I kissed LEGALISM good-bye

“Make no laws upon the saints where Christ hath not made any.”

                                                 Walter Craddock  

  A recent issue of World Magazine (02-17-18) included a feature article, “Hindsight and Hope” about Joshua Harris and his book, I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Harris—author, former senior pastor of Covenant Life Church is still most famous for something he did at age 21 – his best-selling book, I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Now decades later, he’s revisiting the subject by working on a documentary called I Survived I Kissed Dating Goodbye. In this documentary both Harris and readers question and reflect on the impact of his book.

  The motivation behind Harris’ book was well-intentioned. It was aimed at teens and twentysomethings, discouraging sexualized relationships and proposing that courtship, in which a couple moves purposefully toward marriage with their parents’ blessing and involvement, was a superior model to dating. The book rightly argued that physical intimacy before marriage was a violation of the sacredness of married sexuality and could lead to lifelong regret. It was a reaction to “free love” with a hope of returning to a biblical worldview of purity and saving intimacy for marriage. Where it failed was that it systematized and made “rules,” where Scripture never does. While Harris didn’t do this, others took the book and made the principles in it tests of godliness. One was considered unspiritual if they dated and didn’t choose courtship. That’s legalism! Thankfully it’s a trend that’s essentially died, yet not too many years ago, the rationale was that godly singles practiced courtship while ungodly ones dated.

  God’s Word is clear – sexual relations outside of marriage are wrong (Hebrews 13:4). Jesus even prohibited mental sexual intimacy and self-pleasuring sexuality (Matthew 5:27-30), but Scripture never systematized or gives any commands on dating or how to find a life partner. Today more and more couples are finding their life partner via the Internet or an online dating service. The Bible never prohibits that.

  But human beings like rules. It’s one reason Islam is growing at an escalating rate – it has clear rules. The Pharisees loved rules. When Jesus questioned their manmade rules, they murdered Him.

  Most rules have a good intent, but they easily become anchors around our souls, drowning us in arrogance, self-righteousness and legalism when we systematize them, making them yardsticks of godliness. But that’s always been a human tendency. While Scripture has clear principles of godliness, it doesn’t though clearly outline applications of those principles. Culture changes. Spiritual maturity means walking by faith and being sensitive to the Spirit’s leading in the midst of cultural change. The application of biblical principles must continually morph.

  For example, the Bible teaches that Christians are to pray together, but never sets a time or day. During the revivals of the 1800’s, prayer meetings became very popular. Eventually they were systematized into the “Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting.” The Bible never commands that. Most prayer meetings devolved into another preaching time with prayer tacked on at the end. Yet, even today some Christians measure the spirituality of a church based on whether it has a weekly prayer meeting.  

  There are many other examples of this, from how to have devotions, to how often one prays, the percentage of a church budget for missions, to evangelism methods, to what one should wear to church, or even what a church ought to do or look like. It’s legalism to measure spirituality by man-made measures. God’s Word is often silent on specifics, but lists help us feel spiritual and feed pride – the greatest enemy of the soul.

  The Christian life must be lived by faith. Where Scripture is clear, we must obey. There are countless areas where we’re to apply the principles of Scripture the best that we can and trust the leading of the Spirit. We’re also only responsible for our own walk with the Lord, not everyone else’s.

  Personally, I find keeping myself spiritually sensitive and walking with the Lord is more than enough for me. Being someone else’s judge, particularly where Scripture is silent or unclear, is more than my wee mind can handle. I love these words from Augustine: “In essentials, unity; in doubtful matters, liberty; in all things, charity.”

  One Christian hero from another era, who was a seeming legalist, was Eric Liddell. You may know of him from the movie, Chariots of Fire. Liddell sacrificed an opportunity to win an Olympic gold medal because he believed it was wrong to run on Sunday, in his mind, “the Christian Sabbath.” Later, as a missionary to China, when he was imprisoned by the Japanese in a POW Camp, families and children were also interned there. Liddell tutored and was deeply loved by all the children. When the children played basketball, rounders, and hockey, he was their ref­eree. Not surprisingly, he refused to referee on Sundays, yet in his absence, the children fought and Liddell struggled over this. He believed that he shouldn’t stop the children from playing because they needed the diversion. Finally, he decided to sacrifice his convictions to referee on Sundays.

  It made a deep impression on those there. They saw an athlete, world famous for sacrificing success for principle, who was not a legalist. When it came to his own glory, Liddell surrendered it all rather than run on Sunday. Yet, when it came to what was best for others, he’d referee on Sunday. He sacrificed a gold medal for himself (though he ultimately won the gold in a different race) in the name of truth but would bend over backward for others in the name of grace. 
  God doesn’t want us to be people of rules, He wants a relationship. If we have a healthy relationship with Him, we’ll do the righteous thing. We want to because He loves us so much and that motivates us to love Him and want to please Him. 

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

R-E-A-D!

“It seems odd that certain who talk so much of what the Holy Spirit reveals to themselves, should think so little of what He has revealed to others.”  Charles Spurgeon

  To many (including me), the thought of curling up by the fire with a good book sounds like an ideal way to while away an evening or a rainy day. Yet, according to recent studies, about one-quarter of American adults would sooner throw a book — or themselves — in the flames than ever crack the cover.

  The words of Pastor Brad Bigney of the Grace Fellowship Church are very insightful. Oftentimes when Pastor Brad is counseling someone, he will encourage them to read some book which he believes will help them with the issue they are having difficulty with and came to see him about. Many times though the counselee will respond, “But I don’t read.” To which Pastor Bigney responds, “You do now. You’re a Christian!”

  It is nearly impossible to grow spiritually and not read. Being a Christian non-reader typically results in one of two extremes. You end up succumbing to worldliness because you have no idea what the Bible and other good Christian books teach, so you’re stuck in spiritual infancy with minimal growth. Unfortunately, much of what you ingest mentally is from a godless worldview. A key part of spiritual growth and maturity is thinking, being stretched. It’s difficult for that to happen to a non-reader.

  Or, you succumb to Legalism. One of the attractions of Islam is rules. Someone tells you the rules, you do them and you’re a good Muslim. It’s no accident that some 40% of Muslims are illiterate. A large percentage of Muslims are dependent on others to do their thinking for them. Yet, a Christian who will not read might as well be illiterate. What is really the difference between not being able to read and refusing to read?

  Sadly, our educational system is the often the source of a distaste of reading by so many. As students in school, they were forced to read many books which were irrelevant and boring. To add to the repugnance, it was often labeled with that four letter word, home “work.” Pleasure, fun and satisfaction was associated with recess and sports, not reading or academia.

  Just an important side note for parents. If you want to help your children be readers, encourage them to read books which are enjoyable to them, not necessarily educational. The same is true for adults who have fallen off the reading wagon. If they would begin reading again by reading something they truly enjoyed, it would help them grow in their love for reading.

  It’s a bit like eating vegetables. At one point in my life, I despised asparagus. Now that I’ve had asparagus cooked tastefully, I actually enjoy it (I’m still working on cauliflower J). We develop a taste for reading. And reading quality Christian books helps us grow more Christlike.

  Yet, many of us feel we are far too busy to read. What can we do to improve our own reading practices and encourage a culture of reading in our church and family?

  Make time for it. If we’re honest with ourselves, we know we always make time to do what we like. If we begin to cultivate a love of reading, we’ll find each day contains some time to read. If you start with easier books and start by reading during times ordinarily spent watching television or “vegging,” you’ll have an easier time making reading a habit.

  Begin with books which are interesting to YOU. Most non-readers are avid TV or movie watchers. There are certain sports, shows or movies they prefer. Consider reading Christian books which fall into categories which already interest you. For example, if you love chick flicks, consider reading something like Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. Is your TV stuck on ESPN? Read a book by Christian coach, Tony Dungy. Do you love documentaries? Read a good Christian biography. Are you starting out in marriage or childrearing? Read a quality book on those concerns. I’d suggest ones by Leslie Vernick or Gary Thomas. Even if you love hunting and fishing, there are interesting Christian books written by committed believers about their own experiences of hunting and fishing. Is there an area where you’d like to grow spiritually? Find a quality book in that area.

  Read good books. All of us have watched a movie and wondered as the end credits roll, “Why did I even watch that? What a waste of my time!” I believe I learned this from famed movie critic, Roger Ebert. If a movie doesn’t catch my attention in the first 15 minutes or so, I walk out or turn it off. The same is true with a book. If you read a chapter or two, and it’s not clicking, find another one. Now I find I rarely go to a movie that turns out to be a “turkey.” Do you know why? I rarely will watch a movie without first reading a review on the movie. And I do the same with books.

  For most books, Amazon.com has reviews of the book. They also let you take a look inside of the book at the table of contents and the first few pages. Because books are expensive, I often request a book from our local library, have them secure it for me on library loan. When it comes in, I peruse it to determine if it’s a book I actually want to read or own. In other words, I often “test drive” a book before I buy it.

  I look for books my friends are reading and recommend. In fact, the book we’re reading for our summer reading, The Gospel by J.D. Greear was first recommended to me by a friend

  Make reading your default setting. Unfortunately, smart phones have become our default setting today. If someone is waiting at the doctor’s office or in a restaurant, they immediately look at their phone. Get disconnected. Always keep a book on hand. I don’t go anywhere without a book. If I’m stuck with a train or waiting for an appointment, I have something to read and stretch my soul.

  A charge made by a lost world of Christians is we’re bunch of ignoramuses. Sadly, sometimes it’s true. We haven’t invested the time to read and think through the issues. If we look at the great world shapers of the past couple of centuries, each of them were readers: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Gandhi, William Wilberforce, etc. It was said that Theodore Roosevelt read a book a day while serving as president! Of course, if we want to look at the history of Christian thought and influence the list is endless: Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Wesley, or C.S. Lewis. They read the Bible but they went beyond Scripture to read some of the greatest books of history, both fiction and nonfiction. They were avid readers and God used them to impact the Church because of that! Do you want to make a significant difference? You must be a reader! So book it…start today! 

Looking for quality used Christian books and other types of books at prices lower than even Amazon. Check out our family's online used bookstore at resurrectedreads.com or visit our store at the Waterford Unique Antique Market at 209 North Milwaukee Street in Waterford, WI --  262.534.3500.