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Welcome to Day 2143 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom The Gospel of John \u2013 11 \u2013 A Picture Of Legalism \u2013 Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message \u2013 04/03/2022 The Gospel of John \u2013 Part 3 Authentication Of The Word \u2013 A Picture Of Legalism Today we continue our Good News series according to John the Apostle. In addition, we are beginning the third significant section of John\u2019s Gospel, which is the Authentication of the Word. \xa0We now shift scenes to different snapshots and stories in today\u2019s passage, John 5:1-18, located on pages 1654-1655 in the Pew Bible. \xa0I will read the passage as we go through the message, so keep your Bibles open to follow along. \xa0 To review John\u2019s Good News up to this point, the Lord\u2019s ministry began well. A bold announcement by John the Baptizer immediately yielded five disciples with an unreserved commitment to following the Son of God. His turning water into wine strengthened His disciples\u2019 faith. Flash forward three years to cleansing the temple. He taught Nicodemus, performed signs in Jerusalem, redeemed a Samaritan town, and healed the royal official\u2019s son, resulting in multitudes from every quarter of Israel trusting Jesus as Savior. While the Lord\u2019s ministry had not been without conflict, the general response to the Word had been belief. Then, something changed, like the first winter chill on an autumn breeze. Not everyone believed right away. A few began to oppose Him openly \u2026 followed by more. The Son of God came to shine the light of truth, yet some minds remained darkened. Instead of uniting Israel, the Word began to create sharp divisions. With Jesus being the very embodiment of the Word, we should not be surprised as we read in Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive\xa0and\xa0powerful. It is\xa0sharper than the\xa0sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul\xa0and\xa0spirit, between joint\xa0and\xa0marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts\xa0and\xa0desires. \xa0 This passage explores how subtle and insidious legalism is, even in our age. The classic legalists of Jesus\u2019 day were the Pharisees, a brotherhood of experts in religion, considered \u2018the separated ones.\u2019\xa0 Paula and\xa0 I grew up in churches that tended to be somewhat legalistic, where a list of do\u2019s and don\u2019ts reflected how spiritual you were. While these churches provided a reasonably solid teaching environment, we could not continue to raise our children in that environment.\xa0 Because legalism is a subtle, silent killer, it gradually robs you of being immersed in God\u2019s grace. We need to understand this enemy before confronting it. We need to know what it is, how it appears, and why it is wrong. \xa0 What is legalism? Legalism is based on lists (legalists love their lists!). If you keep every item on the list of dos and don\u2019ts, you\u2019re deemed spiritually acceptable. In some ways, following a list of rules is more straightforward than allowing the Spirit to lead you through God\u2019s Word. But if you don\u2019t follow the prescribed standard, you are judged unworthy of God\u2019s favor and others\u2019 approval. So naturally, legalists always think they know how God judges, and they are more than willing to act on His behalf. How does legalism appear? Legalism that we personally were most familiar with was a list including being at the church every time the doors were...