Friday, February 23, 2018

A Committed Legalist

I grew up a committed legalist. Many who would make the same confession would then go on to blame their parents or the church of their childhood; but I do not see it that way.

Perhaps some of the early teaching I received contributed to the problem, but the problem was (and is) mostly internal. Legalism in one form or another is not second nature to fallen humans; it is first nature. It is deeply rooted in the way we think.

We want to justify ourselves. We want to save ourselves. As soon as we hear Paul saying, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,” we want to start qualifying and watering down his statement. We fail to see that, in attempting to justify ourselves, we are robbing God of his rightful glory (see Romans 9:3-10:4), and saying that Christ died for no reason (Gal 2:21).

Do you ever wonder, “Am I a legalist?” If you do ask yourself that question, there is a chance that you are not a legalist. But, if you are real sure that you are not a legalist, then I would say it is nearly dead certain that you are. The litmus test for legalism, like so many things in Christianity, is counter-intuitive. The way up is down. The first is last; the last is first. A dying Savior gives us life. Those who think they see are blind; while those who know their own blindness have begun to see (Jn 9:40f). The person who recognizes his own tendency to self-justification has begun the cure. The person who does not recognize it in himself has not even begun to be cured.

Do not ask a drunk to explain drunkenness. He can’t. You have to be sober to understand drunkenness, wide awake to understand sleep, saved by grace to see the danger of legalism.

I hope that we are awake to our own legalism so that we can see its danger, flee from it, and cling to Christ.

Saturday, February 10, 2018

Common Sense Religion

“Common sense? …, ma'am, sense is the most uncommon thing in the world.” --Christopher Morley--

Mr. Morley was right. Much of what passes for common sense is nonsense. People believe things that an investigation would disclose as a fraud. But they are following the crowd, not investigating.

People commonly believe historical falsehoods. Many people believe that the United States constitution speaks of “the separation of church and state.” In fact, no such language appears anywhere in the constitution or any of the amendments. Far from forbidding churches to criticize the government, the constitution actually guarantees churches that right, using language even stronger than that used to protect newspapers from government interference.

People commonly believe scientific falsehoods. Almost anyone will tell you that water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 Celsius). That is true if you are at sea level, but try it at Denver and you will get a different result (about 202 I believe).

People commonly believe spiritual falsehoods. Satan has filled the world with religious ideas that are false, and many people (including many church-goers) have accepted these common ideas as the truth.

Do not get your faith from the television. Do not get the content of your religion from what everyone believes. Check it out. Go to the source. Get the facts. It is the scriptures that are able to make us “wise unto salvation through faith in Christ” (2 Tim 3:15). Let us make sure that what we believe can really be found there.

“Common sense” religion, believed by most people, will lead to the wide gate at which many will enter. And that is not a good gate to pass through according to Jesus (see Mt 7:13-27).

Rejoice in the Lord Always

The end of Habakkuk is perhaps the most challenging passage in all of scripture. I am not referring to the textual difficulties concerning the passage. I am not referring to translation difficulties; there are none that I know of in the passage. I am not referring to difficulties understanding what he is saying. It is all too clear what he is saying; but we find it difficult to say it with him.

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. 19 GOD, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places. (Habakkuk 3:1-19, ESV)

Are we ready to say that? There were no supermarkets in 600 BC. If the crops failed the people went hungry. Would we serve God under the circumstances described here? Are we so committed that we will rejoice in the Lord no matter the circumstance?
Obviously, for most, the answer is “no.” Those who have little desire to praise him while living in comfort and plenty, would not take joy in him while suffering.

Where did we get the idea that the Christian life is supposed to be easy? Where did we get the idea that the followers of God will always get what they want? Did Abraham, Joseph, Moses, or Jeremiah always get what they wanted? Did Christ? (Mt 26:39)
We serve a crucified savior. How dare we expect that our path should always be easy?

I do not claim to know that I will always rejoice in the LORD and take joy in God. I do not know what I would do in a case such as Habakkuk describes. But I pray for strength to do better than I am doing, to be more of what I should be, to trust in God, even when everything seems to be going wrong.