“These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence” (Colossians 2:22-23).
Legalism may look good but it doesn’t work. “Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”
The problem with legalism is made apparent when man-made rules are applied to our lives. Some things are wrong. God says so. Adultery is always wrong. Lying and stealing are wrong. They are never right. Jesus’ accusations against the Pharisees weren’t based on their avoiding what God says is wrong. It was in the fact that they observed man-made rules that didn’t come from God and condemned those who didn’t observe them.
Christianity is not the observance of a list of rules; it is a living relationship with Jesus Christ. That doesn’t mean that we become lawless. It does mean that the answer to our unhealthy desires is not in our outward discipline and “harsh treatment of the body” but in a new life that comes through faith in Christ. Our lives aren’t the results of law-keeping but are the result of the nature of Christ that we receive by faith. The only victory we can have over sin is the power of Christ dwelling in us.
