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Legalism, License, Lodges, and LGBT

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I have called this ‘Legalism, License, Lodges, and LGBT’ because the former two are the main subject matter of this article and the latter are current examples of how these apply in the world today.

In 2010 I wrote an article that I ended with these words: ‘I have been involved in pastoring for over three decades, and in that time I have seen the problems that license and hyper-grace can produce, yet

nothing compares to the ubiquitous ravages of legalism that I have observed in the Body of Christ’.

I haven’t changed my opinion in this regard over the last 10 years. So, although I will reflect on ‘license’, the focus of this article is more on ‘legalism’

What is Legalism?

In its narrowest sense, legalism describes the attempt to put works above the gospel of grace.

Christian Legalists attempt to earn God’s favour by observing what they understand to be the Law of God.

In its broader sense, however, legalism is the practice of judging one’s self and others against a narrow understanding of biblical prescripts. This approach to Christian life invariably results in judgementalism, censure, and separation.

Two Examples

A short while ago I had a lively interaction with a friend and fellow Christian concerning Freemasonry (The “Lodges” in my title is because Masons meet in what they call lodges). Then, just a few days after that another friend and I discussed the question of ‘Can a gay person be a Christian?’ In the first of these interactions, my interlocutor ended his comments on the possibility of a Mason being accepted as a member of the local church with the words: “[a church member] who continues to practice Free Masonry is committing idolatry and should be challenged in my opinion and booted out of our church if he continues to be part of Free Masonry”. So let me start by responding to this and then move on later to the question of homosexuality and the church.

Free Masonry

My view is that the practice of Free Masonry violates several important biblical doctrines. It invokes God by names that do not pertain to the God of the bible (therefore idolatrous); their secret oaths contradict Jesus’ teachings; their way of salvation is not exclusively through Jesus alone, and so on.

I would certainly advise any Christian committed to the Masonry pseudo-religion to leave it.

I would also point out that in practising Masonry he is compromising or even contradicting key biblical doctrines. The point at issue though is would I deny that he is born again of the Holy Spirit and thus disqualified from being a member of the church either universal or local?

The New Birth is a metaphysical/spiritual gift of God giving new life to a human spirit.

It is conditional only on repentance from the sin of rebellion against God, firm belief in the deity of the Lord Jesus and his exclusive role as saviour, and a sincere request to the Holy Spirit that he breathe life into the very core of the person’s existence.

Nothing more is required for a person to be born again. Baptism expresses obedience and the reality of new life in Christ but is not a prerequisite for salvation. Confession of a few or many ‘sins’ is not required but only the confession and renunciation of rebellion against God. Just to make clear what I mean by ‘rebellion against God’ I understand this as the core sin of trusting in anything other than God for eternal life.

Would I automatically judge that a man practising Free Masonry is not born again? No, I most certainly would not. However, could he, if indeed born again, be a formal member of a local church? The answer is obviously ‘no’ if the membership requirements of that church specifically excluded any practising Masons. Most churches, in fact, all that I know of personally, do not specify Masonry as a disqualifier. Rather, they simply require that a member accepts their doctrines and practices.

The constitution of the local church to which I belong states that a person may be accepted into membership if he professes repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, seeks to lead a consistent Christian life and has expressed a desire to become a member of the church.

The point that may be debated is the ‘seeks to lead a consistent Christian life’ bit. This would require a discussion with the individual concerned to seek to understand how he views the practice of Masonry and why he does not see it as contradicting or compromising his Christian beliefs. This would reveal the conflicts between a consistent Christian life and the practice of Free Masonry. This might mean that he forego membership status in the church.

As a matter of interest, in 1993 The Southern Baptist Convention in the USA investigated Free Masonry and identified eight tenets and teachings of Freemasonry that were not compatible with Christianity. A later report ended by noting that, ‘while many Christians and leaders have been and are Masons, several points of the lodge’s teachings are non-biblical and non-Christian.’ It also stated that ‘while Freemasonry encourages and supports charitable activities, it contains both multireligious and inclusivist teachings that are not Christian in its religious instruction.’ The final recommendation was that the issue is left to the conscience of the believer. In 1985 The Methodist Church (UK) issued a condemnatory report on masonry, but no prohibition exists within that denomination. However, in the USA the Assemblies of God, the Lutherans, and the Presbyterians have all taken a negative position on Masons being church members.

SIDE NOTE: Now, dear reader, if you are getting a little agitated about now. If you find yourself muttering, “But, but what about…” then please reserve judgement until you have read what I say a little further on under the heading of ‘However’.

Homosexuality

My second recent discussion was about whether a practising homosexual could be regarded as born again. This applies to LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people by and large (Hence my article title).

Once again, my position is that biblically approved sexual preferences do not constitute criteria for salvation.

Church membership, as in the previous example, is another matter. The issue here is the willingness to seek to live a consistent Christian life in a particular local church. As in all things in a bible-believing church, the criteria for this is laid out in scripture. I do not believe that a person who continues to indulge in homosexual relationships should be accepted into local church membership.

They should be accepted as people of worth and value and treated with dignity and consideration but denied membership and all that goes with that. They, as would all people, be welcome to attend the worship services and perhaps even the fellowship groups but they would be prohibited from ministering in any way. However, would I automatically judge that a practising homosexual is not born again? No, I would not. That judgment call is entirely and only God’s prerogative.

A Jesus-centered approach

The key question to ask is as always,

‘what did Jesus reveal of the nature and character of the Godhead concerning this?’

He did not address the issue of secret societies, although there were several in his day, and nor did he directly address the question of homosexuality. However, John Chapter 8 records the story of a woman caught in the act of committing adultery and dragged before Jesus. He turned the tables neatly on her accusers and when they had slunk off he said to her: “Has no one condemned you?”  “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”  This both captures the heart of God towards such people and sets a precedent for us in the church of  Dignity and Personal Worth, Compassion, Discussion, Instruction and a Call to Change.

Some Other Examples

I have written so far only on two issues that regularly face the church. However, others are even more common.

A man abuses his wife – the same principles must surely apply. A person repeatedly cheats or steals – the same principles must surely apply. A spouse commits adultery, does not repent and makes little effort to prevent repeat occurrences – the same principles must apply.

However, there are more common misdemeanours in the church of our day. For instance, what should we do about the person who repeatedly sows fear in others lives by circulating rumours, myths and conspiracy theories? What about the people who act as religious policemen regularly taking others to task and judging them for what they perceive to be ‘unbiblical’ ideas or behaviours? Well, I believe that the same principles outlined in this article should apply to them as well.

However

I mentioned that there were ‘howevers’ to what I have set out so far, and here they.

Firstly, Jesus is our prime interpreter of the bible but he honoured and authenticated all of scripture. Therefore, we cannot ignore what the scripture as a whole says about the issues before us. For instance, the Law of the Old Testament strongly condemned both idolatry (this has a bearing on Free Masonry) and homosexuality (Exodus 20:3-5 Leviticus 18:22 etc.). Paul also dealt with these and other prohibitions, some of which I will refer to further on.

Secondly, we need to be careful to differentiate between ‘saved’ and ‘church member’. They have a bearing on each other but, as I have already pointed out, the conditions for being ‘born again’ are articulated in the bible. On the other hand, leaders who understand the bible in various ways establish the conditions of church membership.

Thirdly, we need to apply what we understand as a Jesus-centred understanding of scripture to the full range of ‘sins’ and not just the few we choose as our focus. For instance in 1 Corinthians 6: 9-11 Paul lumps together all of the following: sexual immorality, idolatry, male prostitution, homosexual offences, theft, greed, drunkenness, slander, and swindle.

So, what applies to one applies to some extent to all.

This highlights the need for careful evaluation, counsel, and grace together with compassionate confrontation and bible-honouring remedial action. (Other applicable passages are Galatians 5:16-21 and Ephesians 5:5-7).

Paul makes a sharp distinction between people who claim to be fellow Christians and those who do not claim to be born again (1 Corinthians 5:11).

It is not our responsibility to judge the unsaved, but we are required to set boundaries on what we accept for ourselves and fellow believers.

In this respect, grace describes what we extend to one another within these boundaries while licence describes what we allow beyond those boundaries.

During my decades of church leadership, I was constantly seeking to embrace both grace and righteousness. It is a very challenging task that involves bringing into dynamic balance more than just the factors I have mentioned in this short article. However, and this my final ‘however’,

I will always favour mercy over judgment just as I consistently rely on the life and teaching of Jesus Christ to primarily determine my understanding of the entire bible.

What Angered Jesus

The Lord Jesus was sometimes frustrated with his disciples but he reserved his anger for one class of people only – the Pharisees. These men were typical examples of legalism and their constant rule-keeping and judging of others made him nearly apoplectic – just read Matthew 23:13-36 if you are in any doubt about this.

The Conclusion of the Matter

If a person has genuinely been born again of the Spirit, then no life condition can annul this. 

‘For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ (Romans 8:38-39)

However, when it comes to local church membership the matter is more complex. A local Christian community has the right and indeed the duty to determine criteria for membership and accountability. But, and it is a big but, the overriding principle must always be biblical Christocentricity (Jesus-centredness). For instance, Jesus told his detractors to “go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice .’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”  (Matthew 9:13) He was quoting from Hosea 6:6, which reads, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offering.’

My friend ended his statement on Free Masonry with, “Do you agree or not? It seems crystal clear to me. I don’t believe this is a grey area”. So what do you think dear reader?

I confess that I reacted badly to my friend’s comments. It was not because I did not agree with much of what he said, but because the spectre of legalism loomed so large over our conversation. I have seen, first hand, how all and any forms of legalism hurt the church, destroy relationships, and leave many bitter and offended.

License, expressed as turning a blind eye to unbiblical and un-Christlike behaviours, does harm to Christians and the church, but nothing like the carnage that legalism leaves in its wake.

‘Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” (Colossians 3:12-14)

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Dealing With Death

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One of the many effects that COVID-19 has had on us is that it has brought death constantly before us. Hardly a day goes by without the announcement on TV or the internet of just how many people have died so far from the sickness.

Especially in light of this, I am constantly surprised at how careless many Christians are in dealing with death.   Over decades of pastoral ministry, I have encountered many spouses whose life partners have died without making responsible provisions for them. Some are left financially at risk, but mostly their problem is that they don’t have passwords to computers, banks, and other essential bits of information. Neither do they know where necessary documents are or who they are supposed to contact. I have come across widows having to locate and then repatriate overseas funds, wind up companies that have been left without succession, and search for passwords to key online resources. Amazingly, many spouses, particularly wives, live in almost total ignorance of the family finances and their husband’s business dealings. Of course, although for my generation it is mainly the men who are responsible for the things I address in this article, nowadays it could apply to either husbands or wives.  I view this negligence as selfish and unloving, but Christians are not usually either of these. The deceased husbands I knew that had failed to deal with the consequences of their own demise were good men, involved in church and Christian ministry and they loved their wives. So why then were they, and many others, remiss in dealing with death?

Fear of Death

Only the mentally disturbed or cultishly brain-washed believe that they will continue to live on earth forever. For 99.9% of Christians, mortal death is a biblical and medically provable certainty although, hopefully, they believe with equal conviction that they will live on eternally with Christ Jesus in the heavenly realm. So, denial of the fact of death can’t be the answer to the problem. Perhaps the answer is thanatophobia. Say what?! Yup… it’s a word I have recently acquired and it means ‘fear of death’. This ‘death anxiety’ includes a fear of the death process and I can understand this, especially if the prognosis is of a painful and protracted demise. Woody Allen is quoted as saying: “I am not afraid of death, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” However, I don’t think that the kind of people I have in mind suffer from this kind of thanatophobia.

Denial

  • Some Christians lack assurance of their salvation. They know that they have sinful aspects of their lives and they are not convinced that they will get an entrance ticket from Saint Peter when they arrive at the pearly gates.
  • Others simply cannot conceive of any form of life that does not consist of material substance.
  • Yet others have grown up in a culture or family that treats death as a taboo.

Whatever the cause, an unfortunate response by many is denial – a conscious or subliminal refusal to face up to the reality of death. This is deeply unfortunate because it both robs the sufferer of the joy of an assured eternal future and it impoverishes those left behind to live with the consequences.

Living For Two Things

My view is that we all, as believers, live for two things – Eternity and Legacy.

The scriptural text that sets this out most succinctly is Philippians 1:20-26, which reads as follows:

(20) ‘I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. (21) For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (22) If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! (23) I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; (24) but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. (25) Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, (26) so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me’.

Living for Eternity

Living for eternity includes living now for the glory of God. 

Eternity starts the moment we are born again of the Spirit into union with Christ Jesus.

Paul’s wish was that Christ would be exalted in his body, whether by life or by death. In other words, he wanted to glorify God both by living and by dying in Christ. We live in an eternity that starts here on Earth and continues in heaven. The Lord Jesus put it this way: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

Continued existence in the presence of God should not be doubted by Christians. Right in the middle of the book of Revelation, Revelation 14:13, we find these words; ‘Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labour, for their deeds will follow them.”Jesus, John, and Paul made it clear that continued existence in heaven is not conditional for those who have been born again of the Spirit.

What we do on Earth from spiritual re-birth onward factors into our eternal activity, utility, and reward, but does not constitute a pass or fail criterion.

Even the convicted criminal dying on the cross next to Jesus heard the assurance that he would be with the Lord in Paradise because he had acknowledged the Lordship of Jesus (Luke 23:430).

However, even though our eternal destiny is certain and secure, we are still required to live for a legacy.

Living for a Legacy

In the passage I quoted from Phillippians, Paul acknowledges that although it was in his best interests to die and be with Jesus, he realised that the disciples best interests would be served if he continued ministering to them. He needed to complete his legacy to the believers of his day and to those who would follow. Amongst other things, he needed to complete writing what would later become the bulk of the New Testament! The bible itself is a glorious legacy inspired by God but recorded by many faithful disciples – ‘These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name’ (John 20:31).

Most Christian ministries are genuine legacies that need to be preserved and stewarded into the future, and this requires faithful succession planning. Recently a long-term friend of mine died leaving behind an important ministry that will probably die with him. We talked about this eventuality several times over the last few years yet still he did not provide satisfactory succession. He was neither stupid nor uncaring; he was, I think, just not prepared to deal with his own inevitable death.

Family is a legacy – spouses, children and grandchildren. Local churches are legacies. Wise knowledge is a legacy. Art, music, and literature can be worthwhile legacies. Whatever we have and whatever we do can be either a legacy or a liability to family, society, and the Kingdom of God. Perhaps the greatest legacy of all consists of those we have introduced to Jesus and helped to know him better and become more like him. All of us can leave this legacy and surely we would choose legacy over liability?

Both-and, not Either/or

However, living for eternity and living for a legacy should not be either/or choices. As we live for eternity we leave a legacy, and the legacy is good, beneficial and God-glorifying if we live for eternity. As Paul put it, ‘For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain’.

The Benefit of Dealing with Death

Apart from the obvious benefits of us dealing with the reality of our own death for those who are left behind, there are two major immediate benefits.

Firstly, Jesus told parables about the need to be prepared at any time to meet him in eternity (Matthew 25:13, Luke 12:40 and so on). Paul also taught on this subject in places such as 1 Thessalonians Chapter 5. For the early disciples, there was little difference between the end of the world and personal death, for both meant the termination of life on earth.

So surely, it is a great relief to know that you are ready to meet Jesus face to face at any time?

The second major benefit of dealing with death is the peace of mind it brings to both you and your loved ones. It is a real act of love to set everything in order and to ensure, as best you can, that your family will be able to survive you with as little emotional pain and problem as possible.

I want to turn lastly to some practical aspects of dealing with death through responsible preparation.

Responsible Preparation

Perhaps the best way I can serve you here is to pose a series of questions.

  • Have you compiled and kept updated a list of all the passwords that those surviving you would need to access computers, cell-phones, social media, bank and other financial accounts and the like?
  • Have you drawn up a will and placed it in secure hands?
  • Have you set out directions for who and how to contact key people such as undertakers, pastors, financial consultants, banks, and the like – names and contact details?
  • Have you collected all important documents such as wills, title deeds, insurance policies, licences etc. into one secure place and made this known to your spouse, children, or trusted friend or agent?
  • Have you documented the procedure for continuing or winding up any companies or ministries you control?
  • Have you provided leadership and administrative succession for any enterprises, projects, or ministries that you believe should be preserved?
  • Have you provided capital and access to funds for the period it takes your estate to be wound up?

These are just some of the practical things we should all attend to, now while we can, for we do not know when we will die; we just know that we will. I hope that this is useful to you. I haven’t raised other important matters such as pet care, last wishes, and unfinished emotional issues… but I am sure that you will consider these. So deal with what you can, make it as easy as possible for those who succeed you, and be at peace.

Many texts have a bearing on the things discussed in this article, but here are just some that I have not mentioned so far:

Several useful websites offer practical suggestions and working documents, and here is one of them: https://docuri.com/download/death-and-dying-workbook_59bf38aaf581716e46c36654_pdf

 

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The different Gospel

In 1988 D.R.McConnell wrote a book critiquing the modern Faith Movement titled ‘A different Gospel’,  but there is another ‘different gospel’ that has been around far longer. Paul describes it as ‘really no gospel at all’ (Galatians 1:7) because the Gospel is good news whereas the ‘different gospel’ is not. This false gospel goes under various names but the one we are all most familiar with is… ‘Legalism’.

Legalism, possibly the most pervasive different gospel of all time, is defined most simply as the belief that we can, and should, do something to earn or merit salvation or divine approval. The formula of legalism is Faith + Something = Divine Acceptance. The ‘something’ usually consists of adherence to a specific set of doctrines, practices, good works, or religious observances.

Paul wrote Galatians, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, mainly to counter a certain form of legalism – the imposition of Judaic beliefs and practices on Christian believers. Some leaders and teachers of the time were insisting that for a Christian to be ‘kosher’ he or she had to become a Jew. Nowadays, we seldom encounter this exact form of legalism, yet the discussion around the recent ‘Return of the Judaizers’  article certainly proves that the perceived requirement that Christians observe the Saturday Sabbath and festivals of ancient Israel is still around in some circles.

However, I want to address a more subtle form of legalism that plagues the church communities of our land. Let me introduce it with a couple of questions.

Why do so many church leaders insist that their members give 10% of their total gross income to their local church? I have heard, and read, the arguments in favour of this Tithing practice and I find them all very ‘thin’ biblically. And most of those who advocate Tithing on the grounds of the Old Covenant don’t insist on Saturday Sabbath keeping on the same grounds. The scriptures encourage generous financial giving (2 Corinthians 8 & 9) but to demand a Judaic 10% is to add ‘something’ to the free grace of God (I feel another article coming on). The other day a young man even e-mailed me to ask how he could ensure that he was Tithing his time! And why do some churches make water baptism a membership requirement? I believe in baptism by immersion in water, but are people unacceptable to Jesus and His church if they are not suitably baptised? In my opinion, these are both forms of legalism.

Of course, the different gospel of legalism has infiltrated at a much deeper level than church policy.

At its core is the misconception that God deals with us on a works and rewards basis – we do what God requires and He then favours us.
Sure, the world system works this way, but not the Kingdom of God! We can do nothing to merit God’s favour; He loves and accepts us because of our relationship to Jesus Christ, not because we in any way earn His approval. It is called GRACE, not merit!

As born again children of God, as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we hold ourselves accountable to the highest biblical standards of life and witness. We do this because we love Jesus and because we appreciate the value of obedience to divine standards for ourselves, our families, the church, our nation, and the world in general. However, legalism goes beyond this, seeks to hold others accountable to the same personal standards, and judges, criticises, and ostracises anyone who falls short. Legalism makes little distinction between perceived sinful behaviours and the people concerned. When a legal-beagle spots a shortcoming in someone else he ‘speaks the truth’ as directly as possible with little or no regard to love and redemption. If the person does not immediately conform, then legalism applies the John 8:11 solution, but with a nasty twist. In effect, Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery “I do not condemn you; go now and leave your life of sin”, but legalism says “I do condemn you; go… now!”

Legalism is a different gospel that is no Gospel at all, and it is a blight on our churches!
I have been involved in pastoring for over three decades, and in that time I have seen the problems that license and hyper-grace can produce, yet nothing compares to the ubiquitous ravages of legalism I have observed in the Body of Christ.

 

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About Me

My name is Christopher Peppler and I was born in Cape Town, South Africa in 1947. While working in the financial sector I achieved a number of business qualifications from the Institute of Bankers, Damelin Management School, and The University of the Witwatersrand Business School. After over 20 years as a banker, I followed God’s calling and joined the ministry full time. After becoming a pastor of what is now a quite considerable church, I  earned an undergraduate theological qualification from the Baptist Theological College of Southern Africa and post-graduate degrees from two United States institutions. I was also awarded the Doctor of Theology in Systematic Theology from the University of Zululand in 2000.

Four years before that I established the South African Theological Seminary (SATS), which today is represented in over 70 countries and has more than 2 500 active students enrolled with it. I presently play an role supervising Masters and Doctoral students.

I am a passionate champion of the Christocentric or Christ-centred Principle, an approach to biblical interpretation and theological construction that emphasises the centrality of Jesus

I have been happily married to Patricia since the age of 20, have two children, Lance and Karen, a daughter-in-law Tracey, and granddaughters Jessica and Kirsten. I have now retired from both church and seminary leadership and devote my time to writing, discipling, and the classical guitar.

If you would like to read my testimony to Jesus then click HERE.