legalism

Avoiding Opposition 

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Galatians 6:12
“As many as desire to make a good showing in the flesh, these would compel you to be circumcised, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.”

fight.jpgGalatia was located northwest of Syria. It was a region consisting of such places as Tarsus, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe. It was the location of Paul’s first missionary journey. As Paul and Barnabas traveled throughout Galatia preaching the Gospel, many trusted in Christ and churches were birthed. While nothing matches the thrill of seeing someone come to Christ, the preaching in Galatia came at a very high price. It was there, Paul was beaten and left for dead. Some suggest, the vision problems that plagued him, were a result of the severe beating he endured at the hands of those who rejected Christ. This persecution was initiated by the Jewish people who refused to accept that Jesus was the Christ. After Paul and Barnabas departed, these young Galatian converts were left to endure this hostility. They would be ridiculed, bullied, harassed, threatened and more, all because they were living in a way that was not deemed culturally acceptable.

Not long after Paul departed from Galatia, a group of men arrived from Jerusalem and gathered the churches together. Exploiting the fact they were from the church in Jerusalem, and claiming this as their authority, they instructed these new believers that they must observe the ceremonial laws of Moses. These laws included diet, days of worship and circumcision for all male believers. This message, while unbiblical, was widely accepted because it would cause the Christians to better fit into the culture.

We see much of the same things happening today. As Christians, we are constantly ridiculed by the media and seen as a group of backwards-thinking, intolerant, Bible-thumping simpletons who must be silenced. I heard a man say, the reason he did not accept the Bible’s viewpoint on marriage is because he is not from the past. This constant attack can become very tiring. When we are continually looked down upon and classified as intolerant extremists, we can grow weary, cower and even be tempted to alter the Word of God, in order to fit in. Just as Paul warned the Galatians against accepting the aberrant teaching of their day in order to avoid persecution, we must remain faithful to the teaching of the Word of God, even as we see hostility against it on the rise. Keep in mind,“the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation for any who believe” (Romans 1:16). We are still seeing people’s lives transformed as they make decisions to follow Jesus.

Stay the course, keep the Word, follow Jesus, and let’s see Him transform our world, one person at a time.

Pastor Jim

 

 

It seemed Good

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Acts 15:28-29 
“For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well.”

A great controversy arose in the early church as a result of the Gentiles coming to faith in Christ. Some of the church leaders in Jerusalem were suggesting that after coming to Christ, these new converts must be circumcised and keep the ceremonial laws. I think their motives were probably sincere. They wanted to see these new believers behaving correctly, and determined the best way for them to do so, was to make rules. We see the same thing happening in the church today. A young woman may come to Christ, and still dress the way she did before she believed, so the church is pressured to have a dress code. Or a young man comes to Christ and still listens to the music he did before coming to Christ; the church wants to establish a ban on secular music. Now it is true, there are people who dress inappropriately, and listen and watch things that they shouldn’t, but the question is, what is the best way to help them grow? The legalists, from Jerusalem, thought it was through the establishing of a system of rules to keep them in check. The apostles came up with a different plan, they wrote a letter exhorting the Gentiles to abstain from three things.

Abstaining from things offered to idols was important because they had been saved out of idolatry. In a sense, they are being encouraged to stay away from things that would lead them back into sin. Too often, a new believer will hook up with the friends they ran with before coming to Christ. That road leads them back into the activities from which Christ had set them free. If we want to succeed in following Christ, we need to stay away from the things that lead us to sin.

Abstaining from blood or things strangled was important because once they put faith in Christ, they became part of a family. The Jewish Christians were their brothers and sisters. To the Jew, eating something that had not been killed properly, or eating blood, was an abomination. If the Gentile Christians ate like they used to, they would offend their brothers in Christ. Essentially, this letter is encouraging them to follow the law of love, which requires us to do nothing that would cause someone else to stumble. We have great liberties in Christ. Some Christians may be able to partake in activities with no temptation, but if that activity causes someone else to sin, we must refrain. We need to be more important to one another, than our liberties are to us (1 Corinthians 8:4-13).

Finally, abstaining from sexual immorality was important because it is clearly forbidden in the Word of God. The legalist were adding rules not found in Scripture. These rules would suck the life out of Christianity, and distract believers from obeying the clear commands of Scripture. The Pharisees had that problem. Remember when Jesus rebuked them for tithing their spices and neglecting the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23)? We can put rules on each other that distract us from doing the things that are well pleasing to the Lord. Also, sexual immorality was rampant in the Roman world, as it is today. It is a sin that carries with it grave consequences. Whenever two people are involved sexually, it clouds their ability to look at their relationship properly. They become connected in a way that is difficult to break. They end up emotionally attached to someone who is perhaps not best for them. God’s ways are better than man’s. If we choose to live well pleasing to Him, we will find that life is better.

Let’s be sure we are staying away from sin, things that lead to sin, and things that cause others to sin.

Pastor Jim

 

Legalism

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Acts 11:3 
“You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!”

There are many churches I would love to visit and observe the work God is doing. The church in Jerusalem was one of those churches. In the early chapters of Acts, we read about this church that began as a work of the Spirit, was birthed in revival, emphasized outreach, focused on discipleship, and even sent out saints to impact the world. We read that they gathered at Solomon’s Porch (an area adjacent to the Temple), to worship, pray, and preach. No building in the city was large enough to house the multitudes who were coming to Christ, so the believers met together in homes throughout the city for prayer, study, fellowship and communion. What a thrilling time it must have been to be a part of that work of God. Sadly, by the end of the book of Acts, the church in Jerusalem had changed. No longer was it the hub for ministry that it once was. Instead, it had become a place filled with internal conflict brought about by legalism. The seed of that is found here.

Imagine the scene. Peter arrives back from his trip. He has had a vision in which God spoke to him. That is exciting!  They should be intrigued and celebrate how amazing God is; that He would interrupt Peter’s sleep and speak to Him. Beyond that, Peter had just led a whole family to Christ. The kingdom of God just got bigger! In addition, this family was not Jewish, they were Gentiles. Their acceptance of Christ was now opening up the entire world to the Gospel message. The church should have been ecstatic; celebrating the fact that the whole world was now their mission field. Instead, what these guys took away from Peter’s story was, “you ate with Gentiles!” That blows my mind! How sad, that this once vibrant church could become so legalistic.

Legalism could be defined as putting restrictions upon us that the Bible does not place on us. Now, it is clear, there are certain restrictions that the Bible does place on us. Those restrictions are the driving force behind many who refuse to come to Christ. John wrote that “. . . light came into the world but men loved darkness more than light because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). We must understand, the restrictions Scripture places on us are for our best. God is, in fact, trying to keep us from something, and that something is unnecessary suffering.

That being said, the legalist is the one who puts restrictions on us beyond what the Bible teaches. They focus on what we wear, what we eat, the day we worship, the style of music, and the list goes on and on. Once legalism enters a person’s life, or a church body, people no longer measure their Christian life by growth in Christ, but instead, by adherence to the rules. Instead of clinging to Christ and seeking for others to know Him, we become focused on making sure the women are wearing the right clothes and the men eating the correct foods.

It is abiding in Jesus, not adhering to a set of rules, that will transform our lives and attract the world to the Gospel. If we want to see Christ continue to work in us, we must continue to abide in Christ.

Pastor Jim