Legalism can be defined in many ways:
First we could say, “Legalism is the tendency to regard as divine law things which God has neither required nor forbidden in scripture and the corresponding inclination to look with suspicion on others for their failure or refusal to conform.” You can go to many Churches where key points of fellowship even membership are based on things God has neither required or forbidden in the bible. If you don't measure up to their "standards" you are not welcome and the sincerity of your faith is questioned.
Second, "Legalism is that fleshly attitude which conforms to a code in order to glorify self." One of the key facets to legalism is pride. "Look at what I am doing, I'm keeping all the rules, look at all the things that I don't do, I'm better than others." The flesh loves lists and measurements so it can see how well it's preforming compared to others.
Third Legalism is an attitude that is law like in nature. It is an obsessive conformity to a standard for the purpose of exalting self. It is an effective motivator because it uses guilt which leads to a negative emphasis on what we should not be and the things we should not do. One of the tell-tale signs of legalism is that it motivates by guilt. We grew up being motivated by guilt, we learned it from our parents and from our teachers, we are legalists by nature, we love rules and laws.
Legalism is a killer, it only leads to bondage. The only solution to legalism is learning to live by the grace of God. Most Christians have no idea of how to be motivated or how to motivate by grace. The problem is not that have made the gospel to good, we haven't made it good enough. The gospel of the grace of God is foreign to our human nature and so we fight against it and try to substitute different forms of legalism because grace frightens us.
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