The Covenant and its Sign (pt. 2)

The covenant with Abraham and his offspring is built on the foundation of God's grace and faithfulness. To highlight this grace, God gave a sign to Abraham, to be a constant reminder of his obligations to walk before the Lord, together with God's promise to be God to him and his offspring. This sign is circumcision, a bloody rite that portrayed the cleansing work accomplished by God himself for the sake of his holy people—a work that was finished by Christ when he died and rose again! As the sign of the covenant of grace, circumcision served to mark out the visible church as belonging to God. With the arrival of the New Covenant in Jesus, the grace remains the same but the sign changes in it's nature (no longer bloody) and application (to males and females, whether Jew or Gentile). As those who share the faith of Abraham and who belong to the New Covenant in Christ, we ought remember that we are marked out by the waters of baptism and live as God's covenant people in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation. Let us, therefore, rest in the blessings that Christ won for us, as we walk in holiness and allegiance to our covenant God!