Free Gift, not earned or deserved…

But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.” The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.” (Acts 15:5–11)

Some who claimed faith in Jesus Christ also thought that no one could be saved unless they were keeping the OT law. This idea easily creeps into the mind of those filled with pride along with the idea that “I have to do something” to be saved. This is in direct conflict with the gospel that says otherwise. 

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)

Circumcision was a physical reminder of the OT covenant made to Abraham and his descendants. If it was important to salvation, then why was it necessary for men only? God did not leave out 50% of the population when He provided salvation by faith.

This NT situation concerned believing Jews who were offended. They were told to not consume blood before the Law of Moses was given, because life is in the blood (think of the blood of Christ shed to redeem us) and this law about blood was far more significant than circumcision being a symbol of being saved. With this in mind, the apostles had to make a decision.

Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, “ ‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things known from of old.’ Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood. (Acts 15:14–20)

Why then did these restrictions be given to the Gentile believers? In those days, these sins were hugely offensive to the Jews. The apostles would rather them say, “If you do these things, how then can you be saved?” Then, “You need to be circumcised like us before you can be saved.” Salvation is about a Holy Spirit changed life, not about  a symbol like circumcision.

Today, some think that to be a Christian, you must go to church, or give money, etc. but non-Christians attend church too. That means nothing unless the Holy Spirit has changed their life and prompted new behavior. Jesus illustrated these attitudes:

Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted. (Luke 18:10–14)

No one is ever saved by law-keeping, mainly because if we break one, we break all. We are saved by faith, not our own doing — and when salvation happens, the doing changes, not by my prideful self-effort, but by the Holy Spirit who changes my heart.

Jesus, humility is only uncomfortable if I want to have control over my life rather than letting You have Your way. I cannot be what You want me to be without You doing the work in my heart that makes sin give way to living in humility. Such a wonder that You grant salvation freely and even the faith to believe is by Your grace. I could not trust You at all without You granting me the faith to do so. Such a wonder.

 

Signs and Assurances

God sometimes takes me places that I might not have searched out on my own. One of them involved a short study on the concept of ‘signs’ and I say short, so don’t quote me. I could have easily missed something vital.

First a definition; in the Bible a sign is something that designates an important reality or is a reminder of that reality. Remember, the sign is not the reality, only a sign that points to it. Likely many of the debates about signs would be settled if both sides remembered the difference.

In the Genesis reading, my attention stopped at this verse: “You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.” (Genesis 17:11)  The covenant was God’s commitment to His people. It sometimes depended on their cooperation and sometimes not.

Circumcision was a sign of the covenant. The ark was also a sign of the covenant, as was the rainbow. People and other things were also called signs of God’s covenant with His people. The Jews considered the Sabbath a sign of the covenant also. Remember, the sign points to an agreement or a reality. The sign is only a sign. God’s power, authority, and presence were what mattered.

God wanted to make clear this distinction between a sign and what it represented because Abraham was not circumcised when he believed, but later, and Isaac his son was circumcised before he believed not after. The sign was not about their faith, but about God’s decision and promises for those who walk in faith . . .

“(Abraham) received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.” (Romans 4:11–12)

In other words, this man’s faith was the reality. The sign only pointed to it. Others might be circumcised and not believe, signifying that the sign is worthless apart from the reality it points to.

The second reading is about the assurance of our destiny. In the OT, this was strong for some, like Job. He said, “And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:26) yet Solomon was not as positive. He said, “All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return. Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth?” (Ecclesiastes 3:20–21)

Throughout the day, I’ve been reading a textbook about the issue of God being knowable. Some say not, but God says knowing Him is the essence of eternal life. Jesus said, “This is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:3) John also said, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13)

Do we need a sign for that? Jesus said only one as He talked with some of the scribes and Pharisees who were looking for a sign to verify His identity. But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” (Matthew 12:38–39)  This is a reference to Him also being buried three days and emerging alive – His death and resurrection.

Many people seek signs for all sorts of reasons. Some say they will not believe what they cannot see. That is, they want a visible sign. Others ask God for a sign to show them what to do, or what He wants from them. But rather than signs, He gives us the death and resurrection of His Son, and of course His Word. Both point us to the reality of who He is and the power He has to reveal His will and guide us through life.

Instead of seeking signs that point me where I think I should go, or where I want to go, I need to humbly seek the reality of Jesus Christ and pay attention to what He has already revealed.