As a recovering legalist, if there is such a term for it, I tend to spend a lot of time naval gazing. Sort of, oh woe is me, I’m such a loser, blah blah blah kinda’ garbage. When we (legalists) get ourselves wrapped so tightly in ourselves, we tend to judge ourselves VERY harshly. If we could get away with it in today’s society, I’m sure we would flog ourselves had we the oppurtunity to do so.
So much of our dissatisfaction is wrapped up in how slow our sanctification is, sins we commit, and the steady stream of comparisons we make with other Christians. Every day, day after day, it just pounds away at us. “You’re a loser”, “Just give up, will ya?”, “You did that again?!”, “Man, dude, He’s really gonna’ throttle ya’ for that”….and on and on and on.
Result, we pour ourselves more hopeleslly into our “doings” for the Lord to earn that smile we think the Lord is keeping from us. “I know, I’ll read 23 hours today”, or, “Maybe I’ll pray for 6 hours this morning starting at 3am, that’ll be good, right?” Sure, we got the theology buttoned up. We know we are justified. We know we have passed from darkness to light. But I thoroughly convinced that the longest road know to man is the road that leads from the Christians mind to his heart. He knows he’s redeemed, but it’s not sunk in on that heart level yet. Sound familiar legalist?
Perverted, isn’t it? But that’s the heart of a legalist.
But here’s the good news legalist. That judgement you seem to heaping upon yourself constantly? You know, that bucket of hot ash and coal you just seem to luuuuuuv sleeping in?
It was taken to calvary.
All of it.
So stop throttling yourself and get out of the ash pit, wash your face, and lie in the waterfall of grace that’s pouring over your soul as I speak.
You’re paid for.
He bore the judgement you judge yourself by…so put it back on the cross and stop taking it down.
From: http://thefoolishgalatian.wordpress.com/
