The gospel is the power of God for salvation, bringing about a transformation that no human effort could achieve. It is the work of the Holy Spirit, changing hearts of stone into hearts of flesh, making dead sinners alive in Christ. But how easily, how subtly, this transformation can be replaced by something far less: moralism.
Scripture
“Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now finishing in the flesh?” — Galatians 3:3 (BSB)
Moralism is Not the Gospel
It is not the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit. It is the idea that godliness is merely a matter of outward behavior, a list of rules to be followed rather than a heart renewed by grace. It whispers that righteousness is something we can achieve if we just try harder, live better, and discipline ourselves enough. It takes the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience—and turns them into self-produced virtues, as if they could be manufactured apart from the abiding presence of Christ.
From Transformation to Moralism
Paul confronted this very issue with the Galatians. Having begun by the Spirit, they were now trying to attain perfection by human effort. What began as the miraculous work of God had devolved into mere rule-keeping. They had turned from faith in Christ to confidence in the law, believing that their own obedience could maintain what only grace had begun.
This is the danger for every believer. The world, even in its hostility to Christ, often admires good morals. It applauds kindness, self-control, and charity—but it wants these things apart from the gospel. Even the church can fall into this trap, subtly shifting its focus from Christ to conduct, from grace to performance. When this happens, obedience becomes a means of self-validation rather than a response to love. Holiness becomes a burden instead of a delight. The believer’s joy in Christ is slowly replaced by either pride (if success is achieved) or despair (when failure is inevitable).
The Remedy is Always to Return to Christ
It is not that holiness should be abandoned—far from it! True holiness is the inevitable result of abiding in Him. Jesus said, “Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me” (John 15:4, BSB). The fruit of righteousness is never the product of sheer willpower. It is the outflow of a life that clings to Christ in faith, resting in the Spirit’s transforming work.
How easily our hearts drift. How often we measure our standing before God by our performance rather than by His grace. But the gospel calls us back—again and again—to remember that our righteousness is not our own. It is His. “For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13, BSB).
Have you found yourself slipping into moralism? Has your faith become more about keeping up appearances than about abiding in Christ? The only cure is to return to the foot of the cross, where grace is always sufficient and where true transformation begins.
Cross References
Romans 8:3-4
“For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
Ephesians 2:8-9
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
2 Corinthians 3:18
“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
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