What is a legalist? Well, according to the popular definition, a legalist is anyone who hopes to gain heaven by keeping the law. The heathen or the atheist would not be a legalist, because he is not seeking salvation at all. But anyone with any hope of salvation who is basing that hope upon his own good works or his own obedience or his own merit in any way is a legalist.

The basic truth of salvation by faith alone in Jesus Christ is that we can do nothing to earn or merit our salvation. We can only accept it as a gift. And we accept it by coming into the presence of the Giver. We have talked about the fact that the gift of salvation has to be accepted day by day, and not just once and for all at the beginning of the Christian life.

Yet we hear it over and over again, “I’ve tried the devotional life, and it didn’t work for me.”

I ask, “What do you mean? Weren’t you able to become better acquainted with Jesus by spending time in studying His life? Did you find that spending time in the Word of God and in prayer didn’t lead you to communication with God? Did you decide that the effort involved to set aside that thoughtful hour with Him day by day wasn’t worth it? What didn’t work?”

Almost inevitably the answer is: “I found I still had to struggle with temptation. I still made some of the same mistakes I had made before. I tried a relationship with God, and it didn’t work.”

Jesus said,

“So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; and should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.” Mark 4:26-28.

our lives.

We don’t expect to grow a garden or rear children or get an education or succeed in a new business venture or learn to play a musical instrument or construct a building overnight. But how many of us expect to become Christians instantly? How many of us are unwilling to wait for the development of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives?

Christ’s Object Lessons, page 61, tells us,

” ‘The husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.’ James 5:7. So the Christian is to wait with patience for the fruition in his life of the word of God. Often when we pray for the graces of the Spirit, God works to answer our prayers by placing us in circumstances to develop these fruits; but we do not understand His purpose, and wonder, and are dismayed. Yet none can develop these graces except through the process of growth and fruit bearing. Our part is to receive God’s word and to hold it fast, yielding ourselves fully to its control, and its purpose in us will be accomplished.”

Relationship is not based on behavior. And if it is our behavior that causes us to become discouraged with our relationship, then we know that we have been in some way counting on our behavior for acceptance with God. Anyone who expects to be accepted and saved by his own works in any way is a legalist.

Any victory over sin or power for obedience or overcoming of temptation is never going to come from within us. If we ever hope to obey, we must come to Jesus for His righteousness and keep coming to Him. The one thing you should never do, if you find yourself a defeated Christian, is to quit the relationship; for it is only through Christ that you can ever hope to succeed in the Christian life.

Steps to Christ, page 64, should be written in the flyleaf of every Bible.

“We shall often have to bow down and weep at the feet of Jesus because of our shortcomings and mistakes, but we are not to be discouraged. Even if we are overcome by the enemy, we are not cast off, not forsaken and rejected of God. No; Christ is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Said the beloved John, ‘These things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.’ “

Is victory and overcoming possible? Yes, God’s power is available. What happens if we sin? We have the offer of forgiveness and restoration.

We may become discouraged with our behavior because of our behavior! But if we are looking to Jesus for salvation and forgiveness and power to obey, we should never become discouraged with our relationship because of our behavior. His promise is sure. If we stay with Him, He will finish His work in our lives.