Did you know that the entire Encyclopedia Britannica was banned in Texas for some time because it contained a formula for making beer at home? Well, while you are still laughing at that law, let me share a few more interesting laws that were passed by some states in the USA, most of these laws are probably no longer in effect, but there was a time when they felt necessary to put these laws in writing. In Alabama, it is illegal to wear a fake mustache that causes laughter in church. In Florida a woman may be fined for falling asleep under a hair dryer, as can the salon owner. In Florida if an elephant is left tied to a parking meter (great idea!!! I do not know how many parking meters are left), the parking fee has to be paid just as it would for a vehicle. You may not swear in front of women and children in the state of Michigan. In North Dekota it is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on and in Texas it is illegal to milk another person’s cow (da??)
Most Christians define legalism as an effort to achieve salvation through works. However, the term “legalism” is commonly understood to refer to the view that adherence to certain manmade rules is necessary for moral or spiritual righteousness and full acceptance in the Christian community. Legalism is an attitude where spirituality is purely defined by performance. It is interesting to note that the term ‘legalism’ does not appear in the Bible at all; even though Jesus had to battle this issue on several occasions and the apostles wrote a lot against legalism. The issue of legalism is not a new one. Any where there is a group of people, who are trying to live together, laws will be required and introduced for safety. Gradually these laws that were introduced to facilitate harmonious life are often taken to the extreme which hinders the very purpose of the laws.
Legalism is an attitude where spirituality is purely defined by performance.
Jerry White notes “Through the centuries people have built up traditions, rules, and laws to govern the activities of Christians. Human beings gravitate to rules so they do not have to think for themselves. We at once both resist and value the rules. We resist rules because we tend to rebel against any restraint; we value rules because they provide boundaries for conduct – whether or not we intend to observe them…Legalism often grows out of well-intentioned guidelines for living. A few godly people pray and seek God’s will as to how they should live. They set certain patterns for themselves. Were it to end there, all would be well, but it doesn’t. Usually they then impose same guidelines on others, depriving them of the invaluable experience of seeking God for guidance in their own conduct”.
Human beings gravitate to rules so they do not have to think for themselves.
Legalism is a very subtle deception; any of us can become legalistic without knowing that we are one. When people teach manmade commands as if they were doctrines from God, and when they insist that others follow those rules for morality or spirituality or acceptance, they are already trapped in the web of legalism. Every generation of Christians has to deal with this issue of legalism. Many legalistic believers today make the error of demanding unqualified adherence to their own Biblical interpretations and even to their own traditions. As Graham Pockett observed “The problem with Scripture is that it is interpreted by man, and often with ulterior motives. Man chooses what Scriptures to follow and what Scriptures to ignore. While giving lip-service to following the Bible literally, many fundamentalist churches still select which passages to follow and which passages to ignore.”
In his article ‘Legalism in a decaying culture’ Denis Haack identifies the following marks of legalism that can help us examine our own tendency to be or become a legalist. 1. Legalism tends to cause people to major on minors. 2. Legalism causes people to promote themselves as righteous. 3. Legalism tends to cause believers to adhere to the letter of the law while missing its spirit. 4. Legalism tends to cause people to treat their traditions or system as part of God’s authoritative law, thus binding consciences where God had left them free.
Haack reminds us “Our role as believers is not to issue forth as moral police, sniffing out legalism wherever it is to be found. Our calling is to be discerning, distinguishing truth from error in a decaying culture. None of us will be able to stop all the legalism that is circulating, but we can seek to live in such a way that, by God’s grace, we celebrate the freedom that is ours in Christ.” Honestly I do not have a simple answer to identify or overcome the problem of legalism, but each of us has to consciously work on the problem of legalism because none of us are immune to this problem and the greater tragedy is that legalism obscures and blinds us from Grace that has saved us. So the next time you are tempted to impose a rule on someone, make sure it is God’s rule and not just another man made rule like tying the elephant to a parking meter.
Legalism is a very subtle deception; any of us can become legalistic without knowing that we are one.
– – Author: Rev. Francis Burgula – –
