Tag Archives: flesh

A Sign Of Ownership

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A SIGN OF OWNERSHIP

In Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self – ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through your faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. (Col. 2:11-12).

What was the purpose of circumcision in God’s covenant with Abraham?

Then God said to Abraham, ‘This is my covenant with you and with 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 . . . My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. (Gen. 17: 9-11a; 13b).

Circumcision was a sign of ownership. It set God’s people apart from every other male in every other nation. No doubt, when Joseph finally revealed himself to his brothers, how would he have convinced them that he was indeed Joseph? By his mark of ownership as a Hebrew!

The Jews were God’s people by right of birth and ownership. Every Jewish parent would ensure that their sons carry their mark of ownership in their flesh. This was to be symbolic of a greater spiritual reality which would be revealed through Christ. Believers carry a mark of ownership, not in the flesh, but in the spirit, which sets us apart as belonging to God.

Paul spoke of a principle which applies in many areas of our lives – revealed in 1 Cor. 15: 46: The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. It applies here as well. Circumcision was to be a physical (or natural) sign which would be followed by the spiritual when the truth was revealed in Christ.

Many streams in the church have seen baptism as the counterpart of circumcision and have developed the doctrine of paedo-baptism as the sign of God’s covenant. Just as  boys were circumcised eight days after birth to show that they were included in the Abrahamic covenant, so infants are ‘baptised’ to include them in the New Covenant.

However, this idea conflicts with the teaching of Scripture, clearly indicated here, as in many other places (through your faith in the working of God), that it is faith in Christ, of which infants are incapable, that brings people into the New Covenant, not infant baptism.

What is the sign of the New Covenant, the sign of ownership? Paul was in no way teaching that baptism is the sign of the New Covenant which would contradict the principle of ‘first the natural, then the spiritual’.

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1: 13-14).

Paul could not have stated this truth more clearly. God marked us with His seal of ownership, the Holy Spirit who is in us, when we confessed that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that God raised Him from the dead (Rom. 10: 9-10).

What, then, is the purpose of baptism? Baptism was both initiation into and identification with a person, an office or a teaching to indicate publicly that the one being baptised had a new status. Baptism – or ritual washing was a common practice in Jesus’s day. John the Baptist initiated people who identified with him into his teaching about the Messiah, calling them to repent and identify with the One he was introducing to them. Baptism is, therefore the public, visible witness to our identity with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection.

Through baptism we are telling the world that we have died to ourselves and have a new owner, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose Spirit in us sets us apart as God’s possession. We have left the old life of sin and the flesh and are now living in union with Jesus and in submission and obedience to Him.

As the covenant people of God, set apart to Him and marked by circumcision, the Jews were to live in obedience to His commands, which they did not because they were without the Holy Spirit. We who have the Spirit are able to put to death the deeds of the flesh through His power and live a new life In Christ because of what Jesus Christ has done for us.

We must become who we are.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Righteousness God’s Way

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RIGHTEOUSNESS GOD’S WAY

“If someone thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.” Philippians 3:4b-7.

From a Jewish perspective, Paul’s credentials were pretty impressive. He was pure Jew, pure Pharisee and fanatically religious. He did everything by the book and he did everything right – according to himself. Few could measure up to him, not even those with whom Jesus contended but, and that was just the point, like Jesus’ opponents, he measured himself by himself and came up shining.

The problem was not in his effort to be righteous – that was commendable – but in his confidence in his achievement which put him a cut above everyone else in his own estimation. This is exactly where God parted company with him. All Paul’s efforts to meet His standard fell horribly short and left him with zero righteousness. The trouble was that he did not know it until he came face to face with Jesus.

 

It was that one encounter that changed everything. All Paul’s impressive achievements were the result of self-effort and were stained and blemished with arrogant pride. Only in the pure light of Jesus’ holiness did he see himself for what he really was, a wretched sinner who was no better than anyone else. Not only was he knocked to the ground by the presence of the glorified Jesus, but he was also knocked out, figuratively, by what he saw. For a second he saw Him and then he saw nothing, completely blinded by the brilliance of the one he was trying to eliminate.

What was his response? He took his entire CV – his pedigree, his learning, his hard work, his religious zeal, his achievements, his confidence and his pride – and dumped it in the trash can. It was all of no use to him. It had got him nowhere in his effort to satisfy God’s demands, and it would only hinder him in the future in his new-found understanding of what God had done.

“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.” Philippians 3:8, 9.

This is one of those typical Paul-sentences! We need to take it apart to understand what he was saying.

1. All his efforts to do the right thing according to God’s standards were a load of garbage and a waste of time which he regretted.

2. He had to dump everything he had ever achieved and start all over again.

3. Righteousness that satisfied God’s holiness did not come from what he did for God but from what Jesus Christ did for him.4. God’s righteousness was not achieved by working for it but received by believing what God said.

5. Jesus, not self-effort was Paul’s key to being acceptable to God. Only His perfection was good enough for God and He became his when he receive Him by faith.

And now?

“I want to know Christ – yes, to know the power of His resurrection and participation in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death and so, somehow attaining to the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:10, 11.

The way this is translated makes it seem as though Paul was back to having to work for the benefits of Christ’s salvation. He was not expressing a desire as much as he was stating a fact. It was through faith in God’s promise that he received Christ’s righteousness as a gift and through that same faith he received the benefits – knowing Jesus and experiencing the power of His resurrection.

From God’s point of view it was a package deal. Everything Paul ever needed was given to him in Christ; forgiveness of sin, a new standing with God, the Holy Spirit – the spirit of sonship – and the power of the Spirit to overcome the ravages of his fleshly nature to become a true son of God. None of this required effort – only continuing faith in God to make him what he could not make himself.

This is true righteousness!

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

The Reward Of Faith

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THE REWARD OF FAITH

“See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand! Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. Not even those who are circumcised keep the law, yet they boast about your circumcision in the flesh.” Galatians 6:11-13.

This issue was so urgent for Paul that he even wrote this letter himself instead of using a scribe as he usually did. Apparently he was short-sighted, or he had some other eye problem that affected his eyesight. Some commentators believe that he had an eye disease which made him look unsightly, hence his comment in chapter 4:13-15.

As he struggled to pen his thoughts, he turned again to the men who were undermining the faith of the Galatians, and persuading them to take on the burden of a yoke God’s own people were unable to bear. Paul had walked that road himself and he knew how burdensome it was, and how glorious it was to walk in the freedom of knowing Christ Jesus and His forgiveness and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

These Judaizers, of course, had a hidden agenda. They knew the truth but they were dodging the offence of the cross. In Paul’s day, persecution came from two fronts. The Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah and turned their hatred on the believers. As an ambassador for Christ and in the forefront of the battle, Paul was prime target for their anger. They hounded him from city to city as he moved across the Roman Empire, using every excuse to take him out.

The Roman government and their representatives had it in for the believers because they refused to bow to Caesar as Lord. Nero, the crazy emperor during Paul’s time, used Christians as the scapegoat for his madness and invented more and more cruel ways to dispose of them, even killing them for entertainment in the great amphitheatre in Rome.

Whereas, in the beginning, the new “cult” of Jesus-followers was identified with Judaism and tolerated by Rome, later on the Jews dissociated themselves from the people of “The Way”. Rome tolerated the Jews and allowed them to practise their monotheistic religion but they rejected the Christians’ insistence that Jesus, not Caesar, was Lord and the Prince of Peace and Saviour. Christians were outlawed and killed for treason against Rome.

Hence these Judaizers who were supposedly followers of Jesus, remained under the umbrella of Judaism to protect themselves from persecution. To come out boldly and openly on the side of Jesus was suicidal. To proselytise and get a following of Gentiles for themselves was a protection against the anger of the Jewish religious leaders.

To follow the teaching of the Judaizers was to renounce Jesus and escape the offence of the cross in this life but, at the same it meant forfeiting God’s grace and the hope of eternal life. They could not have it both ways.

Having explained the implications of their actions, Paul was now calling on them to make a choice. If they chose Jesus, they would put themselves in the firing line for persecution and possible execution, but that was par for the course in this life. The reward of faith far outweighed the price they would pay for following Jesus.

These antagonists, according to Paul, were no advert for the religion they professed to follow. No one, not even they, were able to obey the law perfectly, yet they were insisting that their way was the way to God. Why believe them when their way did not work and never had worked, as the history of God’s people revealed? In the end, it was not their zeal for the law that drove them to seek a following but their cowardly desire to dodge persecution. Not only did they follow a false way themselves, but they also tried to drag others with them.

The way of the cross is the way of suffering, but the promise of God stands above it all as a beacon of hope.

“Now if we are children of God, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:17, 18.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

You Reap What You Sow

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YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW

“Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with his instructor. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good for, at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially those belonging to the family of believers.” Galatians 6:6-10.

Have you ever heard this saying? “A fool is a person who keeps on doing the same thing but expects a different outcome.” It’s the same as saying that a fool is someone who sows weeds and expects to reap wheat. Just as God has laws in the natural world that never alter, so the laws of the spiritual dimension are equally stable.

What was Paul talking about here? The law of the harvest applies at every level, but Paul had something particular in mind when he penned these words. In the Mosaic Covenant, God taught His people how to apportion their crops, not by fixed amounts but by percentage. Everything belongs to God. He had the right to tell His people how to use their resources.

At the end of each harvest, wheat, barley and whatever else they grew, and the increase of their flocks and herds, they were to give away approximately 20% and keep 80% for their own use. They had a responsibility to care for others as well as themselves and their families; their high priest; the priests and Levites; their own future, and the poor, the widow, the orphan and the foreigner, out of the 20% they set aside for this purpose.

Although the New Testament does not repeat these instructions, the principles are still the same and still found in the new covenant. Our responsibilities to other people have not changed. Many believers argue that we are now under grace, not under the law. That may be so, but everyone, including those for whom we are responsible, still has to live. God has never improved on His economic policy because it’s not about law; it’s about wisdom.

Left to ourselves because we argue that we are no longer under the law, we usually give less and less because of our innate reluctance to part with our money. We argue that we are being led by the Spirit. But what spirit? The old greedy nature still lurks deep inside us. We think that what we earn and what we own is ours. No, it is not. We are stewards of God’s property which we have on loan. We are accountable to Him for how we use it. When we use it for ourselves instead of obeying Him, we must not be surprised if our resources run out. Why should God give us more when we are unfaithful to Him with what we have?

In this passage, Paul talked about money and possessions – as simple as that! The law of the harvest applies to our money as much as it does to anything else. He urged the Galatians to take care of those who taught them the word. They have as much right to financial remuneration as those who work to earn a living. Whatever they sowed, they would reap. Paul talked about “sowing to the flesh” in the context of money.

According the Eugene Peterson’s “The Message”, we cannot make a fool of God. He established the law of the harvest and it has never been changed. When we are selfish and greedy with the resources God has entrusted to us, we will reap destruction because that is the pre-determined harvest of the “flesh”. Conversely, if we sow generosity, we will reap eternal life which is the outcome of righteousness.

“Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” 12 Corinthians 9:10, 11.

Because the law of the harvest never changes, there will always be a harvest of more of what you have sown. Just as selfishness will multiply in your life if you are selfish, so generosity will break the cycle of greed in you and set you on the road to real prosperity – not just in financial sufficiency but in the growth of your character to become more like Jesus.

Like everything else in life, generosity is a partnership with God. He will ensure that we are never in need when we obey Him by taking care of the needs of others.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or “What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:31-33.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

What You Do Is What You Are

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WHAT YOU DO IS WHAT YOU ARE

“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21.

What a list of horrible things people indulge in! But these are only the tip of the iceberg. They are symptoms of something much deeper and much worse. People are not sinners because they do these things; people do these things because they are sinners. Long before any of these symptoms ever come to the surface, the heart is already rotten to the core.

The sinful human behaviour Paul listed here touches and defiles every part of us – body, soul and spirit. However, in the end all sin is against God, not matter who else we may infect on our mad dash towards self-destruction. King David was aware of this when his adultery with Bathsheba was exposed.

“Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.” Psalm 51:4.

That unbelievers do these things is bad enough, but that believers also engage in this kind of behaviour with the mistaken idea that God will forgive them, is tragic because they have failed to realise that what they do exposes their hearts.

“Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him. Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does right is righteous, just as He is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” 1 John 3:4-8.

Paul’s distress over the Galatians’ acceptance of the Judaizers’ false teaching went much deeper than that they believed they had to be circumcised and keep the law. He knew that to do that was to fall back into the clutches of their old sinful nature which had killed them when they were born because they were born in sin. This time they would ever escape the ravages of sin because they would be denying the work of Jesus and undoing their faith in Him forever.

“It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace.” Hebrews 6:4-6.

This is not about falling into occasional sin. This is about changing the foundation upon which your faith is based. It is either based on what you can do or on what Jesus has done. It cannot be both. Those who fall into temptation have an advocate with God who pleads their case for them.

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” 1 John 2:1-3.

Those who choose to trust in their own works to satisfy God’s righteousness, who step out of grace into works, have no way back. Hence Paul’s warning. “Don’t do it because, if you do, you will have forfeited your standing in grace forever.” It’s as serious as that!

Why would people want to do that? Is it because, in the end, they choose to walk the way of unrighteousness so that they can indulge in their fleshly lusts?

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.