It fell to my lot to grow up near a church which we attended on a regular basis. All my siblings and I went from the beginners' department to the Bible class by passing the Scripture examinations. I had three teachers in the Bible class, but they were strongly of a pietistic persuasion. Their Bible teaching was very thorough and their dedication perfect. However, it was tacitly expected that we were all naturally destined for either the mission field or the ministry. Our every activity was monitored to make sure that we were not getting in with the wrong crowd. Hardly any activity was not carefully scrutinized for possible worldliness.

As well-meaning as these teachers were, their attitude bordered on the kind of legalism that the apostle Paul battled among the early Jewish Christians:

Galatians 2:16 – Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law. (NLT)

In the Old Testament, the separation between man and God was kept in place by an array of Levitical laws and ordinances. The various offerings made to God were spelled out in strict detail. No one except the high priest had access to the Holy of Holies, and even that was restricted to only once a year. For the ordinary person, direct access to God was not possible.

Leviticus 16:2 – The Lord said to Moses, "Tell Aaron your brother he must not come at all times into the Holy of Holies within the veil before the mercy seat upon the ark, lest he die; for I will appear in the cloud on the mercy seat." (AMP)

But the moment Jesus died on Calvary, the blessed change came about.

Matthew 27:50-51a – And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. (NKJV)

The old law was done away with; sacrifice was no longer necessary, for Jesus had paid the supreme sacrifice. All the things hidden behind the veil were now open to view. God's mercy seat and God's glory shone out. Man was granted free access to God at any time, not only at seasonal ceremonies. There would be no more shedding of blood, for Jesus had shed His own for the world. The gates of paradise were open to all who believe that "Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God." (1 Peter 3:18 NKJV)

But even today, we still find Christians who, in their zeal to please God, are making illegal for Christians many activities that they in their wisdom deem sinful: dancing, going to the movies, and drinking alcoholic drinks, for example. That is called legalism. Back in the early fifties, my sister gave up her graduation prom and special prom dress because dancing was worldly, and people who danced were sinners. Such sentiments are still prevalent today. We hear people say, "You can't be a Christian if you keep painting your face with lipstick." "Christians do not go to church in slacks." "If you want to please God, you will give up eating meat …" and so on. And all the time, Jesus is saying, "Come unto me and I will give you rest." His invitation has no restrictions because He is meek and lowly of heart and all He wants is to give us rest for our souls, so that we can worship His Father.

Prayer: Thank You, heavenly Father, for Your Word that assures us that through Jesus' sacrifice alone, we "have access by one Spirit to the Father", and we "are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God" (Ephesians 2:18-19 NKJV). Amen.

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