Why do people repent in spirit, but never seem to be able to carry it out in practice? It's like the alcoholic sitting in a bar crying about how much he really does love his family, but unable to show it.
Is it possible that our attitudes toward sin can help keep people bound?
A Spirit of Legalism
Something unexplainable, and only discernable, happens when you look at someone and see your sin or weakness reflected in their eyes. They may want you to work out your sinfulness, but their very attitude of disapproval is enough to put you on the defensive, thus strengthening your sin (I Cor. 15:57). Condemnation is an attitude that can't be hidden. It comes across even through forbearance. It's not the attitude towards sin that's wrong, but that towards the sinner.
How, then, does a parent or spiritual leader, who's responsible for others, deal with sin (rebellion) when he sees it operating? By FAITH! He must not judge, but call upon God in faith.
Why is faith so important in this area? Because we're dealing with powers. We know we were born under the power of sin. We don't need to have the knowledge of our sin constantly tormenting us. We need the power to overcome it.
Why did Paul go to such great lengths to talk about justification by faith? Could it be that he understood the dangers of operating under the law, which "worketh wrath"?
The Jews sought to be accepted by God by establishing their own righteousness and not the righteousness that comes by faith. What significance does this have to God? Enough for us to spend some time in meditation on it? It was enough for Paul to write two epistles significantly devoted to the subject —Romans and Galatians. And, it can apply to the way we relate to holiness (without which no man shall see God) and what we expect to "see" in others, which can either bring us into the realm of "the substance of things unseen" by our faith or into the realm of legalism by sight.
When I look up to someone, and all I sense emanating through their eyes is their awareness of or judgement of me as a sinner, or as a Christian walking in the flesh, the offense is so strong that it holds no motivating desire to overcome whatever sin may be operating, should there be any. If nothing actually is operating, I may come away with doubts about myself that weren’t there before. This is not conviction, but a nagging cloud of haze which serves no other purpose than to destroy the confidence necessary to overcome sin. If someone sees us differently than we see ourselves, we either assume they're right and we're wrong or we are forced to deal with bitter resentment caused by their judgmental attitude toward us.
The important point here, though, is what happens to our confidence. Getting hung up in innuendos destroys confidence. When our motives and intentions are questioned by someone else, or even by our own selves, we are torn down instead of built up. People lack confidence and need guidance by those who have it. Fear of our unholiness is putting faith in the flesh. We become removed from the "law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus," which is the only thing that can empower us. Cults gain power in this area. They take advantage of people's ignorance and prey on their neediness. No leader or church group should be able to interfere with a person's relationship with God. The Holy Spirit teaches. The ministry should build up faith, not tear down confidence.
What is the “flesh”? Is it the soul? Is the spirit to be developed at the expense of the soul? Does the soul need to be crucified, or is it sin in the soul that must be dealt with? Sure, in my flesh is no good thing, but in my spirit resides the Holy Spirit, and I won't let anyone convince me I'm walking in the flesh when I’m trying to put my faith in action. I need to trust in the work of Christ; I don't need my flesh destroyed, but my spirit raised up by faith.
We need to be careful in our judgment of what's operating as flesh vs. spirit. Do we allow Satan to magnify sin in the flesh by our judgments instead of forgiving sin in ourselves and in others and treating it with prayer and love, thus overcoming evil with good? I realize it's a codependent symptom to "enable" someone in their weakness by making excuses for them, and I'm not talking about this. The power of love diminishes the force of the guilt that brings us into bondage and strengthens sin, and redirects the focus to the power of God, our source of goodness. This does not condone or encourage sin, but is actually the only way to deal with it.
"Judgement begins in the house of God." It's Scriptures such as this one that cause parents and leadership to rise up and take the “necessary” actions to deal with problems and situations, but I know, as a parent, that if I see things through the eyes of the flesh because I don't have understanding in a particular area, I will destroy God's work --the very opposite desire of my heart. I will tear down instead of build up because my expectations as a parent have not been met. In actuality, my children's destinies are in my hands because God has given me His authority in their lives, but this power can only be activated when it's yielded to God by faith, which comes from seeking Him earnestly on their behalf. If I can't walk in the Spirit in this area, knowing myself, I'll operate in legalism, which is worse than doing nothing at all. My sense of responsibility will dictate to me rather than the Spirit of God and cause me to dictate rather than encourage and train.
If I can't sense the Spirit of God leading me I'd better pray and wait for His leading before operating in the wrong spirit. The spirit of legalism has disastrous effects on another person's life, and I want to see the stronghold destroyed! It is generated out of sincerity, but in our ignorance masquerades as concern. It's not true concern because when we're truly concerned we'll seek God's ways, knowing that ours will be futile to accomplish His goals. We can't interfere with God's ways out of a sense of responsibility. We must seek God on every matter to receive direction from Him alone. If we do this I think we can trust that He'll guide us every step of the way in every situation.
The very reason it's easier to be a grandparent than it is to be a parent lies in the burden of responsibility. As a grandparent I'll always do what's in the best interest of the child, but I'm "free" to love the child alone, with no burden. My tenet is that training a child should not be a burden but a joy. Children should see joy in our eyes and not worry or disapproval. Burdens are assumed when we fail to treat problems with prayer and faith, watching and waiting for God to move in our midst and give us direction and power. He always comes through, and what could be disastrous confrontation becomes real and interested communication where the love comes across rather than disappointment and condemnation.
We need to be careful that we're not in the area of trying to control others, because we'll never help them that way. We need to build their faith in areas they're bound --help them to remove themselves from their attachment to their sin by helping them to see it as a power they're born under which was destroyed at the Cross. As long as they're attached to their responsibility for removing their sin, they'll remain bound in helplessness, because they don't have that kind of power. Like the Jews, they'll be trying to establish their own righteousness.
But to comfort them in the fact that it's not their fault they were born under its power, they have a starting point if they can detach themselves from the burden of guilt. This is the freedom the Gospel offers. Again, it's not to excuse or encourage the sin we need to be accountable for, but to build faith. The ability to be detached from the guilt which causes us to beat ourselves up is the first step to overcoming.
I firmly believe that many people will never experience the true power of the Resurrection because they can't accept the freedom offered by the reality of the Gospel. Their spirits have become so oppressed and downtrodden that growth is an overwhelming burden they simply cannot cast on the Lord, instead of an exciting opportunity to experience that power that transforms us from what we are to what He is, from glory to glory. We need to shake up this morbid sense of "unworthiness" and convince them that their problem is not too big for God if they could only release it to Him and go on to something else, all the while proclaiming His victory.
That's how I've overcome weaknesses. I could become totally absorbed, introspective and analytical of areas of personal weakness, but I've learned how devastatingly destructive it is. It holds you in perpetual bondage, unable to concentrate on doing the things you can do as you trust in God's sanctifying power to be able to handle those areas yielded to Him. The fight of faith is the struggle to hold on to the truth, not one of trying to rid ourselves of our sin. If we continue to hold on to a false burden, focusing our gaze on improvement, we destroy the space necessary for God to work in the area of "things unseen", and our faith is not faith at all, because it hasn't been activated.
Don't call it presumption or making excuses when a person says "God, you have a big problem." That person is trying to be set free from the burden that's too big for him to carry, for which the Lord was crucified. That person knows he's powerless and needs to cling to the conviction that God's power is available to him for as long as it takes to receive the victory. If I, who have struggled for many years to cling to faith which is foreign to me but which the Word of God has convinced me of, how much more do we need to carry and build up those who can't free themselves from guilt and condemnation long enough to see the power of God work in their lives!
I have dared to believe because I had confidence enough to give it a try. If all we see in others is the problem, our focus is in the wrong place. We need to see Jesus, His salvation, sanctification and imputed righteousness and believe that His grace is able to meet our every need and conquer every weakness in our lives. This will reduce the immensity of the responsibility to a level a person can live with and function under until he's totally set free.
Webster's definition of "condemnation" is: "to express disapproval of; censure; criticize. To pronounce judgement against; to sentence; to doom; to demonstrate the guilt of; to convict."
The definition of "propitiation" is: "to appease and render favorable."
If God sees us this way, why can't we? We know that sin separates us from God, and we've memorized all the Scriptures that refer to sin and its effects, and holiness (without which no man shall see God), but do we focus on these at the expense of the Scriptures that preach the power of the Gospel? Do we “throw away the baby with the bathwater?”
I realize that the meaning of repentance is turning away from sin and resisting Satan, but doing this is impossible unless one has a firm grip on the power the Gospel offers and how to operate it in faith. This is awesome stuff we're dealing with!
When He nailed the law to the Cross, Jesus “disarmed the rulers and authorities, having triumphed over them” (Col. 2:14, 15). The law is what holds us in the power of sin. To be freed from it is to be freed from the power of sin. When we're finally released from the oppression of guilt and have the enabling ability to believe in Jesus' overcoming victory, the joy of the Lord surely does become our strength, and our fight becomes a challenge because the aim is a positive one we know we can reach because we know God's Word is true. If we can be freed long enough from the false burden in order to concentrate on laboring to enter into rest by affirming our faith in His Word, we will see real power enter our lives.
Again, I'm rising up against a legalistic spirit which we, who are so serious about walking in the Spirit, can be vulnerable to. It's that opposite extreme, and an unseen trap very difficult to get out of. God, release us to operate in faith alone.
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Scriptures on Legalism vs Faith
Bondage to the Law
Rom. 6:14
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under grace.
1 Cor. 15:56, 57
The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
Gal 3:21, 22
Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteous¬ness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
Rom. 4:15, 16
Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression. Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace.
Rom. 3:20
...for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Rom. 7:8, 22, 23
But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
II Cor. 2:14
Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
Rom. 4:14, 15
For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.
Gal. 2:21I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness came by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Rom. 5:13
...but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
Rom. 10:4
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.
Rom. 11:29
For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
Rom. 13:13
Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Gal. 3:13
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us:
Gal. 3:24, 25
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
Heb. 10:12
For the law...can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not cease to be offered? because that worshippers once purged should have no more consciousness of sins.
Gal. 4:24
Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the Mount Sinai, which gender¬eth to bondage, which is Agar.
Rom. 10:3
For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
II Cor. 4:7
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us.
Phil. 3:9
And be found in Him, not having mine own righteous¬ness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
Gal 3:11
But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, the just shall live by faith.
Gal. 5:1
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Gal. 5:4
Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
Heb. 12:18, 20
For you are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and 22-24that burned with fire, not unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest
For they could not endure that which was commanded. And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart;
But ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
Gal. 5:6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
I Pet. 4:8
And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
Gal. 3:3, 5
Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?
He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Rom. 10:4, 10
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness;
(In my heart I know He is my righteousness, and my heart believes He's changing me into His image.)
Scriptures to "live" by
Acts 13:39
Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.
II Cor. 5:21
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
Is. 16:3, 4
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
Trust ye in the Lord forever; for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength.
Ephes. 1:7
In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins...
Psalm 107:2
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
1 Jn. 1:7
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.
Rom. 5:9
Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
Heb. 13:12
Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate.
Rev. 12:11
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
Gal. 6:2, 3
Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.
I Peter 5:6
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.
Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.
Heb. 10:38, 39
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
I Cor. 1:30, 31
But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.
That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
Rom. 3:24, 25
Being justified freely by His grace through the redemp¬tion that is in Christ Jesus:
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
James 2:23, 24
And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righ¬teousness: and he was called the Friend of God.
Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
(The fight of faith is WORK!)
Col 2:12
Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God...
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