Defining Legalism

In contrast to yesterday’s thoughts on liberty, what does it mean to say that legalism puts people under bondage? Legalism is an attitude, a mentality based on pride. It is an obsessive conformity to an artificial standard.

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Claiming the Package

This day—this very moment—millions are living their lives in shame, fear, and intimidation who should be free, productive individuals. The tragedy is they think it is the way they should be.

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A Sobering List

Following is an incomplete list of what you have in store after your immorality is found out: Your mate will experience the anguish of betrayal, shame, rejection, heartache, and loneliness. No amount of repentance will soften those blows.

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Three Basic Ingredients of Servanthood

The Word of God lays a solid, biblical foundation for what it means to have a servant mentality. But let’s get some handles on what’s involved in pulling it off. For starters, let me suggest three basic ingredients of servanthood.

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Self-Control

Willpower is a forgotten word amidst most Christian circles today. Many of us are soft, flabby, and fat either outwardly or inwardly . . . or both. The overindulgence and underachievement of our age have created a monster whose brain is lazy, vision is blurred, hands are greedy, skin is thin, middle is round, and seat is wide. Color him baby blue!

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Tough Days, Part Two

Tough days. We all have them. And most of us, if we’re honest, must admit we don’t handle them well. Others who love us try to help, but they tend to complicate matters. Take the four guys who decided to go mountain climbing one weekend. In the middle of the climb, one fella slipped over a cliff, dropped about sixty feet, and landed with a thud on the ledge below. The other three, hoping to rescue him, yelled, “Joe, are you okay?”

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Insensitivity, Part One

My kids pulled a fast one on me one Christmas years ago. They teamed up, pooled their vast financial resources, and bought me a little motto to set on my desk. It was more than cute . . . it was convicting. In bold, black letters it read: DIETS ARE FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE THICK AND TIRED OF IT. At first you thmile . . . then it makes you thad. Especially if you’re not thick of being thick!

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Suspicion

If the truth were known, there’s a secret “detective spirit” in most of us. With the best of the paperback and television detectives, we vicariously probe for motives, analyze the evidence, and ponder the killer’s next move. Our curiosity forces us to investigate things that are just slightly irregular. Even a child is known to pry deeper because of a built-in bent to inquire.

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