Legalists are tricky creatures.
They slither in the side doors of churches, sign up to lead Bible studies, and fill the minds of once joyous believers with rules and requirements of what it “really means” to become a Christian.
Ask them how a person is saved and they’ll say, “By grace of course,” and then they’ll roll out a scroll across the floor full of checklists to prove your salvation, and prerequisites you must abide by in order to receive this “free gift” of grace.
The Apostle Paul had strong words for the legalists of his time. These legalistic Judaizers wanted the Gentiles to accept God’s grace through faith, but be required to get circumcised and to keep the law of Moses as well. Paul had strong words about them in
Galatians 5:12, “As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!”
Wow.
Today, nobody (as far as I know) is seeking to add circumcision to the free gift of God’s grace as a requirement for salvation. No, currently, a far more subtle and sinister movement is creeping into the church.
21st Century Pharisees have replaced circumcision and keeping of the law with a more accepted evangelicalized list of dos and don’ts.
These pious sounding party poopers are getting Christians to doubt their salvation, get discouraged in their salvation, and trying to prove, keep and/or earn their salvation. They are robbing believers of the joy that was once theirs in Christ and replacing it with the heavy yoke of legalism (Acts 15:5-11).
With this in mind, here are 10 ways to spot a legalist in your church:
1. They cheapen grace by focusing on what we must do rather than on what Christ has done.
2. They’ll say nonsensical things like, “Salvation is free, but it will cost you everything you have.”
3. They are “fruit inspectors” and hypothesize how much spiritual fruit a person must produce in order to truly be saved.
4. They focus on things like turning, trying and crying instead of faith alone in Christ alone for salvation.
5. Their “gospel” could never be falsely accused of being a license to sin (like Paul’s was in
Romans 3:8!).
6. They scare others with assertions that, if you preach too much grace, people will run amok.
7. They conveniently avoid or misexegete large portions of gospel-centric New Testament books like Galatians, Romans and John.
8. They blend justification passages with sanctification passages, and then try to get us to drink a heresy smoothie.
9. They bake the same works-based righteousness cake that Mormons and Muslims do, but cover it with evangelical frosting.
10. They use the phrase, “You mean to tell me … ” a lot. Then they create worst case salvation scenarios of those who claim to be Christians, but abuse the grace of God. “You mean to tell me that someone can be saved and still … ?”
But grace that cannot be abused is no grace at all. Grace that is not free is no grace at all. Grace that is not received by simple faith is no grace at all.
I like the way Paul put it in
Romans 11:6, “And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” It’s either by grace or by works. It can’t be by both.
But here’s the crazy thing about grace, once you receive it through faith it begins to transform you.
Jesus changes your “wanter” and you become a new creation. Sure we can abuse it and, if we’re honest, often do. But when we let grace do its work it “teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (
Titus 2:12).
God’s grace is not a license to sin, but a reason to serve Jesus with reckless abandon … not because we have to, but because we get to.
If we resist, he persists.
If we fail, he forgives.
If we lose our faith, he remains faithful (
2 Timothy 2:13).
That makes me want to serve Him all the more. Sorry legalists, but grace is a better fuel. As for you agitators, I wish you would go the whole way and... cut it out.
Greg Stier of Dare2Share Ministries in a post on ChurchLeaders.com
good day sir,
nice topic
please allow me share some simple words
written in the scriptures,
Luke 2:21
And when eight days were completed for Him to be circumcised, His Name was called יהושע, the Name given by the messenger before He was conceived in the womb.
Acts 7:8
“And He gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so he brought forth Yitsḥaq and circumcised him on the eighth day. And Yitsḥaq brought forth Ya‛aqoḇ, and Ya‛aqoḇ brought forth the twelve ancestors.
Acts 15:1
And certain men came down from Yehuḏah and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised, according to the practice of Mosheh, you are unable to be saved.”
Acts 15:2
So when Sha’ul and Barnaḇah had no small dissension and dispute with them, they arranged for Sha’ul and Barnaḇah and certain others of them to go up to Yerushalayim, to the emissaries and elders, about this question.
Acts 10:45
And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Kĕpha, because the gift of the Set-apart Spirit had been poured out on the gentiles also,
as we read this verses, we can easily see that the holy spirit was even special to the gentiles for it had been poured out on the gentiles also,
I DONT KNOW IF SOMEONE HERE WOULD STAND AND SAY
``THOSE GENTILES WERE CIRCUMCISE AT THAT TIME, THEY WOULDN'T KNOW COZ THEY NEVER SAW IT WHAT'S IN THERE BELOW`` :rofl:
that is why even paul and his companion is againsn't to some teachings of moises and one of that teachings is the
``cimcurcision``
AND EVEN PETER HIMSELF IS AGAINST IT
Acts 11:2
And when Kĕpha went up to Yerushalayim, those of the circumcision were contending with him,
DID YOU KNOW THAT IT IS FORBIDDEN TO A JEW TO HAVE A CONTACT
TO ANY GENTILES AT THAT TIME FOR IT WAD THEIR TRADITION!
Acts 11:3
3 saying, “You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!”
4 But Kĕpha began and set it forth in order, saying:
5 “I was in the city of Yapho praying. And in a trance I saw a vision, a certain vessel descending like a great sheet, let down from the heaven by four corners, and it came to me.
6 “Having looked into it, I perceived and I saw four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping creatures, and the birds of heaven.
7 “And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise up, Kĕpha, slay and eat.’
8 “But I said, ‘Not at all, Master! Because whatever is common or unclean has never entered into my mouth.’
9 “And the voice answered me again from the heaven, ‘What Elohim has cleansed you do not consider common.’
10 “And this took place three times, and all were drawn up again into the heaven.
11 “And see, immediately three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea.
12 “And the Spirit said to me to go with them, not doubting at all. And these six brothers also went with me, and we went into the man’s house.
for they the early isralites, even they were the choisen people before,
they only base that teaching from flesh because god intended them to do that within the people of isralites so that they can be distinguised from other humans who worshipped other gods.
``IS THERE ANY WRITTEN SCRIPTURES COMING FROM THE HOLY BIBLE ITSELF THAT COULD TELL US
WHEN AND WHERE IN THE COMMANDMENTS OF CIRCUMCISSION EXPLAINED IT WAS REALLY A BIG DEAL TO ATTAIN THE SALVATION OF PURIFYING OUR SOULS
BY DOING IT LITERALLY IN FLESH?``
Colossians 3:11
where there is not Greek and Yehuḏite, circumcised and uncircumcised, foreigner, Scythian, slave, free, but Messiah is all, and in all.
Galatians 5:6
For in Messiah יהושע neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any strength, but belief working through love.
``PLEASE INFORM SOMEONE IF THEY WERE TOLD THAT THIS GUY IS THE MESSIAH``
Colossians 4:11
also Yeshua who is called Justus. These are my only fellow workers for the reign of Elohim who are of the circumcision, who were to me a comfort.
IS HE? OR DOES HE?
Philippians 3:5
circumcised the eighth day, of the race of Yisra’ĕl, of the tribe of Binyamin, a Heḇrew of Heḇrews, according to Torah a Pharisee,
FOR MANY WERE DECIEVED BY THIS VERSE
MISTAKEN SOMEONE FOR SOMETHING THAT CANNOT BE EASILY UNDERSTAND
WITHOUT KEEPING THE WORD OF GOD TO HIS HEART AND SOUL!!
Colossians 4:11
also Yeshua who is called Justus. These are my only fellow workers for the reign of Elohim who are of the circumcision, who were to me a comfort.
Titus 1:10
For there are many unruly men, senseless talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,
i my self doing this as my promise to him
and im not even a jewish
please read the whole chapter and do not depend on a certain verses only if there's have doubt to any mind of a certain people.
Romans 2:1
Therefore, O man, you are without excuse, everyone who judges, for in which you judge another you condemn yourself, since you who judge practise the same wrongs.