Legalism, Taught in the Bible ?

SilVer Surfer · Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 1:18 pm Post subject: Legalism, Taught in the Bible ?

20:20 "And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a [sign] between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God".
Does this Bible verse teach legalism ?

1 John 2:3 "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him".
Does this teach Legalism ?

Zathrus · Little Guppy Joined: 05 Sep 2003 Posts: 31

I've heard preachers use this technique before. Taking two verses from different parts of the Bible that may or may not have anything to do with each other and putting them together to make some point or form some doctrine.

Brother Surfer, I don't deny the value of cross referencing, but the context - textual, covenantal and cultural - has to be considered, especially on a subject like the one you're getting at here.

junco · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 10:42 pm Post subject:

OK, I hope you don't mind, but my Daddy is helping me with this as I am in junior high. He says first to ask you if you would be willing to give your definition of 'legalism,' as many Christians have had different but valid meanings for the word.

He wants to make a point: that the Ten Commandments are a major root of all Western Jurisprudence (he had to spell that one). He says that a very large majority of legal precedent in Europe, the United States, all the First World Countries sprang from the Ten Commandments. So he says yes, of course there is legalism in the Bible.

But we're not sure if this is what you mean, Sir?

Maddi and Les

Acadian · Posted: Fri Jan 05, 2007 11:41 am Post subject:

Greeting in the name of the Christ.

The Difference between Lawful and Legal

Lawful: "The principle distinction between the terms 'lawful' and 'legal' is that the former [Lawful] contemplates the substance of law, the latter [legal] the form of law. To say of an act that it is 'lawful' implies that it is authorized, sanctioned, or at any rate not forbidden, by law. To say that it is 'legal' implies that it is done or performed in accordance with the forms and usages of law, or in a technical manner. In this sense 'illegal' approaches the meaning of 'invalid.' For example, a contract or will, executed without the required formalities, might be said to be invalid or illegal, but could not be described as unlawful. Further, the word 'lawful' more clearly implies an ethical content than does 'legal.' The latter (legal) goes no further than to denote compliance, with positive, technical, or formal rules; while the former (Lawful) usually imports a moral substance or ethical permissibility." Black's Law Dictionary (4th edition, 1957 & 1968), page 1032.

‘Lawful’ has to do with the substance of Law. ‘Legal’ has to do with the shadow (or form) of Law. Similar to how 'character' is distinguished from 'reputation' ('Character' representing what is lawful, 'reputation' representing what is legal).

Character: "Character consists of the qualities which constitute the individual, while reputation is the sum of opinions entertained concerning him. The former is interior; the latter external. The one is the substance; the other the shadow. Character is what a person is. Reputation is what people say of him." Ballentine, Self-Pronouncing Law Dictionary, (1948), page 138.
Character means something. Reputation means nothing; it's source is hearsay. What people say about you is worthless, because God doesn’t care what people say about you, he’s not a respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). Man sees the exterior, God sees the interior (1 Samuel 16:7, 2 Corinthians 10:7).

How will we know what is a 'lawful' word and what is a 'legal' word? How will we know which is the substance and which is the shadow? The giver of the Law will determine this. If the giver of the Law is God himself, then the words of that Law have substance, because they have their origin in Him who spoke all Substance into being. If the giver of the law is man, then the law has no substance, but is only an image, vapor, shadow, or form of law, because man really can never create law but only an image of the law, only a fiction in law, or as it is called in man's law, the "color of law."

Human Laws

What should a follower of Christ think about human laws? It is irrelevant, because we look to the one lawgiver for answers (Isaiah 33:22). There is only ONE lawgiver (James 4:12). As long as we obey God's Law, human laws have nothing to do with the servants of Christ (1 Timothy 1:9-10). If God is writing his Law in our inward parts (Jeremiah 31:33), then the law that is written in codes, rules, and regulations have nothing to do with God. Jesus and the apostles answered questions with, "It is written," and, "Have ye not read," and the apostles also answered with, "The Scripture saith," ignoring the laws, ordinances, commands, and views of man. Jesus did not use man's codes, rules, and regulations for the things he did, and neither should we use man's codes, rules, and regulations for the things that we do.

If you read the laws of man, you will notice that all the words used in their laws are consistently outside Scripture. For example, a statute might read, "Persons have rights to lease property." But you won't find the word 'property,' 'lease,' or "rights" in scripture. You won't even find the word 'persons' in scripture as the natural man uses that term. All these words are outside Scripture, so it's a new kingdom outside of God's kingdom. There's a distinction between man-made laws and God-given laws.

Human Laws: "Laws which have man for their author, as distinguished from divine laws, which have God as their author." Borden v. State, 11 Ark. 519, 54 Am. Dec. 217, 220. Law Dictionary with Pronunciations, by James A. Ballentine, 1948 Edition. Lawyers Co-operative Publishing Company, Rochester, New York.

The office of the Christ denotes a ministerial act of execution; doing, acting, carrying into effect, or "fulfilling the law." If you are under grace and not under God's Law, what office do you occupy, and whose Will do you execute? Because all offices are under the law that created them. And if you're not under God's law, what office do you fill? All offices are in law, and the Will is the Testament establishing the office.

Isaiah 8:16,20, "Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."
This is the yardstick by which the followers of Christ judge all law. Any purported law which has not this purpose is a lie and is no law at all. It falls short of the standards set by God. Even the laws of man agree with this Truth:

"Any law contrary to the Law of God, is no law at all." Sir William Blackstone.

"God alone is the lawgiver of eternity". Judge Henry Clay, Crimes of the Civil War, 1868, pages 428-432.

"The law is from everlasting." Bouviers Law Dictionary, 1914, 'Maxim', page 2143. (Psalm 90:2; 93:2; 145:13).

Yes, this is in harmony with the Sacred Scriptures, which declare:

Acts 5:29, "Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men."

Isaiah 33:22, "For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us."

James 4:12, "There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?"

Jeremiah 17:5, "Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man."

Psalms 118:8-9, "It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes [governments of men]."

Psalms 146:3, "Put not your trust in princes [governments of men]."

Ecclesiastes 12:13, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God [not man], and keep his commandments [not man's commandments]: for this is the whole duty of man."

So the answer is NO the bible does not teach Legalism.
God's laws are Lawful, man's laws are legal or only color of law.

What most people don't understand is that Christ didn't bring or teach about a new religion, no he re-insituted and re-organized God's Lawful government... the Kingdom of God and his Christ... the Kingdom of Heaven.

Peace be with you all
Acadian

junco · Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2007 9:23 am Post subject:

Welcome, Acadian. My mom says to tell you that she likes your definitions of lawful, legal, character and reputation. She wishes to gently point out, as a missionary with senior experience, that there are other definitions. Also, that this is one of two chat boards (the other is christianviewpoints.com) with an enormous number of members, a great many of whom understand extremely well that Jesus wasn't - apparently - trying to start a new religion. Many would argue with you until you were sorry you ever heard of these sites.

I'm not an 'adult' yet and have no time for theological peregrination (I love that word, don't you?). You're stuff sounds OK. But Acadian, the whole Old Testament is concerned with the Jewish folks. If you think about legalism as not being a bad thing, but just a thing, weren't the ancient Jewish folks all about legalism?