Circumcision of the Heart

Romans 2:17-29 Circumcision of the Heart

The nation of Israel as a whole was given the law but it did not profit them or bring them salvation

Deuteronomy 10:12-22 Love God, Love Others through the circumcision of the heart

Deuteronomy 30:1-6, 17-20 God will circumcise the hearts of those who call on him in repentence and faith

Moses describes the circumcision of the heart in two ways one negative and one positive

Be no more stiffnecked (10:16, 30:17)

Cleave unto the Lord (10:20, 30:20)

Reminder of the marriage covenant between Adam and Eve, leave and cleave

God is life, not the law and so we cling to him in relationship so as not to perish

Israel was instructed to teach this law of fearing God from generation to generation (Deuteronomy 31:9-13)

Outward, but not Inward (17-24)

God had made Israel instructors of his will and a light to the darkness of the world

They could rest knowing that God had placed his favor on them and could boast that they were the people of God

Deuteronomy 10:15 God had delight in thy fathers

Instead of boasting in God, they began to boast in the law

They forgot that God is not a respecter of persons, nor regards any person, nor can he be bribed

He loves the stranger (gentile) just as much as he loves the Jews and commanded the Jews to love the strangers around them knowing that the only reason they are who they are is because of God’s gracious work in their midst. (Deuteronomy 10:21)

Israel had brought dishonor to the name of God when they turned to idols

God’s name was blasphemed among the gentiles (Isaiah 52:5)

Inward, but not Outward (25-29)

The Jewish rite of circumcision bound them to the whole law of Moses to fulfill every part of it

Circumcision was supposed to be an outward sign of an inward work of God

This rite did not graduate the jew to a place above the law but rather placed them under the law

God will give praise to men who cleave to him in faith and repentence not those who seek to be praised by men

This circumcision is a cutting of the heart, a removal of hardness of heart and creating a tenderness to the things of God

This circumcision is identifying oneself as a child of God, not a child of a specific nation (in the spirit, not in the letter)