Mark Driscoll (Mars Hill Church in Seattle) recently preached on the Gospel of Luke and addressed legalism (aka phariseeism).
What is a pharisee? A religious person that puts a greater burden on the self or others that is greater than the burden of Christ.
Jesus said, "my burden is easy and my yoke is light." But what do we do? Driscoll has 7 points to illustrate our legalism and how we can be a good legalistic pharisee:
1.) Make rules outside the Bible.
2.) Push yourself to try and keep your rules.
3.) Castigate yourself when you fail.
4.) Be proud when you do keep your rules.
5.) Appoint yourself as judge over people.
6.) Get angry with people who don't keep your rules or have other rules.
7.) Beat the losers.
Religious people can become experts at proving their superiority and rubbing it in the faces of the "inferior." I've seen this (and probably done it) a lot. It's gross, offensive and demeaning.
But, religious people aren't the only ones who are experts in this field. Ever get in a discussion about the environment, politics, taxes, responsibility, charity, service, race, sexuality, etc??? Eventually it devolves into a contest of who's got the best story and the most justification to be right. And, listening/understanding is gone in about 15 seconds. We just judge based on our preconceived notions about how evil that "other" person must be because they aren't as good as me. After all, I tithe 10% of everything, and I recycle, and I have a hybrid car, and have suffered......
It seems that when a discussion gets going on these topics we become a bunch of "one-uppers" who are just looking for the opportunity to pounce on the other person, intellectually grab their throat and force to them to concede our rightness. That works about as well forcing a horse to drink water. When we do this, all we do is destroy the relationship and the opportunities in those relationships.
How do we overcome this destruction?
1. Get over yourself. You, your history, your pedigree, your knowledge are not that important.
2. Stand for right and against wrong, just not on someone's neck.
3. Listen. the other person has been through a lot in his life to shape who he is. It may not be important to you, but it is to him. And, don't try so hard to prove that your past is as legitimate as the other person's.
4. Learn some humility from the Lord. He never abused anyone. He never elevated anyone b/c they had a great (or sorry) background. He only elevated the poor in spirit, the contrite and the humble.
5. Be committed to righting wrongs without seeking payback or rubbing it in someone else's face. We can't change history. We can only change how we live today. The sins of others are not excuses or licenses for us to have a free pass on responsibility and duty.
6. Don't be a victim. Even if you have experienced great and terrible horror, the world does not owe you. Christ said in the letters to the Churches (Revelation 2-3) that His people are "those who overcome." The Greek literally says, "To the Victors."
7. Recognize that the greatest sin isn't that of someone else (or another group). The greatest sin is that which is in my own heart. Paul said, "Christ died to save sinners; of whom I am the worst."
Finally, when we understand who we are and who God is, we can celebrate that we are victors over the sins and power of sin in our lives through Christ alone. If we can "get" that, we'll recover from our harsh legalism and build some good relationships.
Religious people can become experts at proving their superiority and rubbing it in the faces of the "inferior." I've seen this (and probably done it) a lot. It's gross, offensive and demeaning.
But, religious people aren't the only ones who are experts in this field. Ever get in a discussion about the environment, politics, taxes, responsibility, charity, service, race, sexuality, etc??? Eventually it devolves into a contest of who's got the best story and the most justification to be right. And, listening/understanding is gone in about 15 seconds. We just judge based on our preconceived notions about how evil that "other" person must be because they aren't as good as me. After all, I tithe 10% of everything, and I recycle, and I have a hybrid car, and have suffered......
It seems that when a discussion gets going on these topics we become a bunch of "one-uppers" who are just looking for the opportunity to pounce on the other person, intellectually grab their throat and force to them to concede our rightness. That works about as well forcing a horse to drink water. When we do this, all we do is destroy the relationship and the opportunities in those relationships.
How do we overcome this destruction?
1. Get over yourself. You, your history, your pedigree, your knowledge are not that important.
2. Stand for right and against wrong, just not on someone's neck.
3. Listen. the other person has been through a lot in his life to shape who he is. It may not be important to you, but it is to him. And, don't try so hard to prove that your past is as legitimate as the other person's.
4. Learn some humility from the Lord. He never abused anyone. He never elevated anyone b/c they had a great (or sorry) background. He only elevated the poor in spirit, the contrite and the humble.
5. Be committed to righting wrongs without seeking payback or rubbing it in someone else's face. We can't change history. We can only change how we live today. The sins of others are not excuses or licenses for us to have a free pass on responsibility and duty.
6. Don't be a victim. Even if you have experienced great and terrible horror, the world does not owe you. Christ said in the letters to the Churches (Revelation 2-3) that His people are "those who overcome." The Greek literally says, "To the Victors."
7. Recognize that the greatest sin isn't that of someone else (or another group). The greatest sin is that which is in my own heart. Paul said, "Christ died to save sinners; of whom I am the worst."
Finally, when we understand who we are and who God is, we can celebrate that we are victors over the sins and power of sin in our lives through Christ alone. If we can "get" that, we'll recover from our harsh legalism and build some good relationships.
No comments:
Post a Comment