The document discusses the theological significance of circumcision, highlighting that true circumcision is a matter of the heart, performed by the Holy Spirit rather than simply a physical act. It emphasizes that merely observing the law or being circumcised physically does not make one right with God; instead, an inward change of heart is essential for genuine faith. The concept of 'circumcision of the heart' aligns with Old Testament teachings and underscores the importance of spiritual obedience and a relationship with God over external rituals.

1. HOLY SPIRIT CIRCUMCISION
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
"Circumcision has value if you observe the law,
but if you break the law, you have become as
though you had not been circumcised. If those
who are not circumcised keep the law’s
requirements, will they not be regarded as though
they were circumcised? 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 law-breaker.
A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor
is circumcision merely outward and physical. 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."
Romans 2:25-29
"In him you were also circumcised with a
circumcision not performed by human hands.
Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off

2. when you were circumcised by Christ,"
COL. 2:11
Question: "What is circumcision of the heart?"
Answer: The idea of “circumcision of the heart” is found in Romans 2:29. It refers
to having a pure heart, separated unto God. Paul writes, “A Jew is one inwardly,
and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.” These
words conclude a sometimes confusing passage of Scripture regarding circumcision
and the Christian. Verses 25-29 provide context:
“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law,
your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps
the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision?
Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who
have the written code and circumcision but break the law. 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.”
Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He
argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God.
However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A
circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other. Rather than focus
on external rites, Paul focuses on the condition of the heart. Using circumcision as a
metaphor, he says that only the Holy Spirit can purify a heart and set us apart to
God. Ultimately, circumcision cannot make a person right with God; the Law is not
enough. A person’s heart must change. Paul calls this change “circumcision of the
heart.”

3. This concept was not original with the apostle Paul. As a Jew trained in the Law of
Moses, he was certainly aware of this discussion from Deuteronomy 30. There, the
Lord used the same metaphor to communicate His desire for a holy people: “And
the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so
that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). Physical circumcision was a sign of Israel’s
covenant with God; circumcision of the heart, therefore, would indicate Israel’s
being set apart to love God fully, inside and out.
John the Baptist warned the Pharisees against taking pride in their physical
heritage and boasting in their circumcision: “Do not think you can say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up
children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
True “children of Abraham” are those who follow Abraham’s example of believing
God (Genesis 15:6). Physical circumcision does not make one a child of God; faith
does. Believers in Jesus Christ can truly say they are children of “Father Abraham.”
“If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the
promise” (Galatians 3:29).
God has always wanted more from His people than just external conformity to a set
of rules. He has always wanted them to possess a heart to love, know and follow
Him. That’s why God is not concerned with a circumcision of the flesh. Even in the
Old Testament, God’s priority was a spiritual circumcision of the heart:
“Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and
people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the
evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4).
Both Testaments focus on the need for repentance and inward change in order to be
right with God. In Jesus, the Law has been fulfilled (Matthew 5:17). Through Him,
a person can be made right with God and receive eternal life (John 3:16; Ephesians
2:8-9). As Paul said, true circumcision is a matter of the heart, performed by the
Spirit of God." GOTQUESTIONS.ORG

4. The Spirit Circumcising the Heart
Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have
become as though you had not been circumcised. If those who are not circumcised
keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were
circumcised? 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
law-breaker. A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision
merely outward and physical. 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.
Romans 2:25-29
In our text there are almost ten references to circumcision. So even numerically it’s
clearly important. In fact there is more about circumcision in the New Testament
than the Old Testament. The verb and the noun are found in the Old Testament in
only eleven different chapters but basically just in four chapters. So we must
consider this subject and its significance for the Christian and the Jew. But even in
the world today the subject is being discussed. There is, for example, a move in the
Danish parliament to make circumcision illegal in Denmark because it is claimed to
be an act of violence against baby boys. So we are not talking about a subject of
mere historical or theological concern.
The act of circumcising seems to me to be so very typical of the Old Covenant. The
command is focused on male babies alone, and there is the physical act with a blade,
the consequent pain, the crying of the baby and the bleeding. We consider such an
event to be archetypally earthed in that Old Testament dispensation that is now
done and gone. Considering the act of physical circumcision we are back
considering the Shadowlands of the old dispensation – “The law is only a shadow of
the good things that are coming – not the realities themselves” (Hebs.10:1). The
problem with the Jews was that they were exalting the sign at the expense of what is
signified.
CIRCUMCISION’S ORIGIN.
Let’s remind ourselves of its origin. It came from God himself, the decision that this
distinguishing bodily mark for all Jewish boys should mark them out as the
covenant children of Abraham. Let’s turn to Genesis 17 and read verses 7 through

5. 14; “‘I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you
and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the
God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now
an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after
you; and I will be their God.’ Then God said to Abraham, ‘As for you, you must
keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.
This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are
to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo
circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 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. 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. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised
in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.’”
So here was a sign that told them and the nations around them that this people
believed itself to be in a special relationship with God, a covenant relationship that
Jehovah himself had instituted. A covenant was a binding promise usually
accompanied by a sign. God had chosen Abraham and his seed as his people, and he
was going to bless them in many wonderful ways, but especially in the coming to this
people of the Seed, the circumcised Jesus of Nazareth who was going to be the
Saviour of the world. So God designed the covenant of grace, and he required
circumcision, and the people were to obey God and keep his commandments, and
one basic precept was to circumcise their male babies.
Do you remember that strange incident in the life of Moses (my attention was drawn
to it by Donald Grey Barnhouse). In the early chapters of Exodus, we read the
account of Moses at the burning bush. God appeared to him and he gave him all the
promises concerning the struggle with Egypt that was to take place, and the mighty
signs of judgment that would occur forcing the hand of Pharaoh. Every objection of
Moses was met, and the old patriarch determined to obey God and so return to
Egypt from whence he had fled with a price on his head decades earlier and he
would help get his enslaved kinfolk out of Pharaoh’s clutches. His belongings, slaves
and family were gathered together, and the little band left the home of Jethro, and
while they were on their way to Egypt the Lord repeated to Moses the promises of
miracles and wonders against Pharaoh.
Then suddenly the narrative judders to a halt. God had just been speaking of
slaying the first born of all the Egyptians should they keep stubbornly defying his
request to let his people go free. Everything had seemed to be going on nicely, but
then in the next verse we meet these shocking words: “At a lodging place on the way,

6. the LORD met Moses and was about to kill him” (Exod.4:24). What’s all this about,
God calling and equipping a leader and then seeking to kill him? The explanation is
found in the next verse. Moses had married Zipporah the daughter of Jethro, and he
hadn’t been scrupulous in the matter of the circumcising his own son. If Moses were
to lead God’s people, the leader himself must be most meticulous in leading the
nation in observing this sign of the covenant. And because Moses had been
disobedient to this command – and it was not a little thing – Jehovah perforated this
narrative and this journey to teach him such a lesson that brought him into an
encounter with death. Immediately his wife Zipporah acted; she picked up a knife
and circumcised their son there and then, and God reprieved Moses. It was a fearful
event. Whatever importance a man might – or might not – attach to circumcision,
God attached great significance to it – life and death significance (Donald Grey
Barnhouse, Romans 1, part 2, p.134). So circumcision for the Jews was not some
option that the keener and more religious people might take; it was a divinely
required ordinance. There are tribes that practice circumcision today. Numerically
the two largest tribes in Kenya are the Kikuyu and the Luo, great rivals. They speak
different languages, and one of them practices circumcision; the other does not.
Those are optional divergent human traditions, to circumcise or not. There are also
medical reasons why some boys may be circumcised. That is human medicine, but in
the Old Testament circumcision was a sign of covenant submission to the living God
who had granted these people the enormous privilege of being his people. What did
it mean?
CIRCUMCISION’S SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE.
i] Circumcision certainly had a national significance distinguishing Israel from the
other uncircumcised nations surrounding them. The Philistines could be dismissed
by the Jews as ‘uncircumcised dogs’! Of the people of Israel alone God could say,
“You only have I known of all the peoples of the world” and they were a circumcised
nation.
ii] Circumcision pointed forward also to regeneration by the Holy Spirit, to the
removal of the old heart and its being replaced by a new heart. In other words, more
was at stake than Jewish national identity. For example in this letter to the Romans,
in chapter 4 and verse 11 Paul writes of Abraham that he, “received the sign of
circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still
uncircumcised.” You understand? Paul doesn’t say that Abraham was circumcised
because he was a member of the Jewish nation. Paul says that circumcision was a
seal – a confirmation – of the righteousness that God had already imputed to him
through his trusting in God. Circumcision confirmed the great crisis that had
occurred in Abraham’s life when he heard the command of God, and he had to
respond or reject it. Immediately Abraham believed God, he acted upon God’s

7. command and his promise. God told him to leave Ur of the Chaldees and go to the
place God had prepared for him hundreds of miles away, and so off went Abraham
with his possessions and family and servants! God also said to him, “Be
circumcised” and he was. He trusted what God said, and was declared righteous by
God for believing his promises, and Abraham’s circumcision was a sign upon his
body that declared from then on with his body and mind and strength and energy he
was going to be doing everything God said. Submitting to circumcision – I suppose
the patriarch circumcised himself – was a sign that Abraham had a new heart that
put God first. What God said to him he did.
Now the prophets of the Old Testament saw that such an example of submission to
God was an attitude that every Jew should have. The prophets of the Lord weren’t
content that the people bore the outward sign of a circumcised foreskin. What was
going on in their hearts? Did they have circumcised hearts? They preached to the
people and demanded from them the circumcision of the heart and we find that
exhortation throughout the Old Testament. Deuteronomy chapter 10 and verse 16 is
an instructive example. It says, “Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be
stiff-necked any longer.” That’s a call for obedience as the next verse addresses “the
Lord your God, for he is God of gods, and Lord of Lords, a great God, a mighty and
a terrible” (v. 17). Then there’s the promise that Moses makes to a repentant people
in Deuteronomy chapter 30 and verse 6. It is also important, “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.” So it is through the
circumcision of the heart that a man is enabled to love the Lord his God and give
obedience to him. Again Jeremiah chapter 4 and verse 4 is notable: it is a warning
about ignoring your heart and just being confident that you’ve been bodily
circumcised; “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men
of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire
because of the evil you have done – burn with no-one to quench it.” Jeremiah is
preaching a sermon on repentance and he is using the figure of circumcising the
heart.
So you see how this fits in exactly with what Paul says in our text; “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” (v.29).
Paul is standing in solidarity with the Old Testament prophets and here he is
reminding his fellow countrymen of that message. Do you remember how he wrote
to the Philippians saying to them, “For we are the circumcision which worship God
in the Spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh” (Phil.
3: 3), in other words, those who are justified by faith alone, and doing what God
says, they place no confidence in the fact that they’d been circumcised on the eighth

8. day. They’re rejoicing in the fact that they have been born again, regenerated
through the grace of God, rejoicing in the Messiah Jesus through having
circumcised hearts. So, I am saying to you that while circumcision as a rite does
indeed refer to the national sign of Israel – the one nation in the world that God
knows and loves – more importantly than that it refers to the necessity of the
circumcision of people’s hearts, and therefore it cannot be exclusively a natural,
national and statist statement.
iii] Circumcision pointed forward to baptism. The most important verses that bring
together baptism and circumcision are found in Colossians chapter 2 and verses 9
through 12; “For in Christ all the fulness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you
have been given fulness in Christ, who is the Head over every power and authority.
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,
having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in
the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” Paul writes in these verses of the
circumcision done by Christ, and that probably is a reference to the death of Christ,
that he was cut off from the fellowship of the living. We were joined to him when he
died, so that in that Golgotha circumcision we also through faith were dead, buried
and then on the third day raised with him by God’s power. What a wonderful
circumcision we have all known as Christians today, both men and women, much
better than the Judaizers’ message that every Gentile who became a Christian
needed to be circumcised. No knife held in human hands was applied to our bodies.
In Jesus Christ’s willing sacrifice and circumcision-death we were also put to death
and the benefits of his salvation became ours when we by faith were joined to him.
This dying and rising in Christ was all powerfully symbolised in our water baptism
when we were pictured as entering the grave with Christ and rising with him in
newness of life.
A proud man might brush aside your evangelistic words and assure you that he’s all
right with God, that he doesn’t need your witnessing to him because he has ‘asked
Jesus into his heart’ and more than that, he’s been baptised. But you can tell that
something is wrong with his testimony, and you begin to probe gently, to ask about
his Christian life; “Do you attend church on Sundays? Do you read the Bible? Are
you ready always to give a reason for your hope in Jesus? Do you pray every day?
Are you careful what you watch on the web? Do you give to the work of the gospel?
On what are you basing your hopes of going to heaven?” and so on. His profession
with his lips, and the baptism of his body in water are of little value at all if nothing
is flowing out of a circumcised heart that declares that it is a new heart of flesh, not
stone, and he is a new creation.
iv] Circumcision points forward to the mortification of remaining sin. I am almost

9. persuaded to believe that this is the most significant typology of circumcision. When
we are regenerated and given a birth from above, and made new creations, and
given a heart of flesh – all those expressions of the radical cleavage with what once
we were – then God doesn’t remove all our sin from us at that time. He removes its
lordship; he kills our independence from God. It no longer rules our lives, but sin
still exists in every Christian’s life and our task is to be constantly killing it day by
day. Give it no tit-bits; feed it no scraps. Don’t look at that porn, don’t fantasise
about possessions and places that can never be yours, don’t get over friendly with
flatterers who oppose the gospel. Remember what Paul says in the greatest chapter
in the Bible, Romans 8, “if by the Spirit you put to death (you cut off and
circumcise) the misdeeds of the body, you will live,” (Roms.8:13) and again in
Colossians chapter 3 and verse 5, “Put to death, therefore,(circumcise) whatever
belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and
greed.” Circumcise the misdeeds of the body; separate them, cut them off from you,
and let them die. Never stop doing it. Circumcise whatever belongs to your earthly
nature. That is what mortification does; it is the spiritual fulfilment of circumcision.
Now that is how the image of circumcision is used in the Old Testament as a
mortifying act. For example, Jeremiah the prophet preaches to the people and he
passes this judgment on the people, “Behold, their ear is uncircumcised, and they
cannot hearken; behold the word of God is unto them a reproach and they have no
delight in it” (Jer. 6:10 A.V.). You are growing weary in hearing the gospel preached.
You are neglecting the study of the Bible. Your taste for the word of God is jaded.
The reason is that your ears are full of the wax of the excitements and pleasure of
the world. You are deafened to God’s voice. “Circumcise my ears, Lord!” you must
pray, that is take away the forces that are stopping me growing and maturing in my
love for the Bible. Jesus met that problem and he cried to his congregation, “He that
hath ears to hear let him hear.” Or to the seven churches, “Let him that has an ear
hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” Mortify everything that stops you
hearing the word of God.
Or again there is the possibility of us having uncircumcised lips. Moses was
conscious that he often blurted out words and arguments that were carnal. He
protested his unfittedness to speak as the mouthpiece of God; “Behold the children
of Israel have not hearkened unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of
uncircumcised lips?” (Ex. 6:12 AV). And later from his heart he cried, “Behold I am
of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me” (Ex. 6:30 AV). So
let’s watch our lips and our words, being slow to speak, slow to get angry, asking
God for wisdom. Mortify you sinful speech. Circumcise your lips and larynx and
tongue. So circumcision point forward to mortifying remaining sin.
CIRCUMCISION’S EVIDENCE SEEN IN OBEYING GOD’S LAW.

10. Paul would never say that circumcision was a valueless rite. What he does say is . . .
i] You may not detach it from all the other requirements of the will of God. Imagine
a man dying of an incurable disease who yet boasts that there’s one part of his body
which is healthy. He says, “I have such good hearing,” or he says, “My big toe works
fine!” What good is that if cancer has spread to all the rest of his body? So you may
have been circumcised absolutely brilliantly, and by the top rabbi in Jerusalem
thirty years ago, but what of your daily life under heaven? Is your chief end to
glorify and enjoy God? Paul lays down the law of God, that “Circumcision has value
if you observe the law” (v.25). Do you love God and love your neighbour? If not,
what good is any past ritual doing for you today? Here is a husband and the one
thing he does in his family is wash the dishes. He’s no companion to his wife. He
ignores the children. He refuses to find a job. He lets the garden turn into a jungle.
He is a spendthrift and a gambler. When you talk to him about any of his
deficiencies he has one response, “Oh, I wash the dishes.” Or again, here is a
preacher who is eloquent in what he says. He has a voice like the voice of Dylan
Thomas, but he ignores everybody, and he never prays, and he won’t reach out to
speak to anyone about the gospel, and he never studies the Bible or books about the
Christian faith – what good is his eloquence and fine voice if he neglects every other
aspect of the Christian ministry? The Jews at our Lord’s time had absolutized
circumcision; “We have Abraham for our father and we’re circumcised just like
him.” But did they believe in God and obey God’s word as Abraham had done?
There is value in circumcision if you also live by trusting and obeying God.
Abraham did. He lived by doing the word of God.
The act of circumcision can’t be extracted from the framework in which it is found
in the Old Testament. It would be like removing the smile of the Mona Lisa from her
famous portrait. It can only be appreciated in the whole context of the face and the
background. Today we’re meeting in the presence of the living God who has
intervened in our lives and brought us here. He has made great promises to us. He
has saved us by his grace, and he encourages growth in grace, and the killing of
remaining sin in us and in all his people. Our personal circumcision of remaining sin
is earthed in all of that. So Paul lays down some basic principles. This is what he
says . . .
ii] If you’re circumcised, and yet live a life of defiance towards the law of God, then
it’s as if you’d never been circumcised at all (v.25). Paul tells these people, who were
so proud that God loved them and that they’d become his chosen people, that if they
defied God’s law then they’d be no different whatsoever from the uncircumcised
Philistines. Can you picture the fight? On the one hand a Philistine named Goliath,
uncircumcised, and against him young David, circumcised, and we’re all cheering
for David, “Kill him David! Cut his head off!” And yet twenty years later, the

11. circumcised David has accumulated a quiver full of wives, and dissatisfied with
them he gets a certain man’s wife pregnant, and then he arranges the murder of that
brave man, Uriah, so that he can have another wife to add to his collection. It’s as if
David had never been circumcised, to behave like that. Some Philistine kings were
more moral than the king of the Jews. And when God breaks his heart David never
protests to God, “But I’m OK. I’m circumcised.” Of course he doesn’t say that. He
says this to Jehovah, “You don’t delight in sacrifice, or I’d bring it; you don’t take
pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and
contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psa. 51:16&17). All he can bring to
God – all we inconsistent Christians can bring to God is a circumcised heart. God
doesn’t despise circumcised hearts. Then another principle Paul lays down . . .
iii] If those Gentiles who’ve never been circumcised yet keep the requirements of the
law of God then they’ll be regarded as though they were actually circumcised. Think
of Doctor Luke, the beloved physician, a Gentile who writes his gospel and the Acts
of the Apostles. Think of his life; he has no other gods but the Father, the Son and
the Holy Spirit. He hates idols and idol worship. He never takes God’s name in vain.
Each week he has a day in which he gives himself to worship and to works of
medical necessity. He honours his parents. He does no violence to anyone; he is not
guilty of any sexual misdemeanor; he does not steal or lie or covet. All the twelve
apostles and Jewish Christians in every church in Judea, Asia Minor, Greece and
Rome never think of him in any way other than he is their circumcised brother –
though he is not, but his godly and loving character have won the admiration of
them all. “Luke our uncircumcised and yet circumcised Gentile brother” because
they have learned to appreciate that what counted was not the knife cutting away
the foreskin, but a heart that’s been circumcised. Paul is saying this (summarizes
John Stott), “Circumcision minus obedience equals uncircumcision. Uncircumcision
plus obedience equals circumcision.”
iv] Uncircumcised Gentiles – like Luke – who obey the law will actually condemn
you circumcised Jews who are law-breakers. What a scene! Those proud Jews,
boasting in their special relationship with God, and conscious that they’re so
superior to the poor uncircumcised Gentiles, are in for a rude awakening. The Day
of Judgment is going to find ranks of circumcised Jews standing in the midst of
Gentile goats, hearing Jehovah Jesus saying to them all, “Depart from me ye cursed
into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” And the Amens at their
condemnation will come from the hosts of Gentile sheep who have loved and
followed the Saviour, Jesus of Nazareth and those Jews also who by the spirit have
been given circumcised hearts.
They had been circumcised according to the flesh, but that outward act alone could
not make them what their disobedience proved they were not. Here is a crab apple

12. tree with apples as bitter as gall and as hard as pebbles. You can buy a sack of the
best New Zealand Gala apples and tie each one on every branch of the crab apple
tree. The tree looks delicious and smells delicious, but what is it? It is still a crab
apple tree. Men may lay hands on you, and pour oil and perfume all over you, and
clothe you in white garments, and wash you in what they call ‘holy water,’ but you
will still be a rebel with a heart of stone in the sight of God. Paul says you can give
your body to be burned, and give everything you possess to the poor but still be a
stranger to God’s grace. The circumcised are as much exposed to the judgment of
God as are the Gentiles. Make yourself a circumcised heart.
CIRCUMCISION AND THE TRUE JEW.
Paul says this in the last two verses; “A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly,
nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 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” (vv.28&29). I was
once in Jerusalem at the Garden Tomb and I went into the shop there and there was
a Jewish man talking to the Englishman volunteering for a few months to work
there. The Jews said to him, “Are you a Jew?” and the Englishman replied by
quoting these words of Paul “A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is
circumcision merely outward and physical. 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.”
It was a brilliant reply which opened up the conversation to explain what real
Christianity is all about.
What is God looking for? It is this, heart circumcision that from now on completely
replaces the knife and the bleeding and the cry of pain. He is not asking for both –
for the two, in other words heart circumcision plus bodily circumcision.
Circumcision is part of the badger skin and the tent poles and shittim wood and the
altar and the feasts in Jerusalem. Their time is over and gone. Good bye for ever to
all of that. The written code that spelled out these ceremonial requirements has
ended. Now there is the work in men’s hearts, by the Spirit of God, and all through
the rest of this letter Paul returns again and again to that theme.
I have been reading the life of that fascinating Christian man Robert Hicks in
Thank God for King James (Day One). He came from a terrible violent home, but
had been reading and memorizing the Bible. One day as a teenager he discovered
the Jiggins Lane Gospel Hall nearby to where he lived in the Midlands. He went
there joining the dozen people and at the end of the service talked with a Mr.
Barnwell who was quite perplexed by his knowledge of the Bible but it was
accompanied by a personal ignorance of redemption, finally asked him, “Are you
born again Robert? Have you received the Lord Jesus as your Saviour?” and

13. though he did not understand what the terms meant then, they stuck in his mind
and a month or so later they were still there and he knelt in his bedroom and called
upon Jesus to come into his life and forgive him his sins. In that ugly evil place of
abuse and beatings he became a child of heaven with a new loving Father by
entrusting himself to the Lord Jesus.
So Paul sums up all he has to say to us in these four truths
I] The essence of being a truly religious man is not found in something outward but
what is inward and invisible.
II] True circumcision is of the heart not the flesh.
III] True circumcision is effected by the Spirit, not the law.
IV] True circumcision is what wins the approval of God, not the approval of a
nation or of men.
April 6th 2014 GEOFF THOMAS
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God's Holy Spirit and the Circumcision of the Heart
This post is a continuation of the previous article, Becoming Circumcised as a
Christian. As noted there, every Christian must be circumcised, but the meaning of
"circumcision" is spiritual: physical circumcision is symbolic of the spiritual process
of cutting out and putting away our inborn sinful nature. This post will elucidate the
intimate connection between circumcision and receiving the Holy Spirit. Just as
physical circumcision was rendered useless for a Jew who did not keep the law, so
also spiritual circumcision is rendered useless for a Christian who does not keep the
law.
In making a point about physical circumcision in Romans 4:11, Paul refers to the
circumcision of Abraham as a "seal of the righteousness of [Abraham's] faith." The

14. Holy Spirit is also referred to as a seal given to those who believe in Christ:
Ephesians 1:13
... having believed [in Christ], you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise
I have already demonstrated that the New Covenant's "circumcision of Christ" is
equivalent to symbolically putting the sins of our flesh to death at baptism. If a man
under the Old Covenant was circumcised but then did not follow God's law, then his
circumcision was useless. So also, if we repent and are baptized but do not receive
the Holy Spirit, then our spiritual circumcision is useless. Why? What it is that we
need the Holy Spirit for?
Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of
stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you
and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.
Humans are naturally "hard-hearted," meaning we are unwilling to submit to
God's law. Through Jeremiah, God spoke to the "men of Judah," who were already
physically circumcised, saying "circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away
the foreskin of your hearts" (Jeremiah 4:4). Additionally, God stated in
Deuteronomy 5:29 that keeping the law required a heart that is inclined to God. As I
have labored to show through this series of posts, circumcision of the heart is
repentance. Repentance is a process of deep sorrow towards God because we have
broken His law. Therefore, repentance, just like physical circumcision, is of no avail
if we do not continue in God's law afterwards! For this reason, God promised that
He would also give us the Holy Spirit, just as the above scripture states, to compel us
to keep His law.
Without the Spirit of God, no man can live the way that God requires. Critics of
God's law claim that God set up an impossibly high standard that Israel could not
keep and that Christ was sent to abolish the law so that people wouldn't have to be
punished for breaking it. The truth is that instead of God lowering His standards,
He gives us access to the Holy Spirit, which is able to raise us up to meet His
standard!
Romans 8:7-9
the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor

15. indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are
not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if
anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.
The "carnal mind" is what you are born with, and its primary problem, as Paul
points out, is that "it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be." If you do
not receive the Spirit, then you simply cannot obey God - and if you cannot obey
God, you "cannot please God." Now notice the very next verse, which deals
specifically with spiritual circumcision:
Romans 8:10
And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because
of righteousness.
As I've shown, the first part of this verse is spiritual circumcision: "the body is dead
because of sin." The latter part of the verse goes on to define what it means to live a
circumcised life: "the Spirit is life because of righteousness." As I pointed out,
Ezekiel 36:26-27 shows that the purpose of the Spirit was to cause us to keeps God's
law, which is the definition of righteous behavior.
Therefore, the observable difference between a spiritually circumcised person and
one who is spiritually uncircumcised is adherence to the law of God. A true
Christian acknowledges through circumcision (i.e. repentance) that their own way of
living was insufficient for God, and, as a result, changes their way of living because
of the Spirit of God dwelling in them, which compels them to want to keep God's
law.
Ephesians 4:17-24
... You should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk... being alienated from
the life of God... because of the blindness of their heart... put off, concerning your
former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man which was
created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
Just as physical circumcision was intended to be a "seal" or a sign indicating a life
of obedience to God, so also the Holy Spirit, which leads us into righteous behavior,
is a "seal" of our obedience to God. If we,j by continuing to sin, do not follow the
Spirit which is in us, then we have made that seal worthless.

16. The step that every Christian must take, therefore, is to learn what God's law is and
endeavor to follow it, which the Spirit will compel you to want to do. The best way to
learn God's law is from His own Word, and I suggest carefully reading (or re-
reading) the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with this in
mind. If you have only ever thought of the law as a set of physical rules that doesn't
apply to you, then you need to get that notion out of your head! While much of it is
given from a physical standpoint, the spiritual implications are what God wants us
to learn - take my explanation of circumcision as a case study! Ask yourself what the
purpose of each commandment is, both physically and spiritually, and what you
need to do to fulfill it in your life.
Posted by Steven Britt
The Doctrine of Spiritual Circumcision A.W.Weckeman
“In whom also ye also are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in
putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ.” (Col.
2:11).
As we learned in the previous study entitled, “Spirit, Soul & Body” (under “Living
the Bible” on the home page) man was created in God’s image, therefore, he is also a
triune being, spirit, soul, and body “And the very God of peace sanctify you
wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless
unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thess. 5:23) [Emphasis mine].
A simple analogy would be a football which has a leather cover (body) a rubber
bladder (soul) and is filled with air (spirit).
The Bodily Form of the Soul
The soul has an invisible bodily form inside the physical body. Consider (Rev.6:9-
11). Notice that after death the disembodied soul retains a definite shape which
could be clothed with a robe. The soul of the rich man in hell (Luke 16:22-24) still
has his senses; sight, sound, touch, and taste.
We also learned that prior to the Fall, Adam’s total being was in union with God.
The light of the Holy Spirit passed through Adam’s spirit unimpeded, reaching into
his soul and influencing his mind, will, and body. Before the fall Adam was in
harmony with his Creator, his spirit, soul, and body were enlightened by the power

17. of God. (See Figures # 1 & 1 a)
This is not to say that Adam was a robot, controlled by God, but a spiritually
minded being with free will, to which all things were possible. There was only one
limitation placed upon Adam (Gen. 2:16-17).
As we shall see, when Adam and Eve exercised their God-given free will to disobey, a
crucial change occurred. A split second after the creature chose to defy his Creator
an inward fatality occurred. Adam and Eve’s spiritual union with God was the first
casualty of their disobedience…the departure of the Holy Spirit from their spirit
rendered them spiritually dead, separated from God.
As a result of the “Fall”, Adam and all his descendants were then, “dead in
trespasses and sins…” (Eph.2:1). This death not only affected the spirit of man but
also the soul and body.
Effect of the “Fall” on the physical Body
From this point on Adam’s physical body would gradually begin to deteriorate and
eventually die, “for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” (Gen.3:19).
Effect on the Soul
Without the light of the Holy Spirit to guide them (due to spiritual death), their
fallen flesh (nature) becomes the dominating life force.
Prior to Adam’s transgression, his soul was free from his flesh (Figure #1 & 1 a).
When he sinned and died spiritually his soul became joined to his flesh.(Figures # 2
& 2 a)
Before the fall the priority and order was spirit, soul, and body…the spirit was the
master, the soul was the steward and the body the servant.
After the Fall the order was reversed; the body became the master, the soul
remained the steward and the spirit became the servant. See “Adam Before and
after the Fall” (under “Living the Bible” on Home Page).
This is the meaning of (Eph. 2:1-3) “dead in trespasses and sins,” and (Rom. 7:5),
“For when we were in the flesh” (prior to salvation).
Summary
By comparing (Figure # 1 a) with (Figure # 2 a) we can see the threefold effect of
Adam’s sin, spirit, soul & body.
1st – The Holy Spirit’s departure from man’s spirit resulted in the spiritual death

18. spoken of in (Gen.2:17) “for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely
die.” Remember, Adam and Eve did not die a physical death the day they sinned,
that occurred many years after the fact. Nor did man’s spirit cease to exist…it is
dead in the sense that it is separated from God’s Spirit.
2nd – Adam’s soul was negatively affected by the Holy Spirits departure in that it
merged with his body of flesh.Thereby joining the soul to the body of fallen flesh
which has become the dominant life force.
3rd – From that point on Adam’s physical body would begin to age and eventually
die, “for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (Gen. 3:19)
Spirit, Soul, and Body Upon Salvation
When a person, under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, repents of their sin and by
faith trusts in Jesus’ substitutionary death (blood atonement) on their behalf, the
word of God states that they are, “born again” (John 3:3). Jesus’ explanation of the
second birth to Nicodemus (John 3:3-8) reveals that He was referring to a spiritual
re-birth “born of the Spirit” (v. 8).
The reason that Jesus is called the “last Adam” (1 Cor.15:45) is that He came to
undo the curse of the first Adam. When Adam sinned he immediately experienced
spiritual death (Gen. 2:17) later followed by a physical death (Gen.5:5). Upon
salvation, a reversal occurs…the spirit is first quickened then the body at a future
time (Rom.8:23, Phil. 3:21).
As we earlier learned, Adam’s disobedience had a malignant effect on his entire
being (spirit, soul, and body). The antidote to this inherited malady is found in the
shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ! The obedience of the “last Adam”; Jesus’
death, burial, and resurrection redeemed mankind and restored the original order
of…spirit, soul, and body. “For as one man’s disobedience many were made sinners,
so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” (Rom.5:19).
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature…” (2 Cor. 5:17).
The miracle of the second birth as described in (Titus 3:5) “…according to his mercy
he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost…”
Regenerated, restored to a former state…that which was dead is brought back to
life! “And you hath he quickened,[made alive] who were DEAD in trespasses and
sins…” (Eph.2:1) [Emphasis mine]
The Operation of God…Spiritual Circumcision.
“And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In

19. whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting
off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in
baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of
God, who hath raised him from the dead.” (Col. 2:10-12).
Salvation also involves a supernatural operation whereby the believer is placed into
the body of Christ through a spiritual baptism (1 Cor.12:13). This baptism involves
a “circumcision made without hands”( Col.2:11). In a nanosecond, the Holy Spirit
literally cuts away man’s soul from the body of flesh permanently taking up
residence…sealing him (Eph.1:13), so that two spirits become one “But he that is
joined to the Lord is one spirit.” (1 Cor.6:17).
In the eyes of God, every born again believer has been, “crucified with Christ”
(Gal.2:20), thereby uniting them to His death, burial, and resurrection. For more
information see the article entitled, “Co-crucifixion” under “Living the Bible” on
the home page.
At this point, the believer is, “complete in him, [in Christ] which is the head of all
principality and power…”(Col.2:10) [Emphasis mine]
The “circumcision made without hands” is a supernatural operation made by the
Holy Spirit cutting free the redeemed soul from, “the body of the sins of the flesh.”
Figure # 3. Thereby restoring the priority and order of spirit, soul, and body (1
Thess.5:23) and creating a sanctuary within the believer separate from the corrupt
body of flesh. This is the only way the Holy Spirit could indwell man without being
joined to his sinful flesh! Under the Old Testament God dwelt in a tabernacle made
with hands (Exodus 25). In the New Testament, He dwells in the tabernacle made
without hands (within the believer). This is why the word of God refers to a saved
person as the “temple of the Holy Ghost”: What? know ye not that your body is the
temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your
own? (1 Cor. 6:19) “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you? (1 Cor.3:16).
“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col.1:27b)
As a result of this spiritual operation, every born again believer has two
diametrically opposed forces within. The Bible refers to them as the “new man” and
the, “old man” (Eph.4:22-24). The “new man” is led by the Spirit and the “old man”
by the flesh. In the next segment titled, “New Man Vs. Old Man” we will study the
nature and terrain of this inner struggle."

20. Understanding the Principle of Spiritual Circumcision
By Steve Highlander
Copyright 2000 Steve Highlander & Crossroads Ministries All rights reserved.
Permission granted to download and distribute this article free of charge for
personal use or group Bible Study, provided contents
remain unchanged and my name and copyright information remain on it. For
reprint rights please email the author.
In the Bible God revealed to us a spiritual principle and experience called
circumcision. As with all spiritual truth God first revealed it in a physical picture in
the Old Testament. In order to understand the Spiritual truth that we are to apply
and experience in our Christian lives, it is first necessary to look at the dynamics of
circumcision as God revealed them in the Old Testament.
The prevailing idea in most churches is that God's primary objective is to forgive
our sins so we can make it to heaven for eternity. While salvation and the
forgiveness of sin is a fundamental objective in God's plan for His creation, and
heaven is our ultimate destination, this falls way short of the complete work God
desires to do in and through you and me. It was never a thought in God's mind that
we would find forgiveness only to be left in bondage to sin. It wasn't God's intent
that you keep repeating a cycle of sin and forgiveness over and over. Here is God's
perfect vision for you...
"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his
Son." Rom. 8:29
Jesus' death on the cross accomplished much more than simply the forgiveness of
sins. It made it possible for you to become like Christ. In order for you to become
Christ-like you must get rid of the old flesh nature that is sinful. This is where the
spiritual principle of circumcision comes in. Circumcision is the cutting away of the
flesh.
God Reveals His Covenant To Abraham

21. "This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are
to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo
circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 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. 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. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised
in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant." Gen 17:11-
14 NIV
When God revealed Himself in a covenant to Abraham He gave Abraham a sign of
that covenant ... Circumcision. Many times we read right past significant issues
never realizing the spiritual message God is trying to impart to us. Almost any
thinking person would have to ask a simple question here. Why circumcision? What
does that have to do with anything? Why is God so concerned about an extra little
piece of skin?
It brings to mind the scripture where God commands the children of Israel not to
eat any leaven or even to have it in their house during the Feast of Unleavened
Bread (Exodus 12:15). Does God have something against yeast?
In both of these instances God seems to be pretty serious about the people's
obedience to His commands. In both cases the people who didn't obey were to be cut
off from Israel--left out of the covenant. This is serious business in God's eyes.
In the big scheme of things we can be pretty sure that having yeast in our house or
having an extra little piece of skin isn't a big offense to God. Therefore God must
have had something else in mind when He gave these commands.
Jesus asked the Jews an important question. I have spoken to you of earthly things
and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? John
3:12
God first established spiritual truth with natural laws. Once the principle of the
thing was understood, He could make the jump to spiritual truth and application.
Throughout the Old Testament God spoke to Israel in picture form. His commands,
although righteous, also carried a deeper prophetic message. The seven yearly
Feasts, the temple, all the sacrifices and the minute detail of the elaborate costume
of the high priest all bore more significance than the Jewish people (and most
Christians) actually knew. So it is with the issue of circumcision.

22. God has a spiritual truth for you and me to enter into. In order for us to understand
it He had to give us a physical demonstration so we could see it. Before we look at
the dynamics of circumcision revealed to Abraham, let's see what the New
Testament has to say about the issue.
" A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward
and physical. 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..." Rom. 2:28-29
"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been
given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 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, having been
buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of
God, who raised him from the dead. 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, 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." Col.
2:9-14
Notice these two New Testament scriptures speak of a "spiritual circumcision." This
is what God is after. The Old Testament law was simply an example and picture to
help us understand what God was really after ... a heart that was circumcised to
him.
What is the significance of circumcision and how do we become spiritually
circumcised? Let's look.
First of all we need to understand the significance of circumcision from God's point
of view. He gave the natural or physical sign to illustrate spiritual truth, so we need
to start there.
From our passage in Genesis 17:11-14 we can glean some important facts.
Circumcision was not optional. It was to be KEPT!
Every person had to be circumcised, even foreigners who lived with the Jews.
It was THE sign of the covenant.
Circumcision was to be performed on the 8th day after birth.
Failure to be circumcised was regarded as a breaking of the covenant and was
grounds for being "cut off" or removed from the people of God.

23. To these obvious statements we might add a few other observations.
A person didn't circumcise themselves. They yielded to circumcision.
Circumcision was the "cutting off of the flesh."
Circumcision was done in a private, personal part of the body
That which was cut off is unnecessary.
Circumcision was a point of consecration.
It concerned the cutting away of flesh.
From the two New Testament passages we can ascertain that:
God wanted our hearts circumcised
The Spirit performed spiritual circumcision.
Let's begin to apply these principles to the spiritual circumcision.
Circumcision Was Not Optional
Under God's Old Testament illustration circumcision is not optional. It is something
that the Jews had to submit to. If God's pictures are to convey any truth at all they
must remain consistent. I believe that God was telling us that spiritual circumcision
is not an optional part of Christianity. Not to go through spiritual circumcision
would be a breaking of God's spiritual covenant, just as failure to be circumcised
was a breaking of His natural covenant. We need to understand this spiritual
principle and yield our lives to it.
How does this apply to our spiritual lives? First, many people make a profession of
faith in Christ, but their lives never changed. By its very nature, salvation is a life
altering experience. It isn't a mental assent to live better or turn over a new leaf. It is
a personal, spiritual encounter with God whereby a person's very nature is changed
from the inside out. These passages in Romans 2 and Colossians 2 point out that the
spiritual circumcision is performed by the Spirit of God.
When a person is born again a circumcision takes place. Something of the old flesh
nature is cut away and the Spirit of God is imparted. Where no life change take
place there has been no spiritual circumcision and thus no salvation.
A Sign Of The Covenant
Circumcision was a sign of God's covenant. It was the seal, so to speak. The New

24. Testament gives us a "sign of the covenant" and even links it to the old sign. We
have just looked at Col. 2:9-14. Notice how circumcision is the common subject,
both physical and spiritual; but also notice how Paul brings in baptism and says
that a circumcision takes place at that point. Baptism thus becomes the sign of the
new covenant, just as circumcision was the sign of the old covenant. Paul says
something happens in our lives when we yield to baptism in faith.
I have sought God on the issue of baptism for a number of years and I am convinced
that indeed a spiritual work takes place in a person's life when they yield to baptism
in understanding, faith and obedience.
Performed On The Eighth Day
There are several reasons for this. Physically and medically it has been shown that
the blood clotting agents in the male blood stream reach their peak on the eighth
day after birth and then diminish afterwards to normal levels. This was the
practical side of the issue. A baby circumcised some 3000 years before modern
surgical methods would not bleed to death.
Spiritually I believe that God knows when we are ready to have something of our
flesh cut off. God doesn't want us to "bleed to death" spiritually, so He works in out
lives to prepare us for His dealings.
Another reason is more directly related to spiritual reality. Circumcision wasn't
performed right after birth. Likewise God doesn't start our Christian life out by
cutting deeply into our hearts. While there is a fundamental change that takes place
when we get saved, we usually go through a nurturing period where God is very
tender and loving.
As we begin to grow and mature God begins the work of spiritual circumcision.
Circumcision is God cutting off that part of us that is unnecessary. It is a deep and
personal thing and cuts to the very core of who and what we are.
The number 8 in the Bible is the number of new beginnings. Throughout the Bible
God did things in series of sevens, seven being the number of divine completion.
After God brought His purpose to completion there was a new beginning. This is
significant in the context of circumcision for two reasons.
The first is that nobody was ever circumcised before they had experienced one
Sabbath. (See the booklet "Keeping Sabbath" in this series of messages for a better
understanding of the principle of spiritual Sabbath.) Cutting off our fleshly nature is
not easy. We were born with a sense of self-preservation. Nobody likes to deny
himself or herself. God did not expect a man to circumcise himself. He was to submit

25. to it. Experiencing spiritual Sabbath is resting in God's ability to get the job done in
our lives. We stop striving and working and we begin to place our faith in God to do
what we could never do.
One of two problems exists today in this area of cutting off our flesh. Either we've
never been told it is necessary, or we set about to do it on our own. Spiritual
circumcision is something that we must rest in. It came on the 8th day after a day of
rest.
The 8th day also signifies a new beginning. Something is different after
circumcision. It is the start of a new thing in our lives. Sometimes people come to
know the Lord and are really excited about God, but after a while they get stagnant.
Newness comes after the old has been cut off. And the reverse is true also. There are
some new things we can't enter into until we've submitted our lives to spiritual
circumcision.
New Testament Circumcision Is An Ongoing Work
Sometimes God illustrated a spiritual truth in the Old Testament, but its dynamics
changed somewhat in the new. For instance, in the Old Testament it was necessary
for certain sacrifices to occur every day, or on special days throughout the year.
However, when Jesus came we are told in Hebrews that His one sacrifice was good
forever and replaced the multitude of yearly sacrifices.
Jesus' crucifixion was a one time experience, yet we are told to take up our cross
daily (Luke 9:23).
Likewise, circumcision, by its very nature could only happen once physically, but it
can be a continuous spiritual work in our lives.
There's a curious scripture in Joshua 5:2 "At that time the LORD said unto Joshua,
Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second
time."
It is important to read a little more of the story. In it we find out that all of the men
who had come out of Egypt 40 years earlier and who had been circumcised were
dead (except Caleb and Joshua). And all the baby boys born in the wilderness had
not been circumcised at all. While these boys and men were being circumcised the
first time personally, God called it a second circumcision for the nation of Israel. It
was a re-establishing of the covenant. God left us an example of it being possible for
spiritual circumcision to be an ongoing work of grace in our lives.
More on this passage later

26. Breaking The Covenant
The 5th point in our study brings us to a significant question.
If failure to be circumcised under the old covenant was grounds for exclusion from
that covenant, does it stand to reason that failure to be spiritually circumcised is
grounds for exclusion under the new covenant? Remember that God didn't do one
thing in the old and something different in the new. The old, natural example was to
illustrate a spiritual truth. It makes no sense for God to require something in an Old
Testament picture then discard it in the spiritual fulfillment and reality. We must
settle this issue.
"... Without holiness no one will see the Lord." Heb 12:14b
What was the issue here? Circumcision was the "cutting off of the flesh." While
salvation is a free gift of God through Jesus Christ, God does require that we get rid
of the old flesh nature. Paul and Jesus required us to "take up the cross daily." The
cross had but one purpose ... it was to kill the flesh. Spiritual circumcision is the
removal of the old flesh nature. It started at conversion, continued through baptism
and will remain a principle throughout our lives. Every time we face the issue of the
old flesh nature, it must be "cut off." Not to do so is to allow sin to overwhelm us
again and with it, the possibility of losing our faith in Christ.
So many Christians have the idea that God's sole objective is to forgive our sins and
get us to heaven. Salvation is only the starting place of a much deeper work God
desires to accomplish in our lives.
"For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of
the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome,
the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them
not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known [it], to turn
from the holy commandment delivered unto them." 2 Pet 2:20-21 (For an in-depth
treatment of this subject see the tract, Eternal Security or Once Saved Always
Saved: Can a Person lose their Salvation?)
You Don't Circumcise Yourself
Nowhere does the Word of God tell us to circumcise ourselves. It was the job of the
priests to perform the circumcision. Originally God told Abraham to circumcise
everyone in his household. Later God spoke to Joshua, telling him to make sharp
knives and do it. After that the duty fell to the priests on duty at the temple.
Likewise you are never told to crucify yourself. Even Jesus didn't crucify Himself,
though He did yield to it. We are told to do what Jesus did ... "take up your cross

27. and follow me...." We are to carry our cross. And we are to yield to the crucifixion of
our flesh. But we aren't capable of doing it ourselves. Even in the physical sense you
could, at best, only nail your feet and one hand down.
This is for several reasons. The first is that God placed within us a sense of self-
preservation. We are not real good at accomplishing that which causes us pain. It's
too easy to stop short. When you go through spiritual circumcision and your flesh is
being cut off, it isn't dead flesh, but living flesh that is being trimmed out of your
life.
Another reason is that God wants us to learn to YIELD to His Spirit. There are two
agencies at work in spiritual circumcision. The first is the Spirit of God and the
second is God's ordained ministry. (I'll treat this subject more thoroughly in a
minute.)
The Principle Of The Flesh
It is important to understand what God has to say about the flesh nature. A lot of
people get confused when you start talking about the flesh. They think in terms of
the outer covering of this natural body, but the principle of the flesh is much more
than that. While we are here, let me interject a thought. God is not against our
bodies. The Bible says, "The body is ... for the Lord, and the Lord for the body." I
Cor. 6:13 Paul goes on to say that our physical bodies are the temple of the Holy
Spirit (verse19).
God isn't against our physical bodies. He is against the sinful fleshly nature that
dwells in our bodies and causes us to sin. We need to understand this principle if we
are going to understand and yield to spiritual circumcision.
"And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Gene 2:7 Here we
discover the three parts of man. God formed a body, breathed the breath of life (the
spirit) into him and he BECAME a living soul.
God originally spoke of man in terms of his soul. Later, after the fall and after man
became corrupted, God spoke this way, "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not
always strive with man, for that he also [is] flesh..." Gen. 6:3
Lets see what the New Testament has to say about the flesh nature.
"It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak
unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." John 6:63
"For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing:" John 6:63

28. "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ
Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death For what the law could not
do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: for sin: or, by a sacrifice for sin.
That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the
flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the
flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally
minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal
mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed
can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the
flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man
have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Rom.
"For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is
contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not
do what you want." Gala 5:17 NIV
These, and many other passages, clearly demonstrate the conflict that exists between
the two natures that reside within a Christian. The principle of the flesh (sin nature)
is plain; it opposes God and delights in sin. Sin can easily be characterized as simply
gratifying one's own desires. It is this flesh nature that promotes sinful behavior.
When the Bible speaks of sin it does so in two dynamics. There is "SIN" (singular)
which refers to the sin nature, or the root of sin. The Bible also speaks of "SINS"
(plural) which refers to the specific acts of sin. The ministry of Jesus deals with both
aspects of sin. His death brought about forgiveness of SINS (plural) that we have
committed and His resurrection brought power over SIN (singular) that dwells
within us.
We must have our flesh nature dealt with. God pictured this "cutting away of the
flesh" in the Old Testament sign of the covenant--circumcision. The New Testament
also has a "cutting away of the flesh." It is "flesh nature" that must be cut off in
spiritual circumcision, just as the natural flesh was cut off in physical circumcision.
There is absolutely no doubt that God had this in mind from the beginning. All the
way back in Deuteronomy 10:16 God gave this admonition to Israel, "Circumcise
your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer."
The spiritual circumcision of the heart directly relates to the new covenant, just as
physical circumcision related to the old covenant.
Circumcision Was Done In A Private Part Of The Body

29. Circumcision seems a strange way to initiate a covenant, doesn't it? However,
everything God did in the Old Testament had meaning. Nothing was done without
foreshadowing a spiritual truth to come. So it is with circumcision. I believe that
God was trying to make a two-fold point here. The first was that circumcision is a
personal matter. God is dealing deeply in the hearts lives of people when spiritual
circumcision takes place. It isn't a matter for public display. God is gracious to deal
with us privately about these things. It is fair to say that God wants us humbled, not
humiliated.
The second point of the picture is similar to the first. Circumcision wasn't something
everyone could see. You could see the effects of circumcision. A Jewish man followed
the law of God (or should have). Likewise you can't see if a person has a circumcised
heart, but you should be able to see the results of it. This causes a real problem for
those in the Church who like to judge after the flesh. God can be doing a work in
someone's heart and the effect has not yet been reflected in the outer life. We must
be careful to "judge righteous judgment" as Jesus instructed us in John 7:24. True
life-change starts inside, in the heart, not outside in the flesh.
Cutting Off the Unnecessary Part
I believe another point is being made here. Stop and think about something. The
foreskin is the only part of our flesh that is unnecessary. It is the only part of our
skin you can cut off without leaving a hole someplace. God only cuts out of our life
what is unnecessary. Sometimes we think God is being unreasonable, but nothing He
removes from us is of any value to our spiritual lives and well-being.
Circumcision Was a Point of Consecration
God declared that any Jewish male that was not circumcised would be "cut off from
Israel." Circumcision then, became the point of consecration for the Jewish people.
Another interesting passage is found in Joshua 5:2 where the Bible tells us:
'At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise
again the children of Israel the second time. And Joshua made him sharp knives,
and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. And this is the
cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were
males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came
out of Egypt. Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people
that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them
they had not circumcised. For the children of Israel walked forty years in the
wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were
consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: unto whom the LORD

30. sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their
fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. And their
children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were
uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. And it came to
pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places
in the camp, till they were whole. And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I
rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is
called Gilgal unto this day."
Why did God command them to be circumcised again? We've already pointed out
that a person can't be physically circumcised twice. There is a spiritual truth here.
Before the Israelites could enter into their inheritance, the nation had to be re-
consecrated to God. Here God looked at the nation as a whole when saying that the
nation needed to be "circumcised again the second time." It was the flesh that
caused the Israelites to fail at God's promise to enter into the promised land. And
although they had a covenant relationship with God, it was this flesh that had to be
dealt with before the nation could finally enter in to their blessing.
Likewise, spiritual circumcision is a point of consecration to God. As a general rule
we are pretty found of this stuff we call flesh. We pamper it and cater to it. We feed
it and water it and generally take pretty good care of it. Self-preservation is a strong
instinct. Allowing God to "cut off our flesh" takes more than a casual commitment
to the cause. It takes real consecration.
To accept God's offer of forgiveness and salvation doesn't require a lot of sacrifice
on our part. Although we must repent, we are in fact the beneficiaries. However,
after salvation comes consecration. After the initial work of salvation, we must allow
the nature of Christ to be formed in us. This is a life-long process--a continual
circumcision--a continual consecration.
A couple more truths can be gleaned from this passage of scripture in Joshua.
Gilgal, the place where they were circumcised, means "rolling", because it was here
that God "rolled away the reproach of Egypt."
Although God had taken His people out of Egypt, He hadn't yet gotten Egypt out of
them. When God called Moses to the Mount for a few weeks, the Israelite, including
Aaron, demanded "Gods". What they came up with was a golden calf, just like the
Egyptians worshipped. They continually wanted to go back to Egypt rather then
have to trust God to provide for them.
Circumcision (or consecration) was a way for God to give Israel a new identity. No
longer were they slaves in Egypt. No longer would they be homeless vagabonds

31. wandering around the desert. No longer would they suffer the indignities thrust
upon them by the Egyptians. With circumcision they were renewing their covenant
relationship with God. They now had a new identity as God's special people. This is
what the Bible means when it says that God "rolled away the reproach of Egypt."
The Word of God tells us that we were slaves to sin. Many of us have done things
that we are ashamed of. Sin held sway in our lives and we were not the FREE people
we liked to boast about being. When we are born again God begins a circumcising
work in our lives setting us free from the shame, guilt and bondage of our past lives,
thus preparing us to enter into our "promised land." Truly the reproach of our old
lifestyle is rolled away as we yield to God in spiritual circumcision.
Circumcision Requires Healing
The last point I want to make here is somewhat obvious. Circumcision required the
CUTTING of the flesh and that involves some pain and a time of healing to follow.
Remember that God didn't waste words in the Bible. When He pointed out that they
stayed in camp until they were whole (healed) He was trying to tell us something.
Spiritual circumcision will usually carry some pain with it. Sorry, but that's part of
yielding the flesh. Jesus and Paul both admonished us to "take up our cross and
follow." Paul said, "I die daily." Carrying the cross, spiritual circumcision or
whatever you want to call it is not a nice Christian doctrine to preach about, it is a
spiritual reality to enter into. Dying to self will never be most people's idea of fun.
The old nature will kick and scream all the way to the cross. Many will be the time
that God asks us to give up something that we are pretty fond of. Or possibly ask us
to do something that we are not fond of. Either way a "Cross is formed." A "Cross"
occurs in your life when your will crosses God's will. Somebody's will is going to be
crucified on that cross.
The pain associated with spiritual circumcision isn't generally physical pain. It is
probably going to be an emotional struggle to yield to God. Sometimes after a
particularly intense struggle to yield God will give us time to heal. I want to make a
point here. During the past few years I have watched God work deeply in my own
life and the lives of those people around me. Many times those same people did not
have a clue that God was actually at work. Much of what God is doing today
involves major changes over a period of time. The frustration and struggle is often
painful and confusing, but God knows how to get the job done.
Paul admonishes us in the book of Hebrews 12:11 "Now no chastening for the
present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the
peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."

32. Read again the stories of the people most used of God in the Bible. You'll find they
all went through frustrating times when everything looked absolutely hopeless in
regards to what God had promised them. But in it all God was at work preparing
each for the job He had planned for them.
So it is with us today. Sometimes after a time of spiritual circumcision we need time
to heal. This is normal. Those who need to hear this will understand what I mean.
Spiritual Circumcision in the New Testament
"A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward
and physical. 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..." Rom. 2:28-29
"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been
given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. 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, having been
buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of
God, who raised him from the dead. 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, 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." Col.
2:9-14
In these a passages we find some interesting thoughts. First, as we have already
discussed, we find that we do not circumcise ourselves (or each other for that
matter). Christians today are really good at wanting to cut off the flesh, whether it
be our own or someone else's. (Although I must say it is mostly other's flesh we want
to cut off for them.) This is a fancy way of saying that we want to change all the bad
stuff we see in others. We tend to spiritualize it by calling it discernment and
"ministry". Often it is nothing more than self-righteousness and impatience. It isn't
maturity, it is the height of immaturity.
I believe the bible addresses this tendency in Christians to be overzealous in
whacking each other up. In Phil. 3:2 Paul tells the church something that the
average person passes right over. However it is relevant to our message. "Beware of
dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision."
Paul used this word in a contemptuous manner referring to those who still required
physical circumcision for a person to be right with God. However there is a deeper
meaning here. Paul didn't warn them of the "circumcision" as he had in other
places, but of the "concision." The word meant "mutilators of the flesh."

33. I believe Paul was telling the Philippians to be careful. He wanted us to be sure that
in the process of cutting off the flesh we didn't "mutilate" people.
Spiritual circumcision was to performed by the Spirit of God.
While we should discipline our lives and yield to God, we must be careful not to get
in God's way and try to do God's work. Much pain and destruction has been caused
by Christians trying to straighten other Christians out. Along the same lines, many
people become discouraged and quit serving God because they just couldn't be as
spiritual as someone else. All Christian growth takes time and God knows how and
when to get the job done.
Man can't touch the spirit of man, but God can. However God rarely does anything
without His servants. It is still the job of the ministry to circumcise the Body of
Christ as they preach the word of God and lead the flock of God. They must be led
by the Spirit however, and not their flesh.
Paul told us to submit ourselves to the elders of the Church. As the ministry of God
begins to touch live areas of our life by the Spirit of God we do one of two things. We
can yield or we can get angry. A popular old phrase illustrates this perfectly. They
used to tell the preacher he "stopped preachin' and started meddlin."
What is happening here? The Spirit, through the preacher, brings the flesh to the
place of circumcision and self-preservation kicks in. Since we don't often
understand what God is trying to do, we get mad at the preacher for confronting
something in our lives. (The next time you get angry at something the preacher says
why not stop and ask yourself if God is trying to bring something to your attention.)
Here is one reason why so many Christians don't ever mature. They go from church
to church looking for a place to belong, to teach, to minister, but not for a place to be
circumcised. When the ministry starts dealing with them, they find fault and run to
the next new church that sprang up down the road.
Learning to yield to the voice of God, no matter what agent He speaks through is a
maturing thing. We can certainly hear from God on our own, but the fact is that
God still uses His ministry to work a work in the lives of his people. Smart is the
Christian who will allow God to speak to them, correct them and circumcise them
through His appointed ministry. It is humbling and it hurts sometimes, but it is the
only way. Remember that circumcision must be yielded to.
Old and New Covenant Signs
Something else we should consider here is how God linked the Old Testament sign of
circumcision to the New Testament sign of baptism. The passage in Colossians 2

34. seems to tell us that a circumcision takes place at baptism.
While I do not believe that a person must be baptized to be saved, I do understand
that it is more than "an outward sign of an inward act." Consider this: Even the
rituals God commanded under the Old Testament carried spiritual significance.
Although they were signs that pointed to the spiritual reality that was to come, God
still honored the people who obeyed them.
. Why would He suddenly command meaningless ritual under the new covenant that
contained the spiritual reality. God only gave two ordinances to the Church:
communion and baptism. I believe these have spiritual power attached to them. As
we are obedient to observe them in faith, God ministers to us.
Before you argue about that last statement let me ask you a question. How could you
do anything in faith and obedience that would not have a spiritual impact on your
life?
In Conclusion
Several things are abundantly clear from our study. The main one is that
circumcision is a spiritual principle in the bible that cannot be ignored.
We find that a circumcision takes place at the point of salvation. Again, Paul links it
with baptism as a sign of the covenant. We also discovered that circumcision was an
ongoing principle in our lives as we daily yield to the Spirit of God.
Another important fact is that Paul clearly links the old and new covenant signs in
one passage. What should this mean to us? For the most part I'll leave you to draw
your own conclusions based on what you have already read.
I will say this. Spiritual circumcision is not an option for the born again child of
God. It isn't something you or I can take or leave. If the Old Testament people of
God had to undergo circumcision under an inferior covenant, how much more is it
required of us who have a better covenant?
And a final Scripture to bless you with on your journey.
"And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to
love the LORD thy God with all thine heart , and with all thy soul, that thou mayest
live." Duet. 30:6
I believe He is able to do just that! Don't you?
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35. Copyright 1995 Steve Highlander, all rights reserved.
The True Circumcision
Colossians 2:11
T. Croskery.
The Colossians did not need the rite of circumcision to make them complete, for
they had received the spiritual circumcision, of which the rite was only a type. "In
whom ye were also circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands, in the
putting off the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ." The apostle censures
the ritualistic ideas of the false teachers by showing what is the nature and effect of
the true circumcision.
I. ITS NATURE. It is not external, but internal, wrought by the Spirit and not by
the hands of men. It is "of the heart in the spirit, and not in the letter" (Romans
2:29). It is "the circumcision of the heart," so often spoken of even in Old Testament
times (Deuteronomy 10:16; Deuteronomy 30:6; Ezekiel 44:7; Acts 7:51), which
ought to have accompanied the external rite. The Colossians, as Gentiles, were
circumcised in this spiritual sense on the day of their conversion.
II. ITS EXTENT. "In the putting off the body of the flesh; "not in the mere cutting
off of a part of the body, as in the external rite of Judaism. This language marks the
completeness of the spiritual change and its effects upon both body and soul.
1. The body of flesh is more than the mere body, which is not "put off," for it is not
evil, but becomes "the temple of the Holy Ghost" (1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians
6:19). It is the body in its fleshliness, regarded as the seat of the lusts which war
against the soul and bring forth fruit unto death. The expression is similar to "the
old man which is corrupt" (Ephesians 4:22), "the body of sin" (Romans 6:6), and
"sinful flesh," or, literally, "the flesh of sin" (Romans 8:3). The spiritual
circumcision implies, not the mere putting off of one form of sin, but the putting off
the whole of the power of the flesh.
2. The putting off of the body of flesh implies deliverance from the dominion of sin -
dying to sin as a controlling and regulating power, so that the body, hitherto "the
instrument of unrighteousness," becomes "an instrument of righteousness unto
God" (Romans 6:13).

36. III. ITS AUTHOR. "In the circumcision of Christ;" that is, the circumcision
wrought by Christ through his Spirit. Its Author is not Moses or Abraham, but
Christ himself, by virtue of our union with him. The formation of Christ in the soul
as the Author of a new spiritual life is "the circumcision of Christ;" it is the new
birth, which, under the power of the Holy Spirit, casts off the power of corruption.
It is wrought by the Lord the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18), and is the result of Christ
dwelling in us by faith (Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:5-8). This is the true
circumcision, "whose praise is not of man, but of God." - T. C.
Biblical Illustrator
In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands.
Colossians 2:11-12
Christian circumcision
G. Barlow.
I. IS INWARD AND SPIRITUAL.
II. IS COMPLETE. Manual circumcision was the cutting away of only a small part
of the flesh. But the spiritual circumcision consists in putting off the whole body of
our corrupt nature — the entire fleshly principle.
III. IS DIVINE. "By the circumcision of Christ." It is wrought, without hands, by
the inward power of the Divine Spirit of Christ.
IV. IS REALIZED BY THE THOROUGH IDENTIFICATION OF THE
BELIEVER WITH CHRIST IN HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION.
V. IS WROUGHT IN THE SOUL BY A SPIRITUAL BAPTISM. "Buried with Him
in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him."
VI. IS RECEIVED BY FAITH. "Through the faith of the operation of God, who
hath raised Him from the dead." Faith is not a natural product of the human heart.
It is a Divine gift, bestowed on man by a Divine operation.
(G. Barlow.)

37. The circumcision of Christ
J. Spence, D. D.
I. EVERY REAL CHRISTIAN HAS EXPERIENCED THE TRUE
CIRCUMCISION. The argument is that circumcision was unnecessary, since the
Colossians had undergone the new birth which it signified.
1. It is spiritual, and plainly distinguished from that which was made with hands.
The idea was not a novel one (Deuteronomy 10:16; Deuteronomy 30:6; Jeremiah
9:26; Ezekiel 44:7; Acts 7:51; Romans 2:28-29).
2. The true character of the operation is the putting off of the body of the flesh, "the
old man," corrupt human nature, with all its carnal instincts and tendencies.
Manual circumcision cut off only a small part of the flesh, the spiritual is an entire
transformation of the whole man. Old habits are abandoned, evil associations
forsaken, and the soul is ushered into a new life, with new thoughts, affections, etc.
It is a putting on of the new man.
3. It is Divine, "the circumcision of Christ," ordained and communicated by Him,
with Him for its author and model.
II. THIS TRUE CIRCUMCISION IS REALIZED ONLY IN UNION WITH
CHRIST IN HIS DEATH, BURIAL, AND RESURRECTION.
1. The Saviour died for us, and when the anxious sinner trusts Christ he is regarded
as having died with Him.
2. The reality of death is evinced by burial, and the death of the believer with Christ
is the casting off of the body of the flesh. The old man is sepulchred.
3. The soul in regeneration arises with Christ to a new and holy life.
III. THIS UNION IS REALIZED IN THE BAPTISM. It is generally assumed that
the allusion here is to immersion.
1. But it is difficult to see any resemblance between this and the depositing of
Christ's body in a rock-hewn sepulchre. The reference is to the baptism of the Spirit
— the Washing of regeneration (1 Corinthians 12:13, cf. 1 Corinthians 1:14). The
theory of immersion is that it is the profession of a regeneration which has already
taken place; but with St. Paul the burial and resurrection are coincident with the
baptism. It is quite possible to die and rise with Christ without water baptism, but
not without the baptism of the Spirit.
2. Why does Paul speak disparagingly of "hand-wrought" circumcision, and

38. proclaim its needlessness, if he is to pass immediately to speak of the efficacy of
"hand-wrought" baptism? To introduce that would be to introduce the very element
of ceremonialism which he is denouncing.
IV. THE PRINCIPLE THROUGH WHICH THIS SPIRITUAL BAPTISM IS
RECEIVED — "through faith."
1. It is surprising that so many should regard the baptism in which the disciple is
said to rise with Christ as that of water. No one is raised out of water by faith, but by
the arms which immersed him. The baptism of the Spirit is received by faith: an
unbeliever cannot receive it.
2. "In the operation of God" does not mean that that is the origin but the object of
faith. If I believe in the power that raised Christ, I believe in the power which has
accepted His suretyship for me. This faith regards Christ's resurrection as the
keystone of Christianity, the centre of confidence, the only basis of hope.
(J. Spence, D. D.)
The true circumcision
A. Maclaren, D. D.
There are two tendencies ever at work to corrupt religion. One is of the intellect, the
temptation of the cultured few, which turns religion into theological speculation; the
other of the senses, that of the vulgar many, which turns religion into a theatrical
spectacle. But opposite as these are they were united at Colossae. To the teaching of
the necessity of circumcision —
I. The apostle opposes the position that ALL CHRISTIAN MEN BY VIRTUE OF
THEIR UNION WITH CHRIST HAVE RECEIVED THE TRUE
CIRCUMCISION, of which the outward rite was the shadow, and therefore now
obsolete.
1. The language points to a definite past time. When they became Christians a
change passed over them parabled by circumcision,(1) It is not made with hands,
i.e., it is not a rite but a reality, not transacted in the flesh but in the Spirit, not a
removal of ceremonial impurity, but a cleansing of the heart (Deuteronomy 30:6).(2)
It consists in the putting off of the body of the flesh "the sins of" is an interpolation
— a complete stripping off from oneself, as of clothes, in contrast with a removal of
a small part of the body. It is true that Christian men, alas! realize this by slow
degrees; but on the Divine side it is complete. Christ gives perfect emancipation, and

39. if it is only partial it is because we have not taken the things that are freely given.
The foe may keep up a guerilla warfare after he is substantially defeated, but his
entire subjugation is certain if we keep hold of the strength of Christ.(3) It is of
Christ; not that He submitted to it, but instituted it.
2. What is the bearing of this statement on the apostle's purpose? That circumcision
is an anachronism, "as if a flower should shut, and be a bud again."(1) The true
centre of gravity, of Christianity, then, is in moral transformation. Surely Christ
who gives men a new life by union with Himself by faith has delivered man from the
"yoke of bondage," if He has done anything at all. How far away from Paul's
conception, then, are those which busy themselves with punctilios of observance!
But the hatred of forms may be as completely a form as the most elaborate ritual.
We need to have our eyes turned away to the far higher thing, the service of the
transformed nature.(2) The conquest of the animal nature is the certain outcome of
union with Christ and that alone. Paul did not regard matter as evil, as the
Colossian teachers did, nor the body as the source of all sin. But he knew that the
fiercest temptations came from it, and that the foulest stains upon the conscience
were splashed from the mud which it threw. It is a matter of life and death to find
some means of taming the animal that is in us all. We all know of wrecked lives
which have been driven on the rocks by the wild passions of the flesh; and when we
come to add its weaknesses, limitations, and needs, and remember how high
purposes are frustrated by its shrinking from toil, and how often mists born from its
undrained swamps darken the vision of truth and God, we do not need to be
Gnosties to believe that goodness requires the flesh to be subdued. But no
asceticisms or resolves will do what we want. Much repression may be affected by
force of will, but it is like a man holding a wolf by the jaws. The arms begin to ache
and the grip to grow slack, and he feels his strength ebbing, and knows that as soon
as he lets go the brute will be at his throat. Nothing tames the wild beast in us but
Christ. He binds it in a silken lash, and that gentle constraint is strong because the
fierceness is gone. Christianity would be easy were it a round of observances.
Anybody can fast or wear a hair shirt, but the putting off of the body of the flesh is a
harder thing. Emotion, theology, ceremonial, may have their value, but a religion
that includes them all and leaves out the subjugation of the flesh is worthless. If we
are in Christ we shall not live in the flesh.
II. Paul meets the false teaching by a reference to CHRISTIAN BAPTISM AS
BEING THE CHRISTIAN SIGN OF THE INWARD CHANGE.
1. The form of expression in the Greek implies that the circumcision and burial with
Christ in baptism are contemporaneous. You have been baptized — does not that
express all that circumcision meant and more?(1) This reference is quite consistent
with the subordinate importance of ritual. Some forms are necessary to a visible

40. Church, and Christ has given us two: one symbolizing the initial spiritual act of
Christian life, and the other the constantly repeated process of Christian
nourishment.(2) The form here presupposed is immersion.(3) There are but two
theories: the one is that baptism effects the change, and elevates it into more than
the importance of which Paul sought to deprive circumcision, confuses the
distinction between the Church and the world, lulls men into a false security,
obscures the central truth of Christianity that faith makes a Christian, gives the
basis for a portentous sacer-dotalism, and is shivered to pieces against the plain facts
of daily life. But it is conclusively disposed of by the words, "through faith in the
operation," etc. What remains, then, but that baptism is associated with the change,
because in the Divine order it is meant to be its outward symbol?
2. Note the thoroughness of the change. It is more than a circumcision; it is burial
and resurrection.(1) We partake of Christ's death inasmuch as —
(a)we ally ourselves to it by our faith as the sacrifice for our sins;
(b)by the power of His Cross we are drawn to slay our old nature, dying to the
habits, desires, etc., in which we lived.(2) If we are thus made conformable to His
death, we shall know the power of His resurrection.
(a)It will be a guarantee of our own.
(b)The seal of His perfect work on the Cross, and shall know it as a token of God's
acceptance;
(c)the type of our spiritual resurrection now.
(A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Buried with Him
The believer's identification with Christ
Bishop Alexander.
It was with St. Paul a principle that the whole Christian life is a following of the
blessed steps of one holy life, an imitation of Christ. We are in Him —
I.CONCEIVED AND BORN (Galatians 4:19).
II.CRUCIFIED (Galatians 2:20; Romans 6:5).
III.DEAD (Romans 6:3; Romans 7:4; cf. 1 Peter 4:1).

41. IV.BURIED (Romans 6:4).
V.RISEN (Romans 6:5; Colossians 3:1).
VI.ASCENDED AND REIGNING (Ephesians 2:4-6).What is done or suffered by
Him historically is done in us analogously and mystically now, and will be completed
historically and actually hereafter. This is the underlying principle of the order of
the Christian year.
(Bishop Alexander.)
Understanding God’s Circumcision of the Heart!
Jun 17
Posted by agapegeek
(Ver 1.2) This is of course a potentially explosive subject of an extremely
controversial nature. There are well over 100 verses in the Bible that have a related
topic or subject. I will of course not be trying to speak to all of these verses. What I
will be attempting to do is focus on God’s typology from the O.T. and how it applies
to the spiritual realm in the N.T. The Bible can be very complex, God can speak of
natural things and spiritual things and call them by the exact same names. This
makes Bible interpretation very difficult for many people and causes a great
number of people to be very confused. Today’s subject is a key example of this
point. Circumcision is normally thought of in natural terms only, but we soon
discover that God gave us this natural example to teach us of something that we
could not see with our natural eyes. Here we go with today’s Hot Topic, the
Circumcision of the Heart. Let’s start by looking at an Old Testament prophecy and
see what it says:
Deu 30:6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy
seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou
mayest live.
If you can read and see what this verse declares then you will better understand the
verses that we will look at next in the New Testament. This verse tells us that God
will do something that we are unable to do. This verse is not speaking of your
physical heart, it is speaking of your spirit. In this verse God says I will circumcise

42. your spirit. This of course is a symbolic spiritual operation and not a physical
operation. After you are born again your spirit is uncovered, enabling you to see
spiritual things. We’ll probably talk about this more soon, but notice this is an Old
Testament verse so it has to be a prophetic future event. It also mentions your heart
or your spirit and your soul and your flesh or body is the implied reference of
circumcision. This helps us to see that man is a triune being made in the image and
likeness of God.
Rom 2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision,
which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the
heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
As you can clearly see in these two verses in Romans, God is contrasting and
comparing two different groups of people. Both are referred to as being Jews, but
one group is said to be circumcised by God and the other group by the hands of
men. What do you think this is talking about? I’m sure if you do not want to accept
what it says, that you must have already created an alternative interpretation.
What we discover in the Bible is that, God initiated natural circumcision in the flesh
way back with Abraham. This was an outward sign of the Old Covenant. Of course
this was only a male practice and not done to females. This was not something God
did personally, you do understand that, don’t you? So down through the centuries,
the priests of Israel would perform this ritual to the male child on the 8th day after
birth. This is the circumcision done by the hands of men that God is speaking of
and comparing it to the real circumcision. God says very clearly in Romans 2:28
and 29 that these are not the true Jews. As you can see that is an extremely
unpopular verse of scripture in many churches. Of course I added the word “True”
before Jews in order to introduce a qualifier or an adjective to distinguish one kind
of Jew from another kind of Jew spoken of in the Bible. So you may not totally
agree with my adjective, “True”. You see God calls them that have been
circumcised inwardly of the heart and the spirit to be the “real” Jew. God does the
inward circumcision in man’s spirit and this is a fact whether you are male or
female in the natural realm. What God does in the spirit realm is the Real Deal and
everything else that man does is just a temporary patterned type of the real.
When God says something is “inward” and describes this in relationship to the
terms of “hearts” and “spirits”, God is revealing a world that we cannot normally
see with our eyes. Unless God gives you a vision into the spiritual realm, you are
limited to your natural perception of reality. You can of course learn about the
spiritual realm of God, by correctly observing what God teaches us in the Bible.
The Bible says that God is a Spirit (John 4:24), have you ever seen God? The Bible

43. actually says no man has ever seen God (1 Jo 4:12). So God is speaking of a
Spiritual Realm or Dimension that is different than the natural realm that we live in
here. I would venture to say that there are many Christians in the world that must
not know this.
So why did God give Israel the Law and all of these outward practices that they
have done such a poor job at keeping? I believe one reason that God gave Israel the
Law was to prove to man that he was incapable of keeping it. Meaning God
recorded the law for man to see God’s level of expectations and His requirements to
obtain or earn righteousness by works and no man has ever fulfilled these
requirements, except for Jesus Christ.
Rom 2:25 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a
breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made un circumcision.
We can again see in Romans that God declares that man could achieve
righteousness of his own works if he was able to keep all of the law of God. But,
since everyone has broken at least one law, God declares that you are guilty of
breaking all of the law (James 2:10) So as a result of breaking the law, God says
your outward physical circumcision has been rendered useless, you have become
like the un-circumcision. So apparently the fact that you are circumcised in your
flesh has been superseded by a spiritual requirement that you were not aware of.
Act 7:51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the
Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
These are the words of Stephen speaking to the natural Jews on trial for his life as
witnesses came before the elders and priests and lied to them about the words of
Stephen. God further confirms that those who are judging Stephen are not the True
Jews that God is looking for. God did not care about their fleshly signs of the
Covenant of Old. God was using Stephen to look into their hearts and see that their
spirits needed this circumcision done by God’s hands. You do understand that both
Stephen and Paul were circumcised in their flesh and they counted this as
unimportant. I guess I should change that, they saw a need for a greater
circumcision done by God to be more important than that which was done by the
hands of men. You can also learn that this circumcision involves your ears also. Did
you know your spirit is connected to your ears? The Bible says “Faith comes by
hearing”. Faith is a spiritual force and a factor that comes from hearing the truth
of God’s Word. The truth can be easily rejected, as evidenced by the number of
denominations in the Christian body. Evidently part of God’s circumcision results
in the ability to hear the truth. Men can still choose to reject it and thus we have
such a vast array of writings about what the truth is.

44. Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without
hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
This is another verse that declares the church to be the “circumcision” made
without the hands of men. This of course is a spiritual circumcision done by God.
This verse informs us that God has cut off the body of the sins of the flesh. What is
this talking about? Just because we become a born again believer in Christ, we still
have the same body that we did before we were saved. So God must be talking
about something symbolically that occurred within us that has not occurred in those
in the world. If you do not know what I am talking about, I would be concerned
that I am not saved. You see Christians should be becoming more and more
spiritually aware as they grow in Christ.
Rom 8:16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spiriit, that we are the children
of God:
God is a Spirit and if you are born again the Spirit of God has now come into your
spirit on the inside of you and He now is the witness to the fact that you are a child
of God. Isn’t that what this verse is saying? Apparently according to this verse,
Christians are suppose to be spiritually alive and aware. If you have become more
aware of spiritual things and less aware of natural things, then you are a Real
Christian. If you have more concern with things about your body, than you do with
your spirit, I would be very concerned. God gives us a fact that the circumcision of
the body is a removal of the dominance of the flesh that every non-believer still
experiences. People in the world are more concerned with how they feel and how
you make them feel than they are about you personally. This becoming spiritually
aware is the circumcision of the body from the spirit of man done by God. God
gives you the ability to focus on what is more important. God gives you the ability
to focus on eternal things more than the temporary things of this world.
2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are
not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not
seen are eternal.
What are these things that you can see being referenced in this verse? You can see
your face in the mirror, you can see your food on your plate. You can see the house
that you live in. You can see the car that you drive to name a few things that God
said that are not that important. What are the things that you cannot see that God
said were eternal? If your body is not eternal and God said you are, then you must
be a spirit being that will live forever somewhere. Within the body of every human
being is a spirit being that will exist somewhere forever. God is a Spirit and He will
live forever. Every spiritual being is eternal. Did you know that the only thing that

45. you will take with you to heaven or to hell is your experiences and memories on the
earth. You will get a new body eventually, but that is not the body you have now.
So what are the eternal things that you should be concerned with? I believe it is
your job to get as many of your friends saved as you can. I believe it is your job to
tell everyone that you can about Jesus and what He has done for them. These are
the eternal things that you can take with you. Thank you for reading my Bible
study on the circumcision done by the hands of God
Circumcision of the Heart
by Robert Friedman
A bris in the heart!” Sounds strange. Maybe even a bit ridiculous to modern ears,
doesn’t it? Yet God Himself speaks of circumcision of the heart in the Jewish
Scriptures. And strange as it may seem, it holds as deep a meaning for us today as it
did when God first gave circumcision in Abraham’s time.
To understand circumcision of the heart, we first must look at the rite of
circumcision of the flesh.
The record begins in the 12th and 15th chapters of Genesis. God made
unconditional promises to Abraham that his descendants would be more numerous
than the stars in the sky; that through his descendants all the nations would be
blessed; that Abraham’s people would be given a great land to occupy and that all
who blessed them would in turn be blessed.
Then, in the 17th chapter of Genesis, we read:
“This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your
descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised.
And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be the sign of
the covenant between Me and you. And every male among you who is eight days old
shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the
house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your
descendants.
A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money shall surely
be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting

46. covenant.”
-Genesis 17:10-13
What is Circumcision All About?
The key here is that circumcision was to be a “sign of the covenant” that had
already been given, with no strings attached, to Abraham.
The rite of circumcision was made a part of the Law of Moses several hundred years
later when God gave instruction concerning the birth of a male: “And on the eighth
day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3).
This practice was continued generation after generation, but when the nation of
Israel was forced to wander 40 years in the wilderness the rite of circumcision
temporarily ceased.
Some authorities believe God demanded this generation die out because of their
refusal to believe Him when He told them to enter the promised land (Numbers
14:32-35). And so a rejected generation no longer practiced circumcision.
The disobedient nation of Israel, roaming like lost sheep in the wilderness, were
momentarily taken out of the covenant. They had refused to believe God’s promise
when He told them to take the land, and now they were paying for their rebellion.…
Yet with God’s punishment comes God’s love, for when the 40 year journey was
ending, the covenant—and all its blessings—returned.
As soon as the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan into the land of milk and honey
the Lord God immediately gave a command to Joshua: “At that time the Lord said
to Joshua, ‘Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the
second time.’ ” (Joshua 5:2.)
Now that they were in the land, back in the place of faith enjoying obedience and
fellowship with God, the practice of circumcision was restored and the people of
Israel were blessed by God.
Israel has always had a special place in the sight of God. He chose the nation to
point the way to Himself and to spread His love among all the nations. Since
circumcision was the sign of the covenant which involved this universal blessing, it
had significance beyond its observance as a national rite.
Beyond the Physical
Practically, we can’t show the world we’ve been circumcised, but God’s covenant

47. extends further than just the physical realm. A way has been provided in which our
words and actions can show the nations God has touched us. We read His promise in
Deuteronomy 30:6:
“Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your
descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in
order that you may live.”
This type of circumcision, by definition a circumcision of the spirit and not the flesh,
goes to the heart of a man, to his soul, his essence, his attitudes and relationship with
God. Because this theme of an inner circumcision is so important, God repeats and
stresses it, as in Deuteronomy 10:12-16:
“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the
Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul.
And to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding
you today for your good?
Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and
all that is in it.
Yet on your fathers did the Lord set His affection to love them, and He chose their
descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day.
Circumcise then your heart, and stiffen your neck no more.”
The Inner Man/Woman
Over and over again God probes the inner man, the real person. His discerning eyes
won’t allow us to hide behind social facades, adopted mannerisms or walls of
materialism. Before God each man is seen just as he is. His innermost thoughts,
thoughts he may wish to hide from the world, are exposed by the light of God.
God requires us to keep all His statutes and laws, and yet which one of us can
possibly keep all of them all the days of our lives? The prophet writes:
“For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are
like a filthy garment; and all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the
wind, take us away.”
-Isaiah 64:6
On one hand God tells us to keep all His statutes. On the other the prophet

48. recognizes the human condition: we all fall short of perfection and therefore cannot
possibly keep all the Law all the time.
Yet, as we read in Deuteronomy 30:6, God does not expect us to circumcise our own
hearts. He says He will do that. But how? And what does He expect from us? Let’s
look at Leviticus 26:40-42:
“If they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their forefathers, in their
unfaithfulness which they committed against Me, and also in their acting with
hostility against Me—
I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the land of their
enemies—or if their uncircumcised heart becomes humbled so that they then make
amends for their iniquity,
Then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and I will remember also My
covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with Abraham as well, and I will remember
the land.”
Just Once a Year?
Ah, is that it? Must we confess our iniquity and rebellion against God? Fine, maybe
we do this once a year at Yom Kippur. But, in addition to confession, our
uncircumcised heart must become humble.
This appears to be a spiritual operation, but we sense within ourselves that we lack
the divine power necessary to perform this—to change our own heart. Then we
remember this is an operation God said He would perform.
But how?
King David knew the secret, for after he had sinned against God by taking
Bathsheba, he pleaded, in Psalm 51:10-12:
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not cast
me away from Thy presence, and do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore to
me the joy of Thy salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.”
David said, “Do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me.” The Holy Spirit, the Ruach
Ha’kodesh of the ages is the renewing force. It was the Holy Spirit of God which
brought peace, comfort and joy to David. He knew what it was like to live both with
and without God’s Spirit dwelling within him.
It’s this very Spirit which David called upon to create a clean heart within him—to
renew him. In other words, it is the Holy Spirit of God which performs the

49. circumcision of the heart.
From Abraham to David to you, the inner circumcision continues.
Today we have a promise from God, a promise He always keeps. He has promised
for every person who places his trust in the Messiah, in the Anointed One of Israel,
this Holy Spirit will indwell him and circumcise his heart, making it right with God.
At some point we all face God as uncircumcised, unrenewed searchers after truth.
We stand as animated beings of flesh without God’s Spirit inside us. We seek our
own truth and walk our own paths.
Perhaps you’ve searched and walked and questioned without finding the heart-
changing, spiritual answers you’ve known are there but have never discovered.
You Can Do This Right Now . . .
Maybe now God is telling you that by placing your faith in Messiah Jesus His Spirit
will circumcise your heart and refresh you today and forever.
As you confess Messiah Jesus as Lord and Savior, the One promised by the ancient
prophets of Israel, the sacrificed Lamb of God, you too will be able to stand with
other believers in Him and fully appreciate the words of Saul of Tarsus. Saul, an
ancient scholar of Israel who became the apostle Paul, writes of an eternal
circumcision of the heart:
“See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception,
according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the
world, rather than according to Messiah.
For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form.
And in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in
the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Messiah.
Having been buried with Him in baptism (of the Spirit), in which you were also
raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the
dead.
And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your
flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our
transgressions.
Having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and
which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the

50. cross.”
-Colossians 2:8-9, 11-14 New Testament
We pray you, too, will seek, find and be refreshed by His Spirit.
WAY OF THE TABERNACLE
CIRCUMCISION AND SPIRITUAL REPRODUCTION
For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward
in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of
the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from
YAH. Romans 2:28-29
Throughout scripture, we are shown physical foreshadows that are later revealed as
spiritual real substances. The spiritual is mirrored here on earth by physical
representations, or “shadows,” to put it as the apostle Paul did (Colossians 2:16-17).
To list all the physical foreshadows and spiritual real substances in scripture would
take several volumes, but the one we're going to focus on right now is circumcision.
It is important to understand that, with foreshadows and real substances, they are
often called by the same name in scripture—but the spiritual is the real substance,
the physical is only a picture of that. For example, the term “Jew” in scripture
applies both to the physical descendants of Abraham (the ethnic Jews), and his
spiritual descendants (those who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit). Romans 2:29
reveals who the real Jews are in Yah's eyes, and it has nothing to do with anything
physical. Galatians 3:28-29 is clear about who the spiritual descendants of Abraham
are, and remember, the spiritual is the real substance.
The name “Israel” has both a physical meaning and a spiritual one. Physically, it is
the nation of Jews on the earth, but spiritually, it is the name of Messiah's bride—
those who receive the Covenant (Holy Spirit) between the fulfillment of the Feast of
Weeks (Acts 2) and the Feast of Trumpets (rapture of the bride). The name
“Y'isra'el” means “rules as God,” and that is what Messiah's bride will do in
eternity, as the wife of the King of heaven and earth. So, the true Jews (spiritual)
comprise the true Israel (spiritual).
Baptism is another term that has both a physical meaning (foreshadow) and a

51. spiritual one (real substance). Water baptism was a symbol of cleansing under the
law of Moses, while the real substance is the cleansing (righteousness) that comes
from the indwelling Holy Spirit. Water baptism is not a necessary component of
salvation, but spiritual baptism IS salvation. To be baptized in water now can be an
invitation to the Holy Spirit (as the foreshadow always precedes the real substance),
but after one is baptized by the Holy Spirit, water baptism is wholly unnecessary.
And, that brings us to the physical covenant Yah made with Abraham—
circumcision. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel) are foreshadows, or physical
representations, of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As we see in Genesis 22,
Abraham was willing to give his son Isaac to be killed, and Jacob was renamed
“Y'isra'el,” which is the name of Messiah's bride, as she is indwelt by the Holy
Spirit, who is the New Covenant of marriage.
But, in Genesis 17, we see the physical covenant of circumcision being made between
Yah and Abraham, and with that covenant was the promise of many descendants
who would be given the promised land (a foreshadow of heaven). When the law was
given to Moses, circumcision was the first requirement for anyone who would be
part of the community, as the Jews were not allowed to “keep company” with
anyone who was not circumcised. After Jewish boys were born, they were
circumcised on the eighth day. But, an uncircumcised male could be circumcised at
any time as a sign of obedience to the physical law, and, as already explained, it was
required of any male who would dwell in the community of Jews.
The physical removal of the male foreskin being the foreshadow, what is the
spiritual real substance? Just as physical circumcision was the requirement to be a
member of the “called-out assembly,” or “qahal” in Hebrew, so spiritual
circumcision is the requirement to be a member of Messiah's bride, who, spiritually,
is Israel. The bride is also of the “called-out assembly,” or “ekklesia” in Greek. But,
as 1 Corinthians 7:19 tells us, physical circumcision is nothing, just as
uncircumcision is nothing—because physical circumcision is a foreshadow, a
picture.
But, what is spiritual circumcision? The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 2:28-29:
For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward
in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of
the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from
Yah. So, just as with the other foreshadow/real substance constructs, Paul is saying
that physical circumcision isn't the real substance, but the foreshadow, and the
spiritual real substance is circumcision of the heart.
We're also shown in Hebrews 10:15-17: And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for

52. after saying, “This is the covenant that I will make with them , after those days, says
Yah: I will put My laws upon their heart, And on their mind I will write them,” He
then says, “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
The physical covenant that was given to the Jewish people at Mt. Sinai (Ten
Commandments) was a foreshadow of the spiritual real substance, who is the Holy
Spirit, being given to the bride. The Feast of Weeks commemorated that event at
Mt. Sinai, and the fulfillment of that feast occurred on the first Feast of Weeks
following Yahoshua's resurrection, which is what we see in Acts 2—the giving of the
Holy Spirit as the spiritual real substance of the law.
In 2 Corinthians 3:3, Paul says of the believers in Corinth, “being manifested that
you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of
the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”
So, in Hebrews 10:15-17, when we're told that Yah's covenant with Israel (the real
substance, who is the bride) is the placing of the fulfillment of the physical covenant,
which was the Ten Commandments, upon their heart and mind, He is speaking of
placing His Holy Spirit into believers as the New Covenant, which is the covenant of
marriage to His Son, Yahoshua the Messiah. THAT is what makes the believer a
member of Messiah's bride.
Romans 8:9 couldn't be any clearer about who Messiah's bride is: However, you are
not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of Yah dwells in you. But if
anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. Only those
who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, the New Covenant, are Messiah's bride.
But what does spiritual circumcision have to do with spiritual reproduction?
As already stated, physical circumcision—Abraham's covenant—was a foreshadow,
and often, a foreshadow presents great detail, physically, for us to better understand
the spiritual real substance. So, as a foreshadow—and this is key—where, on the
physical body, does circumcision occur? It is performed on the part of a man's body
from where human life flows. Without that part of the body on a man, human
reproduction does not happen.
So, where that bit of biology is concerned, what does Paul tell us about those who
are born again, or, literally, “born from above”? We need only examine how
physical reproduction occurs—how one is physically born. And if you belong to
Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed (offspring), heirs according to promise.
Galatians 3:29
Now, we've already seen in Romans 8:9 that those who belong to Christ are those

53. who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. So, being indwelt by the Holy Spirit makes one a
descendant of Abraham, by virtue of his “seed.” Of course, this has nothing to do
with anything physical, as the previous verse explains that the physical distinction
between Jews and Gentiles no longer exists. It was a foreshadow—a picture of the
bride and the world.
While we know what man's physical “seed” is, what is Paul saying here? What is the
seed that makes believers descendants of Abraham?
No one who is born of Yah practices sin (this is speaking specifically of the sin of
unbelief), because His SEED abides in him; and he cannot sin (unbelief), because he
is born of Yah. 1 John 3:9
Going back to Romans 8:9, what is it within a person that makes Him Christ's? It is
the Holy Spirit. What is the Holy Spirit to the bride? He is the real substance of the
written law (Ten Commandments), which was a foreshadow of the Holy Spirit that
was revealed in Acts 2. The Holy Spirit is the spiritual seed that is spiritual life.
Without that seed, one is spiritually dead; with that seed, one is spiritually alive—
eternally.
Just as physical life depends on the presence of physical seed, so too does spiritual
life. One is not born again unless that spiritual seed is placed within him. But, how
does that seed get placed into the bride? In Romans 10, Paul explains HOW the seed
(Holy Spirit) is placed within the bride.
How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they
believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a
preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How
beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” Romans 10:14-
15
The seed is passed on by those who possess it—as we see with man's seed, it is
passed on physically by those who possess it. But, is it actually necessary for one
who possesses the seed to be involved in the placing of that seed in another believer
—which is the basis of spiritual life in a person?
We see in Acts 8 a group of Samaritans who had heard the truths of the Holy Spirit
and believed those truths—to the point of choosing to be baptized in water (which
was a symbol of cleansing under the law of Moses) in the name of Yahoshua the
Messiah, which was the baptism of John the Baptist. When the apostles heard that
the Samaritans had believed the Spirit's truths about Messiah, they sent Peter and
John to them. But why?

54. Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of
Yah, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they
might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had
simply been baptized in the name of the Messiah Yahoshua. Then they began laying
their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:14-17
The Samaritans had received the Word of Yah—the “Word” there is the Greek
LOGOS, which, to the bride, is the Holy Spirit. They received the message of the
Holy Spirit that they had heard, but, the actual process of being “born from above”
had not yet occurred—the seed was not yet placed within them. Enter Peter and
John (both indwelt by the seed), and they placed their hands on them and prayed
that they would receive the seed, which they did. Those with the seed were necessary
for the spiritual process of birth to be accomplished.
What the LOGOS in Acts 8:14 is NOT is the “bible,” for the only scriptures they
had at that point were what we call the Old Testament. It is also clear from this, and
what we're told in Romans 10:12-15, that the process of spiritual reproduction does
not happen by reading anything, but by HEARING the truths of the Holy Spirit (the
LOGOS). It is the contact with one who has the Spirit of Yah (the seed) that
produces spiritual life—spiritual reproduction. That is why Peter and John were
necessary in Acts 8. They were the ones who spiritually reproduced the Samaritan
believers.
1 John 5:10 also shows us who the Father sees as “believers.” They are the ones in
whom He has placed the “witness.” But, the Greek there for “witness” is a word that
means “evidence.” What is that evidence? He is the seed—He is in those who are
Abraham's descendants. And, those who are given the evidence are TOLD the
evidence is in them. Romans 8:16 tells us that the Holy Spirit Himself (the seed)
testifies to Yah's children that they are His. How He does that is explained further
HERE.
But can't someone just read the bible and get saved from that?
This exposes a fatal flaw in a popular christian teaching—that reading the “bible”
can result in a person's salvation (which is just as false as the notion that one is
saved because of what scripture states, or “the-Bible-tells-me-so” false evidence of
salvation). The Pharisees believed that they had salvation because they were the
teachers of the scriptures (the law and the prophets)—they thought their salvation
was IN THE SCRIPTURES. But, Yahoshua the Messiah rebuked them for that false
belief in John 5:39 when He told them “You search the Scriptures because you
THINK that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me.”

55. He pointed out that they falsely thought their eternal life was in the scriptures, but
the scriptures merely tell about Him. One is not saved by the scriptures, but by the
Author of them. Salvation is foreshadowed in physical reproduction—the act of man
placing his seed within his bride, creating a new life. Therefore if anyone is in Christ
(has the Holy Spirit, according to Romans 8:9), he is a new creature; the old things
passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17
The scriptures are given to Yah's children, not to those who are unbelievers. All
Scripture is inspired by Yah and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
for training in righteousness; so that the MAN OF YAH may be adequate, equipped
for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “Training in righteousness” is key there, as
only those who have the Holy Spirit are righteous in Yah's eyes. The training that
comes from the scriptures are for those who are righteous (the “man of Yah”).
Additionally, when 2 Timothy was written, the only scriptures they had were those
in the Old Testament (the “Tanakh,” which is the Torah and the prophets).
Spiritual life is transmitted by those living who have the spiritual seed. It is not
transmitted by an unbeliever reading the scriptures.
So, spiritual reproduction is foreshadowed in Abraham's covenant, because spiritual
life flows from the circumcised heart (the indwelling of the Holy Spirit) just as
physical life flows from what was physically circumcised. And, for that spiritual
reproduction to happen, it requires contact, just as it is with physical reproduction.
The scriptures teach the doctrines of salvation, which are necessary for those with
the Spirit to understand, so they know HOW one is born again—it teaches those
with the Spirit HOW to spiritually reproduce. We have the same thing that teaches
physical reproduction; it's called a biology book.
Those who falsely believe that one can be saved by reading the scriptures would also
have to believe that reading a biology book can get a girl pregnant.
Abraham's covenant, or circumcision, is the physical foreshadow of the means by
which one is made part of the bride—the indwelling of the seed, who is the Holy
Spirit. That is spiritual circumcision, which is the spiritual real substance of that
physical foreshadow."
True and False Circumcision - Romans 2:25-29

56. Dr. Steven J. Lawson
For indeed circumcision is of value if you practice the Law; but if you are a
transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. So if the
uncircumcised man keeps the requirements of the Law, will not his uncircumcision
be regarded as circumcision? And he who is physically uncircumcised, if he keeps
the Law, will he not judge you who though having the letter of the Law and
circumcision are a transgressor of the Law? For he is not a Jew who is one
outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew
who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not
by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God (Romans 2:25-29).
This study focuses upon the subject of circumcision and requires that we, first, lay a
foundation before this passage will make sense to most of us. In order to do so, we
are going to walk through the entire Bible to uncover the mandate and necessity of
true circumcision. Admittedly, this religious rite is not a normal part of our life as
Gentiles. Consequently, we do not give this practice much thought. In order for us to
understand Paul’s message on circumcision in Romans 2:25-29, we will do an
overview of this subject from the rest of the Bible. Understanding circumcision is a
part of our having a comprehensive understanding the gospel.
As we approach this subject, let me remind us that we are in the first section of
Romans, which deals with the condemnation of the human race by God. This
underscores every person’s desperate need for the gospel. Beginning with Romans
2:17, Paul began to specifically address the Jew. In verses 17-24, he said, “You who
are the Jew, who have the Law, why do you teach others the Law and do not follow
it yourself?” In verse 25, Paul goes for the jugular. He pokes his finger into the apple
of the eye of the Jew and addresses the one issue in the Law in which the Jew took
the most pride. This is the practice of circumcision upon infant Jewish boys.
Starting in verse 25, Paul will make a distinction between true and false
circumcision.
A Biblical Survey of Circumcision
Circumcision was an integral part of the nation of Israel, starting with Abraham,
the father of God’s chosen people (Genesis 17:11-14). It was required of every male
Jewish boy that on the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin of his male organ was to

57. be cut as a sign of the Abrahamic covenant. This command was reinforced in the
Mosaic Law, which declared, “On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be
circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3). This practice was intended to be a picture of what
must happen to the heart, just like baptism is a picture of the reality of salvation.
The foreskin was cut with a sharp knife, signifying that this person is to be set apart
to God.
This pictured the reality that one must have his heart pierced and cut to the core by
the sharp two-edged sword of the word of God. The heart must be set apart to God.
It is a picture of the new birth, a picture of conversion. The physical circumcision is
a picture of the spiritual circumcision that must take place in the life of every
believer.
Circumcision in Deuteronomy
In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses reissued the Law a second time to a new
generation that was poised to enter into the Promised Land after forty years of
wilderness wanderings. The word “Deuteronomy” means ‘the second giving of the
Law,’ or ‘the second Law-giving.’ The generation in the wilderness with Moses had
received physical circumcision, but their hearts had not been circumcised by the
Holy Spirit with the word of God. Moses said, “So circumcise your heart and stiffen
your neck no longer” (Deuteronomy 10:16). In this verse, an uncircumcised heart
meant that one was stiff-necked. To be stiff-necked pictured a stubborn ox that will
not submit to a master. When the master tried to place the yoke around its neck, the
ox hunched up its shoulders, so that his neck refused to receive the yoke. To be stiff-
necked meant that the ox would not submit to the yoke of it master. The ox was
resistant and refused humble itself. Simply put, he would not submit to the authority
of his master.
In this passage, Moses said this wilderness generation is stiff-necked. They would
not submit to the lordship of God over their lives. They refused to surrender their
life to God. Instead, God said that they must circumcise their heart. They needed to
have their heart pierced, which involves the painful conviction of sin. This
excruciating piercing must accompany their entrance into the kingdom of God.
From this, we learn that no one giggles through the narrow gate. No one skips their

58. way flippantly into the kingdom. All who come do so by mourning over the painful
awareness of their sin. This, in turn, leads to rejoicing at the relief that is found in
the grace of God.
The book of Deuteronomy is a series of sermons preached by Moses with multiple
messages. In one of his later sermons, Moses expounded the sovereignty of God in
this spiritual circumcision. This is something for which man is responsible, but only
God can do. Moses said, “Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise your heart
and the heart of your descendants to love the Lord your God with all your heart so
that you may live.” (Deuteronomy 30:6). This latter aspect referred to their children
as they would come under the influence of the truth of the gospel. Three times in this
one verse, Moses stressed the heart. If their heart was not circumcised, they
remained spiritually dead. An unconverted heart had no spiritual life.
This was the necessity of heart circumcision. Without their heart being circumcised,
they were separated from God and without spiritual life. This heart circumcision
represented them being set apart to God, by the Holy Spirit, in the new birth.
Circumcision in Jeremiah
The prophet Jeremiah said, “Circumcise yourselves to the Lord and remove the
foreskins of your heart” (Jeremiah 4:4). The prophet is not requiring an adult to
perform the surgical procedure of physical circumcision on himself. He is talking
about the real circumcision which is spiritual. In other words, it is not enough that
they were circumcised as an infant. That is not going to gain anyone entrance into
the kingdom of heaven. The unbeliever who is thickheaded and stiff-necked must
circumcise their heart. Such spiritual surgery will remove the foreskin of their
heart. That is to say, this procedure will remove their sinful resistance to God and
refusal to submit to His authority over their lives. Spiritual circumcision will remove
their unbelief and cause them to place their faith in God and His gospel.
If a person does not have their heart circumcised, notice the second half of verse
four. God says, “Or else My wrath will go forth like fire and burn with none to
quench it, because of the evil of your deeds” (Jeremiah 4:4). The foreskin of one’s
heart is what caused one to live a sinful, rebellious life. The heart must be cut with
deep conviction of sin. The only two-edged sword sharp enough to penetrate the

59. thick foreskin of their rebellion against God is the word of God. This is living and
active and sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). When it comes with
the power of the Holy Spirit, it is an invincible weapon in the hand of the one who
wields it.
The prophet Jeremiah says that the imperative of knowing God must be the real
experience of every heart. God spoke through Jeremiah, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Let
not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might,
let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he
understands and knows Me’” (Jeremiah 9:23-24). The priority is upon the heart
being turned to God.
Jeremiah then resumed his discussion on circumcision. He wrote, “‘Behold, the days
are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘that I will punish all who are circumcised and yet
uncircumcised’” (Jeremiah 9:25). This refers to those who are physically
circumcised, but who are not spiritually circumcised. A Jew could have been
physically circumcised, but it is counted for nothing if he was not spiritually
circumcised. Days are coming when God will punish those who are circumcised, yet
uncircumcised.
It is exactly the same today, with those who have been baptized, but who have not
been spiritually baptized. You can be baptized in water, but not be a true believer.
Having the physical ceremony brings no redemptive reality to a person’s life. One
must have the spiritual circumcision of the new birth.
In the end, this divine punishment will come, “for all the nations are uncircumcised,
and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised of heart” (Jeremiah 9:26). All the
Gentile nations are uncircumcised, both physically and spiritually. This is a double
uncircumcision. On the other hand, Israel is circumcised physically, but
uncircumcised spiritually in the heart. That means, they are physically circumcised,
but spiritually unregenerate. They are in the commonwealth of Israel, but not in the
spiritual kingdom of God. They have participated in the ritual in their body, but
have never had the reality in their heart.

60. Circumcision in Ezekiel
God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel, “When you brought in foreigners
uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh” (Ezekiel 44:7). A distinction is
made between the Gentiles, who were the foreigners, who had not been circumcised
either physically or spiritually. The prophet recorded, “Thus says the Lord God, ‘No
foreigner uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh…shall enter My
sanctuary’” (verse 9).
In order to come into the presence of God in the sanctuary, one must be a true
worshiper of God. Such a person must have a heart that has been circumcised,
meaning it must be cut, convicted, and converted. Every person who would worship
God must have a heart that has been pierced by the word of God. This spiritual
surgery would bring a person into submission to the Lord so that he will no longer
be stiff-necked of heart.
Circumcision in Acts
In Acts 7, Stephen preached that incredible sermon before the Sanhedrin, comprised
of the seventy Jewish leaders and the high priest of the nation Israel. Stephen gave
an extraordinary walk through the spiritual history of Israel, where he came to the
summation of his sermon. In verse 51, he addressed the unbelieving, unregenerate
leaders of the nation of Israel, when they were in spiritual apostasy. In their recent
past, they had crucified their Messiah in rank unbelief. Stephen said to them, “You
men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting
the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did” (Acts 7:51). He pointed back
to everything we previously examined in Deuteronomy, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel about
being uncircumcised. Tragically, the nation Israel had a longstanding history of
being circumcised, yet being uncircumcised. There had always been a believing
remnant within the nation, but the rest of the nation remained uncircumcised of
heart.
Circumcision in Galatians
Galatians 6:15 is a key verse in which Paul said emphatically, “For neither is
circumcision anything nor uncircumcision.” This means, there is no saving value
whatsoever in physical circumcision. The apostle continued, “but a new creation”
(Galatians 6:15). This is to say, the only thing that matters before God is that a

61. person is born again and becomes a new creature in Christ Jesus. Paul talks
elsewhere about becoming this new creation. He writes, “If anyone is in Christ, he is
a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2
Corinthians 5:17). To become a “new creature” is a metaphorical expression for the
new birth.
In the New Testament, we continue to see these terms of circumcision and
uncircumcision that were introduced in the New Testament. False teachers known as
Judaizers had come into the churches in Galatia after Paul left this region on his
first missionary journey. These false workers of evil were trying to put unbelievers
and believers back under the Mosaic Law. They were telling people that in order to
enter into the kingdom of God, they must be circumcised. Paul began his epistle to
the Galatians saying that this teaching is another gospel. He said, let these false
teachers be anathema, or perish eternally in hell. He concludes by telling the
believers to forget circumcision and uncircumcision. All that matters is that they are
a new creature in Christ Jesus.
Circumcision in Ephesians
This subject of spiritual circumcision resurfaces again in Paul’s letter to the
Ephesians. The apostle said, “Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles
in the flesh, who are called ‘Uncircumcision’ by the so-called ‘Circumcision,’ which
is performed in the flesh by human hand” (Ephesians 2:11). The Jews looked down
their long, self-righteous noses at the Gentiles. They called them uncircumcised,
meaning unclean.
There is a note of intentional sarcasm here. Paul called the circumcised Jews, “so-
called ‘Circumcision.’” They had been physically circumcised, but they had not had
the real circumcision. They only had the circumcision of their flesh, which did not
count for anything in their eternal relationship with God. They must have the
circumcision of their heart in order to enter in the kingdom of heaven.
Paul says this “so-called ‘Circumcision,’” is “performed in the flesh by human
hands.” He dismissively said that this surgical procedure is not the real
circumcision. Instead, the circumcision that put one in a position of acceptance with
God is not performed in the flesh by human hands. Rather, it is performed in the

62. heart by the Spirit of God.
Circumcision in Philippians
In the book of Philippians, Paul again addressed the Judaizers who came into the
church and tried to put those in the church already converted back under the
Mosaic Law. They taught that they must work their way into the kingdom. He
described these false teachers in a three-fold manner. The apostle wrote, “Beware of
the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision” (Philippians
3:2). Paul calls these false teachers “dogs” because they are unclean. In this day,
dogs roamed the streets of Middle Eastern cities, going from one heap of rubbish to
the next, spreading disease and filth, as they ate the leftover scraps. They visited the
dunghills and ate their own filth. Paul calls these false teachers “dogs,” because they
are unclean, spreading their false teaching that one must to be circumcised to gain
entrance into the kingdom of God. These “evil workers” are the “false
circumcision,” referring to the same group of false teachers. They are the ones who
are spreading the damning heresy of the false circumcision.
Paul makes the clear distinction between these unbelievers and those who are true
believers. “For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and
glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh” (Philippians 3:3). When
Paul refers to them as being “in the flesh,” he makes an intentional allusion to their
practice of cutting the male organ. By stark contrast, Paul said that we put no
confidence in the flesh.
There was a time in Paul’s pre-conversion life when he did put confidence in the
flesh. He confided, “I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else
has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more” (Philippians 3:4). He
expounded a litany of reasons why he once placed confidence in his flesh. The
number one reason why he trusted in his own efforts to give him a right standing
before God was that he was so properly brought up as an Israelite, even being
circumcised on the eighth day. Though he had been circumcised in the flesh, there
came a time in his life in which he no longer trusted in such external symbols of
religion. He realized that these physical rituals meant nothing in regard to finding
acceptance with God. He came to understand that what is most important was for
God to perform spiritual surgery upon his heart. He must have his old heart cut to
the core. His old flesh must be removed, and God must give him a new heart. God

63. must put His Spirit within him and cause him to obey His word.
Circumcision in Colossians
This golden thread of truth concerning the need for spiritual circumcision runs
through the entire Bible. This would be so easy for us, who are non-Jews, to be
reading our Bible and hydroplane over this teaching without realizing the full
impact of what Paul was saying. In the book of Colossians, we see the apostle
address a mixture of Old Testament and New Testament teachings that was trying to
put the believers back under the Law. False teachers had come into the church and
were imposing a mixture of humanistic philosophy (Colossians 2:8), Jewish legalism
(2:16), bodily asceticism (2:18,21), and subjective mysticism. Each aspect was a foul,
polluted stream that flowed into one dirty river, known as the Colossian heresy.
Paul confronts this heresy head-on. He wrote, “And in Him you were also
circumcised with a circumcision made without hands” (2:11). If you are a genuine
believer in Jesus Christ, He circumcised you with invisible hands. Here, we see that
the need for your heart to be circumcised is not merely an Old Testament teaching.
This truth is still applicable to us in the New Testament. The invisible hand of God
must bring the piercing to the heart. There must be “the removal of the body of the
flesh” (verse 11). Here, “flesh” refers not to physical flesh, but to a person’s sinful
flesh. The only way for this old man to be removed is by the spiritual circumcision
that was performed by Christ in the new birth.
This open heart surgery occurred on the day of Pentecost, “When they heard this,
they were pierced to the heart” (Acts 2:37). This word “pierced” (katonusso) means
that one would take a butcher knife and thrust it into the heart of another. Anyone
who has ever been saved has had the sharp instrumentality of the word of God fillet
them. They have been cut to the core of their being, bringing them under conviction
of sin. They feel their desperate need for the grace of God in the salvation that is in
Jesus Christ. This is all a deep work of God in the unbelieving heart.
Circumcision in the Day
Admittedly, there are countless people who do not trust in circumcision for their
salvation. But they trust in other religious rituals. They rely upon their water

64. baptism to give them a right standing before God. They put confidence in their
coming to the Lord’s Table. They rely upon other religious activities that are a part
of the New Testament church. They look to walking forward down the center aisle of
the church. They rest in joining the church.
Let us be clear, there is no salvation in these physical acts. There is no baptismal
regeneration. It is only a picture of what the Spirit must do. Even the Lord’s Supper
is but a picture of the reality of our drinking the blood and eating the flesh of the
Lord Jesus Christ in saving faith. All that matters is the heart.
The point we must take from this is that God is after your heart. If the heart is right,
the life will be right with God. If the heart is wrong, the life will be wrong with Him.
Solomon says, “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs
of life” (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus commanded us, “Love the Lord your God with all
your heart, and soul, and mind, and strength” (Mark 12:30). Throughout the day, as
we are thinking about our walk with the Lord, we must remember that our spiritual
life begins with our heart. Afterward, it proceeds to the exterior behavior of one’s
life. Certainly, the outward sanctions of our lives are important. But it is only
genuine if there is the reality of a circumcised heart behind it.
With this as an introduction, let us now come to our passage in Romans 2. I have
three headings to help us study these verses. In verse 25 is the circumcised. In verses
26-27 is the uncircumcised. And in verses 28-29 is the true circumcision.
I. The Circumcised (2:25)
First, Paul addressed the Jew who has been physically circumcised. The apostle said,
“For indeed circumcision is of value if you practice the Law” (verse 25). The only
way the Jew can rightly practice the Law is to have a new heart. And the only way
to have a new heart is to be spiritually circumcised. Circumcision is of value only if
it is a sign that pictures the reality of a heart that has been rent asunder. When a
person has undergone a heart circumcision, they will practice the Law. They will not
practice it perfectly, but they will practice it habitually, because you have a new
heart.

65. Paul continues, “But if you are a transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has
become uncircumcision” (verse 25). This means, physical circumcision is of no value.
If a person’s heart has not been changed and there is no life change, then to be
circumcised has no value. It is as though you are uncircumcised before God. That is
the argument that Paul is making.
II. The Uncircumcised (2:26-27)
Paul next addresses those who are the uncircumcised, which are the Gentiles: “If the
uncircumcised man keeps the requirements of the Law will not his uncircumcision
be regarded as circumcision?” (verse 26). The only way for the Gentile to keep the
requirements of the Law is to have experienced a spiritual circumcision that gives
him a new heart in the new birth. He will keep the requirements of the Law, not
perfectly, but habitually and continually in a new lifestyle that loves God and lives in
obedience to His word. The argument is though he has never been physically
circumcised, he has experienced the spiritual reality of what circumcision pictures.
It is as though he is circumcised, because he has received the real circumcision,
which is in the heart.
The apostle continues, “And he who is physically uncircumcised, if he keeps the
Law, will he not judge you who though having the letter of the Law and
circumcision are a transgressor of the Law?” (verse 27). This refers to the Gentile,
who was never physically circumcised, but will judge the one who has been
circumcised. This is because the former has received the true circumcision of the
heart. The one who is spiritually circumcised “keeps the Law.” This is in the present
tense. The idea is an ongoing, daily life pattern of obeying the moral requirements of
the Law from the heart. The answer to that rhetorical question is yes. His manner of
life will judge the unregenerate Jew. In reality, it is God who judges. This Gentile is
standing with God in this judgment. The manner of his circumcised heart and his
new life stands as a judgment against those who have received a physical
circumcision, but have never had a spiritual circumcision.
III. The True Circumcision (2:28-29)

66. Paul concludes this section by addressing the true circumcision in verses 28-29. This
truth should be clear to the believers in Rome. “For he is not a Jew who is one
outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh” (verse 28). This
circumcision is referring not to what is “outward”, but to true spiritual circumcision
of the heart. Being made right with God is not found in the outward circumcision of
the flesh, but of the heart. A true Jew is not a Jew with only a physical circumcision,
but one who has been spiritually circumcised. Verse 28 reveals what true
circumcision is not.
The following verse explains what it is the true circumcision. The negative denial is
found in verse 28, namely what it is not. Now, the positive assertion is found in verse
29, that is, what it is. There can be no misunderstanding in what Paul says. “But he
is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the
Spirit, not by the letter” (verse 29). This refers to a true, completed, authentic Jew.
“The letter” refers to all the different requirements of the Law that one must keep
externally by his own self will. True circumcision must be performed by the Spirit,
not by human hands.
Paul then concludes, “and his praise is not from men, but from God” (verse 29). If
one is a Jew, he is going to receive applause from other Jews, who have also been
physically circumcised. But what matters is not the praise that is from men, but
from God. There is a pun taking place here, because the word “Jew” (Ioudaios)
means ‘praise,’ which is derived from the tribe of Judah. True praise from God can
only come for a true Jew.
Have You Received the True Circumcision?
As we bring this study to conclusion, the important question for you is: Have you
been circumcised by the Spirit? Have you experienced the true circumcision? You
must be inwardly circumcised in order to find acceptance with God. The good news
is that God is not requiring you to undergo a physical circumcision, but a spiritual
one. This surgical procedure is a biblical metaphor for the regeneration of the soul
that produces conversion. Regeneration is God’s part. Conversion is man’s part. It
is the heads and tails of the same coin. The rest of the New Testament will give us a
distinction in the order of salvation, but here, with spiritual circumcision, it is all

67. that matters.
© 2019 Steven J. Lawson
What does Philippians 3:3 mean? [⇑ See verse text ⇑]
This verse explains the safety Paul had referred to in verse 1. Paul promoted
salvation by faith, not by following Jewish customs. As the most obvious physical
sign of Judaism, "circumcision" is often used as a metaphor for the entire Old
Testament law.
Instead of hollow legalism, true followers of Jesus are marked by three practices.
First, their worship is spiritual and recognizable by a focus on the Holy Spirit's
work in their lives.
Second, they put their faith and worship in Christ, not the law. The Old Testament
law looked forward to the Messiah, but did not know who He would be. Believers
glory in Christ Jesus, who had been revealed as the Son of God, the predicted
Jewish Messiah.
Third, Christians don't stake their eternity, or their spiritual lives, on rituals or their
own good works. Again, circumcision is part of the general context here. The proper
confidence of a Christian is not in whether a person has been circumcised—or
followed some other religious ritual—but whether they have received salvation
through faith in Jesus.
The ritual of circumcision is not morally wrong now, and was not wrong when Paul
wrote this letter. Paul would soon note his own circumcision (Philippians 3:5). In the

68. same way, adherence to the Torah was also positive, but not absolutely required
(Philippians 3:7). However, in comparison with knowing Christ, these things were
unimportant (Philippians 3:7–8). In particular, they are not something that can
grant forgiveness of sins before God. Jesus offers a righteousness that is not of the
law, but through faith (Philippians 3:9).
Circumcision of the Heart
Updated: Wed, 08/31/2016 - 17:57 By admin
EXTERNAL vs INTERNAL
CIRCUMCISION
INDEX:
Romans 2:28

69. Colossians 2:11
Genesis 17:9-14
Leviticus 26:41-42
Deuteronomy 10:16-17
Deuteronomy 30:1-6
Jeremiah 4:4
Jeremiah 9:25

70. Ezekiel 44:6-9
Acts 7:51
INTRODUCTION: While God had indeed commanded external circumcision of
the foreskin as a sign of entrance into the Abrahamic covenant, the deeper
significance was that this physical act was intended to be an manifestation of the
obedience that flowed from one's faith (see discussion of the relationship to faith
and obedience here and here). In other words, the physical act of circumcision
was to reflect one's belief in the Abrahamic Covenant and the "Gospel" that had

71. been preached to Abraham. In Galatians 3:8 Paul taught that "the Scripture,
foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel
beforehand to Abraham, saying, “ALL THE NATIONS SHALL BE BLESSED IN
YOU.” He later added "Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his
seed (singular). He does not say, “And to seeds (plural),” as referring to many,
but rather to one, “And to your seed (singular),” that is, Christ." (Gal 3:16-see
note) The reader should be aware of the fact that in the original Hebrew the word
descendants (or seed) is more literally the word "seed" and each use in the

72. following passages is in the masculine singular which would be compatible with
Paul's explanation in Galatians 3:16 that the reference was not to seeds plural but
to Seed singular (masculine), specifically a reference to the Messiah (Study the
following passages that speak of the "descendants" [the seed - every occurrence of
descendants or seed is in the masculine singular] = Ge 12:7 13:15,16 15:5 17:7,8
21:12 22:17,18 26:3,4 28:13, 14 until the "Seed" culminates in Ge 49:10-see
comment). Thus belief in the the promise which Jehovah gave to Abraham was
tantamount to belief in the promised Seed, the coming Messiah. That belief

73. resulted in an internal circumcision of the believing person's spiritual heart which
was shown to be a true spiritual circumcision by their willingness to perform the
physical circumcision. The latter (physical circumcision) was always intended to
be a sign pointing to the former (spiritual circumcision)! Unfortunately, fallen
men (all mankind Ro 5:12-note) seek to come to God their own way, via their
works of presumed righteousness (which are really "filthy rags" Isa 64:6-note,
note or here). The result was that many in the Jewish nation perverted the sign of
circumcision (Ge 17:11) as a "work" which they taught merited salvation. In

74. short, the sign in essence became the covenant instead of that which pointed to the
covenant (see how one might misinterpret Ge 17:13 for example but to do so is to
take it out of the context of the "whole counsel" of God's Word and a text out of
context is a pretext [pretense]!).
As an aside there is surprisingly only one use of the actual word circumcision in
the Old Testament, and it is found in a somewhat enigmatic passage that refers to
Moses failure to circumcise his son, which drew a harsh rebuke from his wife "So
He let him alone. At that time she said, "You are a bridegroom of blood "--

75. because of the circumcision." (Exodus 4:26) The Net Bible has an interesting note
- "The Hebrew simply has lammulot ("to the circumcision[s]"). The phrase
explains that the saying was in reference to the act of circumcision. Some scholars
speculate that there was a ritual prior to marriage from which this event and its
meaning derived. But it appears rather that if there was some ancient ritual, it
would have had to come from this event. The difficulty is that the son is
circumcised, not Moses, making the comparative mythological view untenable.
Moses had apparently not circumcised Eliezer. Since Moses was taking his family

76. with him, God had to make sure the sign of the covenant was kept. It may be that
here Moses sent them all back to Jethro 'Ex 18:2) because of the difficulties that
lay ahead." (See Why was God going to kill Moses in Exodus 4:24-26?)
Romans 2:26-note For indeed circumcision is of value, if you practice the Law;
but if you are a transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has become
uncircumcision. 26 If therefore the uncircumcised man keeps the requirements of
the Law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? 27-note And
will not he who is physically uncircumcised, if he keeps the Law, will he not judge

77. you who though having the letter of the Law and circumcision are a transgressor
of the Law? 28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is circumcision
that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and
circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his
praise is not from men, but from God.
Due to the passing down of teaching from one rabbi to another over the centuries
("traditions of men") the true meaning and requirement of circumcision had been
lost. And so by the 1st century we find rabbinical "traditions" teaching such

78. fallacies as:
“No circumcised Jewish man will see hell” and “Circumcision saves us from hell.”
The Midrash says
“God swore to Abraham that no one who was circumcised would be sent to hell.
Abraham sits before the gate of hell and never allows any circumcised Israelite to
enter.”
Here Paul Paul corrects this serious error in rabbinical interpretation and also
explains the somewhat enigmatic OT passages alluding to "circumcision of the

79. heart", clearly stating that it is a spiritual circumcision performed by the Holy
Spirit at the time one receives the Messiah as Savior. It is salvation by grace
through faith -- in the OT it was placing one's faith in a prophesied, promised
Deliverer as one looked forward to the Cross of Messiah and in the NT it is
looking back to Messiah's finished work of redemption at Calvary. Colossians 2:11
(below) also amplifies the true meaning of the circumcision that God has always
desired.
And so in Romans 2:28, 29 Paul seeks to correct this "eternally fatal" flaw in the

80. rabbi's misinterpretation - physical circumcision never saved anyone! Paul also
helps us understand the somewhat enigmatic OT passages alluding to
"circumcision of the heart". Based on Paul's teaching, we can see that the OT was
clearly calling for a spiritual circumcision performed by the Holy Spirit at the time
one received the Messiah as their Savior. In the Old Testament, this spiritual
transaction transpired when one entered the Abrahamic Covenant by grace
through faith. Similarly, in the New Testament the spiritual circumcision
transpired when one entered the New Covenant by grace through faith. In other

81. words, in the Old Testament, salvation (circumcision of one's heart) was achieved
by placing one's faith in the prophesied Messiah, even as their "eyes of faith"
looked forward toward the Cross of Messiah (at which time He "cut" the New
Covenant). How much of the work of Christ on the Cross the Old Testament
believers understood is uncertain. One thing is certain - they knew enough to be
genuinely saved! And we in the NT (the "church age") with eyes of faith (Heb
11:1-note, 2Co 5:7) look back toward Messiah's finished work of redemption at
Calvary (Jn 19:30-note).

82. Colossians 2:9 (see notes Colossians 2:9-10, 2:11-12) For in Him all the fulness of
Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He
is the head over all rule and authority; 11 and in Him you were also circumcised
with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by
the circumcision of Christ; 12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which
you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised
Him from the dead.
Circumcision is a cutting away of something and therefore signifies a removal of

83. that which has been cut away. In this verse Paul is clearly using the well known
procedure of circumcision not to describe the physical act but ["without hands"]
to describe spiritual circumcision. Here Paul uses the circumcision metaphor to
explain the same spiritual transaction he discussed in Romans 6:1-11(notes) which
describes in detail of the events that occurred when we placed our faith in Christ.
At that very moment we were "circumcised with a circumcision made without
hands", we were "baptized into Christ" (Galatians 3:27 = identified with Christ)
and we experienced a death, burial and resurrection by virtue of our very real

84. spiritual union with Christ. (Col 2:11, 12, 13-notes)
Regarding the "removal of the body of the flesh" the Greek verb gives us the
picture of taking off and putting away clothes. And so by analogy "the body of the
flesh" is taken off like an old garment (by the Spirit at the time of salvation when
Galatians 3:27 teaches we "clothed ourselves with Christ", we exchanged our
filthy rags of righteousness for His garment of righteousness). At the moment of
salvation, the "body of the flesh" was put off in the sense that it was rendered
inoperative (Ro 6:6-note) and now can no longer reign like a cruel dictator over

85. believers as it did when we were unregenerate. The ruling power of this old sinful
nature has been broken (Ro 6:7-note, Ro 6:12,13, 14-note , Ro 6:18-note, Ro
6:22- note). Note that the evil nature is not eradicated, for we still sin, but the
power of Sin (our old "dictator") has been broken, and as we yield to and are led
by the Spirit of Christ (Ro 8:14- note Romans 8:14) we are enabled to walk in the
power of the Spirit (Ro 8:4, 5, 6- notes 8:4, 8:5, 8:6) and "by the Spirit" to put
"to death the deeds of the body" (note on Ro 8:13). "The flesh" now can exert no
more power over a believer than he or she allows it to have.

86. In short the distinguishing features of the circumcision made without hands are:
(1) not external but internal and not made with hands,
(2) It divests not of part of the flesh, but of the whole body of carnal affections
(the power of sin has been rendered inoperative so now we truly can say "no")
and
(3) this circumcision is not of Moses nor of Abraham but of Christ.
Ray Stedman - "I will never forget an incident that occurred a number of years
ago here at the church. A young man came to my office carrying a thick Bible

87. under his arm, which he had been reading. Looking at me very earnestly, he said
to me, "Would you circumcise me?" After I had picked myself up from the floor, I
explained to him why, one, he did not need physical circumcision, and, two, what
circumcision meant. I pointed out that it was an eloquent symbol when it was
properly understood." (Beware! Colossians 2:8-15)
MacDonald on "circumcision made without hands") - "This circumcision speaks
of death to the fleshly nature. It is true positionally of every believer (the moment
we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior), but should be followed by a practical

88. mortifying of the sinful deeds of the flesh (Col 3:5-note). The apostle speaks of
believers as the true circumcision (Phil. 3:3), in contrast to a party of Jewish
legalists known as “the circumcision” (Gal. 2:12).(Believer's Bible Commentary)
(Bolding added)
Genesis 17:9 God said further to Abraham, "Now as for you, you shall keep My
covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10
"This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your
descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 "And you

89. shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be the sign of the
covenant between Me and you. 12 "And every male among you who is eight days
old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the
house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your
descendants. 13 "A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your
money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an
everlasting covenant. 14 "But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the
flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken

90. My covenant."
Circumcision (cutting away the male foreskin) was not entirely new in this period
of history, but the special religious and theocratic significance then applied to it
was entirely new, thus identifying the circumcised as belonging to the physical and
ethnical lineage of Abraham (cf. Acts 7:8; Ro 4:11). Without divine revelation, the
rite would not have had this distinctive significance, thus it remained a theocratic
distinctive of Israel (cf. v13). There was a health benefit, since disease could be
kept in the folds of the foreskin, so that removing it prevented that. Historically,

91. Jewish women have had the lowest rate of cervical cancer. But the symbolism had
to do with the need to cut away sin and be cleansed. It was the male organ which
most clearly demonstrated the depth of depravity because it carried the seed that
produced depraved sinners....This cleansing of the physical organ so as not to pass
on disease... was a picture of the deep need for cleansing from depravity, which is
most clearly revealed by procreation, as men produce sinners and only sinners.
Circumcision points to the fact that cleansing is needed at the very core of a
human being, a cleansing God offers to the faithful and penitent through the

92. sacrifice of Christ to come. (MacArthur, J. J. The MacArthur Study Bible.
Nashville: Word Pub) (Bolding added)
Circumcision was God’s appointed “sign of the covenant” (Ge 17:11), which
signified Abraham’s covenanted commitment to the Lord—that the Lord alone
would be his God, whom he would trust and serve. It symbolized a self-
maledictory oath (analogous to the oath to which God had submitted himself; see
Ge 15:17): “If I am not loyal in faith and obedience to the Lord, may the sword of
the Lord cut off me and my offspring (Ge 17:14) as I have cut off my foreskin.”

93. Thus Abraham was to place himself under the rule of the Lord as his King,
consecrating himself, his offspring and all he possessed to the service of the Lord.
(NIV Study Bible. Zondervan)
Leviticus 26:41 I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the
land of their enemies-- or if their uncircumcised heart becomes humbled so that
they then make amends for their iniquity, 42 then (Don't miss these critical
expressions of time in your Bible reading!) I will remember My covenant with
Jacob, and I will remember also My covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with

94. Abraham as well, and I will remember the land.
Leviticus 26 deals with obedience (Lev 26:1-13) and disobedience (Lev 26:14-46,
cp similar sections outlining first the blessings for obedience and then the cursings
for disobedience = Dt 7:12-26, 28:1-68, 30:1-20) to the Old Covenant of the Law
into which Israel had entered at Mt Sinai (Ex 24:3, 6,7, 8). In the last half of
Leviticus 26 (Lev 26:14-46) God is reviewing their disobedience and explains that
the root of their disobedience is their "hard" uncircumcised heart condition. In
other words they were disobedient because they were not genuinely saved (like

95. Abraham Ge 15:6). As an aside, while most of Israel in the OT was not genuinely
saved, God always preserved a remnant of genuine believers in every age (see
study on the doctrine of the remnant).
Arnold Fruchtenbaum, a Jewish believer, alludes to the concept of remnant
commenting that: God chose Israel to be an elect nation, not true of any other
nation in this world. However, national election does not guarantee the salvation
of every individual member of that nation. Individual salvation is based on
individual election on God’s part and faith on man’s part. In Dt 10:16 (see

96. below), individual members of the elect nation are encouraged to ‘circumcise
therefore the foreskin of your heart.’ Whereas circumcision of the flesh is a sign of
one’s membership in the elect nation (Ed: Fruchtenbaum is not completely correct
- This is unfortunately what physical circumcision came to mean, but originally
that was not the meaning. It was originally intended to signify that an individual
had entered the Abrahamic Covenant by grace through faith and was a mark that
they were genuinely saved. The analogy is modern Baptism - water baptism does
not save anyone, but does serve as a public testimony that one has been saved),

97. circumcision of the heart is a sign of individual election. (Bolding added)
Deuteronomy 10:16-17 "Circumcise then your heart, and stiffen your neck no
more." 17 For the LORD your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords (Rev
19:16-note), the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show
partiality, nor take a bribe.
Physical circumcision was important as the sign of the covenant (cf. Gen. 17:10
and Gen. 17:9, note), and was intended as an outward act bearing eloquent
witness to the cutting away of the hardness of sin from the heart of man (cf. Jer.

98. 6:10; Ex. 6:12). (Criswell, W A. Believer's Study Bible: New King James Version.
1991. Thomas Nelson)
Comment: Physical circumcision was originally intended by God to be a sign that
one had entered into the Abrahamic covenant (Ge 17:9, 10). In other words,
physical circumcision was an outward act which testified that the individual had
experienced an inner "circumcision" of their heart. While God is calling on Israel
to "circumcise" their hearts, clearly no human being can carry out such an act
without supernatural intervention. As the new ESV Study Bible says that

99. "Circumcision of the heart comes from renewal through the Spirit of Christ."
God's charge is not just for Israel to "get a grip" and change their rebellious
attitude toward Him! Our hearts are intractably deceitful and sick (Jer 17:9) and
we are all by nature, hard hearted, stiff necked rebels toward God and His Word,
unless and until He graciously brings about an individual's "heart circumcision"
in response to that individual's faith - in other words, "spiritual circumcision" is
by grace through faith, which sounds like salvation in the NT, because it is!
Dave Guzik: God command them to do something that only He could do in them

100. to show them the need to have the inner transformation, and to compel them to
seek Him for this inner work.
Warren Wiersbe comments on Israel's misinterpretation of the rite of
circumcision: Unfortunately, this same spiritual blindness is with us today, for
many people believe that baptism, confirmation, church membership, or
participation in the Lord’s Supper automatically guarantees their salvation. As
meaningful as those things are, the Christian’s assurance and seal of salvation isn’t
a physical ceremony but a spiritual work of the Holy Spirit in the heart (Php 3:1-

101. 10; Col. 2:9, 10, 11, 12). Jewish circumcision removed but a small part of the
flesh, but the Holy Spirit has put off the whole “body of the sins of the flesh” and
made us new creatures in Christ (Col 2:11). (Be Equipped: Chariot Victor Pub)
Bible Knowledge Commentary: The proper response to their election by the
sovereign Lord was to circumcise their hearts (cf. Dt 30:6). An uncircumcised
heart means a will that is hardened against God’s commands. It is another way of
saying the person is stiff-necked or stubborn (cf. Dt 9:6KJV, Dt 9:13KJV; Dt
31:27KJV). Thus the command to circumcise their hearts assumes that human

102. hearts are naturally rebellious and need correction. Though human hearts are
slow to change, Moses warned the nation that no bribe or anything less than an
inward transformation could satisfy the Lord, who is the great God. God’s
treatment of the helpless (the fatherless . . . the widow, and the alien) further
illustrates His absolutely just character (showing no partiality) and highlights His
requirement for Israel to be just. (The Bible knowledge commentary) (Bolding
added)
Deuteronomy 30:1-6 "So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you

103. (Ed: The prophecy described in the following passages will ultimately be fulfilled
at the end of the "time of Jacob's distress" [Jer 30:7], the 3.5 year period which
Jesus referred to as the Great Tribulation), the blessing and the curse which I
have set before you, and you call them to mind in all nations where the LORD
your God has banished you, 2 and you return to the LORD your God and obey
Him with all your heart (Ed: Not legalistic obedience, but supernatural obedience
motivated by love and desire to be pleasing to the Lord) and soul according to all
that I command you today, you and your sons, 3 then the LORD your God will

104. restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again
from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you. 4 "If your
outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the LORD your God will gather
you, and from there He will bring you back. 5 "And the LORD your God will
bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and
He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers. 6 Moreover the
LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to
love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that

105. you may live.
(Deut 30:1-5 prophesies of) The gathering of Jews out of all the countries of the
earth (that) will follow Israel’s final redemption. Restoration to the Land will be
in fulfillment of the promise of the covenant given to Abraham (see Ge 12:7;
13:15; 15:18, 19, 20, 21; 17:8) and so often reiterated by Moses and the prophets.
(Circumcision of their heart is a) work of God in the innermost being of the
individual is the true salvation that grants a new will to obey Him in place of the
former spiritual insensitivity and stubbornness (cf. Jer. 4:4; 9:25; Ro 2:28, 29).

106. This new heart will allow the Israelite to love the Lord wholeheartedly, and is the
essential feature of the New Covenant. (MacArthur, J. J. The MacArthur Study
Bible. Nashville: Word Pub) (Bolding added)
Bible Knowledge Commentary: The promise that the Lord your God will
circumcise your hearts (cf. Dt 10:16) means that God will graciously grant the
nation a new will to obey Him in place of their former spiritual insensitivity and
stubbornness. After returning to the Promised Land with a new heart they will
remain committed to the Lord and therefore will experience abundant blessing

107. (live). Loving Him wholeheartedly (cf. Dt 30:16, 20; see Dt 6:5), they would not
fall back into apostasy as they had done before. A new heart is an essential feature
of the New Covenant (cf. Ezek. 36:24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32-see notes),
which will not be fulfilled for Israel as a nation until the return of Jesus Christ
(cf. Jer. 31:31, 32, 33, 34). (The Bible knowledge commentary) (Bolding added)
Jeremiah 4:4 "Circumcise yourselves to the LORD and remove the foreskins of
your heart, men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, lest My wrath go forth
like fire and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds."

108. Here the meaning of circumcision is the idea of purifying, separating from the
sinful tendency of the flesh, that propensity inherited from Adam in which the
unregenerate seeks only to please self, never God. In other words, God desires that
the inward condition match one's outward profession, which pf course is not just
an OT idea related to circumcision. God's intent has always been that the outward
symbols (e.g., circumcision, baptism) should be signs of an inward reality of a
new heart willing to and now able to obey Him. Mere outward conformity to the
standards of the covenant does not please God

109. John MacArthur writes - This surgery (Ge 17:10, 11, 12, 13, 14) was to cut away
flesh that could hold disease in its folds and could pass the disease on to wives. It
was important for the preservation of God’s people physically. But it was also a
symbol of the need for the heart to be cleansed from sin’s deadly disease. The
really essential surgery needed to happen on the inside, where God calls for taking
away fleshly things that keep the heart from being spiritually devoted to Him and
from true faith in Him and His will. Jeremiah later expanded on this theme
(Jeremiah 31:31, 32, 33, 34; cf. Deut. 10:16; 30:6; Ro 2:29). God selected the

110. reproductive organ as the location of the symbol for man’s need of cleansing for
sin, because it is the instrument most indicative of his depravity, since by it he
reproduces generations of sinners. (The MacArthur Study Bible)(Bolding added)
Jeremiah 9:25 "Behold, the days are coming," declares the LORD, "that I will
punish all who are circumcised and yet uncircumcised (now he lists several
examples of ancient nations that practiced circumcision and to Judah's dismay
placed her right in the middle of the loathed Gentiles!)--26 Egypt, and Judah, and
Edom, and the sons of Ammon, and Moab, and all those inhabiting the desert who

111. clip the hair on their temples; for all the nations are uncircumcised, and all the
house of Israel are uncircumcised of heart."
Conformity to the external standard of circumcision must be accompanied by
"circumcision" of the heart to please God. To see how one can "circumcise the
heart" see the teaching by Paul in Romans 2 and Colossians 2 (below).
Bible Knowledge Commentary - If personal achievement or ability would not
please God (Jer 9:23), neither would outward conformity to religious rituals. God
would punish those circumcised only in the flesh whether they were near or far

112. (Ed: near = Jew; far = Gentile). Judah’s faith in her covenant sign (Ed: cp Ge
17:11) was a misplaced faith because people in some other nations also practiced
this ritual-and they were not under God’s covenant. Judah’s actions exposed the
fact that the nation was really uncircumcised of heart (cf. Jer 4:4).
Ezekiel 44:6-9 (context Ezek 44:4-5 - "the glory of the LORD filled the" Temple)
"And you shall say to the rebellious ones, to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the
Lord GOD, "Enough of all your abominations, O house of Israel, 7 when you
brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart (lacking spiritual circumcision, not

113. regenerate, lacking a new heart) and uncircumcised in flesh, (physical
circumcision) to be in My sanctuary to profane it, even My house (the Temple in
Jerusalem), when you offered My food, the fat and the blood; for they made My
covenant void (speaking of the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant)-- this in
addition to all your abominations. 8 "And you have not kept charge of My holy
things yourselves, but you have set foreigners to keep charge of My sanctuary." 9
'Thus says the Lord GOD, "No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and
uncircumcised in flesh, of all the foreigners who are among the sons of Israel, shall

114. enter My sanctuary.
Comment: Foreigners refers to Gentiles and not only were they uncircumcised in
flesh (physically), they were also uncircumcised in their heart (spiritually). In
short they were not regenerate individuals. Apparently at some time in the past
Jews had brought Gentiles into the Holy Temple which was against the Mosaic law
(they made My covenant void) and the result was that the Temple had been
profaned by their presence.
John MacArthur - Since the Lord’s glory fills the temple, it is sanctified (Ezek

115. 44:4), and God is particular about what kind of people worship there. Sins of the
past, as in Ezekiel 8:1-11:25, must not be repeated and if they are, will exclude
their perpetrators from the temple. Only the circumcised in heart may enter (Dt
30:6; Jer 4:4; Ro 2:25-29), whether of Israel or another nation (Ezek 44:7, 9).
Many other peoples than Jews will go into the kingdom in unresurrected bodies,
because they have believed in Jesus Christ and were ready for His coming. They
will escape His deadly judgment and populate and reproduce in the 1,000 year
kingdom (Ed: The Judgment of the Sheep and Goats identifies Gentile believers

116. who will enter into the Millennial Kingdom; see "Who populates the Millennial
Kingdom?"). Such circumcision pertains to a heart which is sincere about
removing sin and being devoted to the Lord (cf. Jer 29:13). In the Millennium, a
Jew with an uncircumcised heart will be considered a foreigner (Ezek 44:9).
“Uncircumcised in flesh” refers to sinners and “foreigners” identifies rejecters of
the true God. (MacArthur Study Bible)
Acts 7:51 "You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are
always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.

117. STIFF-NECKED (Ex 32:9 33:3,5 34:9 Dt 9:6,13 31:27, 2Chr 30:8, Neh 9:16, Ps
78:8, Isa 48:4 Jer 17:23)
Stephen, the accused, is now the accuser, and the situation becomes intolerable to
the Sanhedrin.
Furneaux: "And as he saw his countrymen repeating the old mistake--clinging to
the present and the material, while God was calling them to higher spiritual
levels--and still, as ever, resisting the Holy Spirit, treating the Messiah as the
patriarchs had treated Joseph, and the Hebrews Moses--the pity of it

118. overwhelmed him, and his mingled grief and indignation broke out in words of
fire, such as burned of old on the lips of the prophets"
Stiff-necked (4644)(Sklerotrachelos from skleros + tráchelos = the neck) is
found only in Acts 7:51 (but see 6 uses in Lxx below) and is literally stiff–necked
which is figuratively describes someone as obstinate, which in turn is defined as
one who manifests a fixed and unyielding course or purpose implying usually an
unreasonable persistence. This is one who is perversely adhering to an opinion,
purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion. Stephen is saying

119. in essence that the Jews would not allow themselves to be persuaded by the Truth
of the Gospel, which had been proclaimed throughout the Old Testament (see Gal
3:8) and was the proclamation the Holy Spirit would have used to circumcise their
hearts if they had received it in faith instead of pursuing their own righteousness
by works of the law (rather than by grace).
Sklerotrachelos portrays the idea of a stubborn ox that cannot be broken; and a
neck so strong the animal is useless, because it cannot be turned right or left.
Sklerotrachelos - 5 verses in the Septuagint.

120. Exodus 33:3 "Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in
your midst, because you are an obstinate (Lxx = sklerotrachelos) people, and I
might destroy you on the way." 5 For the LORD had said to Moses, "Say to the
sons of Israel, 'You are an obstinate (Lxx = sklerotrachelos) people; should I go
up in your midst for one moment, I would destroy you. Now therefore, put off
your ornaments from you, that I may know what I shall do with you.'"
Exodus 34:9 He said, "If now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, I pray, let
the Lord go along in our midst, even though the people are so obstinate, and

121. pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your own possession."
Deuteronomy 9:6 "Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the
LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn
people....13 "The LORD spoke further to me, saying, 'I have seen this people,
and indeed, it is a stubborn people.
Proverbs 29:1 A man who hardens his neck after much reproof Will suddenly be
broken beyond remedy.
Sklerotrachelos is first in the Greek sentence for emphasis. In Acts 7:1-60 This is

122. the climax of Stephen’s speech (Acts 7:51-53), the personal application that cut
his hearers to the heart. Throughout the centuries, Israel had refused to submit to
God and obey the truth He had revealed to them (including the Gospel, albeit as
far as we can determine not as in a full-orbed sense as we have it explained in the
New Testament). Their ears did not hear the truth, their hearts did not receive the
truth, and their necks did not bow to the truth. As a result, they killed their own
Messiah and then proceeded to kill Stephen.
UNCIRCUMCISED IN HEART - They had only physical circumcision which was

123. useless in regard to attaining righteousness before God. The Jews placed great
stress on the physical ritual of circumcision, forgetting that it was meant to be
symbolic of their complete dedication to the will and purposes of God. Thus, their
hearts were still cold toward God and their ears inattentive to His Word, so that
God could not reach them
HEART AND EARS - "The phrase “uncircumcised hearts and ears” is another
figure for stubbornness." (NET Note)
Uncircumcised (564)(aperitmetos from a = negates + peritemno = to cut around,

124. to circumcise) is an adjective which literally describes that which is not cut
around. In context it is used figuratively of those uncircumcised in heart and ears
a spiritual condition which resulted in their stubbornness toward God and His
Messiah. In Jeremiah 9:25 the Lxx uses aperitmetos figuratively to refer to gentiles
with uncircumcised foreskin.
ARE ALWAYS RESISTING THE HOLY SPIRIT (Ne 9:30):
Isaiah writes "But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; Therefore, He
(Jehovah) turned Himself to become their enemy, He fought against them."

125. (Isaiah 63:10)
Resisting is literally rushing against or upon in a hostile manner.
John Phillips explains that "There are three ways in which the Holy Spirit can be
opposed. He can be grieved, He can be quenched, and He can be resisted. Only a
Spirit-indwelt believer can grieve the Holy Spirit. The word grieve is a love-word.
We can grieve only someone who loves us and who stands in a special relationship
to us. A church can quench the Holy Spirit by allowing men to usurp His
authority, by refusing to follow His leading, or by permitting false doctrine or

126. moral evil to take root. Sinners resist the Holy Spirit. Stephen now dropped his
defense and went boldly to the attack, vilifying his listeners for their persistent and
continuing opposition to God. Their chief sin was that of resisting the Holy Spirit.
Their treatment of the saviors, the Scriptures, and the sanctuaries God had given
them, and, above all, their treatment of the Son of God, constituted a persistent
sin against the Holy Ghost." (Explore Acts)
Resisting (496)(antipipto from antí = against + pípto = fall) strictly, fall against,
rush against; hence, strive against, oppose: resist by actively opposing pressure or

127. power. To resist by force and violence. The picture is of men who were continually
(present tense) rejecting the Holy Spirit’s appointed messengers and their Gospel
proclamation. (CompareJesus’ sermon in Mt 23:13–39).
Griffis writes that "The Greek word here is antipipto, which means "to pull
against," like a heifer that pulls backward." (Characters with Character)
Antipipto 3v in Lxx:
Exodus 26:5 "You shall make fifty loops in the one curtain, and you shall make
fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be

128. opposite each other.... 17 "There shall be two tenons for each board, fitted
(Antipipto - conveys idea opposite one to the other) to one another; thus you shall
do for all the boards of the tabernacle.
Numbers 27:14 for (What is "for" explaining? See context - Nu 27:12-13 -
explains why Moses can only see the Promised Land but cannot enter) in the
wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, you (Moses) rebelled
(Lxx = Marah = was contentious, disobedient; Lxx = antipipto) against My
command to treat Me as holy before their eyes at the water." (These are the

129. waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.)
The English translation of the Septuagint of Nu 27:14 = because you transgressed
my word in the wilderness of Sin, when the congregation resisted to sanctify me.
You did not sanctify me at the water before them.” (This is water of dispute of
Kades in the wilderness of Sin.)
Net Note explains it this way - Using the basic meaning of the word qadash, "to be
separate, distinct, set apart", we can understand better what Moses failed to do.
He was supposed to have acted in a way that would have shown God to be

130. distinct, different, holy. Instead, he gave the impression that God was capricious
and hostile – very human. The leader has to be aware of what image he is
conveying to the people.
YOU ARE DOING JUST AS YOUR FATHERS DID (cp Heb 3:12, 8, 4:2, cp
Jesus Mt 23:31): Literally "as your fathers also ye." Their fathers had made
"external worship" a substitute for spiritual obedience. Stephen's piercing
denunciation of his Jewish audience reminds us of similar words of Jesus in Luke
11:47-51.

131. Circumcision of the Heart
This is an archived article. It originally appeared on November 1, 1983
in ISSUES magazine
by Robert A. Friedman
A
bris in the heart!" Sounds strange. Maybe even a bit ridiculous to
modern ears, doesn't it? Yet God Himself speaks of circumcision of the

132. heart in the Jewish Scriptures. And strange as it may seem, it holds as
deep a meaning for us today as it did when God first gave circumcision
in Abraham's time.
To understand circumcision of the heart, we first must look at the rite
of circumcision of the flesh.
The record begins in the 12th and 15th chapters of Genesis. God made
unconditional promises to Abraham that his descendants would be
more numerous than the stars in the sky; that through his descendants

133. all the nations would be blessed; that Abraham's people would be
given a great land to occupy and that all who blessed them would in
turn be blessed.
Then, in the 17th chapter of Genesis, we read:
"This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and
your descendants after you: every male among you shall be
circumcised.
And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall

134. be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. And every male
among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout your
generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with
money from any foreigner, who is not of your descendants.
A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money
shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh
for an everlasting covenant."
-Genesis 17:10-13

135. The key here is that circumcision was to be a "sign of the covenant"
that had already been given, with no strings attached, to Abraham.
The rite of circumcision was made a part of the Law of Moses several
hundred years later when God gave instruction concerning the birth of
a male: "And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be
circumcised" (Leviticus 12:3).
This practice was continued generation after generation, but when the
nation of Israel was forced to wander 40 years in the wilderness the

136. rite of circumcision temporarily ceased.
Some authorities believe God demanded this generation die out
because of their refusal to believe Him when He told them to enter the
promised land (Numbers 14:32-35). And so a rejected generation no
longer practiced circumcision.
The disobedient nation of Israel, roaming like lost sheep in the
wilderness, were momentarily taken out of the covenant. They had
refused to believe God's promise when He told them to take the land,

137. and now they were paying for their rebellion.…
Yet with God's punishment comes God's love, for when the 40 year
journey was ending, the covenant—and all its blessings—returned.
As soon as the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan into the land of milk
and honey the Lord God immediately gave a command to Joshua: "At
that time the Lord said to Joshua, 'Make for yourself flint knives and
circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.' " (Joshua 5:2.)
Now that they were in the land, back in the place of faith enjoying

138. obedience and fellowship with God, the practice of circumcision was
restored and the people of Israel were blessed by God.
Israel has always had a special place in the sight of God. He chose the
nation to point the way to Himself and to spread His love among all
the nations. Since circumcision was the sign of the covenant which
involved this universal blessing, it had significance beyond its
observance as a national rite.

139. Practically, we can't show the world we've been circumcised, but
God's covenant extends further than just the physical realm. A way has
been provided in which our words and actions can show the nations
God has touched us. We read His promise in Deuteronomy 30:6:
"Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart
of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and
with all your soul, in order that you may live."
This type of circumcision, by definition a circumcision of the spirit

140. and not the flesh, goes to the heart of a man, to his soul, his essence,
his attitudes and relationship with God. Because this theme of an inner
circumcision is so important, God repeats and stresses it, as in
Deuteronomy 10:12-16:
"And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but
to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to
serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
And to keep the Lord's commandments and His statutes which I am

141. commanding you today for your good?
Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens,
the earth and all that is in it.
Yet on your fathers did the Lord set His affection to love them, and He
chose their descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is
this day.
Circumcise then your heart, and stiffen your neck no more."
Over and over again God probes the inner man, the real person. His

142. discerning eyes won't allow us to hide behind social facades, adopted
mannerisms or walls of materialism. Before God each man is seen just
as he is. His innermost thoughts, thoughts he may wish to hide from
the world, are exposed by the light of God.
God requires us to keep all His statutes and laws, and yet which one of
us can possibly keep all of them all the days of our lives? The prophet
writes:
"For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our

143. righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; and all of us wither like a
leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away."
-Isaiah 64:6
On one hand God tells us to keep all His statutes. On the other the
prophet recognizes the human condition: we all fall short of perfection
and therefore cannot possibly keep all the Law all the time.
Yet, as we read in Deuteronomy 30:6, God does not expect us to
circumcise our own hearts. He says He will do that. But how? And what

144. does He expect from us? Let's look at Leviticus 26:40-42:
"If they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their forefathers, in
their unfaithfulness which they committed against Me, and also in
their acting with hostility against Me—
I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the
land of their enemies—or if their uncircumcised heart becomes
humbled so that they then make amends for their iniquity,
Then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and I will remember

145. also My covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with Abraham as well,
and I will remember the land."
Ah, is that it? Must we confess our iniquity and rebellion against God?
Fine, maybe we do this once a year at Yom Kippur. But, in addition to
confession, our uncircumcised heart must become humble.
This appears to be a spiritual operation, but we sense within ourselves
that we lack the divine power necessary to perform this—to change
our own heart. Then we remember this is an operation God said He

146. would perform.
But how?
King David knew the secret, for after he had sinned against God by
taking Bathsheba, he pleaded, in Psalm 51:10-12:
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Thy presence, and do not take Thy Holy
Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Thy salvation, and sustain me
with a willing spirit."

147. David said, "Do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me." The Holy Spirit, the
Ruach Ha'kodesh of the ages is the renewing force. It was the Holy
Spirit of God which brought peace, comfort and joy to David. He knew
what it was like to live both with and without God's Spirit dwelling
within him.
It's this very Spirit which David called upon to create a clean heart
within him—to renew him. In other words, it is the Holy Spirit of God
which performs the circumcision of the heart.

148. From Abraham to David to you, the inner circumcision continues.
Today we have a promise from God, a promise He always keeps. He has
promised for every person who places his trust in the Messiah, in the
Anointed One of Israel, this Holy Spirit will indwell him and
circumcise his heart, making it right with God.
At some point we all face God as uncircumcised, unrenewed searchers
after truth. We stand as animated beings of flesh without God's Spirit
inside us. We seek our own truth and walk our own paths.

149. Perhaps you've searched and walked and questioned without finding
the heart-changing, spiritual answers you've known are there but have
never discovered.
Maybe now God is telling you that by placing your faith in Messiah
Yeshua His Spirit will circumcise your heart and refresh you today and
forever.
As you confess Messiah Yeshua as Lord and Savior, the One promised
by the ancient prophets of Israel, the sacrificed Lamb of God, you too

150. will be able to stand with other believers in Him and fully appreciate
the words of Saul of Tarsus. Saul, an ancient scholar of Israel who
became the apostle Paul, writes of an eternal circumcision of the
heart:
"See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty
deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the
elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Messiah.
For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form.

151. And in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made
without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the
circumcision of Messiah.
Having been buried with Him in baptism (of the Spirit), in which you
were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who
raised Him from the dead.
And when you were dead in your transgressions and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him,

152. having forgiven us all our transgressions.
Having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees
against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the
way, having nailed it to the cross."
-Colossians 2:8-9, 11-14 New Testament
We pray you, too, will seek, find and be refreshed by His Spirit.
Paul on Circumcision

153. Dave Rogers Level 2 - Basic
[ Return to: "But Paul said... " Series Main Page ]
[ this study is still in rough draft form ]
send comments here
Acts 15 & 1 Corinthians 7:18-20
There are two types of circumcision discussed in the Bible, internal
(of the heart – reflecting a repentant heart through faith) and external

154. (of the flesh – done by obedience to God's laws).
First, circumcision of the heart is a reflection true repentance and of a
genuine faith in God and his covenants. Let's call this: "Having the
right attitude" towards God. Proverbs 4:23 (NIV): “Above all else,
guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” The evidence
of having a circumcised heart is one's natural desire to want to please
God, to obey him, and having a genuine believe and respect that God's
ways and laws are the way they should live. In the New Testament, we

155. call this being "restored" or "reconciled" to God.
Second, physical circumcision, as commanded in God's laws, cuts the
foreskin from a male’s penis as a 'sign' of being a part of God's
covenants. This is done as a matter of obedience by disciples of
Messiah after their heart change (circumcision of the heart). This is
done by faithful and obedient parents to their new baby boys on their
8th day and also done by adult men disciples out of obedience.
Many confuse and try to make circumcision a “controversial” issue by

156. twisting Paul’s writings using Acts chapter 15 and 1st Corinthians
chapter 7: 18-20. Remember we should weigh and attempt to
reconcile supposed conflicting ideas and not let one idea override
weightier scriptures from the Old Testament. Let us attempt to dig
deeper.
In 1 Corinthians 7:18-20 (ESV), Paul writes: “Was anyone at the time
of his call (A NEW CONVERT) already circumcised? Let him not seek to
remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call

157. uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. For neither
circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the
commandments of God. Each one should remain in the condition in
which he was called.”
BUT WHY DID PAUL CIRCUMCISED TIMOTHY in Acts 16:3? “Paul
wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised
him…” (ESV)
Okay now. Are we all sufficiently confused?! It appears on the surface

158. that Paul says circumcision accounts for nothing, BUT Paul
circumcised Timothy.
PAUL IS ARRESTED FOR TEACHING AGAINST CIRCUMCISION.
In Acts 21:21, Paul is arrested upon the charges “that you teach all the
Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to
circumcise their children …”
In Acts 24:14, Paul defends himself against these false charges by
saying:

159. “But this I confess unto you, ... so worship I the God of my fathers,
believing all things which are written in the law (Torah) and in the
prophets.”
The criminal charges against Paul probably originated from the Jews
misunderstanding Paul’s teachings on Circumcision – as also many do
today. Paul taught that True Circumcision is of the heart and is a
genuine inward conversion. That one can be circumcised physically
(“in the flesh”) but not be circumcised in the heart (“in the spirit”)

160. and thus not be truly circumcised according to God and Scripture.
SEE ALSO “The New Covenant Writes God’s Laws on Our Hearts” in
“The New Covenant In Depth” Study.
In Romans 2:29 (ESV), Paul wrote: “… circumcision is a matter of the
heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter (of the law).”
Deuteronomy 30:6 (ESV): “And the LORD your God will circumcise your
heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God
with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.”

161. Deuteronomy 10:16 (ESV): “Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and
be no longer stubborn.”
King David writes in Psalms 51:10-11 (ESV): “Create in me a clean heart, O
God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.”
There are several separate issues that are going on here in Paul’s world about
circumcision:
Some Jews falsely claimed that Paul was teaching against obeying God’s Laws

162. (Torah) including the command of circumcision. We covered this, Paul agreed
with Scripture in the commands to circumcise baby boys and of adult converts to
the faith, as Paul himself had circumcised Timothy.
Paul used the term ‘the circumcised’ as a general reference for those who were
physically circumcised Jews and ‘the uncircumcised’ as those who were Gentiles.
Some in the Early Church demanded new converts be physically circumcised first
in order “to be saved.”
Some in the Early Church pressured new converts to be physically circumcised

163. soon after being saved.
ISSUE #4: Physical Circumcision counts for nothing, BUT…
Back to 1st Corinthians chapter 7, Paul writes in verse 19 (ESV): “For neither
circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the
commandments of God.”
In Genesis 17:9-14, God’s commandment is to circumcise all adult male converts
and baby boys on their 8th day. So what is going on here?

164. The act of physical circumcision means nothing without the inward faith and
conversion – for this is what God really wants: A Genuine Faith of the
Heart.
Paul’s point here is that as a new convert in the faith you need to focus
on obedience to the commandments of God. James writes that
obedience to God is how we ‘prove’ our faith, for faith without works
is dead, but not any works is acceptable, only the works of obedience
to God’s Laws and Commands in the Scripture are acceptable.

165. I suggest Paul’s main point is that we should not pressure new
converts to be circumcised outwardly (“in the flesh”) – which has no
value in and of itself without true circumcision, that of the heart, that
is done by the work of the Holy Spirit.
In Romans 2:29 (ESV), Paul wrote: “… circumcision is a matter of the
heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter (of the law).”
WHAT IS THE WHOLE POINT?
Focusing on outward acts of obeying God without a transformation

166. from the heart is useless. So if you love God (in your heart) you will
obey him (in your flesh). That without faith it is impossible to please
God. But for Faith to work you have to have actions that please God
which is obedience to God's Laws, and yes obedience to physical
circumcision for males. Paul teaches that WE NEED TO BE PATIENT
WITH NEW COVERTS to let the Holy Spirit do the transforming work
required inside of them upon their hearts. Let the Holy Spirit do the
convicting of obedience then they will be obeying God instead of us.

167. Just like any person can put on a stethoscope and white lab jacket, go
down to a hospital and “look” like they are a doctor – this does not
make them a real doctor. They are a fake, a fraud, an impersonator.
The outward appearance means nothing WITHOUT the genuine nature
and change of the person inside.
BUT a real and genuine doctor WILL put on the outward appearance of
the stethoscope and lab jacket because that is what doctors do as a
part of who they really are. Just like those men who truly have faith in

168. God will become circumcised in the flesh, because that is what those
who are circumcised of the heart do, they obey God as he outlines in
the Bible. And parents, in circumcising their baby boy, it is an
expression of the parent’s faith and obedience to God.
Paul taught that in the Torah, God’s main concern all along was for us
to be converted (“circumcised”) in our heart first. That we should not
pressure new male converts to become physically circumcised first.
That physical circumcision for should be done as an act of obedience,

169. out of faith from the heart, when they are ready.
ISSUE #3: Physical Circumcision TO BE SAVED? No Way.
There were some in the Early Church who demanded new converts to
the faith be physically circumcised first in order to be saved.
Acts 15:1 (ESV): “But some men came down from Judea and were
teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the
custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’”

170. As is with the model of Abraham, Salvation is by Faith in God not by
any act we can do. While Abraham was still uncircumcised he believed
(had faith) in God – and God counted it to him as righteousness. THEN
Abraham obeyed God in becoming circumcised as an act of proving his
Faith. For it is by Faith in God he proved he became had truly been
circumcised, that of the heart. The act of physical circumcision means
nothing without the inward faith and conversion – for this is what God
really wants: A Genuine Faith of the Heart.

171. In Romans 4:3,10-11 (ESV), Paul writes: “(3) For what does the
Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as
righteousness.’ … (10) ‘How then was it counted to him? Was it before
or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was
circumcised. (11) He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the
righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised.’”