jmlhopeful Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? In obeying Christ, we should do it out of love. Example: When we see a person on the street asking for change, we might give them money but we might also do it with an attitude. What we really should be doing is to give to the person with love and understanding. Yes, we are supposed to support the church with tithes, but if you tithe grudgingly, you are following the law but you are being disobedient. However, if you just don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanMary Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? For me it is about motive. Because I love Him I want to obey and please Him. Before I fell in love with Him, my motive was to stay out of trouble for fear of harsh punishment which included fear of Him rejecting me. How do love and legalism differ? Love walks in freedom and light without fear ("the perfect law of liberty") While I remember the darkness I walked in, I accept that I am a flawed work in progress...but the work is God's not mine, so "at that day' I will be like Him. I'm free to live in grace and follow Him without fear of "stepping on a crack"...so to speak. When I do unintentionally sin, I run to Him for cleansing and forgiveness and restored fellowship. Love and grace flow into and through the life of one who is secure in His love. Legalism is based in fear, uncertainty and the law ("of sin and death") and the effort to prove how much you don't need Jesus' sacrifice, because you're so awesome on your own! The result is self righteousness..."see how many rules I follow?...and look at you! You don't observe half of what I do!" This leads to judging others and depression when you can't measure up to YOUR rules. The law was given to show us that we are sinners, and that it's impossible for us to follow perfectly. How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? For me it began with being disobedient, then discovering how much God loves, forgives, and cherishes me. When I really KNEW how much I was loved, I began to love Him back, and that produced the desire to obey Him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moises Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? First, we must want to be like Him Who only did the will of God, the Father. God is light. The will of God is that we walk in the light (not in the darkness), guided by His word and not by worldly desires; Second, we must recognize that we are not good enough to fulfill the will of God without fail. So, no man or woman is in position to grant his own salvation by his / her own effort of doing things right as commanded by the word of God. We will fail, now and then. Third, whenever we fall, we must be able to go to Jesus Christ in repentance asking for forgiveness. He will forgive us. That is His promise. How do love and legalism differ? Legalism has to do with law or the emphasis to the law when it comes to codes of conduct. As mentioned before, when we think of salvation on mankind as based on their good deeds, then we can say, for sure, no man will be saved. BUT when we see the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as the atoning sacrifice, then we will understand what LOVE is. It is due to His great love that he saves us by grace. That is the difference between legalism and love: LEGALISM DOES NOT SAVE ANYBODY, LOVE DOES! How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? The word of God teaches us that love is the greatest of all virtues. So, if we are serious about obedience we must exercise love above anything else, and any other virtue will develop around love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
e. Gary Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? By keeping his commandment which was summarized as "Love God above all things." and "Love our neighbors" which could be anyone we encounter daily and need our help and compassion, like the "Good Samaritan." You cannot be judgemental like the Pharisees, but remember social justice and equal rights was already taught to us by Jesus during his time. When he commented on divorce, he said, "My Father created man and women and two became one flesh." In here he is giving the women equal rights, and showing he loves children, he is also giving them justice of love. Children were used as laborers during his time and even in other parts of the world. We can obey the law of men but we must also obey the law of God, instilled in our conscience to do right and avoid evil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gener Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Obeying Christ is a fruit of Christ love to us. We become judgmental and legalistic when we see others mistake or weaknesess. Gener Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millie Posted October 8, 2009 Report Share Posted October 8, 2009 Keep the love of God in our heart. I try very hard not to judge othere because I do not want others to judge me. God will judge me on judgement day when I stand before Him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medillon Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 How can we be serious about obeying Christ without becoming legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? We can be serious by making Jesus Lord over our lives Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eudora Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? First we have to know who these Pharasees were. In their day, they were the religious scholars and teachers who were often the most vocal and influential. The name Pharisee in its Hebrew form means separatists, or the separated ones. They were also known as chasidim, which means loyal to God, or loved of God - extremely ironic in view of the fact that by His time, they made themselves the most bitter, and deadly, opponents of Jesus Christ and His message. Yet they became so devoted that they missed the mark of true devotion in love because they were leading lives of legalism, not from the heart. What did Yahushua ask Nicodemus when they met during the Passover? “Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?” Jesus had just explained to this Pharisee that He must be born again in order to ‘see the kingdom’. Nicodemus didn’t know what Yahushua was talking about. He knew the Torah but had missed the mark. How had Nicodemus, a man of the Torah not understand: “As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.” Ecclesiastes 11:5 Yahushua had just explained that man cannot control the Holy Spirit just as we cannot control our physical birth and we cannot control our spiritual birth either. But without the spiritual birth, Nicodemus would not be a part of the kingdom unless he was personally born again. Surely Nicodemus had heard the Prophet Ezekiel? ¶ Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:25-26 Without the spirit of Yahushua living inside of us, and yielding to His lead, we could all become legalistic and judgmental and self righteous. How do love and legalism differ? His love sets us free to be obedient to His law. Without His spirit to lead us in spirit and in truth, we become law breakers and nothing is sacred. The scribes and Pharisees sit on Moses' seat [of authority] but didn‘t obey the law themselves. Yahushua told the people “So observe and practice all they tell you; but do not do what they do, for they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy loads, hard to bear, and place them on men's shoulders, but they themselves will not lift a finger to help bear them.” Later on in the same chapter He told them: “Because of this, take notice: I am sending you prophets and wise men (interpreters and teachers) and scribes (men learned in the Mosaic Law and the Prophets); some of them you will kill, even crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue and persecute from town to town, So that upon your heads may come all the blood of the righteous those who correspond to the divine standard of right) shed on earth, from the blood of the righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar [of burnt offering].” They were guilty of the shed blood of the prophets from A to Z. We can become to comfortable in legalism and not in truth. Repetition can become burdensome if not done in the spirit of love. It’s like God spoke through the prophet, He was sick and tired of their sacrifices because they were not following the law of obedience from their hearts, but from simple obedience. How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Be filled to overflowing with the abundant love of the Lord, through His word, writing it on the tablets of our heart and not swaying in the wind of indecision, but in spirit and in truth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annamma mathew Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 "Obedience must flow from love , not from a legalistic , self righteous spirit " God's love is both creative and purposive . He showers his love on us for the purpose of creating loving obedience and righteousness in us . By being legalistic we can obey many man made rules without a spirit of obedience which results from love . Obedience to God become a channe;l for God to express his redemptive love for others . A person who knows God will obey his commands.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loodle Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? I often feel that the image that Christians portray is this "legalistic, jusdgmental and self-rigteous attitude." I think it is incredibly important to retain a spirit of humility, constantly reminding ourselves how much Christ has done for us. We must be open and honest with our sin and our humanity with others, not just ourselves, in order to show them world that in our greatest weakness, Christ's light shines all the brighter. We must not set for ourselves, or anyone, a long set of rules that must be strictly adhered to, that's legalism and exactly what the Pharisees did that Jesus hated so much. But we must love each and every person, Christian or not, as if they were a child of God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawnp63 Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Our obedience comes from our desire to please God - not appease God. Many things we do in life are because we HAVE to : the laundry, payng bills, etc. These are done out of duty. But when I cook a special meal for my husband, or give him a back rub, these are done out of love and wanting to please him. The focus must remain on the pleasing and not on the rules/duties/laws. Love covers all, while legalism is a check-the-box type of life - often with someone else being responsible for checking off the boxes! We focus on the items on the list, and spend our days missing out on the things that are not on the list - like the opportunity to share Christ with an unlovely person, or to help someone who needs our assistance. We develop such a narrow field of view (a list or set of rules) that we can't see the beautiful things that are going on around us. We can make love our center and therefore be serious about obedience by making the ONE who displayed PERFECT love our focus. Everything He did and does is motivated by love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickie petrelis Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Being serious about obeying Christ is a serious matter. Do I always obey God? No I don't. Why? because the flesh part of me wants to go along with what the world wants me to obey and it's so easy to be tempted. Look how easy it was for Adam and Eve to disobey God. Once you get even an ounce of doubt into your mind, you start thinking, "will God really hold me accountable this one time?" If we just rely on the love that will help us to obey, then Christ will always be the center of our focus. It's not easy to obey and do what God wants us to do but God already went ahead to prepare the way for us to end up being okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csreeves Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? We can follow Christ with the help of Jesus Christ. Without him we can't do anything. We have faith following in his footsteps being through trust and faith, repenting and confessing our sins. Being legalistic and judgemental means following rituals and rules with the grace-having to be the perfect in actions, words, and deeds. This can't be a part of Christ for he came to give us grace. We must love God and love others and forgive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arkansasneva Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? I think if you truly have the love of Christ operating in your life you will not judge anyone no matter what you see them do or say you will pray for them to overcome the stronghold and let them know that you cant cast out a mind set. They have to be ready and sick and tired of their lifestyle. When you are obedient to what God says not man you will stand firm without losing ground even if that means you lose fellowship with that person. God will send someone into their life to let you know that they are headed to destruction. When you go in love people will listen to you more. You start with a positive note and end with a positive note. Allow the error to be in the middle and they dont walk away hurt or destroyed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? If we love God with all of our heart, soul, body, mind, and spirit and our neighbors as ourselves we have achieved the state of obeying Jesus/being Christians without self-righteousness, legalism, and judgmentalism. Love endures all things. Love puts others before itself and walks humbly before God. Love is freedom. Legalism is slavery. If I love Jesus I will obey His commandments. God is love, love has to be at my center. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? Our obedience to Christ comes from love not from a slaveish following of a rule book. The two great commandments identified by Jesus to love God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and to love your neighbour as yourself are the basis of this. These commandments flow from love. We follow these commandments and obey Christ not because they are written but because of the love that is within us which itself flows from us following Christ's example and in following Crist's example, we are obeying Him. As John says in ch2 v5 & 6 " whoever obeys His word, truly in this person the love of God has reached perfection. By this we are sure that we are in Him: whoever says I abide in Him ought to walk just as He walked How do love and legalism differ? In this context, they are different because of the way they affect why we act in a particular way. If we do something because it is written, that is a blind slaveish following with no need for any will or desire on our own part. In this case, the words become the important thing rather than the action itself. On the other hand, if we obey out of love, it comes from within us it is a part of us. We are doing something out of love not because we have to. How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Look at the example of Jesus throughout His time on Earth. For a specific example look at Christ's words in Luke 22, 42 "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done." There is obedience flowing from pure love Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eudora Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? I often feel that the image that Christians portray is this "legalistic, jusdgmental and self-rigteous attitude." I think it is incredibly important to retain a spirit of humility, constantly reminding ourselves how much Christ has done for us. We must be open and honest with our sin and our humanity with others, not just ourselves, in order to show them world that in our greatest weakness, Christ's light shines all the brighter. We must not set for ourselves, or anyone, a long set of rules that must be strictly adhered to, that's legalism and exactly what the Pharisees did that Jesus hated so much. But we must love each and every person, Christian or not, as if they were a child of God. Greetings Loodle, I totally agree with you here because every single human was created in the image of God. Just because a human doesn't walk in His light, doesn't mean that there time isn't coming to be awakened to His light and truth. -Eudora Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2die2self Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? I have come across Pharisees many times, and I'm quite sure I've been guilty of it myself. We tend to get so caught up in the "thou shalt nots," that we forget the "thou shalts" (Thou shalt love the Lord your God with all your heart...Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself). This is when the "plank in your own eye" scripture comes to mind (Matt. 7:3-5). The Lord ever so gently reminds us that we do not have a judgmental leg to stand on! Love = you want the best for them. Legalism = you know what's best for them. (the Lord just gave me that!) Our obedience is just that...OURS. No one else's. I can't be worrying about what everyone else is doing right or wrong, because I have enough of my own mess to keep asking the Lord to clean up! I am frequently reminded, when confronted by others' lack of obedience, I'm not walking their walk! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diana47 Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 to walk with jesus or living as christ did dosent mean choosing twelve disciple,or performing great miracles,.and choose not to live it., to walk today as christ did we must obey his teachings and follow in his example of complete obedience to god and loving service to his people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bols Posted October 9, 2009 Report Share Posted October 9, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? The power of our confession is in the action that we take that will support what we said.Love is from God and legalism is from men. Love supercedes all. Love is God. Keeping His commandment will make us stand above all difficulties and challenges of life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion of Grace Posted October 10, 2009 Report Share Posted October 10, 2009 We obey Christ without becoming legalistic through humbleness and love. We can only do the best we can do and we all fall short, but taking that into our hearts and not just in knowledge leads to seeing ourselves as no better than the other person. We have compassion on others and we have understanding. Legalism follows all the laws and rules, but I think also includes a blindness to self and being a sinner. Legalists can see faults in others never realizing they do the same things or even worse! Love is born out of compassion and empathy for another and a desire to see restoration. Legalism condemns and excludes. We are serious about obedience with love at the center by being humble, knowing we are sinners and we should all be on guard lest we fall and remembering how much Jesus loved us even before we loved Him. Obedience in love is from deep gratitude for our salvation. If we never have anything else, ever, we are deeply humbled and grateful we have been saved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdk Posted October 10, 2009 Report Share Posted October 10, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdk Posted October 10, 2009 Report Share Posted October 10, 2009 i try really hard to keep my love for the lord like a childs . i try to read the scriptures just how is reads trying not to make laws of what i need to do or have to do ,he did it all already . it seems to keep the love constant , and during hard times more prayer ...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sahala p.s. Posted October 10, 2009 Report Share Posted October 10, 2009 Q5. (1 John 2:3-6) How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? How do love and legalism differ? How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had? We can do it by following him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength that come from our love to him How do love and legalism differ? Love comes from God, given by God, and we receive that gift and use it to obey him. It can be applied if we have a good relationship to God. Legalism comes from ourselves, based on our own strength, or trying to make ourselves in our own ways. It can make us boast How can we be serious about obedience and make love our center? Our obedience is based on love or flow from love, not on rules, or not from self-righteous spirit through keeping legalistic rules. And, we love in the way as Christ command in Matthew 22:37-39 that is, first, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magnus Posted October 10, 2009 Report Share Posted October 10, 2009 [*]How can we be serious about obeying Christ without become legalistic and judgmental, with a self-righteous attitude like the Pharisees had?When our actions flow from love, not out of duty, or perceived gain, or a desire to position ourselves above others Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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