They will tell you not to get married. They’ll tell you not to eat this or that food–perfectly good food God created to be eaten heartily and with thanksgiving by Christians! Everything God created is good, and to be received with thanks. Nothing is to be sneered at and thrown out. God’s Word and our prayers make every item in creation holy. 1 Timothy 4:3-5 (MSG)
In our Christian life and walk there can be two extremes. The one is licentiousness which is disregard of rules. Here one has no restraints, everything goes. The other is legalism which is being overly given to rules. Here one is too restrained everything is a no-go area.
Both extremes are wrong and dangerous even as on any road going to far out on either side can get you fall into the ditch.
When the enemy fails to get a believer into licentiousness he pushes him to the other side of legalism. Now legalism may look like godliness but it’s not. It’s works that lead to death – meaning you no longer depend on God and his power to live and walk right but on your own ability. It’s so exhausting, frustrating, and stressful that you end up doing the very things you’re striving not to do.
The cure for legalism is embracing Christ and what He has done as the foundation and power of what makes you and what you do acceptable and approved.