The Inadequacy of Legalism

There is always danger, as a society matures, that it will become hidebound in the law.  An examination of the problem of legalism can also give insight into the nature and purpose of law.  A major thought in comparing the New Testament to the Old Testament is the problem of overcoming legalism.

In order to focus on the problem, it is necessary that we examine several different, but related, passages of scripture.  First is the sixth chapter of the Gospel according to St. Luke, verses one through eleven:

1. And it came to pass on the second Sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands.
2. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, “Why do ye that which is now lawful to do on the Sabbath days?”
3. And Jesus answering them said, have ye not read so much as this, What David did, when himself was hungered, and they which were with him;
4. How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the shewbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone?
5. And he said until them, That the son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.
6. And it came to pass along on another Sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered.
7. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the Sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him.
8. But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which has the withered hand. Rise up, and stand forth in the midst.  And he arose and stood forth.
9. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do evil? To save life, or to destroy it?
10. And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth the hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other.
11. And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus. 

Jesus was in conflict with the authorities.  He was in trouble with the law.  He was doing something that the authorities thought was illegal.  He was working on Sunday.  How could this be?  Because his disciples ate corn, and He healed a man’s hand, he was being charged with violating the law of the Sabbath.  How could this be?  How could  the authorities take such a ridiculous position?  Well, as we go to the Old Testament, we find that law of the Sabbath is spelled out as one of the Ten Commandments.  One of the Ten Commandments says don’t work on Sunday.  The Ten Commandments, by the time of Jesus, had been embellished by the Tradition of the Elders.

But the Law of the Sabbath finds even earlier origins.  You will recall from the Book of Genesis God that created the world in six days; and on the seventh, He rested.  He “blessed the seventh day and sanctified it.”  I mention this early reference to the Sabbath, because one aspect of law is that you find it in the legends of our civilization.  You find the bases for law from the earliest beginnings, and there is very little that is new as far as real law is concerned.  The concept of the law of the Sabbath was “codified” in Exodus.  The giving of the law was a very dramatic event.  It was not a very democratic event.  (Exodus 19:16-21) 

16. And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightning, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.
17. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at nether part of the mount.
18. And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof  ascended as the smoke of the furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.
19. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice.
20. And the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the Lord called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.
21. And the Lord said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the Lord to gaze, and many of them perish. 

The commandment in question, taken from the Ten Commandments is found in the 20^th chapter of Exodus, the eighth verse, and it is as follows:

8. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work.
10. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord they God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. 

The giving of the law was a wondrous event.  The words are beautiful in their simplicity–“Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.”

Now, by the time of Jesus, those people who were in charge of interpreting had embellished the law.  They had developed what is known as the “tradition of the Elders.”  This resulted from interpretations, similar to the way court decisions in our society tend to refine our law to greater and greater detail.  In doing so, they applied the broad general principle of “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy” to each and every practical aspect of life.  And it was with this tradition of the elders that Jesus found himself in conflict.

One of the dangers of legalism is its tendency to become more and more specific.  I remember a number of years ago, in the private practice of law, I had a case in which I dealt with the “Fair Packaging and Labeling Act,” which was being administered by the Federal Trade Commission.  I learned in the course of my research that the proper abbreviation for inch is “in.” as opposed to ditto marks.  Now, what I’m about to say–and I don’t recommend to anybody that they violate any rules and regulations of the Federal Trade Commission–but I am going to say that legalism of that nature never arises to the majesty of law.  There wasn’t any thundering and there wasn’t any lightning when whoever wrote down that you’ve got to say “in.” rather than ditto marks.  That was not accompanied by anything majestic.

In the accounts of the creation, one does not find that God created abbreviations for all words, and saw which ones were good.  As stated previously, the sources of real law can often be traced to the earliest legends and stories.  A great deal could be said about the importance of folk tales and fairy tales in weaving the fabric of understanding of religious, moral, ethical, and legal issues.

Real law is not concerned with trivial things.  Real law has a source that simply does not concern itself with things that are unimportant.  There is a sense in which a distinction can be drawn between ethics and morality, on the one hand, as opposed to law, on the other.  Ethics and morality deal with the things that ought to be.  Law deals with the things that must be.

If there is a violation of law, then it is imperative that we do something about it.  Law is limited to those things that must be.  It is a mighty current from a silent and magnificently powerful source instilled by God, springing from the depths of our collective being, demanding its own expression and effect.  The law is deeply embedded in the psychology of the human  race.  It springs from that psychology and in that psychology finds its moving force.  All written laws are simply evidence or symbols of this force.  The principles of real law are so simple and basic that they are eloquent beyond words,“Thou shalt not kill,” “Thou shalt not steal,” “Thou shalt not commit adultery,” “Thou shalt not covet.”  Like a mighty drum beat, they pound their way through history and religion and into the core of our being.  In the Old Testament, we read that the Hebrews were instructed to write these simple commandments on their lintels and on their foreheads.

The Ten Commandments have not been repealed.  Jesus didn’t come to do away with the law.  He had definite problems with legalism, but it was not his purpose to destroy the law.  Just the contrary is true.  In Matthew Five, verses 17 through 22, we find the following passages of scripture:

17. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, and same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
21. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
22. But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 

So, the Ten Commandments definitely were not repealed by Jesus teachings.  The Scribes and the Pharisees that he mentioned in this passage in Matthew were those people who were most noted for their practice of following the law.  They made a fetish of following the law, and they were believed to be very good people.  Now, what Jesus was saying was, “I’m not doing away with the law,” and “You’ve got to be even better than they are in order to enter the kingdom of heaven.”  And this is what it’s all about.  Nevertheless, Jesus found himself accused of violating the law of the Sabbath.  His response was, in a sense, a return to basics.  What he was doing when he healed the withered hand was in harmony with the mighty drum beat of the law.  The tradition of the elders, concerning itself with trivia, was mere interpretation, far off course from the original principle.

Today, there is a real need for us to return to basics.  To understand what the law can and cannot do for us.  A characteristic of real law is that it is found in our heritage.  There are not many improvisations in the law.  If we read the Ten Commandments, then a great deal of what we regard as law is going to be covered.  And, yet, you can go to any lawyer’s library and find books about what the law is.

Let’s move on.  Christ’s ministry was more than a mere call to return to basics.  More than a call to repentance–the prophets had done that.  John the Baptist had done that.  Jesus brought a new wine that could not be placed in old skins.  He stated that he had come that we might have life and have it more abundantly.  Now when he said that, he was not merely restating the law.  He gave the great commandment that we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength; and our neighbor as ourselves.  His love has been described as “the love that passeth all understanding.”

The mystery of Jesus’ ministry is a transcendent love, and it is by finding ourselves totally engulfed in this love and by losing ourselves and our selfishness in that love and in the act of loving that we fulfill the great commandment.  That is more than just the opposite of the Ten Commandments.  It is very true that if a person lives by the great commandment given by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount–he won’t go out and steal; he won’t go out and covet–the commandments will be fulfilled.  That’s what Jesus said.  He didn’t come to do away with the law, but to fulfill the law.  But what he said was a great deal more.  A person could live a lifetime without once violating the law, but never experience the rich fullness of life.  There is more to life than just obeying the law.  Love is the central focus of Jesus’ ministry.  Life is a mighty stream, and the law could be compared to the banks of the stream.  We certainly should not get out of the mainstream of life–there has to be some focusing of our powers and attention; but, nevertheless, the force of life is a moving, vital, vibrant force.  It is not a dead confinement.  The law is vital and moving.  Saint Paul expressed it well: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels and have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.”

With effortless grace, love lifts the Christian up out of the endless grinding efforts to justify oneself under the law, to the ecstasy of abundant life.  We cannot justify ourselves under the law.  Jesus, in one act of perfect love, ushered us into the kingdom of God.  The life of a Christian is in perfect harmony and rhythm with the might drumbeat of the law.  In Christ, the law was not destroyed, but fulfilled.  Christianity takes the policeman off the street and places him in the hearts of the citizens.