THE ENDLESS LIST OF MANMADE RULES

In Jesus' day, the Jewish society was the most regulated society in the world. God gave them just 10 commandments and 21 civil laws. The religious leaders added another 178 commandments and 933 civil laws to them. The Pharisees and the scribes were putting everybody under such close surveillance it was becoming ridiculous! Jesus was so upset He rebuked them for their legalism:

"You guide the people, but you are blind! You are like a person who picks a fly out of a drink and then swallows a camel!" Matt. 23:24 (NCV)

Jesus was saying this, "You guys are crazy setting up rules that you yourself can't even keep. You are all nothing more than just a bunch of hypocrites and phonies! You've lost your relationship with God and now you're trying to make up for it by keeping a bunch of rules."

Those words may be scathing but don't they still resonate in Christianity today? Believers begin in the Spirit. They have a revelation of God. They experience the saving grace and enabling power of the Holy Spirit. Then for some reason, they have this tendency to "go back to the map," not willing to continue relying on the Holy Spirit by faith.

What happens when you start relying on the map of legalism again? You get cursed all over again!

"For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse ..." Gal. 3:10

That is the reason why many Christians and churches are so dry, so dead and so defeated! When we walk by some manmade laws, we can no longer walk under grace. The moment we put our trust in some religious system, however good its original intention may be, we stop trusting God.

"Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the LORD." Jer. 17:5

It can be rather scary not relying on rules and regulations, but that is the only way to grow up! The only way for a believer to mature is when he or she is being led by the Holy Spirit—by grace, through faith!

Like what I have said earlier, I'm coming to my third decade as a Christian now and I have seen a lot of churches that profess, "We are not under the law of Moses!" But in reality, they all have their own little set of rules and regulations. Take for example:

1. Media: The television is the "devil's box" and watching it makes one unholy. Reading the newspaper and listening to radio for world news makes one worldly!

2. Fashion: "Godly" women never wear makeup or use cosmetics, or have their hair colored! It is wrong to wear fashionable or trendy clothing. A Christian has no business visiting an upmarket hair salon. The only "right" place for a haircut is the neighborhood barbershop! No denim jeans is allowed in church. Women must never wear any skirt that shows the ankles. Modern swimwear is banned. New clothes and jewelry are synonymous with covetousness, holy people wear as bland as they can and give all their money to missions! Wearing jade is tantamount to pagan temple worship.

3. Bible: The only "one correct version" of the Bible is the King James Version. All other translations will corrupt the reader.

4. Food: Eating seafood or pork will make a Christian unclean, thus disqualifying him or her from the pure anointing of God!

5. Festivals: The celebrating of Christmas is wrong. The Christmas tree is demonic. "Santa" Claus is really "Satan" in disguise. The Chinese New Year festivities must not be observed. Christians should not attend New Year family reunion (thanksgiving) dinners or wear red outfits on New Year's day. The giving and receiving of angpows must not be allowed.

6. Worship: Bowing down before your parents in honor during the wedding tea ceremony is a form of idolatry. Keeping photos of people and places constitute having false images around.

7. Recreation: Telling jokes is sinful. Laughing in church is showing no reverence to God. Playing any card game, even children's cards, is a form of gambling. Playing Monopoly is dabbling in greed and materialism. Using puppets in Sunday School is demonic!

8. Music: Listening or playing music is wrong. Singing modern choruses is wrong, only hymns are allowed in church. Listening to any secular, non-Christian music is wrong. All drums are of the devil. All 4/4 beat is demonic. All songs in minor keys are demonic. Singing birthday songs in church is wrong.

9. Prayer and fasting: If you don't pray early in the morning, you don't love God. If you don't fast once a week, you have lost your burden for the unsaved.

10. Having babies: Using birth control pills is an expression of unbelief. If God doesn't want a couple to have babies, then conception would never take place even in the absence of contraceptives.

11. Money: Using the credit card is supporting the Antichrist's "666" system. Saving up money for old age or buying insurance is walking in fear and doubt!

12. Cars: Driving an Alfa Romeo is promoting Satan's kingdom because there is the picture of a snake on the car's emblem.

The list just goes on and on. The point is this: if the laws of Moses—given by God Himself—couldn't help the people to live righteously, what makes us think that our little religious church laws can do the job?

There is another problem with legalism. The rules are never objective! My list would never match yours. The rules are often based upon an individual's culture and taste, personal likes and dislikes.

When I was in secondary school, I did some competitive swimming. All of us would wear Speedo briefs when we get into the pool. Yet, when I first went to America to preach, I realized that most American men don't wear Speedo briefs for swimming. They put on shorts. In fact, guys who wear Speedo trunks are usually gay. Well, that's the culture there!

Many of our Singaporean ladies wear sleeveless tank-tops. Even the most conservative girls along Orchard Road have no qualms about wearing body-hugging blouses, or putting on a pair of trousers. Yet, in many countries, ladies are not supposed to do that! In some parts of Asia, it is improper for a woman to show her arms or shoulders. And to wear trousers is totally unfeminine. Can you see that? Rules change from culture to culture!

When we become legalistic, we start regulating other people's lives based on what we like or dislike. So, if the wives of the church elders don't like putting on make-up, it is often a "sin" for other ladies to wear make-up. If the elders don't like denim jeans, then it is a sin to wear jeans. If the elders are conspiracy-minded, then only the KJV is the correct version!

The sad truth is, anything that is good can be done in a legalistic way. Giving, witnessing, praying, Bible reading and church attending are all good. However, in some circles, they are taught and presented to the people as rules and regulations. If you don't do this, you are going to get cursed. If you don't do that, you are going to be judged by God.

What should we do then? Do we just stop praying or soul-winning? Of course not, but we need to change the motivation factor. People shouldn't be made to "have to" do something, we must help them to "want to" do it.

WHAT ABOUT LICENTIOUSNESS?

"But, but, but ... Kong, if we allow people to exhibit grace and freedom, then wouldn't everybody start doing whatever's right in his or her own eyes?"

Of course, every truth taken to an extreme is dangerous! The extreme end from grace on the righteousness spectrum is "licentiousness." A person is licentious when he excuses himself or gives himself license to blatantly rebel against God and His Word.

-	"God wants me to divorce my wife so that my real destiny in the ministry can be fulfilled!"
-	"I can't help being a homosexual, God made me this way!"
-	"I know even if I steal money from my company, it is for the sake of giving to world missions. God will surely forgive me later on!"
-	"Abortion is murdering innocent unborn babies. God wants me to kill those abortion doctors and bomb their clinics to take vengeance on behalf of those babies!"