Complete in Christ. How blessed
we are if we are in Christ. Complete in Him. Complete in Him. If you've been
circumcised by God the Holy Spirit, you're complete in Christ. If you haven't been, you have
nothing in Christ. If you've been circumcised in
your heart by God the Holy Spirit, you're complete in Christ. If you haven't been circumcised
in your heart by God the Holy Spirit, you have nothing in Christ. Turn with me, if you will, to
Romans chapter 4. Romans chapter 4. As we read in Genesis 17, The
very first ordinance of divine worship established in the earth
was the ordinance of circumcision that God gave to Abraham. This
ordinance of circumcision God gave to Abraham, he gave long
before he gave the law to Moses at Mount Sinai. Though the law
of circumcision was established in the hands of Moses by God
giving it to him and through him to the children of Israel,
The circumcision itself was established long before God gave the law.
Abraham believed God. Because he believed God, the
Lord God declared to Abraham that he was righteous. And then
later he gave this ordinance of circumcision, which became
for the Jews the most prominent aspect of their whole religion. and continues so to this day.
In fact, the two most prominent things in the Jews' religion
was Sabbath-keeping and circumcision, and those are really the only
two aspects of legal ceremonial worship the Jews retain to this
day. But why was circumcision so important? Why did it hold such a prominent
place? Why was it given such a prominent
place in the book of God? The scriptures speak of circumcision
repeatedly. Over a hundred times circumcision
is referred to in the word of God. A very important matter.
Why? What's the significance? What's
the meaning of this? Look in Romans chapter 4 and
you'll see the answer. Romans chapter 4 verse 11. And
Abraham Received the sign of circumcision a seal of the righteousness
of the faith Which he had yet being uncircumcised Now here's
the title of my message the sign of circumcision Abraham received
the sign that's what it was a sign of something else a picture of
something else a Abraham received the sign of circumcision and
that sign that he received in his flesh was a seal of the righteousness
of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised. Not a seal
of righteousness he was going to have. a seal of that righteousness
that he had imputed to him when he believed God, when he trusted
the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is what the sign said,
that he might be the father of all them that believe, though
they be not circumcised, that the righteousness or that righteousness
might be imputed unto them also. This circumcision was a sign
given by God to Abraham that was a seal to him. God's seal
to Abraham of that righteousness he had received and God's testimony
to Abraham as his sons were circumcised that they too would receive righteousness. Not a sign that those physical
sons receiving physical circumcision would receive righteousness.
Not at all. There's no way to communicate
that. Ishmael never did. Ishmael never did. And many who
were circumcised in the flesh never received that righteousness
that Abraham received. But there is an Israel of God.
There are sons and daughters of Abraham who received that
righteousness who are circumcised in their hearts. Read on. And
the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision
only, that is the father of the circumcision, even to us who
have never been circumcised in the flesh, the Gentiles as well
as the Jews who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, but who also
walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham which he
had yet being uncircumcised. Abraham received circumcision
as a sign of the faith he had received, believing, or the faith,
the righteousness he had received by faith in the Lord Jesus. That
righteousness he had received from God, believing on his son. That circumcision said to Abraham,
God declares you're righteous. This is the sign. And that circumcision
that Abraham received as a sign in his flesh is that by which
God says all who believe on Jesus Christ, Jew and Gentile, whether
they're circumcised in the flesh or not circumcised in the flesh,
are circumcised in their hearts. And being circumcised in their
hearts, God gives you this sign of righteousness, this sign of
all his covenants. You see, we who believe are the
children of Abraham. We are the sons of Abraham, the
daughters of Abraham, the children of promise, the Israel of God,
those to whom God has made His covenant, those to whom God gives
all His promises. If you believe on the Son of
God today. Oh, God help you to hear me now.
God calls you to believe on His Son. If right now you believe
on the Son of God, God giving you faith in Christ declares
that you are His, that you're righteous in His Son, accepted
in His Son, and God sets in you by faith in His Son the assurance
of all His promises all His covenant, of all His blessings, and of
all His grace. Turn back to Deuteronomy chapter
30 for a minute. Deuteronomy 30th chapter. Even after God gave the law,
in the law itself the Lord God declared that this carnal ordinance
of the Old Testament, this carnal ordinance of circumcision was
only a sign of a delightful sign, a clear sign, but only a sign
of something far more than being circumcised in the flesh. It
was a sign of something spiritual. Deuteronomy chapter 30, verse
6, here is a prophecy and a promise that God gives by His servant
Moses concerning the work of His grace in the hearts of His
people. The Lord thy God will circumcise
thine heart. and the heart of thy seed. As
you are circumcised in the flesh, children of Israel, Moses says,
God is saying to you who are truly his, God will circumcise
you in your heart. He will circumcise your sons
and daughters, those who are born of God among the seed of
Abraham throughout the world. He will circumcise their hearts
by his grace. Circumcision, contrary to the
opinion of almost all religions has nothing to do with the ordinance
of baptism in the New Testament. Has absolutely nothing to do
with the ordinance of baptism in the New Testament. Men and
women these days, it's just, you know, if it offends, it offends. It just has to be that way. I'm
sorry. Well, I'm not. You need to be offended if it
offends you. Folks baptized their babies because they were taught
to do so by Antichrist in Rome. Now that's the only reason it
is. That's the only reason it is. Baby baptism, sprinkling
water, it's not even baptism. Sloshing a little water on a
baby's face is not baptism. But what's called infant baptism
is nothing but a remnant of papacy. And it is the notion that somehow,
by baptism, children are brought into union with Christ, into
the church of Christ, into the body of Christ, and they are
made by baptism to be heirs of God. Now that's what infant baptism
declares, and it is totally contrary to Scripture. Circumcision has
nothing to do with that. Circumcision didn't portray baptism.
Circumcision portrayed the new birth. Circumcision portrayed
the work of God's Spirit in the heart. Now look what it says
here, Deuteronomy 30, verse 6. When God does this work of circumcision
in your heart, this will be the result. He'll cause you to love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. That's what God commands of all
men. Love God with all your heart and with all your soul. But you
can't and you won't. Because the carnal mind, the
carnal heart is enmity against God. But when God makes us new
creatures in Christ, He causes the affections to be set on Christ. This is the fruit of the Spirit. If any man loved not the Lord
Jesus Christ, let him be damned, the scripture says. The Lord's
coming. in the circumcision of the heart, in this work of grace
promised here and prophesied in Deuteronomy 30 verse 6, God
creates us new in Christ Jesus. He makes every chosen redeemed
sinner to have life in Christ. He puts in us a new mind, a new
heart, and a new nature, causing the new man born in us to love
God with all his heart. and all this soul. John Gill
rightly tells us, a person has been circumcised in his heart
when he sees his sin and his Savior. When he sees the odiousness
of his sin and the preciousness of his Savior, then the blessings
of grace are applied to us. The love of God is shed abroad
in our hearts and God causes those in whom he sheds abroad
his love to love him. that thou mayest live. This circumcision of the heart
is the giving of life. It's the giving of life. Do you
remember God said to Abraham, any male child that's not circumcised,
he's cut off. He's cut off. What's that mean?
He's a dead man. He has no blessing from God,
no grace from God, no life from God, no promise from God. The
wrath of God abides on him. We have a demonstration of it
in Exodus chapter 4. Moses had neglected because of
his wife's objection to circumcise his son. And before God sent
Moses to bring Israel out of Egypt, he stopped Moses in an
inn, and the scripture says that the Lord was about to kill him. And God said to Moses, you either
circumcise this boy or you die right here. There will be no
deliverance and no salvation without this. Why? Because circumcision
was a picture of the new birth and the work of God the Holy
Spirit in the new birth. Let's see that in Colossians
chapter 2. Colossians chapter 2. Here's the fulfillment of the
prophecy we just read in Deuteronomy. Colossians chapter 2 verse 9. In Christ dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily. I never can just read those words
or quote them without expressing astonishment. In that man who
lived and died as our substitute, who sits today upon the throne
of grace in the heavens, who rules the universe and makes
intercession for us at the right hand of the majesty on high.
In that man resides all that God is. All the fullness of the
Godhead dwells in that man bodily. And you, you who are in Christ,
you who believe Him, you sinners who trust Him, you who are nothing
in yourselves, you complete in him as he is the completeness of
God you are the completeness of him as God completely dwells
in him he completely dwells in you and you are complete in him
which is the head of all principality and power in whom also Ye are
circumcised, watch this, with the circumcision made without
hands and putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the
circumcision of Christ. Now what on earth does the Spirit
of God tell us here? All fullness is in Christ. All the fullness of the Godhead.
Whatever God He is, it's in Christ. All that God is, Jesus Christ
is. All the fullness of grace is
in Him. If you get grace, you got to
get it from Christ, who is God. All the fullness of heavenly
glory is in Him. If you get the riches of heaven,
you get it in union with Christ, you get it from Christ, who is
Himself the fullness of God. And we are complete in Him. If we possess Him, We lack nothing. In Christ, every sinner who believes
in Christ, every sinner born of God, every sinner who looks
out of himself to Christ for everything has complete atonement,
complete reconciliation by blood to God Almighty, complete forgiveness
of all sins. Complete righteousness. Complete
holiness. Complete sanctification. Complete
life. Complete acceptance with God.
We are complete in Him. In whom also ye were circumcised. We receive this completion when
we receive this circumcision. Circumcised in Christ, yes, in
Him representatively when He was circumcised in His life of
obedience to God. More importantly, circumcised
in Him as far as our experience is concerned, more importantly,
circumcised in Him when we have been circumcised by His Spirit
in regeneration. Circumcised with that circumcision
made without hands. This, I repeat, is the new birth. It is not the work of any man.
It is not the work of any church. It is the work of God alone. This is that inward circumcision
of the heart of which Paul speaks in Romans chapter 2 and again
in our text this morning in Romans 4. This is God's work. It is the spirit that quickeneth.
The flesh profiteth nothing. I hope you know I'm speaking
specifically now to you who do not know our God. You young people
who don't know God, you adults who don't know Him. I hope you
know how earnestly I crave your everlasting salvation from God
Almighty. I want you to know God. I want
you to know God. I labor in preaching the gospel. to your souls faithfully because
I want you to know God I pray for you earnestly because I want
you to know God but I refuse to do anything by which to make
you think you know God because I care for your soul I'm not gonna Twist your arm
into a profession of faith. I'm not going to try to get you
to say I believe in Jesus when you don't. I'm not going to try
to get you to feel good and say, well, now everything's taken
care of when nothing's taken care of. I want you to believe the Son
of God. And this I know. I have absolutely
no question about this. When God gives you faith in Christ,
you won't need me to tell you about it. You won't need confirmation from
me. When God gives life, that's the confirmation. He causes you
to believe. You suddenly find yourself believing
on the Son of God. I just caught Bobby's eye. My
soul, how long it's been now, I don't know. Brother Bobby started
coming to church out here when he and Judah got married. And
you correct me if I'm wrong, he'd come once in a while on
Sunday morning, And then he started coming a little more regular
on Sunday morning. Been in church all his life. I remember one of these
whoopee churches down the road. And he made a profession of faith
as a little boy. Then he started coming pretty
regular on Sunday mornings. And I announced one Sunday morning
I was going to be preaching a series of messages on the doctrines
of grace on Tuesday nights. And he showed up and been sitting
right there ever since. And after about three years,
He met me at the door one day coming in, or going out, I forgot
what it was. He said, God saved me and gave me faith in Christ.
I want to confess Him in baptism. Is that about right? What changed? God saved him. Gave him life and faith in Christ. And if God saves you and gives
you life and faith in Christ, you won't need somebody else
to tell you He did it. He tells you He did it. It's
the spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing. So as
I've prepared and preached to you, I pray that God will speak
His Word to you. But I leave you in God's hands,
and I am thankful I can do so with confidence. So then it is
not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God
that showeth mercy. Now watch what the apostle says
next in Colossians. in putting off the body of the
sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. What's he talking
about? The body of sins, our corrupt
nature, with its corrupt deeds is compared to a garment that
must be put off, a filthy garment, a filthy garment. When a person
has been circumcised in his heart, the filthy garments of sin are
put off. You mean, preacher, you quit
sinning? Oh, you know better than that.
No, no, no, no. But this filthy garment of sin
is put off by Christ. He wrapped himself in the filthy
garments of our sin, and bare them in his own body on the tree,
and became a sacrifice for them. And by his death on the cross,
the old man was crucified with Christ. That's what scripture
says. That old man was crucified with Christ. And this body is
put off by faith in him. When the blood of Christ The
righteousness of Christ, the sacrifice of Christ is affectionately
applied to the heart. He calls his sinners to look
to him in faith. Their consciences are purged
of guilt. Their iniquities pass from them. And they're clothed with the
garments of salvation. You have a great picture of it
back in Zechariah. Zechariah chapter 3. Turn back there. Zechariah
3. He showed me Joshua, the high
priest, standing before the angel of the Lord. He's come back from
Babylon, but he's defiled himself, marrying a Babylonian woman,
and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the Lord
said to Satan, the Lord rebuked thee, O Satan, even the Lord
that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuked thee. Is not this a brand plucked
out of the burning? Now Joshua, was clothed with
filthy garments and stood before the angel. God, here I stand.
I confess my sin to you. If we confess our sin, he's faithful
and just to forgive us our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Joshua stood before God with his filthy garments on him. And
he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying,
take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said,
Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will
clothe thee with a change of raiment. And I said, Let them
set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon
his head, and clothed him with garments. And Christ stood by. The angel of the Lord stood by.
This putting off of the body of the sins of the flesh is accompanied
by the power of God the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit
comes into a sinner's heart, when God invades you by omnipotent
grace, when Christ sets up His throne in you, giving you life
and faith in Him, He lays you under the restraint of His grace
and He won't allow sin to have dominion. He causes grace to
reign through righteousness in your soul, and new life begins
in us. And the believer himself puts
off this body to flesh. Turn to Ephesians chapter 4.
Yeah, Ephesians chapter 4. By the grace and power of God,
believing on the Son of God, we put off the old man with his
deeds and put on the new. Look at verse 17. This I say,
therefore, and testify in the Lord that ye henceforth walk
not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind, having
the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God
through the ignorance that was in them because of the blindness
of their heart, who being past feeling have given themselves
over unto lasciviousness to work all uncleanness with greediness.
But ye have not so learned Christ, if so be that ye have heard him,
and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus, that
ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, that
old man which is corrupt according to the deceitful lust, and be
renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that ye put on the
new man which after God is created in righteousness and in true
holiness. You see, grace promises righteousness. Grace proclaims righteousness. Grace provides righteousness. And grace produces righteousness. Grace makes sinners righteous. I can't stress this sufficiently. Not righteous before men, but
righteous before God. Anybody Anybody in here can live
as good a life as Mother Teresa lived. Any of you can. I call
her Mother Teresa just so you'll know her. She's just another
nun, just another depraved woman going to hell now. But anybody
can live just as good a life as she did. Anybody can. Anybody
can. You don't have to have any grace
to quit drinking. You don't have to have any grace
to pay all your taxes. You don't have to have any grace
to quit stealing. You don't have to have any grace
to quit running around on your wife. You don't have to have
any grace not to be a liar, a fornicator, a cheater. You don't have to
have any. All you got to do is just not do it. Anybody can do
that. This circumcision that produces
righteousness puts Christ in you, a holiness that no human
eye can see. When a man was circumcised, the
circumcision was a very private thing. Nobody ever saw it except when
the man exposed himself to someone in a manner that ought not be
done. The only time he showed himself to be circumcised was
when he was showing something vile concerning him. You understand
that? And the only way I can show my
neighbor that I'm a Christian is by showing something vile.
That's exactly right. That's exactly right. You can't
show Christianity. You show religion and self-righteousness
and goodness in the eyes of men. You can't show Christianity. It's in you. It's in you. It's in you. It's in you. Christ in you, the hope of glory. The circumcision made without
hands is not a symbol of righteousness, but rather it is the production
and performing of righteousness in you. Now let me make two statements,
and I'll wrap this up with regard to the saying of circumcision.
Understand the typical significance of circumcision first. It signified
at least these five things. At least these five things. A
sealing. A sealing. This was the sign by which God
sealed righteousness to Abraham. This was a sign by which God
sealed righteousness to Abraham. Now wait a minute. I got to looking
at that. this week and preparing this
message and again last night and this morning. But God already
said to Abraham, you're righteous. He had his word for it. God already
told him, you're righteous. You're righteous. I've accepted
you. You're righteous. Abraham believed
God and God declared to him, you're righteous. It was imputed
to him for righteousness. Well, how then was circumcision
a seal of righteousness symbolically? Only symbolically. Abraham had
no more sense that he was righteous that day when he was 99 years
old and was circumcised than he did back in Genesis chapter
15 when God said, you're righteous. Well, what's this mean then?
Abraham, this is a sign in the flesh. Representing the way I
seal righteousness to sinners by the gift of my grace in the
renewing of the Holy Ghost in the new birth. was a seal, a
seal of righteousness. Let's see if I can be good on
that. Look at Ephesians chapter 1, Ephesians 1 verse 1 or verse 12 rather. God did all
His works of grace for us in election, predestination, and
redemption that we should be to the praise of His glory who
first trusted in Christ. Now watch verse 13, In whom ye
also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel
of your salvation. Having heard the word of truth,
you trusted him. In whom also, after that ye believed. That is, having believed, ye
were sealed, sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. which
is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased
possession under the praise of his glory. The male child was
required by God under law to be brought into the house of
God on the eighth day after its birth to be circumcised. In the
scriptures the number eight speaks of new beginning. It always speaks
of new beginning so that on the New beginning of life. That baby's
been here for a week now. Here starts another week. A new
beginning. A new beginning. We finished
last week yesterday. Today's a new week. A new beginning. A new beginning. Oh, this is
eight days since last Sunday. A new beginning. On the eighth
day after his birth, in a new beginning, the child was circumcised
according to the law. And on the eighth day, on the
eighth day, when God in the appointed time of love comes to chosen
sinners, in due time creating Christ in you, a new beginning. Life commences. Life commences
when God puts Christ in you. A new beginning. Circumcision
was a seal. and circumcision was painful. Back before the days of anesthesia,
you remember that Simeon and Levi decided that they were going
to avenge their sister who had been taken by one of the men
of Shechem. And in order to avenge her, they
hatched a plot. They said, all right, we will
We'll give our sister to you to marry her if all the men of
Shalem, this city in Shechem, will agree to be circumcised."
They said, well, we'll do that. We'll do that. I could preach a sermon on this,
but for you who are not yet believers, and you say, well, I'm not going
to I want to be sure a fella believes the gospel before I
marry her, or she believes the gospel before I marry her. Well,
when passions get to running hot, folks will do about anything
and get what they want. And they'll profess to believe
in Jesus. And they'll profess to be believers. And they'll only be to their
damnation and probably yours too. But these sons of Shechem,
these fellows who said, well, we'll do that. Yeah, we'll do
that. And so they were all circumcised.
And then two men, two men killed every last one
of them because they couldn't defend themselves. They were
so weak because of the pain of the circumcision. Circumcision was painful. Circumcision
for an adult in the heart is painful. I know nothing at all
about what you doctors do in circumcising a baby. I have no
idea how painful or lack of pain there is with a baby, but I can
tell you this. Circumcision for an adult is
painful. It's painful. Circumcision of
the heart involves the pricking of your heart, the cutting of your heart, the
exposing to you of what you are. Now, I preach and you get mad
at me. And I'll be honest with you, I would too. I would too. If a fella exposed what I am
and I don't want folks to know it, I'd get angry too. No, I'm
not like that. No, no, no, no, no, I'm not like
that. But when God exposes you to yourself, He'll break you
to nothing. And He's the only one who can.
Circumcision is painful. It involves the slaying of a
man. To have iniquity and corruption
open, the heart broken and groaning with a sense of sin and the terror
of death. and to have the hardness and
callousness of your heart made bare to you. Circumcision involves
great pain. And circumcision was purified. Purified. Circumcision of faith
is the purifying of the heart, we're told in Acts 15. It's the
purifying of the heart. It's that by which the heart
is made pure. How so? The conscience is purged
from dead work, so God declares you not guilty. The life is purified
by faith in Christ Jesus. We're told in 1 John 3 too. How
does this circumcision of the heart make us pure? It imparts
to us the righteousness of Christ. Gives us a new nature. Makes
us new creatures. It makes us partakers of the
divine nature. Circumcision is a mark that purifies. It's a seal. It's a painful mark. And circumcision is a mark of
distinction. A mark of distinction. By the
new birth, by the circumcision of the heart, the Lord doth put
a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. As I said earlier,
the distinction, the distinction is a distinction seen only by
God. Only by God. We esteem our brethren, our brethren. Because Mark, you profess to
be my brother. And that's the best thing I know
about you. That's the best thing I know about you. You've lived
with that lady a long time, haven't you? But you don't know her heart. You can't know her heart. Not
possible. Well, I know my wife's heart.
No, you don't. No, you don't. And she doesn't
know yours. Well, I know, if ever there's
been a Christian, that lady's one. I esteem her such, for she
professes such. I had the privilege of being
married to the finest person I've met in my life, but that
doesn't make her a Christian. My esteem for her doesn't mean
a thing. Not before God. Not before God. This is a mark
of distinction only God and the sinner in whom the circumcision
is made truly know. Only God and the sinner in whom
the circumcision is made truly knows. This is a very private
thing, a private distinction. And this is a permanent mark.
Circumcision, as far as I know, can't be reversed physically.
I know spiritually it can't. Grace is permanent. Forgiveness
is permanent. Eternal life is permanent. Now,
turn to Philippians chapter 3. Let me show you the results. Philippians chapter 3. Finally, my brethren, rejoice
in the Lord. To write the same things to you,
to me, indeed, is not grievous, but for you it is safe. Beware
of dogs. Beware of evil workers. Beware
of the concision. Beware Dawes, he's talking about
false prophets, male prostitutes, men who sell their souls for
a price, proclaiming a false gospel, evil workers teaching
you that salvation is by your good works, the concision, people
who teach you to be circumcised in your flesh, people who teach
you to hurt yourself to be saved, people who teach you to show
how good you are, by your good deeds. Beware of them, for we
are the circumcision. We really are those of whom God
spoke in Deuteronomy 30 verse 6. We really are the sons of
Abraham. We really are God's covenant
children who worship God. We worship God. We adore God
in all His being, in all His character, in all His glory,
in the Spirit. We worship God spiritually. We
worship God in our souls. We worship God by His Spirit.
We don't worship God with outward signs and symbols and holy days
and religious slogans and religious garb and religious garbage. No,
we worship God in the Spirit. and we rejoice in Christ Jesus. That is, we trust our Lord, delightfully
trust Him, His blood as our only atonement, His righteousness
as our only righteousness, His intercession as our only acceptance
with God, His suretyship as our only salvation, and have no confidence
in the flesh. No confidence in the flesh. How can I say this like it needs
to be said? No confidence before God. No confidence that I belong
to God. No confidence that I'm saved,
that I know God, that I know Christ. No peace of mind, no
heart, no heart joy, no anticipation of heaven and the glory because
of anything I've said, done, felt, experienced, anything in
the flesh. We trust Christ alone and that's
the circumcision of the heart in its results. Now turn back
to Jeremiah chapter 4 and I'll wrap this up. Jeremiah 4 verse
3. Jeremiah chapter 4 verse 3. Thus saith the Lord to the men
of Judah and Jerusalem. Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns. Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns. Break your heart. Break your
heart. Break your heart. Circumcise
yourselves to the Lord, and take away the forskins of your heart.
Break up your own hard heart, circumcise yourselves to the
Lord, and take away the forskins of your heart. What a command,
ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, lest my fury come
forth like fire and burn that none can quench it because of
the evil of your doings. But pastor, you know I can't
break up my own hard heart. I've tried. You who are believers, how you
try to break your hearts and you can't do it. Do I speak the
truth? Try to come to God with a broken
heart? You can't break your heart. How can I circumcise my heart?
How can I do that? How can I take away the foreskin
of my flesh? It can't be done. Not by me.
But God commands it. God commands it. But blessed
be His name forever. There is one who can. To believe on the Son of God. is to break up your heart. To
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is to circumcise your heart.
To believe on the Son of God is to take away the foreskin
of your flesh as God commands. Come to Christ and He'll come
to you. Look to Christ and He'll look to you. Reach out to Christ
and He'll reach out to you. Lay hold of Christ and He'll
lay hold of you. Lay bare your heart to Christ and He'll lay
bare His heart. to you. This is the sign of circumcision. This is the sign of circumcision.
By circumcision, God pledged to his son Abraham, you're righteous
and I pledge myself to you. By circumcision, In that sign,
God pledged to his son Abraham, you're righteous, and I pledge
myself to you. And in the new birth, as God
gives sinners faith in Christ, in this new work of circumcision,
made without hands by God the Holy Spirit, the Lord God, our
Father, pledges his sons and daughters to himself. That's what they pretend to do
when a mom and daddy bring their baby to a priest and they pledge
that baby to God. We're going to raise him a Christian. What foolishness. What absurd
nonsense. What stupidity. No, no, no, no. But when God comes into you,
circumcises your heart, giving you faith in Jesus Christ. God
pledges himself to you and God pledges his son to himself. God causes his own to consecrate
their selves to him by faith in his son. Oh, may God cause
you now to believe on his son, walking in the steps of that
faith of our father Abraham, believing on Jesus Christ the
Lord. Amen.