October 7, 2024 -Circumcision of the Heart

JEREMIAH 8:8-9:26

COLOSSIANS 3:1-17

PSALM 78:32-55

PROVERBS 24:27

One Year Bible Audio & Daily Reading (oneyearbibleonline.com)

Jeremiah 9:23 This is what the Lord says:

“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom

    or the strong boast of their strength

    or the rich boast of their riches,

24 but let the one who boasts boast about this:

    that they have the understanding to know me,

that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,

    justice and righteousness on earth,

    for in these I delight,”

declares the Lord.

Boasting in our works, our accomplishments and personal strengths means nothing. We need to be careful not to get caught up in the same trap as the Israelites. The trap of living as though works equals faith. Faith should lead to works but all the work in the world is meaningless without the understanding to know the Lord.

Jeremiah 9:25 “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 and all who live in the wilderness in distant places. For all these nations are really uncircumcised, and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”

Just as the physical act of circumcision was meaningless without a circumcision of the heart, so too is baptism meaningless without an understanding to know the Lord. What does that mean how do we do that. Circumcision of the heart comes when we invite the Lord into our lives to change who we are. Just like the Israelites we can say we believe in you Lord because we want Him to save us and we can go to church and practice the rituals but if we are doing it to check off the list to please God so that we can be saved it is only for us. It also means that is not the way to salvation. The Lord will "punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh".

Colossians 3:3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Circumcision of heart is something we do for Christ. We invite Him to change us and to set our hearts on things above and we choose to set our minds of things above. None of this so that we might be saved but because we know that we are. That change that we ask for means that we die to our old life and our life now is with Christ.

Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

As we live in Christ and set our hearts and minds on things above we should see a change. God will convict us of the things that we need to put out of our lives. Things like sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, greed, idolatry, anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language and lies. Those changes are "the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of it's Creator."

Colossians 3:11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

In Christ it doesn't matter where you were born. Who your parents are. It doesn't matter what you DO. What rituals you take part in or city you live in or church you attend. When we are surrendered to Christ and He circumcises our hearts then we are all one in Him.