Page 195 - Bible Writers Theology Original

Cblossians 2:11-15. In establishing the covenant, God said to Abraham "Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed (Christ) after thee in their generations—Every man child among you shall be circum cised..A nd the uncircumcised man child whose flesh ofhis foreskin is not circumcised/ that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my
covenant" (Genesis 17:9,10,14).
The New Testament application is given in Galatians 3:16: "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not. And to seeds, as of many; but as of one. And to thy seed, which is Christ." Thus, God's promise to Abraham was not only to His natural descendants whose foreskins were circumcised, but also to those who believe in Christ. These are the promised seed of Abraham, whose hearts are circumcised through water baptism in Jesus' Name and the baptism of His spirit. Circumcision of the heart means putting on the nature of Christ (the promised seed) and
becoming a new creation in Him. If the Word seed of Genesis 17 and Galatians 3:15-16 was the natiu-al spermata, it would have been single spermata and Abraham must have had one son, Christ only. However, the prophesy was speaking of the promised seed Christ, the fulfilled promise, when the Word became flesh in the fullness of time.
Christ died, "That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith...For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many
ofyou as have been baptized into Christ have put onChrist. There isneither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:14,26-29).
In other words, God's covenant of circumcision with Abraham has) twofold significance. In its fulfillment, it was physically applied to Abraham's earthly descendants who practiced circumcision of their fore
skins. This rite of circumcision made Abraham's descendants, the Israelites,
a unique people chosen of God. As one people, their heart was bound to Canaan, the promised land. Despite their circumcision, however, they were stained with sin. They had the inherent Adamic nature and had no power to overcome that nature of sin. They longed for the promise of deliverance that God would fulfill through Christ, the promised seed of Abraham and there fore they yearned for the coming of the Messiah.
The coming of Christ abolished the need for physical circumcision, which was merely a type, or foreshadowing of a greater reality. Spiritual circum cision replaced it, which is for Jews and Gentiles alike. This circumcision consists of putting off both sins and flesh of the old man and putting on the nature of Christ (Colossians 2:13). Putting on the nature of Christ is accomplished through baptism in Jesus' Name and the renewal of our spir-
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