Hi all,
Today I'm concluding the 3 part series, You might be a legalistic believer if... The first 2 points were...
1) Your spiritual discipline defines your spirituality and how you feel about your spiritual condition.
2) You really don't know the Lord (on your own) but know Him through the system.
Let me get to the core of what makes a legalistic Christian.
Legalism
is the combination of performance, fear, and condemnation in an effort
to please God or please church leadership. (A child can also exhibit
these traits in order to please a legalistic parent)
A
legalistic believer is focused on actions and how they present
themselves, tying these things to the belief God is more pleased with
them or more inclined to answer their prayers. If you've had an urgent
prayer request and attended a service you would not normally attend in
the hope God will see your extra effort or to remind Him a deadline
looms, you are in legalism.
Another
example would be if you believe financial blessing is a sign of God's
personal stamp of approval of your life, you are in legalism. If you've
ever tried to buy answered prayer by tying x amount of giving to a
healing, the saving of a loved one, and so on...you are in legalism. The
Father relates to us through the blood of Jesus and the fact we were
both born into and adopted into His family by the blood of Jesus - not
by how many spiritual hoops we form of our own doing to jump through.
Legalism
causes a person to produce a false identity. They live a facade in
public but are often different at home, often trying to make up for the
difference between what they believe in their legalism, and the reality
of their life. They compensate for the difference by becoming
judgmental, condescending, and measuring others by their own standards
of what they feel is right or wrong.
Point #3 is therefore: You feel spiritually safe if you focus on just 1 spiritual teaching or discipline at a time.
A
person who is unable to simply walk with the Father in conversational
ease based on Christ in them, and cannot read or listen to a variety of
teachings and beliefs from different sources because they feel
threatened by anyone outside of their current focus, might be
legalistic. Legalism is intolerant of those who believe differently than
they do, and if they can't be won over to their side - they drop the
relationship. (Legalism causes anger and these people are generally
angry and/or unhappy down deep inside, but well protected in their
heart)
They
can't see the whole counsel of God in part out of fear they are missing
the latest thing heaven is saying, or they feel they alone have a
revelation- they fear 'missing it'. Covered in a facade of spiritual
knowledge and growth, they are actually motivated by fear of the unknown
- and being legalistic helps them pin down all those unknowns. They
can't just walk with the Father and trust His peace in their spirit -
they are driven by fear wrapped in spirituality.
Point #4: You might be a legalistic believer if...You separate your natural life from your spiritual life
This
is a person who only lets their spirituality be seen to those who
believe as they do, or to those they think should believe as they- who
they try to correct not meekly as scripture says, but as a know-it-all,
as one in authority. Often they have been rejected by others and so keep
quiet because they know if they tell what they believe it will be
rejected, so like a hawk looking for prey, they hold to themselves until
they find a weaker person.
They
often feel it is them and God against the world, constantly threatened
and they must protect what they believe from others - they have light,
they know the higher way and how others may approach God and a holy
life.
This
leads to point #5: You are all alone because you've shut out everyone
due to their imperfections, sins, and doctrinal error. Often they have
no best friend, and can't share their beliefs with their spouse.
Surrounded
by people, they are alone. Think about the Pharisee's and Jesus - their
demand for perfection in others' lives while living a double standard
and not holding themselves to the same standard (though they argued to
Jesus they were in fact holding themselves to those same standards, but
they couldn't see their own hypocrisy) - meant they were all alone in
their little group.
It
is this isolationism that is worst part of legalism I think. People
cover their loneliness by being active in their cause, or in social
media (or combine the 2 efforts), but in their heart of hearts, they are
lonely and they know it. Cut off social media, church if they attend,
and take away their Bible and stacks of notes, and they would have no
walk with the Lord. They know Him through the framework of the temple
they've built to Him, but don't know He doesn't inhabit their temple -
He lives in them yet they are focused on all things 'out there'.
How
to walk with Him is next week. Also, I'm doing live teachings on
Facebook now, which you can see (the first one 2 weeks ago) by looking
me up and/or following what I post.
Blessings,
John Fenn
New CD/MP3 Series
When the Grace has Lifted From What You are Doing
When
Israel traveled in the wilderness the Lord covered them by a cloud in
daytime and fire for heat and light at night. When the cloud moved they
knew it was time to move on. Today we liken 'the cloud' to grace to do a
job, to hang in there with a tough relationship, to stay at a church,
and so on. When there is no more grace to be where we are, or no more
grace to continue pouring ourselves out for another person, but we
wonder if it is us or is God saying move on – what to do! How do we know
when the grace has moved? This series is based on principles seen in
Israel’s walk in the wilderness following the cloud combined with real
life stories to impart wisdom for knowing where God’s grace is leading
next. 
Just a word about our On-line Video Bible School
- these classes, so far; Old Testament I & II, Righteousness and
Our Authority in Christ - are a go-at-your-own-pace, no test, investment
in your own faith and understanding of the Word and Lord. Once
registered, your password is good for a whole year so you can take your
time, but as I'm hearing from students, once they start they have a hard
time stopping! Each class is about 45-55 minutes long, so they are in
easy to receive segments...consider investing in a deeper study of the
things of God!
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