Romans 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.
We all have specific Scripture passages that make dramatic impacts upon our lives. Verses that have been used by God to help us become more like Christ. Romans chapter two verse twenty-nine is one of those verses for me. God taught me its truth after one of the hardest times of my life. I had just finished my Junior year in High School and was really looking forward to the summer.
That year had been especially hard on me. I was given my first real leadership opportunity by becoming part of my schools “student council”. On the first day of school I had lots of ideas about making the school a better place. But none of those ideas worked. So a few months after school started I was ready to quit!
On a Wednesday evening that summer God showed me one of the reasons all of my plans failed. One of our youth leaders spoke from Romans 2:29 about having a circumcision of the heart. He talked about the Jews who were proud of being circumcised physically (2:28), and believed that circumcision was part of Salvation. But Paul in this verse points out that a physical circumcision was not what God really cared about.
Those who were circumcised took great pride in calling themselves “real Jews”. But a real Jew in eyes of God was one who had a circumcision of the heart. The truth of that passage made me really think about my life. That God cares more about my heart (my personal relationship with him) than the outer actions of Christianity.
I am by no means saying that God does not want us to pray, attend church, and read the Bible. But there is more to Christianity than that. Being a Christian means having a close relationship with God where we seek his will, and then submit to it. The actions of Christianity (reading the Bible, going to church) flow out of that relationship!
Later on that night I talked for a long time with one of my friends about what that verse meant. And God made me realize that while I was saved, and doing all of the right things. I did not have an intimate relationship with him. That was why I struggled so much the year before. It is hard being the spiritual leader at a school when you are neglecting your own relationship with God!
That verse and the moment it impacted my life are still burned on my mind. But more importantly that truth is written on my heart as well. And it is a reminder for me that it is not enough to have teenagers read their Bible during the week. But I am to help them develop an intimate relationship with God as well.
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