ASK THE PASTOR WITH DALE RATZLAFF
What’s wrong with legalism?
Let me tell you a story. We first noticed the big green June bugs when we were picking the ears from the first planting of our organic corn. We had seen corn silk worms many times before, but June bugs were different. We could almost ignore the irritating corn silk worms; if we found them in an ear of corn, we could simply cut off the infected tip. June bugs, however, could not be ignored.
As I was picking the first fruits of our corn, suddenly a swarm of huge iridescent buzzing beetles invaded the space around my head. I had never experienced an invasion like this before. Soon I discovered that these hungry green bugs like to hunt in packs—some ears of corn had about a dozen of those hard-shelled beetles crowded together on the tip, corporately decimating the husks and the tender kernels underneath. Quickly, I picked the rest of the corn and took it in to freeze. But that was not the end of the story.
Soon we noticed beetles eating our blackberries—and then the peaches, the tomatoes, and the melons. We decided it was time to declare war on the June bugs—and by the way, June bugs pay no attention to the “June” part of their name. They are still here as I write on September 29. We discovered that a coffee can filled with water and molasses attracts them, and they drown in the sweet mix. Actually, we caught dozens of them by hand and threw them into our “traps”.
Catching them, though, is not a pleasant experience. They have strong claws that grab onto one’s fingers with an intensity and strength that makes one certain they’re about to bite—even though they do not.
Their social nature drew others to the feast. In fact, we had to check our garden and trees several times a day to keep those buzzy green giants from destroying the harvest that we had worked so hard to nurture.
Legalism is like those pesky green June bugs. It sucks out the strength of whatever it invades. When we seek to do good, it is there telling us that we did not do well enough. When we miss the mark, legalism buzzes in our heads making us think we might just as well give up. When we fall into sin—big or small—legalism tries to claw the good news out of our being, telling us the gospel does not work. Like the social June bugs, legalism in one area of our lives invites legalism into other areas, and before we know it, we are being consumed with shame, anxiety, and compulsions.
There is only one cure for legalism: the sweet savor of the gospel—the righteousness of Christ imputed to those who believe. Just as we grabbed the pesky green June bugs off our ripe harvest and threw them into the sweet molasses trap, in the same way as soon as we experience legalism eating out our Christian joy and liberty, we are to grab it before it can dig its claws into our soul, and throw it into the ocean of God’s grace. The gospel is the good news of what Christ has done for us in His death, burial, and resurrection. Understanding and believing this good news at the very core of our being will drown the condemning voices of legalism. While we are saved by a one-time experience with the living Lord, we will ever have to stand guard over the sweet fruits of the Spirit. While we are to always to tell others of the good news of the gospel, let us never forget the importance of telling ourselves the gospel story over and over again. †
I love to tell the story, for those who know it best
Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.
And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song,
’Twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long.
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