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  • Essay / Legalism and Christianity - 1216

    I. IntroductionChristians tend to judge each other and non-Christians on minor details of life that will ultimately mean nothing, or to hold each other accountable to man-made standards that are unreasonable and almost impossible, or trying to live by (and get others to live by) Old Testament laws that are no longer relevant. This has been going on since the dawn of time and is one of the least popular and most annoying traits of humanity…or Christianity. If we want to attract unbelievers, we must be open and not be as judgmental as we have been in the past and not have a "holier than thou" attitude. "Keep in mind that the book of Galatians was not written by Paul for lost people, telling them how to be saved. It was written for people who had already received the Holy Spirit. Paul was angry against these baby Christians because they were trying to live the Christian life by keeping the law” (https://www.ptm.org/legalism/legalismConfessions.htm)II. Biblical PerspectiveA. in Leviticus and then in Deuteronomy, God sets out a large number of laws that his people must follow. Some people today still use all these laws and apply them to their daily lives, but what they do not understand, is that God established these laws for a reason. The laws were simply God, protecting the Jews from themselves. They did not have the knowledge that we have today on hygienic or medical matters, and themselves. would therefore have committed suicide without knowing it if God had not given them these laws. Another problem with this is that many of these laws relate to sacrifices (of animals and grain) and most people today do not make sacrifices, but live according to other Old Testament laws. There is a lack of consistency in this lifestyle and belief system.B. New TestamentIn the book of Galatians, Paul writes to the churches of Galatia. Throughout this book he explains that we are no longer bound by the old laws. One case where people don't take this into consideration is animal sacrifice. In some pagan countries like Haiti, sacrifices are still made as atonement for sins and faults..