Calvin Synod Herald, 2004 (105. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2004-11-01 / 11-12. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD 8 Virus of Legalism Thrives in Christendom Greg Albrecht was on a performance-based tread- mill that sucked the life out of his religious experience. Then he discovered news that was almost too-good-to-be-true - God’s amazing grace. “I’ve existed in the swamps of legalism,” says Greg Albrecht, executive director of Plain Truth Ministries, and author of “Bad News Religion: the Virus That Attacks God’s Grace.” “To be Christ-centered is to live in His grace,” Albrecht says. “Many of us are not experiencing that.” He believes many Christians are not at rest in their faith. “We’re troubled, worried, bothered, and upset,” he observes. “Unfortunately, much of that comes from religious legalism.” Albrecht spent over 30 years in Herbert W. Armstrong’s Worldwide Church of God before his mother came to him one day in tears and tried to persuade him they were involved in a cult. “I was a true believer,” he writes in his book, “and although I knew that many people in the world thought Armstrongism was a cult, I knew better.” Albrecht had become an ordained minister in the church, taught classes at the college run by Armstrong, and pastored over 500 young people as dean of students. After Armstrong’s death in 1986, Albrecht began a heart wrenching discovery process that led him to conclude Armstrong ’s house - and his own - were built on sand. It should be noted that after Armstrong died, leaders in the Worldwide Church of God began to realize that many of his doctrines were not Biblical and also rejected those teachings, just as Albrecht did. Today the church is in agreement with the statement of faith of the National Association of Evangelicals. “I came to the painful awareness that I had never known Jesus,” Albrecht writes in his book. “I was a religious professional.” Although Albrecht once taught a college class called “Life and Teachings of Jesus,” he suddenly realized he never knew the real Jesus. “All my life I had been an actor, just reading the script,” he adds. “The only thing that any religion that is not based on God’s grace can do is to help you read your lines, obey the rules and jump through the hoops it prescribes.” While Albrecht saw the cultic nature of Armstrong’s teachings, he was also offended by a legalistic environment that required him to “be more righteous, be better, work harder, give, serve, qualify, improve, and do more” to earn God’s favor. After leaving Armstrong’s church, Albrecht was startled to find similar thinking in mainstream churches. “Coming out of Armstrongism and coming to Christ, the amazing thing I find is degrees of the same kind of legalism existing and thriving within Christendom,” Albrecht says. “Many in churches not labeled as cults are nonetheless enslaved by some degree of legalistic teaching.” In the book, Albrecht quotes C.S. Lewis: “If the divine call does not make us better, it will make us very much worse. Of all bad men, religious bad men are the worst.” Albrecht believes grace to be “religion’s worst enemy.” He defines religion as any system of rules and regulations that promises to increase a person’s standing with God on the basis of their actions. Albrecht has talked with some pastors concerned that if they emphasize grace too much, they will lose control of their congregations. “What are they worried about, that they’ll lose control to Jesus?” He asks. “If you preach grace, holiness will be given as an outworking of the Holy Spirit,” he maintains. “Jesus will work in them and holiness will result.” “There is no system to control humans or guarantee humans won’t sin,” Albrecht notes. “Those who preach grace and those who live grace will fall - that’s the scandal of grace,” he says. Jesus gives us freedom knowing His children will stumble. Mainstream churches often use legalistic rhetoric such as: “Of course we are saved by grace. But what does God expect us to do once he saves us?” In these churches, messages on grace are often followed by a legalistic “counterpunch” - messages that center on external acts and behaviors that should be followed to gain God’s favor. “Preaching and teaching that judges Christians solely upon external actions almost inevitably leads to manipulation for the purpose of creating guilt and shame,” Albrecht notes. He views this as an absolute contradiction to the gospel of Jesus, which should be based on faith alone, grace alone and Christ alone. Mark Ellis, Senior Correspondent, Assisi News Service, PO Box 2126, Garden Grove, CA 92842 Christian Observer August, 2004 Page 29 (Reprinted with permission.) Second Meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee of the Bethlen Home The second meeting of our committee took place in Ligonier on September 8, 2004. Present at this meeting were: Rev. and Mrs. Imre Bertalan, Rev. and Mrs. GaborNitsch, Rev. Les Martin, Rev. Ilona Komjáthy, Rev Ferenc Varga, Rev. Robert Cummungs (local Presbyterian pastor), Mr. George Dozes, Rev Alexander Jalso, Ms. Pat Armel (recording secretary), Mr. Robert Fiok, Rev. István Nyeste, and Rev. Dr. Gabriella Laczko (from Sárospatak Seminary in Hungary). This meeting focused on two major points of concern. The first focus point was the need to present a progress report of the SPC to the National Convention of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America to be held in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, September 21-23. In order to prepare a comprehensive presentation, the previously established subcommittees presented the results of their work so far. Mr. Fiók reported about the situation of the current building, from where the residents will be transferred to the new building upon its opening. There are positive facts to report, along with some others that cause some concerns. The good news first: At least a part of the old nursing home building is suitable for use as assisted living units. This will require very little adjustment, reorganizing, remodeling. Setting up this
