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RIGHTLY APPLYING GOD’S LAW MAKES LEGALISM IMPOSSIBLE

by BRAD BEEVERS in Vol. 9 No. 1 / Apr 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35285/ucc9.1.2023.art8



Abstract
Legalism is, at its core, a wrong theology of the law. It is rooted in the conviction that God’s commands can be fundamentally kept with disciplined and earnest effort. A robust and practical theology of the law completely undermines this false faith. It shows how the law is spiritual (about the heart, not just behavior), comprehensive (addressing every similar situation), and perfect (requiring active love, not just avoiding harm). Grasping this makes Pharisaic piety impossible. God’s law is so demanding that only perfect holiness satisfies it, and the law shows how far we are from this holiness. Understanding this severs the root of legalistic pride and wonderfully drives us to the cross.

Keywords
Legalism, Pharisees, God’s law, works-righteousness, heart, sanctification, gospel, love, biblical counseling
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Other Articles in
Vol. 9 No. 1 / Apr 2023

Editorial: The Sin behind “Sin” by Paul Wells
The Progress of the Kingdom: Calvin’s Pastoral Care for Rulers by HERMAN H. VAN ALTEN
Adapting the Structural Perspectives of the Westminster Larger Catechism for Biblical Counselor Training by TIMOTHY P. YATES
Bavinck, a Patron Saint of Biblical Counselors? A Case Study of Bavinck’s Theological Description of Shame by KAZUSA OKAYA
“The Hidden Artist”: Edith Schaeffer and the Success of L’Abri Fellowship by CHRISTOPHER TALBOT
Where Has the Soul Gone in Pastoral Care? The Case and Cure of Pastoral Counseling by MAARTEN J. KATER
Six Keys to Protecting and Strengthening Marriages by JIM NEWHEISER
A Pastoral Framework for Infidelity Counseling by MICHAEL GEMBOLA
Rightly Applying God’s Law Makes Legalism Impossible by BRAD BEEVERS
Presuppositions of Biblical Counselors by JIM NEWHEISER
Biblical Counseling in the Spanish-Speaking World by NATALIE CARLEY
Some Reflections on Biblical Counseling, Adams, and Powlison by D. CLAIR DAVIS
Interview with Alasdair Groves by PETER A. LILLBACK
Carl R. Trueman. The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism and the Road to Sexual Revolution. by ANDREW MUTTITT
Scot McKnight. Five Things Biblical Scholars Wish Theologians Knew. Hans Boersma. Five Things Theologians Wish Biblical Scholars Knew by DONALD E. COBB
Robert L. Wilken. Liberty in the Things of God: The Christian Origins of Religious Freedom by TODD M. RESTER
IN MEMORIAM Jong Yun Lee by editor