, if we remain foolish and sow to the sinful flesh, we’ll reap pain, death, sorrow, broken relationships, and fractured lives.

God does all the work in us–at least that lasts. He saves us by grace, through faith, not by works. None of us can boast. We’ve all sinned and fallen short and anyone who claims otherwise is either a liar or naive.

But if we want the victory, and the victor’s crown, we need to be willing to actually allow God’s grace to transform us from sinners into saints. His promises were made to his saints, those who love and trust him and are spiritually descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If you want the promise you’re claiming, stop sitting on the sidelines, waving, “Go saints!” in one hand and “Sinner saved by grace!” in the other and get in the game and run the race.

Posted in God's promises, Grace, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions, Sin and Holiness

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Take Cover From Evil in God’s Word

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

“You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.” (Psalm 119:114)

This verse follows the statement, “I love your law,” thus it is reasonable this sentence offers a reason why:  in the pages of scripture he finds shelter in  it’s consistent,  unchanging, dependable definition of right and wrong, and its testimonies of God’s actions in history on the behalf of his people, and the promises we inherit from our spiritual forefathers. Through this, and the hope/faith it builds in him, he finds protection and deliverance–from what?

Likely, the double-minded, wicked evil-doers he wants away from, double-minded indicating they waver between two opinions, so he’s talking about fellow believers who talk the talk, but don’t always walk the walk and are apparently hindering him somehow, perhaps tempting him to turn away from what he knows to be true and right. After all, they seem to be getting away with it. He reminds himself here that is not true, those who know the truth and deliberately forsake it to go after the deceptions of sin will be held to account by God.

Of course, under the new covenant, we know God ultimately doesn’t want us holding back from evil in  trembling dread of God’s wrath, as the psalmist does. He wants us to go beyond the fear of the Lord, look to the cross, remember what Jesus paid to set us free from sin, and obey out of love and trust.

Posted in Bible and Theology, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions, Sin and Holiness

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Wonder-Working Grace Empowers Us to Obey

Posted on July 21, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

“I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me.” (Psalm 119:30)

Out of context, this can sound like one of those “old covenant legalistic verses.” However, it is apart of an eight verse set and must be read in context. Verses 25-32 speak of our earthly nature as dust our souls cling to and the author longs for life, confesses his ways, and asks god to teach him god’s way, not merely as a list of dos and don’ts to be followed just because god said so, but to teach him god’s ways as principles that have been explained to him so he understands them.

The author reveals he is in such deep sorrow as he writes this, it feels like his heart is melting away, but asks god to give him strength as “according to your word’ in other words, he is looking through the scriptures available to him at the time and seeing where God promised to give life and strength and asking God to reconcile his experience to what is written in the scripture and give him what it promises.

In verse 29, he asks for false ways to be put far from him. No one asks to have removed things they don’t have. Thus the person choosing the way of faithfulness has not been faithful in all things. Rather they are picking themselves up and making a U-turn, determined to stand in God’s grace as God teaches him how to walk rightly before him.

Through all of this, he focuses his thoughts upon the great wonders and miracles the bible testifies of God doing,  and “clings to” God’s “Testimonies,” which, according to m-w.com, refers to the five books of Moses and any divine decree recorded in the scriptures primarily, which is again standing firm upon what God has said about him rather than what his eyes see around him, to ask God that he would not be put to shame. The set ends with the author declaring by faith that he will “run” (not merely walk) as God commanded–because God will “enlarge my heart” or as the footnote suggests, “For you set my heart free.”

Thus it is grace and God’s power at work in us that enable us to declare in faith the same.

Lord, we ask you as the psalmist did, strengthen us to will and to obey. Open our eyes and our hearts to understand your ways. Set us free from anything that holds our hearts captive and holds us back from being all you made us to be. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Posted in Bible and Theology, Faith, God's promises, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions, Sin and Holiness

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To People Please or Not To . . .

Posted on May 23, 2011 by Andrea Graham| Comments Off

“Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.” (Romans 15:2)

Yikes! Whatever happened to you can’t please everyone? Okay, lay some context on me, please:

We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written,”The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.” (Romans 15:1-3)

Ah, there, Paul is continuing his discourse from Romans 14 on the varying convictions in the Body and saying we should be sensitive to the weaker consciences some of our brothers and sisters have, that we shouldn’t criticize them for having stricter standards than us, but tolerate them rather than insisting on pleasing ourselves.

I don’t know if this means to let our church service be dictated by the person who complains a style of music offends them. I doubt this means if one person in our family becomes a vegetarian, or if one person at the church supper is a vegan, that we all have to eat that way to please them. I doubt this means if one brother or sister is an alcoholic, the rest of us can’t drink up in front of them. After all, it’s not our fault if they give in and crack one open  .  .  .

Oh wait. That last one is exactly what Paul means. We are not to lay a stumbling block before our brother and sister. If we know they are weak, if we know they can’t handle something, we should refrain from our liberty, and not serve that drink, not wear that garment that shows off skin and/or the contours of our body, not play that violent, gory video game/movie around them, or do anything else that will cause our brother and sister to do something that will violate their conscience and sin before God–even if our own is perfectly clear and we think their conviction silly.

But let’s not let someone confuse us who is offended at us who isn’t sincerely tempted to violate their own conscious and stumble and fall. Is the hymn lover seriously tempted to sing along to a chorus–do they seriously even think it is a sin to? Likewise, is the vegan or vegetarian really so weak they’ll eat the main dish that does have meat in it rather than the meatless main dish that was provided them? Do they really think it would be a sin if they did? (If the answer is yes to both questions, then don’t serve the meat! LOL.)

Of course, if it is your conviction being a people pleaser is what this passage means, let me build you up by encouraging you to, by all means, live according to that belief, if that is what you sincerely, truly believe God has called you to do. I fear you’ll burn out and have to reconsider whether that call really came from God, but who am I to judge another man’s servant?

Lord, grant us wisdom to discern what requests are truly to the benefit and spiritual good of our neighbor, lest in pleasing them, we hurt them and you. Increase our love, so that we would be sick to our stomachs at the mere thought of selfishly waving before a believer what will cause them to sin, deliberately tempting them to disobey what they feel you have told them. Since many can be too embarrassed to speak up, grant us sensitivity, to recognize what is a stumbling block to one another, so we might not in our liberty cause others to sin. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Posted in Bible and Theology, Legalism, Prayer and Devotions, Sin and Holiness

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