This is the final installment on this subject. Last time, we looked at the first three roadblocks to gospel renewal. Now we will consider three others--bearing in mind that the list is not at all exhaustive.
4. Religion [AKA Moralism AKA Legalism]
Religion, moralism, legalism—they all are referring to the
idea that “we must obey the truth to be saved” and/or “we must obey the truth
to maintain God’s favor”. This is
probably the biggest roadblock to gospel renewal faced by believers in our age.
Moralism (legalism, religion) is an absence of God’s
grace—instead, it is a dependence on one’s ability to obey. It also includes man made,
extra-Biblical rules and regulations (think: Pharisees), resulting in
condemnation by the moralist of those who do not “measure up”—the idea is just
like the Pharisee who prayed “God, I thank you that I am not like other men,
extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector”. [Luke 18]
The Apostle Paul, prior to his conversion, is a perfect
example of one who was “religious”, one who performed out of guilt, one who was
a legalist when it came to his religious life. In Galatians 1 and Philippians 3, Paul talked about his life
before Christ, how he put his confidence in the flesh—his own performance and accomplishments—about
his Jewish pedigree, and how zealous he was for the traditions of his fathers.
Church historian Richard Lovelace wrote that many
believers “below the surface of their
lives are guilt ridden and insecure…[and] draw the assurance of their
acceptance with God from their sincerity, their past experience of conversion,
their recent religious performance or the relative infrequency of their
conscious, willful disobedience.”[1]
Obedience and good works are important to our lives
as believers, but they do not earn us one doggone thing! Obedience and good works do not earn
eternal life, they do not earn God’s approval, and they do not maintain God’s
approval! That is such an
important concept to “get”!
