CIRCUMCISION
First Word
I was listening to my neighbor Jim talk about the
Apostle Paul’s stand on circumcision not being necessary for the believer. –
That spring boarded into the Old Covenant vs. the New Covenant. – Which brought
up the question of how could a Covenant spoken into existence by God be
nullified? –
That was an excellent point and I couldn’t wait to
go see what God had to say.
The
Bible is the inspired Word of God with all scriptures
carrying
the same weight - We cannot pick and choose;
but
prove scripture with scripture, line upon line
precept
upon precept. Isa 28:10
The Adam’s Family
- How many sins does it
take to become a sinner? – None – We were born 100% sinners – We are
members of THE
- There is no HYBRID
family – You are either IN or OUT – Saved or Lost.
- When you were saved, your
SIN was not saved – It’s still crouching at your door and desires to
pounce on you, but you must master it. - The reason you sin, is because
sin STILL lives within you, but it is not you that sins. - Sounds like
DOUBLE
- Forgiveness of Sin in
the New Testament is taught as an ACOMPLISHED
- SO - what has SIN got
to do with CIRCUMCISION. - Stay Tuned
Gen 4:7 – Sin is crouching
at your door
7 If you do what is right, will you not be
accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;
it desires to have you, but you must master it." NIV
Rom 7:15-17 – Sin still
lives within us
15 I do not understand what I do. For what
I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.
16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree
that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it,
but it is sin living in me.
Rom 7:20 – It is sin that lives in us that causes us to sin.
20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no
longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. NIV
Acts 13:38 – Forgiveness of sin is proclaimed
38 "Therefore, my brothers, I want you to
know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. NIV
John 3:18 – Believers are not judged
18 He that believeth on him is not judged:
he that believeth not hath been judged already, because he hath not believed on
the name of the only begotten Son of God. ASV
Setting the stage
- Circumcision comes from a Latin
word that means “to cut around”. – An operation where the foreskin
covering the head of a penis is removed by surgery.
- The
foreskin
can be an incubator for disease. - The Hebrews realized that circumcision
promoted cleanliness which would later become spiritualized as a symbol
of purification and a passage into the covenant relationship with God.
- Don’t
get you pants all in a wad here, but circumcision was practiced long before
Abraham. Primitive tribes in
- Abraham
was
familiar with this rite when God commanded him and his descendents to
make this covenant. - Anyone not circumcised was viewed with contempt.
– Circumcision was meant to symbolize the power and activity of the Holy
Spirit in their lives and a commitment of oneself to God’s WILL forever.
- Captivity
–
During their 430 years of captivity in
- Moses
was commanded Later on by God to continue the covenant on the eighth
day which we know now is the peak time when vitamin “K” and
“Prothrombin” is at its highest level which is important in blood
clotting. – The Bible briefly mentions that God became very angry with
Moses for NOT observing circumcision. – He almost killed him.
- THE
MARK
- Tattoos were often used to identify members of a local tribe; Hebrews
were forbidden to mark or tattoo them selves like the heathen nation’s did
- Circumcision became the mark of the Hebrews as a special people although
it was not that readily discerned.
- “The Blood Covenant” is the strongest covenant that
there is. During circumcision there
is blood that flows from the “cutting of the covenant” NYOBS
05.34 Blood Covenant
- The Circumcision
Ceremony
was performed on the eighth day even if it was on the Sabbath. It was a time of great joy as
well as sacredness as it symbolizes the son joining the covenant
relationship of God and living under His laws. – It was attended by
relatives and neighbors either in their home or in the
- Infant
circumcision
was the distinctive Israelite custom not found in any other culture.
- A Jew’s
prayer
would be to thank God that he was neither a woman or a Samaritan or an uncircumcised
Gentile.
- Jesus and John the
Baptist were both circumcised. - Do you want to be circumcised to be
more like Christ? – Do so out of
desire, not out of compliance of a law that does not apply –
Circumcision does not save; only Faith. - It should be pointed out that
one can possess the outward sign
of circumcision and still be spiritually defunct inwardly.
Gen 17:10-14 –
Circumcision - Sign of the Covenant with God
10 This is my covenant with you and your
descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you
shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the
sign of the covenant between me and you.
12 For the generations to come every male among
you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those
born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner--those who are not
your offspring.
13 Whether born in your household or bought with
your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an
everlasting covenant.
14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been
circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my
covenant."
NIV
Lev 12:3 – Moses commanded
to circumcise on the 8th day
3 On the eighth day the boy is to be
circumcised. NIV
Ex 4:24 -26 – God was Angry with Moses for not circumcising
24 At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met
[Moses] and was about to kill him.
25 But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her
son's foreskin and touched [Moses'] feet with it. "Surely you are a
bridegroom of blood to me," she said.
26 So the LORD let him alone. NIV
Ex 12:40 – Lived in Egypt
40 Now the length of time the Israelite people
lived in Egypt
Gen 15:13 – Prophecy – Israel
13 Then the LORD said to him, "Know for
certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and
they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.
NIV
Luke 1:59-60 – John was
circumcised
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise
the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah,
60 but his mother spoke up and said, "No! He
is to be called John."
NIV
Luke 2:21 – Jesus was circumcised
21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise
him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he
had been conceived. NIV
Side Bar
- FAR
OUT;
there was a time in PAGAN rituals of child sacrifices to
appease the gods that circumcision was viewed as sacrificing “a part” of a
person to the gods instead of the person’s whole life.
- JOCK - It seems that the
Greeks had sporting events where they were naked in the public baths and gymnasiums
and the Jews were “Embarrassed” that they were circumcised; this
became an issue in the Church at
- Plastic
surgery
– According to the Apocrypha,
the “Hellenized” Jews underwent plastic surgery to restore their
foreskins. 1 Maccabees 1:15
- A
matter of expediency – Paul circumcised Timothy who was “half
Jewish” in order to not have an issue that would have hindered his
testimony of the Gospel. – Paul said he became all things to all in order
that they might receive the Word of the Gospel and be saved.
Rom 1:16 – I am NOT ASHAMED of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
16 I am not ASHAMED of the gospel, because
it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: NIV
1 Cor 7:17-20 – Keeping
God’s commands is what counts
17 Nevertheless, each one should retain the place
in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is
the rule I lay down in all the churches.
18 Was a man already circumcised when he was
called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when
he was called? He should not be circumcised.
19 Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision
is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts.
20 Each one should remain in the situation which
he was in when God called him. NIV
Acts 16:3 – Let’s get on
with the program – I’ll circumcise you
3 Paul wanted to take him (Timothy) along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of
the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.
NIV
1 Cor 9:19 -23 – I become all things to share the
19 Though I am free and belong to no man, I
make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.
20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win
the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though
I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.
21 To those not having the law I became like
one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under
Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law.
22 To the weak I became weak, to win the
weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I
might save some.
23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that
I may share in its blessings. NIV
CONTROVERSY
·
Church Controversy – Circumcision was the
first controversy in the Church. Those
that were know as Judaizers
took a position that any Gentile who wanted to become a Christian must first become
a proselyte Jew and be circumcised before he could be a member of the Christian
fellowship.
·
Paul took exception to that,
claiming that salvation was Faith in
Jesus Christ alone and nothing else – Paul taught that it was the
Spiritual circumcision of the heart that was important not the outward physical
circumcision.
·
Jeremiah the Prophet taught the same thing as
Paul; it was the “circumcision of the heart” that was important.
·
Peter had been commanded to
take the Gospel to the “circumcised” Jews.
·
Paul had been commanded to
take the same message to the “un-circumcised” Gentiles.
·
Christian Church Counsel; the “CCC ” met and after Paul presented his case to them, the
Church Counsel determined that Abraham was saved by his Faith not by the Law
of circumcision and they broke away from the binding LEGALISM of Judaism
and agreed that circumcision should not be a requirement to become a Christian.
Ezek 44:7 – Circumcision
of heart and flesh
7 In addition to all your other detestable
practices, you brought foreigners uncircumcised in heart and flesh into
my sanctuary, desecrating my temple while you offered me food, fat and blood,
and you broke my covenant NIV
Jer 9:25-26 – Circumcision
of the heart is the important thing
25 "The days are coming," declares the
LORD, "when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh—
26 Egypt Judah Edom Ammon , Moab Israel
Deut 30:6 – God will
circumcise your heart
6 The LORD your God will circumcise your
hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with
all your heart and with all your soul, and live. NIV
Rom 4:9-12 – Abraham was
righteous before he was circumcised.
9 Is this blessedness only for the circumcised,
or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham's faith
was credited to him as righteousness.
10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was
it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before!
11 And he received the sign of circumcision,
a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still
uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have
not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. 12
And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but
who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before
he was circumcised. NIV
Rom 2:28 -29 – Inward circumcision of the Heart by the Spirit
28 A man is not a Jew if he is only one
outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical.
29 No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly;
and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the
written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God. NIV
Gal 2:1-8 – God does not
judge by external appearance
1 Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem
2 I went in response to a revelation and set
before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this
privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had
run my race in vain.
3 Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was
compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek.
4[This matter arose] because some false brothers
had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus
and to make us slaves.
5 We did not give in to them for a moment, so that
the truth of the gospel might remain with you.
6 As for those who seemed to be important-whatever
they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external
appearance-those men added nothing to my message.
7 On the contrary, they saw that I had been
entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles,
just as Peter had been to the Jews.
8 For God, who was at work in the ministry of
Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle
to the Gentiles. NIV
Gal 2:15 -16 –We are justified by our Faith in Jesus not the Law
15 "We who are Jews by birth and not `Gentile
sinners'
16 know that a man is not justified by
observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith
in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by
observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
NIV
Acts 15:1-19 – The Church
Council agreed with Paul
1 Some men came down from Judea to Antioch
2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp
dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with
some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem
4 When they came to Jerusalem
5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the
party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be
circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses."
6 The apostles and elders met to consider this
question.
7 After much discussion, Peter got up and
addressed them:
8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he
accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us.
9 He made no distinction between us and them, for
he purified their hearts by faith.
12 The whole assembly became silent as they
listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders
God had done among the Gentiles through them.
15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with
this
19 "It is my judgment, therefore, that
we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.
NIV
Rom 4:9-11 – Faith not
circumcision made Abraham righteous
9 We have been saying that Abraham's faith
was credited to him as righteousness.
10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was
it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before!
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a
seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still
uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not
been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
NIV
SO WHAT’S THE POINT
·
Circumcision
was a “mark” to distinguish the Jew’s who were set apart with the promise of
salvation from those who were “Gentiles” who did not have the promise.
– Anyone who was not a Jew was called a Gentile; a Greek. – So a Gentile is actually
everybody else.
·
I use the term “Jew” loosely here, as in reality
only those from the tribe of Judah
·
TODAY,
both the Jew and the Gentile have the promise and there is NO distinction
between them, so there’s no longer any need to DISCRIMINATE.
·
Circumcision
is NO LONGER a requirement. – WHAT !
·
Now
if that got your pants all in a wad, I need to pick up with what we first
started with which was SIN and to do
that we need to go down a Rabbit Trail
which takes us to the NEW COVENANT.
Eph 2:14-18 – Christ gave
us the New Covenant
14 For he (Christ) himself is our peace, who
has made the two one (Jew and Gentile) and has destroyed the
barrier, the dividing wall of hostility,
15 by abolishing in his flesh the law with its
commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man
out of the two, thus making peace,
16 and in this one body to reconcile both of them
to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
17 He came and preached peace to you who were
far away (Gentiles) and peace to those who
were near (Jews).
18 For through him we both (Jew and Gentile) have access to the Father by one Spirit.
NIV
13 When you were dead in your sins and in
the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with
Christ. He forgave us all our sins,
14 having canceled the written code, with its
regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it
away, nailing it to the cross.
NIV
11 In him you were also circumcised, in the
putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the
hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ,
NIV
Rom 2:25-27 – Circumcision
has no value if you’re a law breaker.
25 Circumcision has value if you observe the law,
but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been
circumcised.
26 If those who are not circumcised keep the law's
requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised?
27 The one who is not circumcised physically and
yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code
and circumcision, are a lawbreaker. NIV
- How could the Old
Covenant spoken into existence by God Himself be nullified?
- My mom use to tell
me, GOD
- God said He would
make a
- The tabernacle on
earth was but a shadow of a better Tabernacle in Heaven that is to
come. The ritual of SIN
Sacrifices was offered in the Tabernacle over and over again. - The
sacrifice of Christ was ONCE and forever. He Himself was a better SIN Sacrifice.
- The Old Covenant eligibility for “THE PROMISE” was determined by
your birth; you had to be descendent of Abraham whose seed gave us the
“Levitical Priesthood”. – The New Covenant that was extended to the
Gentiles (everybody) gave us a better Promise.
CHANGE IN THE PRIESTHOOD
·
Jesus was not from the tribe of Levi therefore He could not be
a Levitical Priest.
·
A
change occurred when Jesus was made a Priest after the Order of Melchizedek, a Higher an Older order
than that of the Levitical Priesthood. – A better
High Priest.
- When there is a
change in the Priesthood there MUST
be a change in the Law. There
must be a New Covenant. - It’s in the book, Heb
- Jesus Christ is the
mediator of a better Covenant;
we have a better Sacrifice, a better Priesthood, better Promises, and a better Tabernacle.
THE BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
- The Synagogue was different from
the
- Jesus
went into the Synagogue and was handed the book of Isaiah the Prophet to read; STANDING he read - "The
Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach
good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for
the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release
the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." --
He told them, that TODAY
this prophecy has been FULFILLED.
- He closed the book and
- Old
Covenant:
The law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified
by FAITH. Now that FAITH has come, we
are no longer under the supervision of the law.
- New Covenant: Jesus said he did not come to do away with
the law of the Old Covenant, but to FULFILL IT. – It is finished – It has
been COMPLETED
Heb 8:7 – Man found wrong
– could not keep the Old Covenant.
7 For if there had been nothing wrong with
that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. NIV
Heb 8:8-9 – Prophecy – God
will make a new covenant with Israel
8 But God found fault with the people and said:
"The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel Judah
9 It will not be like the covenant I made with
their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt
Jer 31:31-33 – It will be
written on their hearts and mind
31 "The time is coming," declares the
LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel Judah
32 It will not be like the covenant I made
with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt
33 "This is the covenant I will make with the
house of Israel
Heb 6:20 - Jesus was a
Priest after the order of Melchizedek
20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on
our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of
Melchizedek. NIV
Heb 7:12 – Change in Priesthood – Change in Law
12 For when there is a change of the priesthood,
there must also be a change of the law. NIV
Heb 9:15 - Christ is the mediator of a new covenant
15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a
new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal
inheritance-now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins
committed under the first covenant. NIV
Heb 7:21-22 – A better
covenant
21 But he became a priest with an oath when God
said to him: "The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: `You are a
priest forever.'" Because of this
oath,
22 Jesus has become the guarantee of a
better covenant. NIV
Heb 8:10 – New Covenant in their minds and hearts.
10 This is the covenant I will make with
the house of Israel
1 Some of the elders of Israel
Matt 5:17 – Jesus fulfilled and completed the Old Covenant
17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish
the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to FULFIL them
NIV
Luke 4:16-21 – Jesus
FULFILLED the prophecy of Isaiah
16 He went to Nazareth
17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed
to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18 "The
Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good
news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19 to
proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it
back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the
synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, "Today
this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." NIV
Rom 10:4 – Christ IS the
end of the Law
4 Christ is the end of the law so that
there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. NIV
THE HYBRID COVENANT – RABBIT
TRAIL
- A
little OLD and a little
- The Old Covenant was
about MEN and the “DO NOT’S”
– The New Covenant is about HIM and Love.
- The Old Covenant in Jewish law was
not just The BIG
- Do you keep the
Sabbath from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday? – I
- Do have any graven
images such as small statues or pictures of Saints of old in your home on
the dash of your car. – I
- Do you offer any blood
sacrifices for sin? – I
- Pick
and Choose what
you WANT from the Faith Buffet and leave the
rest.
- Hybrid
Covenant
– We tend to MIX some of the Old Covenant with some of the New Covenant. –
We alter the rules to fit our lifestyle. – The Apostle Paul called this
FOOLISHNESS. – We begin to push the envelope when we say we must take up our
cross daily and crucify our self or cut off our offending hand or pluck
out our offending eye. – These statements are just concepts of Christ “Raising
the Bar” on our standards; showing us that we cannot possibly achieve these
standards without a SAVIOR.
- The
Old Covenant
set the standard for man to obtain righteousness and it is STILL THE
STANDARD, BUT what it really did was show you and me that we cannot
attain this righteous in our own strength, but need a Savior. – The only
way to fulfill this law is to accept the one who could and did fulfill it.
– If you are led by the Spirit, you are no longer under the written
law, but under GRACE.
- Paul says to keep it simple and don’t be led
astray with MIXED doctrine.
- The OT commandments
did not bring salvation, but showed us THE WAY to obtain it through the acceptance of the work
of Jesus Christ.
- Part of the Mosaic
Law was the ceremonial law of offering sacrifices for sin, Jesus was the
FINAL sacrifice; once and for all, FULFILLING the law.
- We become justified
or saved through Faith - not by observing the Law - we have
died to the written code and have been made alive to serve in a
- The new covenant is
like
Gal 5:3-4 – Follow one
point of the Law – Must follow all points.
3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be
circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.
4 You who are trying to be justified by law
have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. NIV
Gal 3:1-5 – You are
foolish to mix the two covenants.
1 You FOOLISH Galatians! Who has bewitched
you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
2 I would like to learn just one thing from you:
Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what
you heard?
3 Are you so FOOLISH? After beginning with
the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?
4 Have you suffered so much for nothing-if it
really was for nothing? 5 Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among
you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you
heard? NIV
2 Cor 11:3- It’s simple –
Don’t be led away and be deceived.
3 But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived
by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your
sincere and pure devotion to Christ. NIV
Gal 3:23-25 – We are no
longer under the supervision of the Law
23 Before this faith came, we were held
prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed.
24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to
Christ that we might be justified by faith.
25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer
under the supervision of the law. NIV
Gal 5:18 – Led by the Spirit – Not under the law
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not
under law. NIV
Rom 6:14 - you are not
under law, but under GRACE
14 For sin shall not be your master, because you
are not under law, but under GRACE. NIV
Matt 9:17 – You cannot put new wind into old wineskins.
17 Neither do men pour new wine into old
wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out
and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins,
and both are preserved."
NIV
James 2:10 – Break one Law; GUILTY of ALL of it
10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles
at just one point is GUILTY of breaking ALL of it. NIV
Gal 3:10 – You are CURSED if you do not do everything
10 All who rely on observing the law are under a
curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue
to do everything written in the Book of the Law." NIV
Rom 3:28-29 – Man is saved
by FAITH, not observing the law
28 For we maintain that a man is justified by
faith apart from observing the law.
29 Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not
the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, NIV
Rom 7:6 – We have died to
the old way of the written code
6 But now, by dying to what once bound us,
we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the
Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. NIV
Baptism – Rabbit Trail
- As a SIGN of their commitment to God,
the Jews were circumcised to show that they were different from all the
other nations. It was not the outward symbolization of circumcision
that made them a Jew; but it was their inward CHANGE of heart. - Although it is not a command, we see
Gentiles today desiring to be circumcised; mostly at birth by their
parents
- The use of water is a
physical sign of baptism and is the public “symbol” witnessing to our
“change” and commitment to God, much like the symbol of circumcision is an
outward and inward change to the Jew.
- Water had a heavy symbolism
of purity and was used in purification rites. There are two similar
words in Greek for Baptize; Bapto
meaning to dip or immerse and the other Baptizo meaning a
change that has taken place by some means. The latter was used
most of the time in the scriptures.
- Before Jesus came on
the scene, John was using water
baptism as the symbol of a person’s testimony of “repenting of sin”
and their changed life. They
certainly knew the story of Noah’s family being saved by being
raised up above the waters in
the ark and the Israelites being saved by deliverance through the waters of the
- Faith in Jesus Christ
is the necessary condition to receive baptism - baptism is a
sacramental SIGN of new life through and in Christ. Baptism is symbolic of “CHANGE”; we die
to our old life and are “born again”
to a new life.
- There
are actually two baptisms – One of WATER that washes the dirt from the
body and one of the SPIRIT which washes the dirt from the heart.
- Born of Water is when a baby is
born and the mother’s water breaks.
- Born of Spirit is when we have a
spiritual birth and something is born on the inside of us.
- Scripture teaches
that the thief on the cross was NOT baptized, but yet was saved.
- We are saved through
Faith and His Grace - While Water Baptism does not save, it is the New
Covenant sacrament of confession. -
If you do not CONFESS it, you do not POSSESS it. NYOBS
03.07 Baptism
- That brings us to the
BAPTISM of the HOLY SPIRIT and the gifts of the Spirit which is another whole
Word Study – NYOBS 20.36 - 06.08 -
08.12
1 Cor 1:12-17 – Contention
- Who baptized you
12 What I mean is this: One of you says, "I
follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I
follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ."
13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified
for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
14 I am thankful that I did not baptize any of
you except Crispus and Gaius,
15 so no one can say that you were baptized into
my name.
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but
to preach the gospel-not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of
Christ be emptied of its power. NIV
John 3:5-6 – Two Baptisms
– Water and Spirit
5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no
one can enter the kingdom of God
6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives
birth to spirit. NIV
1 Peter 3:21-22 - It saves
you by the Resurrection of Jesus
21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now
saves you also-not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good
conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
22 who has gone into heaven and is at God's right
hand-with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. NIV
Luke 23:42 -43 – You will be with me in Paradise
42 Then he (the thief on
the cross)
said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth,
today you will be with me in paradise." NIV
Matt 28:19 – THE GREAT
COMMISSION – Baptize them
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and
of the Holy Spirit. NIV
Summary
- Everything that Jesus
did on the earth was under the “Old Covenant” including circumcision. All of His teachings
were to people still under the OT - The New Testament or Covenant did not
start till His death and resurrection. – Scripture says that the
- Did Christ do away
with the Old Covenant? – NO, He fulfilled it. - He FINSHED it.
The
New Covenant does NOT set aside
the
PROMISES of the Old Covenant.
- Our Pride assures us that we
must “do something” to earn God’s favor and for some reason we just can’t
take the simplicity of “His Grace”.
- The New Covenant is
really pretty simple and straight forward; it refers to us as Saints NOT
Sinners. - It states that LOVE
fulfills the Law.
TWO
COMMANDMENTS
Love
God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength
Love
your neighbor as Jesus has loved you.
- There
you have it…
Talk about being challenged – Try loving your neighbor AS JESUS
- Although Baptism does not save, it is a New Covenant sacrament
indicating an UNASHAMED public profession of
faith in Jesus Christ.
- The
Lord’s Supper
or Communion is also a sacrament of the New Covenant.
- Circumcision or Tithing is NOT required, although circumcision
is healthy and so is giving.
- We are NOT bound by
the Ten Commandments which includes the
Sabbath observance, although we would do well to keep them. - Now your
pants are all in a WAD again aren’t they.
- OK – So go back to your
LEGALISTIC “Faith
Buffet” and pick and choose your own Hybrid Covenant.
- If I fulfill the LOVE
Commandments - It will cover NINE of the Big Ten commandments.
Heb 9:16 -17 – New Covenant began at Christ’s death
16 In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove
the death of the one who made it,
17 because a will is in force only when
somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is
living. NIV
John 19:30 – IT IS FINISHED
30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said,
"It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his
spirit. NIV
Heb 8:13 – The Old Covenant became obsolete
13 By calling this covenant "NEW ," he has made the
first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
Heb 7:18 -19 – The Old Covenant made nothing perfect.
18 The former regulation is set aside because it
was weak and useless
19(for the law made nothing perfect), and a
better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God. NIV
Gal 3:15 -25 –New Covenant does not set aside the PROMISES
15 Just as no one can set aside or add to a
human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case.
17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430
years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God
and thus do away with THE PROMISE. NIV
23 Before this faith came, we were held
prisoners by the law, locked up until FAITH should be revealed.
24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to
Christ that we might be justified by FAITH.
25 Now that faith has come, we are no
longer under the supervision of the law. NIV
Mark 12:28-31 – Two
Commandments of Love
28 Of all the commandments, which is the most
important?"
29 "The most important one," answered
Jesus, "is this: `Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
30 LOVE the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your
strength.'
31 The second is this: `LOVE your neighbor as
yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." NIV
Rom 13:8-10 – Love is the
fulfillment of the Law
8 He who LOVES his fellowman has fulfilled the
law.
9 The commandments, "Do not commit
adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do
not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in
this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." LOVE does no harm to its neighbor.
10 Therefore LOVE is the fulfillment of the law.
NIV
John 13:34 – Love one another
34 "A new command I give you: LOVE one
another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. NIV
1 John 3:9 – We cannot go
on sinning – We are born of God
9 No one who is born of God will continue to
sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he
has been born of God. NIV
1 Cor 11:26 – The Lord’s Supper Sacrament
26 For as often as you eat this bread and
drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. NKJV
In the multitude of counselors,
there is wisdom.
Prov 11:14
I am grateful for those that went before me providing concepts, ideas, historical information, and scripture verses. Because of them I can stand on their shoulders and see further than I otherwise ever could have.
Annotated Reference Bible – Dake
Apocrypha; The
– Edgar J. Goodspeed
Bible Almanac; The – Packer Tenny White
Bible Dictionary – Harper & Row
God without Religion - Andrew Farley
Illustrated Bible Dictionary – Nelson’s
Illustrated Bible Dictionary; The – Tyndale
Naked Gospel; The – Andrew Farley
New International Dictionary of the Bible; The – Douglas - Tenney
Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible; The – Zondervan
Thru The Bible Commentary – J. Vernon
Victor Journey through the Bible; The – V. Gilbert Beers
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