Blog Posts containing "legalism"

Year C Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

Today’s lesson is an excellent illustration of Jesus' way of grace. The teaching is to know the difference being in or out of His Presence can make. Here are two brothers who are out of the Presence. They have become angry, greedy and bitter. Why did Jesus not give fair judgment to the two brothers? The answer was to either change the inheritance or not change it. Regardless of which was chosen, one would be happy and the other would remain a bitter, angry victim the rest of their life. So why did he answer the way he did?  Read more


Year C Tenth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

There is a difference between prayer and praying. His disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” He said, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name.” Legalism teaches us to pray the Lord’s prayer to get into God’s Presence. Grace teaches “to pray” means to get into the Presence of God before praying. Praying for Jesus was to be in God’s Presence first. Legalistic preaching admits nothing, denies everything and makes counter-accusations because ranting gets raves.  Read more


Year C Ninth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

This the well known story of Jesus visit to the sisters, Martha and Mary. Mary sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what he was saying. Martha complained to Jesus to tell Mary to come in and help her. Well it was not exactly like that. She had to get her guilt trip in on Him as well. "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me." Legalism looks at what Martha was griping about. Grace looks not about what Martha said but how she said it. The difference between legalism and grace is that legalism has to make sense!   Read more


Year C Eighth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

The story of the Good Samaritan is one of those parables that create a distraction. We go down the road most traveled because everyone else has done the same. We miss the road less traveled because we do not have the directions of grace. In this section of scripture, the question, answer and parable of Jesus are the most misunderstood and ignored lesson in the entire Bible by most Christians. The question is not: “Who is my neighbor?” The question is: “Who will inherit eternal life?”  Read more


Year C Seventh Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

These are the end times for Jesus on this earth. He has set His face toward Jerusalem. Nothing will turn him back. He now sends seventy new disciples ahead of Him in pairs to every town and place where He Himself intends to go. “I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you.” Their mission is to cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”  Read more


Year C Sixth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

God declared War on Legalism when He sent His Word into the World. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us … full of grace and truth. Legalism fought back against the grace believing the Bible, not Jesus, is the word of God. Grace is based on the Two Great Love Commandments. All the Law and the Prophets have now been changed into “do the loving thing.” The New Command is to be in His Presence in order to Love one another. “Apart from me you can do nothing.”  Read more


Year C Fifth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

There is a spiritual War going on between Grace and Legalism. The War was declared by legalism on the grace of God at the moment of the Incarnation when the Word of God became Flesh, full of grace and Truth. It is time to face the battle between grace and legalism by telling the truth.  Read more


Year C Fourth Sunday After Pentecost Meditation

In today’s story we have a woman who washed and wiped the feet of Jesus. She is forgiven. The question that arises is when was she forgiven? The old classic response is she repented and was then forgiven by Jesus. This is the way much of the church and bible teachers look at what happened. Spirituality looks at forgiveness differently. It looks at confession as an act of grace not of legalism.  Read more


Trinity Sunday

Most people have a better knowledge and experience with God the Creator and Jesus the Savior than the Holy Spirit the giver of Truth. Trinity Sunday is a time to emphasize the Spirit. St. Augustine wrote that the first two thousand years were the years of the Father. The next two thousand years were the years of The Son. He then prophesied that the third two thousand years will be the years of the Holy Spirit. We are now at the very start of the coming Age of the Holy Spirit.  Read more


Fourth Sunday After Epiphany

“The greatest of these is Love.” This does not mean Love is the best. Legalism is interested in which is better, Faith, Hope or Love? If we think Love is the best, then we will spend more time learning about Love. Faith and Hope can almost be ignored because Love is the best. However that is not what Paul said. He did say it was the greatest, but that does not mean it is the best. It means that these three are part of the whole.  Read more


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