The Personality of Legalism

There are legalists in every spectrum of Christianity. You can't just point your finger at every person that lives by a stricter set of personal guidelines than you and throw the label at them. Holiness is a personal walk just like faith; there are no two people that are alike. However, it is important that we know what it looks like so we can keep from falling into it ourselves. The first dilemma that we run into is that nobody wants to be a legalist so even the people that fit every quality of the word live in continuous denial of it. To keep ourselves from being bitter name callers we must go back to scripture, find the legalists mentioned there, and study their traits. In Luke chapter eighteen I believe we find everything we need straight from the mouth of Jesus to get a good idea of what the personality of legalism looks like. I fear that it is more common than most would care to admit. Let's take a look...

Luke 18:9-14 (KJV)

[9] And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: [10] Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. [11] The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are , extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. [12] I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. [13] And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. [14] I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

They Trust in Themselves

Verse nine puts the first nail in the coffin when the Holy Ghost inspired Luke's commentary on who this parable was directed toward. Jesus, knowing the heart problem in the legalists, directed this parable toward "certain which trusted in themselves." The legalist claims a devotion to Jehovah but faith is the only thing that pleases Jehovah. This man was dressed right and walked right, verse ten even tells us that he was going to the temple to pray, but his confidence was in the power of his own flesh. When verse eleven begins Jesus reveals to us that even the prayers of a legalist are directed toward his own flesh when he stated that this Pharisee "prayed...with himself." Thats a pretty stark contrast to the men we know through scripture who prayed "in the Holy Ghost." The legalist will tell you that his faith is in God but he lives a life that contradicts this lip service. Whenever you find a man who's spirituality produces pride and self satisfaction you find a man that is trusting in himself and not God; you find a legalist.

They Believe Their Form of Faith is Superior

This parable is not about a religious man and a lost man; this parable is about two believers that are both headed to the house of God to worship. Jesus tells the story in such a way that he draws the mind of the legalist to assume the worst about a man that Jesus knew would be the hero of the story. No legalist wants to hear that the publican in the story is the real spiritual man. So we have two Christians, if I may borrow the word, and one is assuming his form of Christianity is the superior form with the superior methods. This legalist is so convinced that his way is better that he even thanks God at the end of verse eleven that he isn't as bad off spiritually as the other man of faith. Whenever you find a Christian who believes that his personal form of Christianity is superior to all that don't meet his standard you find a man who's faith is in his own performance and not God; you find a legalist.

They are Defined by What They Do and Don't Do

As this Pharisee began his prayer it was not "our Father which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name." He lifted his chin high and reminded God of all the things that he did not do! I imagine if he had been given a pulpit that his preaching would have probably consisted of a lot of this, too. Just as soon as he finished there, he was so pleased with himself, that he went on to remind God of all the things that he DID do. I imagine his long list of good works wasn't just reserved for his private prayer time either. Everything that this man was revolved around what he did and didn't do. Never a mention of grace, never a mention of God opening his eyes and ears, never a mention of God strengthening his faith or establishing his heart, never a mention of the cleansing work of the Spirit. No, just look at what I can do and look at what I can keep myself from! Whenever you find a man that is obsessed with what he does and does not do you find a man that believes in a works based spiritual life instead of a faith based spiritual life; you find a legalist.

They Devalue Others

Luke told us that Jesus was addressing those who had their confidence placed in their own self but he quickly followed that with the other primary defining characteristic of a legalist; they "despised others." This word "despise" literally means to devalue or "make of no account." When a man turns legalistic in his thinking he quickly becomes the judge of others and he isn't a very fair one. In order to maintain his confidence his primary passion becomes picking other people apart. We see in verse eleven that at the very introduction of this Pharisee's prayer he thanked God that he was not as other men were. As he closed that thought he narrowed the focus down to the closest person he could get his eyes on and that was the publican. Was he burdened for the publican? No, rather, he profited from the inferiority that he believed the publican to represent. Without anyone to compare himself to his life would carry very little meaning. The legalist is a vain elitist and always a gossip because his confidence depends on other people being wrong. Whenever you find a man that can't quit critiquing, criticizing, and gossiping about other people you find a man with blatant disregard for the grace of God; you find a legalist.

There was one man who went home justified at the end of this story and that was the humble, broken publican. The poor, wretched publican was a nothing, a nobody, with no confidence in himself. He was broken because he knew God. He was humble because he knew himself. Jesus wasn't interested in the man who had it all together. Jesus was interested in honesty. The minute we enter into denial about who we are and what our flesh is we, too, can enter into legalism. Legalism is deadly because it is a cause of it's own that works directly against the only cause that matters; faith in Jesus Christ and His completed work.