"Legalistic" is better.
Is it "legalistic" to obey God's commands?
As a Jew, I look at "physical vs. spiritual" or "obedience vs. love" not as EITHER/OR propositions, but rather as BOTH/AND. Take the "circumcized heart" metaphor (we do mean this metaphorically, don't we? ;o) for example. This is not original to the Christian writers; it goes all the way back to the Torah:
Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn. (Deuteronomy 10:16)
And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. (Deuteronomy 30:6)
Such usage is also found in Jeremiah.
God wants our love AND our obedience. Love without obedience makes little sense; how can you say you love God if you don't obey Him? Conversely, obedience without love is condemned repeatedly in the Hebrew scriptures. Jesus was not original in calling this legalism and hypocrisy. The solution is not to throw out the Law, but to obey it in love.
If done rotely and without true feeling. To be overly concerned with the letter of the Law as to entirely miss the spirit. To be more concerned with not working on the Sabbath than you are with the poor folks gleaning. You can say it better than me:
God wants our love AND our obedience. Love without obedience makes little sense; how can you say you love God if you don't obey Him? Conversely, obedience without love is condemned repeatedly in the Hebrew scriptures.
SD