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If the outcome for acting dishonorable is severe, than citizens will fear breaking the laws.

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During its construction, the Great Wall was called “the longest cemetery on earth” because so many people died building it. Reportedly, it cost the lives of more than one million people. 

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During its construction, the Great Wall was called “the longest cemetery on earth” because so many people died building it. Reportedly, it cost the lives of more than one million people. 

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Now that I have your attention, let's talk about the benefits of legalism and before you say I've lost my mind, it might serve you well to think about what we can learn from the past which many of us lived.

Though my title is more about getting your attention, there is a serious problem which arises in some people who have come out of a legalistic culture. You're usually tipped off to this attitude because they often talk about legalism. For example, when someone appeals to them to do some kind of spiritual or behavioral discipline, they might say, "That's legalism."

Another sure sign of a recovering legalist is a bad, angry, or mocking attitude toward the places where they lived a legalistic lifestyle. Along with this attitude is once they have come out of the lifestyle, there is a temptation to let go of many-if not all-of their spiritual or behavioral disciplines.

One of the most common patterns I have seen in counseling is the person who goes from legalism to some form of licentiousness. It's an over-correction. I did this to a degree and so did my wife. We both graduated from fundamentalist colleges.

Our college experiences had a lot to do with keeping rules and rigid disciplines. Though we did not know each other during these years, we both had a similar experience when we began to hear about grace.

At the time we did not perceive the deception working in our hearts. We were only thankful to be free from all the rules of religion and to live a life where you felt as though you could breathe, while acclimating yourself into the world in which everyone else lived.

The deception we experienced was a slow process of slackening our spiritual and lifestyle disciplines. Part of the problem is when you live in a rule-centered universe you only have one interpretive grid when someone appeals to you to a particular discipline.

This is why you'll hear the term "that's legalism" when someone suggests doing something like reading your Bible every day. If you hear this statement, you will know the person is still in recovery, not fully understanding the doctrines of grace.

Matters of the heart

The piece of discernment which is lacking in such people is the nature of legalism. The legalist and the recovering legalist does not understand where legalism resides.

Most typically they see legalism as behaviors, disciplines, and things we do. This places legalism in the world, which the Bible would not support. Reading the Bible every day or every other day should not a problem. It's actually kind of a cool thing to do.

However, if you see legalism as something you do rather than something you are, then you have misinterpreted the problem. Legalism is in the heart, not the behavior. It is biblically incoherent to say reading the Bible on some sort of set pattern is legalism.

There have been millions of people throughout history who have done this and it's unfathomable to say all of them were legalists. Personal disciplines are wonderful things which every Christian should pursue.

This was John's argument in 1 John 2:15-16 when he was discussing the idea of worldliness. The question he raised was, "Where is worldliness?" The answer to his question is in the heart.

He locates worldliness as desires and pride. John did not see worldliness in the world, but in the heart. To see the world as worldly is to take a Gnostic position which will slowly separate you from the world.

The same is true for the legalist, who will separate from personal disciplines if he sees them as bad. The Bible is not bad to read and it's not wrong to watch a movie. The bigger issue is what is going on in your heart when you read your Bible or watch a movie.

How is your heart driving your choice to participate in the things?

Is your heart driven to lurid things?

Do you read your Bible to impress people?

Do you drink alcohol because you're caving to fear of man?

Or, are you doing these things out of a heart of gratitude for the LORD and as a means to make His name great?

It's the motive

Legalism and worldliness are matters of the heart and the main matter of the heart is your motive. The Pharisees in the four gospels were the high-octane legalists of the Savior's day.

They read their Bibles, which was not a bad thing. I'm glad they were reading their Bibles. The real problem was their motive for reading their Bibles. They were doing it for show as well as their penchant for elevating their brand.

They were an arrogant and self-righteous group who craved religious control over the people within their sphere of influence. The problem was not reading their Bibles as much as their twisted motives for doing so.

I realize the Pharisees of the Savior's day do not compare with any legalist I have ever met. It would be rare for a legalist of our day to have the attitude of the Pharisees-they were unregenerate, as well as hostile to Christ.

Most legalists are not hostile toward Christ, though their motives for reading their Bibles may be twisted into something other than being authentically motivated by grace. The most common wrong motive I have seen when helping a legalist to fully come out of the lifestyle is fear of man.

Fear of man, as described in Proverbs 29:25, is what our culture calls insecurity or peer pressure. We've all experienced this and still experience it to varying degrees. It is a crippling sin, but even more so in a fear-based, rule-oriented culture like legalism.

It is impossible to live in a rule-based culture and not be motivated by fear of man. The main reason is because this kind of culture is a comparative culture. Everybody knows what the rules are and it's easy to spot someone who is not towing the line.

And when the line is not being towed, there is a penalty. The rule-based culture is black and white, right and wrong, and do and don't. If you're not sure what the rules are, you observe all the others in your rule-oriented universe and do as they do.

Secret society of sinners

It's a vicious cycle with no way of escape. You do what everyone else is doing and if you successfully pull this off, you won't be embarrassed. This is where fear of man comes into play.

There are some people who like living within the rules. It requires very little thinking and there is an illusion of security within the system. Of course the big problem is when you have a problem, as in a pattern of masturbation or porn, or some other secret sin.

Because it's a fear-based culture you dare not let anyone know. There are penalties for your wrongdoing, unlike the Gospel which provides redemption, restoration, and grace.

In worst case situations you will observe some of the most ardent rule-keepers living a dualistic life. On the outside their platters are clean, but on the inside there will be a growing assortment of dead men's bones (Matthew 23:25-28).

This is as close as they come to the NT Pharisees. They are saved, but there are old patterns which are similar to the enemies of the Savior. What you end up with are people who are going through the motions of religion.

While their hearts can be sincere, they are caught in a system in which they can't get help. This has an incredible negative impact on their souls. Some of them stay in the system, spiritually meandering their way through life.

Others bolt for another lifestyle, which brings us back to where I began. In most cases when they bolt, they do so with a bad attitude. You'll see this by how they talk or think about the former institutions or churches where they lived in legalism.

They will accuse or make fun of these places as though these places were the cause of their legalistic hearts. As long as they persist in this kind of thinking, they will never recover from legalism.

They were caught in a trap and the institutions and churches were no doubt shaping influences as well as sinful feeders of the legalist's heart, but the point-of-focus cannot be the contexts which allowed the legalism to flourish, but the heart which gave it life.

The baby and her bath water

It is a hard process to switch a person's mind from where he came from and how it was a horrible experience to who he is as a person and how he thinks in his heart.

Therefore, when someone suggests to read your Bible everyday, the recovering legalist will recoil and say, "That's legalism." Of course it is to him. He has only one perspective-a rule oriented, penalizing, comparative culture.

He does not understand grace, though he will tell you he does. The real truth is he may somewhat understand it in his mind, but this is not his functional reality. His words betray him.

In the world of legalism it is more about reading your Bible because you have to do it. In the world of grace you read your Bible because you want to do it. There is a huge difference here.

The grace-centered person is operating out of a heart of gratitude for God's benevolent mercy to him. His focus is more vertical rather than horizontal. He is thinking less about what others are doing and giving more thought about his relationship with his Father.

His former rule-based culture is more concerned about what others are doing and whether or not he is doing it the right way or doing the right things. People are big in his world, where the grace-centered person has a large God.

The grace-centered person doesn't compare himself with others (2 Corinthians 10:12). He may read his Bible one hour a day, while his friend will read his Bible for ten minutes. He may have another friend who has struggled for years reading his Bible and has no real plan.

Rather than judging either one of his friends, he offers gratitude to God for the one reading his Bible ten minutes per day, while coming alongside his friend who is struggling (Hebrews 10:24-25).

The grace-centered person is also free to share where he is struggling with sin. He knows it's not about what his friends think about him, but what God thinks of him. He sees his friends as assets for the glory of God, not as a community to keep secrets from each other.

He knows he does not live in a comparative culture and he's free to be what God is making him to be. He does not have to pretend he is what he is not and he is comfortable with his sanctification pace and doesn't fall into the legalistic trap of comparing himself to others.

If he lives among others who still have legalistic tendencies and uncharitably judge him for his actions, he can quickly reorient his mind to the only opinion in the room which matters-LORD God Almighty.

In such cases he can appropriate grace as our LORD Jesus did when His own friends judged His motives. This is true freedom. Grace people do not throw the baby out with the bath water because they see the benefits of personal disciplines.

They don't interpret them as legalism. In fact, legalism is not in their thoughts at all. They see their spiritual and behavioral disciplines as opportunities to grow in Christ, while sharing the goodness of Christ to others.

Reflective questions

Here are a few questions I would like for you to think about to see how well you have recovered from the chains of legalism.

1. When someone asks you to consider doing a spiritual or behavioral discipline, is your first thought about legalism or about how God could use this in your life?

2. Are you tempted to compare yourself to someone else, who you perceive to be living their Christianity a better way?

3. Are you tempted to judge someone because they are not living their Christianity according to your preferences?

4. Do you have a negative or mocking attitude toward those places in which you lived a legalistic lifestyle?

5. Are you tempted to cave to fear of man when someone asks you to do some kind of spiritual or behavioral discipline?

6. Have you done certain disciplines because of fear of man, rather than being motivated by God? Explain.

7. Are you tempted to cheat on your disciplines or just breeze through in order to save face?

8. Are you tempted to not disclose the true nature of your soul because of fear of what others may think?

If you are struggling with legalism, I appeal to you to get some help. This is bondage. God has called you to freedom. Enjoy your behavioral and spiritual disciplines in a context of grace. You're called to this.

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The benefits of legalism - Rick Thomas -

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Now that I have your attention, let's talk about the benefits of legalism and before you say I've lost my mind, it might serve you well to think about what we can learn from the past which many of us lived. Though my title is more about getting your attention, there is a serious problem ...

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http://www.answers.com/Q/Disadvantages_of_Confucianism?#slide=2

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https://www.britannica.com/topic/Legalism

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Legalism | Confucianism, Qin Dynasty & Han Dynasty

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Legalism, school of Chinese philosophy that attained prominence during the turbulent Warring States era (475–221 bce) and, through the influence of the philosophers Shang Yang, Li Si, and Hanfeizi, formed the ideological basis of China’s first imperial dynasty, the Qin (221–207 bce). The three main

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Legalism gives a standard set of laws for everyone to live by. Confucianism relies on people to feel shame for what they do, but moral standards are different for everyone. 

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Legalism gives a standard set of laws for everyone to live by. Confucianism relies on people to feel shame for what they do, but moral standards are different for everyone. 

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hi

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Legalism is legal in certain legal notes of illegal legalized cases of legalism

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Another good Legalism site.

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Here's a site I found for Legalism.