Confessions of a Recovering Legalist
I owe my first church an apology. I remember it well, 1990…I was full of energy, passion…AND a list of rules that would have made the Pharisees envious! I went into that youth group with both barrels blazing, “Don’t listen to this music…don’t go to these types of movies…”, you know, typical stuff that good hearted youth pastors try to accomplish.
We had a great time—the kids listened to good Christian music and only attended PG movies—they were good kids…and then when I left—keep in mind I was the drill instructor—and their base of knowledge was no longer there and they went off to college, well, let’s just say that some of them went a little wild. They began to do all the things they were told not to do.
WHY?
I’ll tell you why—I taught them the rules and didn’t focus on teaching them how to fall in love with Jesus. I am convinced that a person who is radically in love with Jesus will do and say the right things…and they listen to HIM!
I guess I felt like if I could create a list of rules then the kids could be controlled, harnessed…I was there to protect them and I knew best—yeah right!
The focus of Christianity is not rule keeping—it is not doing your spiritual checklist—it is a personal relationship with the living God! Don’t misunderstand—there are right and wrong choices—and what the Bible says is right and wrong…I will declare that! (For example, sex before marriage is WRONG! Getting drunk is WRONG! Gluttony is WRONG! Gossip is WRONG!)
And saying that those things are wrong is not legalistic or judgmental—it’s just Biblical fact. The problem comes when we begin to impose our personal set of values on others and then judge whether or not they are good followers of Jesus based on OUR standards—not HIS!
I have personal convictions; however, I have had to learn to distinguish between personal convictions and clear Biblical instruction. And my goal as a pastor is not necessarily to put out a list of rules to be followed—BUT to teach people how to fall in love with Jesus and His teachings.
Jesus is the most amazing man that has ever lived—and He had a sense of humor and was incredibly creative. I had the privilege of speaking to our high school group last night and sharing with them a little bit of who Jesus is—that He wasn’t this boring dude who talked in 1611 language and was always telling people what not to do…but rather He was the guy that “tax collectors and sinners” wanted to hang out with.
Trust me, “Tax collectors and sinners” do not hang out with boring, dull people.
My challenge today—continue to strive to fall in love with Jesus—OR maybe get to know Him. The Bible contains four accounts of His ministry in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. He has changed my life…and continues to rock my world even to this day!
WOW—that was deep for me! On a lighter note—I figured out how to put pictures on my blog all by myself—yeah Perry! SO—I will be posting a picture of me later on today with the blogging king of the world—anyone have a guess who that might be? We will count your votes and tally the results after 4:00 today!