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. Colossians 2:11-12
Circumcision
is a sensitive issue all of the way around. God gave the covenant of
circumcision to Abraham in Genesis 17. It was highly personal. It was highly
painful. Yet something so personal, painful and private became the assurance of
belonging to God. …until Jesus changed the game.
The
work that Jesus does involves altering our nature rather than just a part of
our anatomy. It wasn’t enough to look like you belonged to God. Jesus made
things even more personal. The new requirement was to act like you belonged to
God.
At
this point, you might be thinking, “Great. Now what is that going to cost me?”
It really doesn’t cost us. Christ took care of the cost. It’s Jesus’ work, not
ours, that guarantees our assurance.
The
symbol for Christ’s work is baptism. Note that baptism is a symbol, not the
work itself. Just like a wedding ring is a symbol of marriage, baptism is a
symbol of salvation. If you lost your wedding ring, it doesn’t mean that you
lost your marriage.
The
symbol is that when a believer goes down into the water, they are buried in
Christ. Their old self, their sinful nature is dead to them. Then, when they
are raised up, it symbolizes how spiritually they are raised from the dead “through
[their] faith in the power of God.” it’s pretty amazing to think that the power
that raised Christ from the dead is coursing through the believer’s veins.
Our security with God is not held in a membership card, a
baptismal certificate, regular church attendance or the forsaking of all fun.
Our security is in Christ. Belonging to Christ is all we need to please God and
to enjoy the life we were meant to live.
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Ministries:
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