Lesson on Legalism

The ladies' Bible study resumes tonight, and we'll be discussing the chapter entitled "Called To Be Free" from Transforming Grace. Jerry Bridges uses these verses from Galatians as the foundation for his teaching: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened against a yoke of slavery." (5:1) "You, my brothers, were called to be free." (5:13)

Bridges defines legalism as anything we do or don't do in order to earn favor with God, and explains that legalism insists on conformity to man-made religious rules and requirements. These are often implied, and more often than not have no biblical basis. The irony is that when we fall into legalism, we are trying to earn favor with God through the keeping of man-made rules. Instead of promoting our freedom in Christ, we stress rules of conformity. Bridges makes an excellent point in that we are much more concerned about abusing our freedom than we are about guarding it, and we are more afraid of indulging our flesh than we are about becoming legalistic. But what many fail to realize is that legalism does indulge the sinful nature because it leads to self-righteousness and religious pride. Not only that, it also diverts us from examining the spiritual condition of our heart.

Our challenge is to not elevate our own "fences" (rules to keep ourselves from committing sin) to the level of God's Word (e.g. movie attendance, alcohol consumption, dancing, you get the idea). Neither should we expect others to abide by our "fences." As Christians, we are allowed to have differing opinions about how God is leading in our lives, and we should remember that He deals with us as individuals.

Bridges ends the chapter with Galatians 5:13 "But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love." Just as legalism is a sin, so is abusing God's grace. He states, "Anyone who is prone to use grace as a license for irresponsible, sinful behavior, surely does not appreciate the infinite price God paid to give us His grace. But anyone who tends to use legalism as a hedge against license, just as surely forgets that grace cannot be earned by our behavior."