Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Celebrating Reformation Sunday


The last Sunday in October is known as Reformation Sunday. It celebrates the beginning of the Protestant Reformation when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517.

Reformation Sunday is a time for us to celebrate how God acted in history to preserve the gospel for us today. We are beneficiaries of what God did through men like Luther. Let us never forget to study Church History, thank God for his mercies to us, and learn the lessons of God’s providential dealings with his people.



Here are some practical ways to celebrate the Reformation this upcoming Lord’s Day.



1.     Prayerfully read and study the Scriptures addressing Reformation themes. For example, read about the authority of Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16-17), salvation by grace (Ephesians 2:1-10), and justification by faith alone (Romans 3-4).



2.     Digest a biography about one of the Reformers. A good biography on Martin Luther is Roland Bainton’s Here I Stand. T.H.L. Parker has a good book on Calvin’s life and legacy.



3.     Watch a movie about Luther and the Reformation. There is an older version and a newer one. This can be a great family activity! 



4.     Include your children by reading to them an age-appropriate version of the Reformation and its heroes. Reformation Heritage has put out some great books for kids.



5.      Visit Ligonier Ministries and listen to excellent sermons and lectures on the history and theology of the Reformation. They are completely free!

I hope you have a wonderful Reformation Day with your family!

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

What Legalism Is and Isn't



Christians are quick to charge others with legalism without clarifying what they mean. The charge of legalism, however, is a serious accusation and shouldn’t be thrown around lightly. We need to be more careful about calling other believers “legalistic" because what we call legalism isn't always so.



What Legalism Is

Legalism comes in many different forms. One form is what we might call full-blown legalism. This is the teaching that sinners can be saved by good works. Whether it’s completely by good works or a mixture of faith and good works, it doesn’t matter. Salvation is by God’s grace alone, and to teach otherwise is legalism. This form of legalism is pretty rare, though it’s certainly a problem in sections of the church today.



Another form of legalism, which is much more common, is the idea that Christians must obey manmade rules and regulations in addition to the commands of Scripture. Sometimes this comes in the form of arbitrary rules about makeup, clothing, and the length of your hair. At other times, these extrabiblical requirements concern holy days and dietary laws. The point is, no one other than Christ speaking in the Scriptures has the authority to bind your conscience. It is legalistic to make up rules for all Christians without any biblical warrant.



The most common legalism is best described as an attitude. We are guilty of legalism when we fall into the trap of thinking that God loves us more when we perform better. There more quiet times, the more Bible reading, the more prayer time, the better God loves me. That’s legalism, and that’s deadly. We must never forget that we are forever accepted in God’s sight because of what Jesus did for us on the cross once and for all. Christ’s finished sacrifice reconciles us to God and forever absolves us of all our shortcomings. Even though we know this in our heads, we have trouble believing this in our hearts. So we need to remind ourselves every day that we are not accepted by God on the basis of what we do. We are secure in our Father’s love because of who he is and because of what Christ has accomplished in our behalf.



What Legalism Isn’t

It is also important to understand what legalism isn’t. First of all, the desire to obey God is not legalism. If we are truly born again, we want to obey God because we want to please our heavenly Father. We are not trying to earn our salvation; we are expressing our gratitude for the salvation he has freely given us in his Son.



Secondly, the attempt to follow God’s law is not legalism. Believers should delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on it day and night. We aren’t using the law as the basis of our justification. The law is holy, righteous, and good. It sets before us a perfect pattern of God’s righteousness. The law reflects the righteousness and generosity of the God who gave it. So we cherish the law and delight to obey it out of love for Christ. The Reformers called this “the third use of the law” or the “regulative use of the law.”



Thirdly, striving to be careful and exact in our obedience is not legalism. Some Christians believe that we should simply “feel the Spirit” and do whatever subjective impulses come to mind. Whatever we feel is right is what we should do. This subjectivism is totally foreign to the Bible. True Christians want to do exactly what God says. We want to do it right away. We want to do it as he commanded.



Much more could be said on this topic, but we should seek to study the Scriptures on the subject and not throw around this serious charge without knowing exactly what we mean by the term.