How Can We Be More Disciplined Without Being Legalistic?

How can we be more disciplined in our faith without being legalistic?

Most of us are probably aware of others who profess to be Christians that seem to be much more strict than ourselves when it comes to how we live out our faith. We might be tempted to see them much as Christ described the Pharisees, the ultra-strict religious leaders who looked down on Jesus as an untrained upstart.

In regard to these Pharisees, Jesus said... "So obey everything they teach you, but don't do as they do. After all, they say one thing and do something else. They pile heavy burdens on people's shoulders and won't lift a finger to help. Everything they do is just to show off in front of others. They even make a big show of wearing Scripture verses on their foreheads and arms, and they wear big tassels for everyone to see. They love the best seats at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues. And when they are in the market, they like to have people greet them as their teachers..."

These ultra-strict Pharisees used their man-made legalistic rules to set themselves apart from others, even though they didn't follow all the rules themselves. I've met many modern "Pharisees" who do the same thing, but Peter, a Benedictine monk, was by no means one of them.

I met Peter and another monk from the same monastery out for a walk "out of habit" - that is, not wearing the usual flowing garments that set monks apart from the laity. Our conversation had to be short so that they wouldn't be late for "vespers" - one of eight different times set aside each day for prayer, meditation, chanting, or quiet reading. Peter is the "Prior" or head of a community of monks, all of whom have taken solemn vows according to ancient monastic traditions.

I asked Peter about these vows, and he described them well as being compared to the kind of discipline a soldier undertakes for the purpose of his mission. These disciplines shouldn't be seen as a requirement for righteous living - much like the Pharisees' many rules - but more like a path one chooses to take in order to accomplish a goal.

These vows are not legalism but voluntary steps one commits to follow for purposeful living - and oh how all more believers would benefit from having similar disciplines in our lives, as long as we see them as a privilege and not an obligation.

I think this sort of voluntary self-discipline is what Paul was describing in 1 Cor. 9: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize... I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."

Peter came across to me as a gentle soul formed by years of self-discipline, and humble enough to know he still has much to learn on his faith journey. He is no legalistic Pharisee, but a disciplined soldier in Christ.

We all would do well to commit ourselves to disciplines like regular prayer, Bible reading, meditation, fasting, and exercise like Friar Peter. But in my experience in understanding the impressions of outsiders toward such disciplined Christians, we also need to be sure they understand the good news of the Gospel is grace, not legalism.