“Did I read my Bible today? Did I share my faith today?”

These were the types of questions I was plagued by for ten years. These thoughts were accompanied by anxiety, fear, and doubt. When I did accomplish those things, I felt pride and entitlement. All of these feelings, thoughts, and motives are markers of Legalism.

Legalism is a term that is popular today. I won’t pretend that I have the best definition of it because I don’t. Any credentials I have in this area are from the experiences God has allowed me to have and the wisdom that Holy Spirit has given to me. Legalism is the Christian belief/mindset that your identity, salvation, and relationship with God is based on what you do. It results in high-highs of religious pride and accomplishment and low-lows of spiritual rejection and low-self esteem. It clothes itself in righteous acts such as purity, evangelism, and even Bible study but the seed in the pit of these seemingly spiritual fruits is deep insecurity and shame masquerading in Pharaseeical robes.

This year, each blog post will focus on one lie of Legalism. This month’s lie is:

“My Identity Is What I Do”

When I became a dedicated disciple of Jesus at twenty-one, I came with the desire to be better than what I was. This, in and of itself, is not a bad desire. It led me to study the Bible, to learn what it meant to follow Jesus. That desire led me to a place of pseduo-safety: it kept me from getting drunk, being impure, and from cursing. It placed me in safer places: Bible studies, Christian friend groups, and Christian households. But that desire did not lead me to God’s heart.

I began to think that all of the Christian things that I did, all the Christian duties that I performed were what made God happy and therefore it meant I was on the right path. As years went by, however, my behavior continued to change but my spirit, soul, and heart remained unhealed and un-transformed.

The belief that, as Christians, our identity comes from the “good” things we do is a sweet lie. It sounds so good, it looks so good, but if we allow it to it corodes our very being. This is a dangerous lie because it keeps us dependent on self. We rely on our good works to make us good and the minute we fail or neglect a good work we see ourselves as bad. There is little to no focus on our Creator or our Savior.

Self-focus is what Eve was guilty of. For the legalist, an obsession with self-focus is usually born out of a fear of rejection or abandonment. So the legalist covers their fear and their shame with good behavior and rules to ensure their safety. Yet Jesus never called us to cover ourselves with fig-leaves of religiosity. He called us to clothe ourselves in Him. Jesus tells us that the truth will set us free. He tells us that He is the truth. Therefore, the way to combat the mindset of Legalism is with the truth of Jesus Christ.

Truth: My Identity Is Given To Me By the One I am Created By and For

One of my favorite Bible Teachers, Phylicia Masonheimer teaches that behavior flows from identity. Often times with the legalist, the opposite is taking place: identity comes from behavior, actions, works, performance. This sounds good. I mean it is a popular saying in our society, “fake it until you make it” but for the believer, for the Child of God, we are not meant to fake anything. The word says, [Jhn 1:12-13 NLT] “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn–not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.” Jesus bestows the ability to become a child of God, the potential power or choice, upon not those who perform religious duty, evangelize perfectly, or have complete biblical knowledge. He gives this divine right to those who recognize their need for a savior, who recognize the capriciousness of their existence, who recognize that they are the creation and He is the creator.

Perhaps we realize this once we are saved, but we can quickly lose sight of this due to various reasons. Some of us have not healed from shame, some of us are under the boundage of the fear of man. Whatever the reason, Jesus looks upon it with eyes of both conviction and compassion for living with the mindset of having to work for one’s identity is not His will for you.

Steps to Take

In my journey out of Legalism, I had to take a break from some Christian work. I’m not suggesting this is the case for everyone, but it was certainly the case for me. I had to go slower in my Bible study, I stopped obsessively inviting people to church, and it’s been several years since I’ve sat in on a Bible study with someone. Again, these actions are good but they had become empty for me.

Instead, I have learned to sit quietly with Him and allow Him to tell me who I am first before I work for Him. Practically, this looks like going to scriptures like John 1:12-13 again and again. Practically, this also looked like being honest with others around me saying simply, “I’m learning to be God’s daughter.”

Question to Ponder

What areas of your heart need to be healed from Legalism?

If this post has touched you, please, leave a comment so that I can lift you up in prayer.

It’s a beautiful journey, friend, walking back to the heart of the one who made you. I’m rooting for you.

Love and Light,

Kourtney Naomi