David Diga Hernandez - Religious Spirits: Legalism

The spirit of legalism is a very dangerous and effective religious spirit. Now, when I say «religious spirit,» I want you to know that I don’t mean exclusively demonic activity or a demonic being. What I’m talking about is a paradigm, a mindset, or a way of seeing things that is stuck in a certain way. A religious spirit is an attitude; a religious spirit is a mindset; a religious spirit is a system that causes people to be burdened with things that the Bible does not place upon us. Legalism insists on specific practices rather than godly principles. You know, many believers in their walk with Christ find themselves swinging between two extremes: legalism and liberalism. On the side of legalism, you have all the constraints—what people would call holiness—but I think it’s a false sense of holiness. On the other side is liberalism; this is where believers think they are free to do anything they want and can live however they want, believing that God won’t judge them. Both extremes are demonic; both extremes are deceptive. So where do we find the balance? Where do we find the truth? Where do we find our footing and our foundation? The simple truth is that between legalism and liberalism is love, and a love for Jesus is the key to overcoming both. You see, when I’m legalistic, I may have what I call righteousness, but I’ll never have joy. When I’m walking in liberalism, I may have what I call joy, but I’ll never have true power. But when I walk in the love of Jesus, when my heart is filled with passion for His name and His words, then I will choose to live in holiness because I love Him—not because I’m afraid of being punished by God. In that state, I’ll have power, freedom, and joy all at once. So, you don’t have to choose between legalism and liberalism; you can walk in the love of God, which gives you both benefits. You’ll have joy and power, freedom and holiness. It’s possible to balance the two.

Now, in Luke chapter 10, verses 38 to 42, we find a very familiar portion of Scripture that tells the story of Mary and Martha. I’ll simplify the story for you: Mary and Martha are expecting Jesus into their home. Mary spends the time talking to Jesus, fellowshipping with Him, whereas Martha spends her time preparing a meal for Jesus to eat. Now, someone once asked me regarding Mary and Martha, «What did Mary see that Martha didn’t?» My response was that they both saw the exact same thing; in fact, they both wanted the exact same thing: to please Jesus. The problem is that they went about it in different ways. Mary came to a place of fellowship; she came to a place of love, and because of that, she received this thing which would not be taken away from her, which was first love for Jesus. Martha, on the other hand, trying to gain that love, tried to work for it, and because she tried to work for it, she missed what Jesus was already doing for her.

Now let me be very clear here: I’m not saying that you can live any way you want. In fact, the Scripture is very clear that God punishes sin and that sin has consequences. The believer is to live holy and righteously and to walk in reverence toward God so that their life can reflect the godly character that God wants us to have. That said, there is also an extreme on the other side where people demand strict adherence to a set of rules and expectations that God never put on any individual.

So, I’m going to read a portion of Scripture to you; it’s quite long, relatively speaking at least for a teaching like this, but I want you to really listen to the spirit behind what is being said. The Scripture is found in Colossians chapter 2. I’m going to begin reading at verse 6. This is what the Bible says: «And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow Him. Let your roots grow down into Him and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.» Verse 8: «Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body, so you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.» «When you came to Christ, you were circumcised, but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized, and with Him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God who raised Christ from the dead.» Verse 13: «You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for He forgave all your sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross.» In other words, the Scripture here is saying that it’s done; it’s finished; God took care of this. Verse 15: «In this way, He disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. I love that! He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross.»