Legalism is the conviction that law-keeping is now, after the fall, the ground of our acceptance with God. I will say that again: legalism is the conviction that law-keeping is the ground of our acceptance with God, the ground of God being for us and not against us.
“Legalism is the conviction that law-keeping is the ground of our acceptance with God.”
So if you ask, “How can I get God to be for me and not against me?” the legalist answer is “Keep the law. Perform the law.” Now that is wrong, and the reason we call that legalism is because it is renounced. It is denounced in the New Testament. Romans 3:20: “For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:28: “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.” Galatians 2:16: “We know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
So we call it legalism if one says we are justified by works of the law: “We get God to be for us, God becomes our friend, when we measure up by keeping the law.” And the biblical gospel is the good news that this is impossible.
God knows it is impossible, and he has provided another way — namely, the way of faith in Jesus Christ, who himself bore our punishment for not keeping the law and himself fulfilled our requirement that we do keep the law, so that in Christ we have a punishment and we have a perfection that is complete. Therefore, God is for us because we are in Christ, not because we have gone the way of law-keeping.
The Spirit of Legalism
Now that leads us to a derivative meaning, I think, of legalism that may be even more common: it is the spirit and the life that flow from a failure to be humbled, broken, amazed, and satisfied by the grace of God in Christ. There are all kinds of attitudes, right — pride, demandingness, lack of mercy, lack of compassion, unkindness, impatience — and these have their root, don’t they, in a heart that is not stunned by grace, not broken and humbled by grace, not joyfully filled with grace? That creates a legal spirit.
So legalism is not just this conviction that we get right with God by keeping the law. Legalism is used rightly — I think biblically — if we say it is an attitude, a spirit, a disposition of all kinds of behaviors and feelings that are rooted in a failure to be amazed that I am saved by grace. A failure to be amazed that I am accepted by God freely — to be melted, broken, humbled, and filled with joy because of what God has done.
“The legalist is not broken. He is not stunned. He is not blown away by the fact that he is saved by grace.”
That flavors all we do, and the opposite of it is right there in Luke 18 in the Pharisee standing by himself. He prayed, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector” (Luke 18:11). That is the spirit of a man who says right words. He says, “Thank you,” right? He says, “Thank you, God.” That is a right thing to say, but he is not broken. He is not stunned. He is not blown away by the fact that he is saved by grace, not according to his works.
So what we want, what I want in my life, is not just to be free from a principled legalism — you know, a theological legalism that says you get to heaven, or you please God, or you win his favor by keeping the law. I want to have a gracious spirit, a gospel spirit, not a legal spirit that comes from a failure to be amazed at my being saved by grace.
But there are other ways to define legalism. Another form of legalism is also common in Scripture, namely when believers are told they must follow man-made rules rather than (or alongside) God’s rules. Our fallen human natures not only tend to resist God’s law, but we have a propensity to make our own laws.
In short, legalism is when you add to God’s word. We will call this rules-legalism.
Paul was also very aware this form of legalism. In Romans 14, he wanted to make sure that Christians were not judging each other over “disputable matters.” Some Christians ate meat, other didn’t (v. 2). Some Christians followed certain holy days, others didn’t (v.5). Some Christians drank wine, others didn’t (v. 21).
And Paul is very plain that we should not “pass judgment” (v.3) on our fellow believer over such matters. Our conscience is bound only to God’s word, not to man’s private opinion.
Of course, this is exactly the kind of legalism that defined the ministry of the Pharisees. They were masters of adding to God’s word. So much so, that Jesus rebukes them: “You hypocrites . . . you leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men” (Mark 7:6-8
).
It’s important to distinguish this kind of legalism from the one above. Many Christians are quick to add man-made rules to their faith, though far fewer would think they must keep them to be saved. That means a person can reject salvation-legalism but still be holding to rules-legalism.
Why would a person do this? Why are people so prone to rules-legalism? Because it gives us a way to feel better about ourselves. Notice that whenever we add a rule to the Christian faith, it just happens to be the rule we prefer and the rule we are keeping. And this allows us to be part of the “in” group, and to view others as part of the “out” group.
And that is the definition of sinful judging. There’s a right form of “judging” where we distinguish between right and wrong (contrary to what the world thinks). But, biblically speaking, sinful judging is when we tell someone their behavior is wrong, when it is not really wrong (Rom 14:3).
We should also observe that some leaders prefer rules-legalism for another reason: it’s a form of control. It’s a way to manage the behavior of others, by accusing them of breaking rules (even if they didn’t know they were rules) and shaming them for doing so. Such behavior puts the average church member on edge, making them more compliant and more willing to follow that leader in the future.
Here is where we see the importance of doctrines like sola Scriptura. In effect, that doctrine protects our Christian liberty. Only God’s word can bind our conscience, not man-made laws.
J. Gresham Machen put it well, “Dependence upon a word of man would be slavish, but dependence upon God’s Word is life…The Bible to the Christian is not a burdensome law, but the very Magna Carta of Christian liberty.”
Legalism and Tone
The final kind of legalism I will mention here (and there are others), is more difficult to pin down, but still very real. It is a legalism of spirit, rather than a legalism of doctrine.
We have all encountered pastors, leaders, and ministries that plainly affirm salvation by grace and plainly reject man-made laws. On paper, they are orthodox. And yet, their ministries are marked by a heavy-handed, crushing, and even oppressive focus on law-keeping. They lead through fault-finding.
People in such churches often feel watched, criticized, picked apart, and even fearful of stepping out of line.
In short, this sort of legalism is an imbalanced focus on the Law. It is legalism in tone. So, we can call this tone-legalism.
Needless to say, tone-legalism is the most difficult type of legalism to identify. Often those who engage in this sort of legalism will defend their ministries on the grounds that, “I am just pointing out people’s sin.” It is legalism cloaked in orthodoxy.
Of course, it is true that there’s a place for pointing out people’s sin. And it is also true that God cares very much about Christian obedience. But the people in these churches know there’s something amiss, even if they may not be able to fully articulate it.
Sadly, some Christians don’t even realize how distorted their experience is until they leave and join a church that has a balanced and joyful focus on the gospel. Looking back, all they might be able to say is, “That church was legalistic,” not realizing that they are dealing with tone-legalism.
Concern over tone-legalism might explain why we have so many exhortations for pastors to be gentle with their flocks and not domineering (1 Tim 3:3; 1 Pet 5:3; Matt 20:25). Our ministries should not be defined by our “cracking the whip,” but by patient, gentle shepherding.
In sum, legalism is a multi-dimensional phenomenon. And understanding the nuances of the term can help us navigate conversations and theological discussions. The next time a person says, “That’s legalism,” you can begin by asking them which definition they are using.
1. Excels only in the visible aspects of righteousness
Matt. 6:5-6
Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But whenever you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.
If you are a legalist, you care mostly about how others people perceive you. Legalists are more concerned about what their neighbors, their mom and dad, people at church, and their friends see than what God sees. In fact, their self-perception is determined by the mirror they help create. The legalist may not know it, but most of what they do is for show. They homeschool their kids because it looks better. They show up at church early and stay late so people will see how committed they are. They bow their heads at restaurants so others can see them. They give money to the poor but always find a way to let this secret out.
2. Focuses on the easier commands of God
Matt. 23:23
Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin…
The Pharisees, when it came to giving the tithe, went so far as to give a tenth of their salt and pepper. There was not anything wrong with this. But tithing is a relatively easy law to keep. The legalist not only does the visible things, but the things that are easy (at least for them).
The legalist doesn’t curse, doesn’t smoke, doesn’t sleep around, doesn’t miss church, has never taken drugs, takes a shower every day, and does their devotional every morning. All of these things can be important to do. However, comparatively speaking, these things are easy. The legalist will focus on “right” acts that come easy to him, thinking his discipline in small areas is more than enough to make his back straight before God.
Pelagius, a fourth-century ascetic monk, was a pretty good chap (at least from his perspective). Doing good came easy. He hung around the right friends, was never tempted to escape life with alcohol, and had a pretty stable personality. These are all great gifts, don’t get me wrong. But normally the things that come easy for us become the paradigm around which we create our view of righteousness and our standard by which we judge others. Pelagius ended up fighting St. Augustine, enraged by Augustine’s claim that God has to supernaturally give us the power to do what he commands. Pelagius thought we could do it, pretty much, on our own.
This viewpoint can only come when we focus on the things that come easy in our lives and make this the guide to universal spirituality. And this, the legalist does very well.
3. Follows by the letter of the law
Matt. 5:21-22
You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER ‘ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 22 “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
The fifth commandment says that we should not murder anyone. Many of the Pharisees in Christ’s day checked this command (along with all the “big ten”) off on a daily basis with great ease. But Christ informs them that the fifth commandment goes much deeper than just the physical act of murder. It extends to the very seed emotions that give rise to murder.
The legalist, like the Pharisees, looks only to the letter of the law to evaluate her spirituality. She sees that she has not actually committed murder or adultery or theft, but doesn’t realize that hatred, lust, and envy are all that are needed to be guilty before God. As long as we look at only the letter of the law, many of us might look pretty clean. But when we look to the principles or the spirit of God’s commands, then our mirror reveals a hopeless mess.
The legalist will do everything he can to keep his self-perception only on the most visible and blatant violations of the law. Only then can he place himself on a pedestal of self-righteousness. But once he looks at the spirit of the law, he will find that he needs mercy just as desperately as the rest of us.
4. Neglects the more importantmorals
Matt. 23:23-24
Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law– justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others. 24 Blind guides! You strain out a gnat yet swallow a camel!
Now we are focusing on the second half of this verse.
The legalist, while doing the small things, ignores the spiritual elephants in the room. He neglects the things that matter most: “justice, mercy, and faithfulness.” The camels that are being swallowed at are issues of the heart. Pride, jealousy, hatred, and lust fill his soul. But he has trained himself to strain out so many gnats that he can’t even see the elephants (or camels) anymore.
Then, a legalist judges others based on these gnats. Others may have their lives filled with justice, mercy, and all manners of self-sacrifice, but because they drink beer, smoke cigarettes, and curse, they are permanently identified as unspiritual (at best) or pagans (at worst).
I remember being at a church where I was talking with a woman who was very involved in this church. As we talked, a man walked up. He said that this was his first time to the church. We continued to talk and every other word that came out of his mouth was a curse word. After about ten seconds, the lady got up and said under her breath to me (as if we were in cahoots), “I can’t take this anymore.” She left. And in doing so, unknown to her, she just swallowed a camel. She would have been better off letting out a thousand f-bombs than turning her heel on this guy.
5. Has a distorted view of others due to their legalism
Matt. 7:5
You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
The one thing the legalist continually does is the one thing the legalist is not in any way qualified to do: correct others. She can’t help it. It helps her mirror. The more she corrects people, the better she thinks she looks.
There are many people I dread hearing from. I know what is coming right when I see their number on my phone or email in my inbox. They are going to pick apart some aspect of my life, telling me how to get better or change my spirituality. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind correction. I do need the “wounds of a friend.” But correction from a legalist is worthless. They are not friends.
Not only do they have no audience with the person they are correcting (due to the dreadfulness of their connection) but their correction will be completely distorted due to the greater issues they have in their life. They don’t see themselves as God sees them. Their admonition will undoubtedly be to make you look more like they look as they look in the mirror. Their pride, selfishness, and hatred keep them from seeing the world clearly.
A legalistic church is concerned about protecting its traditions and rules rather than fulfilling the mission of preaching the gospel and making disciples. Institutionalism takes the place of the great commission (Matthew 28:19). The church forgets why it was established, believing its primary purpose is to preserve its identity and establish self-righteousness. Its goal is to prosper itself rather than to be a light to the world.
Example of a Legalistic System
The Bible gives us an example of a legalistic System. After the Jews returned from their Babylonian exile, they were so afraid of losing their identity that they sought to safeguard their laws. One of these laws was the law of the Sabbath. So, they created many rules and regulations to keep it. Many of these rules were not founded in the Scriptures, taking principals and ideas to extremes. These man-made rules and traditions became more important than the principles upon which they were established, which is a holy relationship with the Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:28).
The religious leaders esteemed their outward rules in such high regard that they charged Jesus of Sabbath-breaking when He healed a sick person on the Sabbath (Luke 13:14). Christ’s emphasis on the value on doing good on the Sabbath and demonstrating acts of love in regard to true Sabbath keeping brought Him into bitter conflict with the Jewish leaders. (Luke 6:8-10, Luke 13:15-16).
For this reason, Christ said, “And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:7). It was a question of salvation by faith or by works. Jesus affirmed that those who worship God must do so “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23, 24). The danger of exalting human precepts and even human interpretations of divine requirements above the “weightier matters of the law” (Matthew 23:23) is no less today than it was then.
Traditions are good when founded upon solid biblical principles, but when the traditions become more important than the principles they supposedly serve, the church’s activities become empty ceremonies without the power of the Holy Spirit. Outward ceremonies take the place of inward purity of heart and sincerity. “This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” (Mark 7:6).
The Cure for a Legalistic Church?
A legalistic church’s remedy is heart work by the Holy Spirit:
1-Individually through the study of the Word, prayer. David prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Yourgenerous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You” (Psalms 51:10-13).
2-Corporately as the body of Christ. The Lord stated, “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
God’s wish for sinners is that they should humble themselves, forsake their sins, and turn to Him for salvation. The Lord does not delight in the suffering and death of the sinner, and calls them to leave their wicked ways and turn from their sins and find life (Isaiah 1:18–20; Jeremiah 25:5; Ezekiel 18:30–32; Hosea 6:1)
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