Paul’s Primers Daily Bible Study & Scripture Reading Forum for May 18-22, 2009 Podcasts: Circumcision is of the heart.
by admin ~ May 19th, 2009
“I have come to the conclusion that a true Judean is not the man who is merely a Judean outwardly, and a real circumcision is not just a matter of the body. The true Judean is one who belongs to God in heart, a man whose circumcision is not just an outward physical affair but is a God-made sign upon the heart and soul, and results in a life lived not for the approval of man, but for the approval of God.” (Romans 2:28-29) Jesus Christ is God, as He is the visible manifestation of the one triune God; so, it is His children, the Christians, who have the God-made sign upon their heart and soul, it is the Christians who live life not for the approval of man, but for the approval of the one true and ever-living God.
Now the judgment of Paul declaring all men sinners, and the hope of Paul declaring all men one with God through faith in the Son, is one of the lessons learned here from his writings early on in the book of Romans. It is not that he is replacing the Judeans, for he himself was a Judean, and we, like the Apostle Paul, do not believe in replacement theology. It is not that he is removing the Judeans, for we, like the Apostle Paul, believe that all men can be saved. It is that he is calling all men, in the very same way, both Judean and Gentile, to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Paul, the former Pharisee, is writing of fulfilled theology. He is making clear that since the Advent of the Apocalyptic figure of the Christ and the subsequent extending of God’s relationship with mankind, all men can now be equally and in the very same way grafted onto the one root, Jesus Christ, the firstborn of a new creation. All men are equally sinners and fall short of the glory of God; and all men are equally saved in only one and the same way, by faith alone in the Son of God.
As you consider these things, always remember that we teach from the perspective of Ancient Christian Truth, and from this perspective it was never in form but always in essence that the Apocalyptic teaching of Jesus Christ was understood to be applicable in every generation. Therefore, we can understand that unbelievers were alive and well in Jesus’ day; and we can understand that unbelievers can be found in every generation since, including our own. We can also understand that in every generation, each man and woman has the same offer of salvation as every other man and woman, salvation by faith in Jesus Christ alone. Circumcision of the flesh will provide no man a free pass. Not in Paul’s day, and not in ours. Circumcision of the flesh will not get anyone into heaven. Not in Paul’s day, and not in ours. The days of relying on physical genealogy ended in and with the Christ. Therefore, only circumcision of the heart will get anyone into heaven. Both in Paul’s day, and in ours.
So, with this simple teaching of Paul, we come to yet another simple truth, a truth verified by the early Church fathers: that since the Christ the unbelieving Judeans, and really unbelievers in general, are like all other men–bound to earth by their flesh, obtaining heaven by nothing but faith in Christ alone. There is no other way. And there is no other plan.
Hear the words of Peter confirming these things as he speaks to Christians everywhere and throughout all the generations of our Lord’s continuing eternity: ” … you are God’s ‘chosen race,’ His ‘royal priesthood,’ His ‘holy nation,’ His ‘peculiar people’–all the old titles of God’s people now belong to you. It is for you now to demonstrate the goodness of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. In the past you were not ‘a people’ at all: but now you are the people of God! In the past you had no experience of His mercy, but now it is intimately yours!” (1 Pet 2:9-10)
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Next week we will continue reading and providing teaching commentary on the book of Romans. Always seeking to Awaken a Reconciled World with the Victorious Worldview of Ancient Christian Truth.
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