received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished,”(John 19:30).Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last.(Luke 23:46)
"It is finished"
Our Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished everything for our circumcision. The Circumcision plays the first part to become the children of God.
The first circumcision in the Bible:
When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” He immediately fell on the face and the Lord changed his name to Abraham and his wife to Sarah.Gen 17:10-14 ' This is my covenant, which you shall keep,between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring,both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
This shows us that the Lord pleased on those who obey His covenant of circumcision and living blamelessly.They are His own Children.
The privilege of circumcision:
In Abraham's life
When Abraham saw three men, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and asked them humbly to come and washed their feet, and took rest under the tree until he brought the food. They accepted his hospitality. After they ate, the Lord informed him about
Sarah having a son next year at that time.Abraham went with them to set them on their way.The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” But Abraham still stood before the Lord.Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?Far be
that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” He started pleading to the Lord from fifty righteous until ten righteous not to destroy them and the Lord answered him, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it."
After Abraham's obedience to the circumcision, He pleaded gently with the Lord for the sake of Lot.
In Moses' life
The Lord had chosen Moses as a leader to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt. When Moses obeyed the Lord , He left Midian and went back to Egypt with his wife and his children. But in Exod 4:24-26 'On the way the Lord met him and sought to put him to death.Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son's foreskin and touched Moses' feet with it and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me!” So he let him alone. It was then that she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision.
This incident show us the Lord's expectation of the chosen leader to obey His covenant.
While Moses was leading the Israel people, they sinned against God by making golden calf as god when he was talking to the Lord in mount Sinai.Moses returned to the Lord and said, “the
people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold.But now, if you will forgive their sin—but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” But the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book.But now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. " And Moses said to the Lord, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?”
Thus Moses' covenant with God gave him privilege to talk for His presence to lead them.
In Peter's life
After Jesus' resurrection, Peter was doing Lord's ministry powerfully. One day Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heavens opened and something
like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth.In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven. Acts 10:9-16
Here the Lord gave explanation for the vision to His disciple Peter who said "no" to respond for the vision.
In Saul's life
Saul was breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord.He approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you,Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.”
Here the Lord revealed to the covenant keeper as Jesus Christ for His question.
The Lord's expectation about circumcision:
- Romans 2:28,29 ' For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.'
- He(Jesus Christ) is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.as come to save the whole world. 1 John 2:2
- He expects from us to covenant with Him through the circumcision in our heart which means salvation.
- When we accept Jesus as our Lord with faith and ask forgiveness for our sins to Him, we will be His Children.Then the Holy Spirit will guide us into all the truth (John 16:13) and lead us to eternal life. As like in olden period,those who obeyed to have covenant of circumcision and blameless,they are pleased by God and chosen as his own people and blessed by God.
- 'Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.' 2Corin 5:17
Our duty:
We have accepted Jesus Christ as our savior through His grace and have become His Children.We have been celebrating the Good Friday since He has accomplished everything in order to have a covenant with Him. Let us share the same Gospel which is the power of God to those who have not made the covenant of circumcision with Jesus. This is the challenge the Lord is giving us today, on this Good Friday.
Memory Verse
Acts 20:24
'But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.' - St.Paul's statement
Shared by Sis. Jaisy Rekha
4-3-2015
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