Another problem with legalism is treating everyone the same in all circumstances. “Treating the same” here means ignoring the complexities and difficulties of each person’s life that produce differences. Everyone is measured by the same standard without regard for each person’s background or context. This creates a binary view of human life: only black or white, right or wrong. Saying this does not mean we must never make binary judgments, for example, right or wrong. Such judgments are a logical consequence and necessary in daily life. However, applying a narrow view to the complexity of human life reduces how we evaluate things. This is the leaven of legalism.
In Matthew 9:16–17, the Lord Jesus continues explaining why His disciples did not fast. He explains: “No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, and a worse tear will be made. Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the wineskins will burst, the wine will spill, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”
Through these two verses, the Lord Jesus speaks about the difference between those who follow the Mosaic Law and those who follow the law of the Spirit. The old garment and the old wineskins symbolize the group that clings to the Mosaic Law or Judaism—in this context, the Pharisees and John’s disciples who questioned Jesus. The new patch and the new wine point to the followers of Christ and His church, who in later days will follow the guidance of the Spirit. This does not mean that those who follow the guidance of the Spirit disregard the Law. Those who follow the Spirit in fact transcend the Law in its essence. Cultural and ceremonial features of the Law are no longer observed by believers — for example, circumcision. Yet the spirit of the Law, which teaches love for God and neighbor, is lived more fully under the guidance of the Spirit. For Jesus, those who follow the law or the guidance of the Spirit are markedly different from those who follow only the Mosaic code.
The Spirit’s guidance makes a person sensitive to each individual’s complexity and differences. The judgment of someone led by the Spirit will be deeper because it considers not only what is visible but also what is unseen. For example, if under the Mosaic Law adultery is understood as sexual relations with someone who is not one’s spouse, those living in the Spirit are not judged solely by that outward act. When there is lustful desire in the mind toward another’s partner, that is already regarded as adultery. Here is something the Mosaic Law cannot fully address because of its limitations.
This is what Jesus wanted to explain to John’s disciples and the Pharisees. Fasting is not merely a religious act, nor an obligation without inner longing. Fasting must arise from the deepest personal struggle. John’s disciples did not understand this, so they asked Jesus. They thought everyone must do the same thing, with or without inner prompting. To this problem, Jesus rebukes them as old wineskins that cannot receive new wine.
We must guard ourselves carefully against this leaven of legalism. Let us not become old wineskins unable to receive the new wine. The new wine is the Holy Spirit’s leading. Living in legalism prevents us from receiving the Spirit’s guidance. Therefore, we must open our minds and hearts as widely as possible to receive the Spirit’s will. This affects how we accept others considered “guilty.” By removing the leaven of legalism, we can see those who have sinned as people who can still be changed. We consider each person’s complexity and context; no one sets out to be guilty. In the end, we can accept and embrace everyone, as Jesus did.