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Date: Tue, 19 Sep 1995 10:17:26 +0200
Reply-To: Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel
Sender: Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel
From: Teus Benschop
Subject: The Scriptures opened, 49
To: Multiple recipients of list CHR-EXP
Contents
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1. Deuteronomy 30:6 - Circumcision of the heart
2. Psalms 119:49,50 - Hope on God's word
3. 1 Corinthians 11:1 - Followers of Christ's followers
1. Deuteronomy 30:6 - Circumcision of the heart
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Reading: Deut. 29:9 - 30:20
Deuteronomy 30:6
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy
seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy
soul, that thou mayest live.
Three things we read in our text.
1. What the LORD will do.
He will circumcise your hearts and the heart of your seed.
2. To what purpose the LORD will do it.
To love the LORD with all your heart and soul.
3. What the result will be.
That you may live.
The first point of attention is: What the LORD will do.
"And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the hart
of thy seed". The outward circumcision was visible in the flesh, but
that was not enough. Also the inward circumcision is necessary, the
circumcision of the heart. It was commanded to the people, that they
should circumcise their hearts. "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of
your heart, and be no more stiffnecked." (Deuteronomy 10:16) The
people were circumcised, but were also stiffnecked. Outward
circumcision and being stiffnecked easily go together. Inward
circumcision is necessary, to put off that stiffneckedness. We are not
able to circumcise our hearts. Only God can. And He will do, according
to His promise: I "will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy
seed".
Also the other prophets speak of the circumcision of the heart.
Jeremiah, for example, says: "Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and
take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants
of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none
can quench [it], because of the evil of your doings." (Jeremiah 4:4)
Also in Jeremiah's time, they were outwardly circumcised. But at the
same moment, their evil was raised to such a height, that the LORD
threatened that His fury would come forth like fire, when they not
amended their lives.
The LORD will circumcise your hearts. This is like a renewal of
the heart. The old heart, the uncircumcised one, is circumcised, so
that it becomes holy. This is the work of the LORD, as our text
clearly says. The circumcision of the heart is also called rebirth.
"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John
3:3) One needs to be born again. That is God's circumcision of the
heart. Both Old Testament and New Testament teach the same, namely
that God's intervention is necessary, to give us a renewed,
circumcised heart.
The second point is: To what purpose the LORD will do it.
God will circumcise your heart. Why? That you may love Him. The
LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed,
"to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy
soul". So, we are not able to love God with an uncircumcised heart.
Only with a circumcised heart, a heart born again, we can love God.
Boys are born uncircumcised. Likewise are the people born with an
uncircumcised heart. We are then unable to love God, when there
happens no change in us. When the LORD not performs His renewing work
in our inner parts, we are unable to love Him, and thus hate Him. He
commands us: "Love Me with all your heart and all your soul". But we,
when we are still natural, are unable to do that. He commands us, as
we see, to do the impossible. Besides commanding us to love Him, we
have need of being circumcised by Him.
The third point is: What the result will be.
God will circumcise your heart. Then you will love Him. And then?
"That you may live". Life without loving God is not life. It is but
death. When we wish to live, we have to love God with all our heart,
and with all our soul. And when we wish to love Him, our heart must be
circumcised. So we see, that nothing is left us. Whenever there is
one, who truly loves God, it must be that the preceding work of God is
done in him. The result of God's work in someone is, that he begins to
love God. When we meet one, loving God, and walking in His paths, we
call him righteous. He or she is righteous, we say. But from our text,
it appears that God already has done something to his heart. He has
renewed his heart, so as to enable him to love God. God is the First,
not we. All honour is God's; not ours. Who wishes to live has need of
the circumcision of his heart; a work what only God can perform. Away
then with all self-righteousness. It is insufficient, and will not be
accepted by God. Only he, who has a renewed heart, can love God; only
he or she will live eternally. He will, together with all the other
righteous, praise God for His goodness. He was the first to give us a
new heart. All praise is due to Him.
2. Psalms 119:49,50 - Hope on God's word
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Remember the word unto thy servant,
upon which thou hast caused me to hope.
This is my comfort in my affliction:
for thy word hath quickened me.
A poet has written this Psalm. He much adheres to God, and all his
hope is on Him. That can be seen throughout the Psalm. Also in our
text, he does nothing but putting his hope in God, from Whom he
expects his whole salvation. Listen to the poet, when he says:
Remember the word unto thy servant,
upon which thou hast caused me to hope.
He speaks about a "word" of God, directed to His "servant", that is,
directed to himself. Remember, O God, the word Thou have once spoken
to me. What kind of word was that? It was a word, speaking of hope.
For, the poet continues: the word, "upon which Thou hast caused me to
hope". So, this word was a promise given to him. He hoped on that
promise. That means, that he had not yet received it. He was still in
need, and put his hope in God, Who had promised to help him.
"Remember", O God, Thy promise. We see that it was not a recent
promise, but that it was given sometime, or even a long time ago. All
the time, the poet had hoped on God's word. But until now, he had
still not received the promise. This waiting on God and His word made
him adhering to God. All his hope was on God. His eyes were upon God.
"Behold, as the eyes of servants [look] unto the hand of their
masters, [and] as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress;
so our eyes [wait] upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy
upon us." (Psalms 123:2) The eyes of the servant are upon God, until
He remember and fulfil His promise given. He continues speaking of his
hope and of the promise, when he wrote:
This is my comfort in my affliction:
for thy word hath quickened me.
He speaks of his afflictions. So, we understand that he was oppressed.
That it was so, also appears from the rest of his Psalm. We see there,
that he was greatly afflicted. Read for example the next verse. "The
proud have had me greatly in derision: [yet] have I not declined from
thy law." (Psalms 119:51) And in other places: "The bands of the
wicked have robbed me." (Psalms 119:61) "The proud have forged a lie
against me." (Psalms 119:69) "Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt
perversely with me without a cause." (Psalms 119:78) In short, the
poet was greatly despised, cried out for a liar, was robbed, and much
more. But what do we read? When he speaks of that affliction, he
immediately connects with it, that he was comforted therein. He says
of the promise received of God: "This is my comfort in my affliction".
Look, we see, that, however great the affliction might be, and however
numerous the enemies might be, yet, his comfort remained with him.
God's Word has comforted him, for he had hope on God, that He would
once fulfil His promise. God's Word "has quickened me", he says.
We understand now how happy those people are, whose hope is on
God, and not on the fading things of this world. Many put their hope
in their money. When there is money enough, they think that they are
able to overcome many evils. Money however is fading, but God stands
forever. All what is under this heaven is uncertain, and will vanish
soon. All who trust herein are greatly deceiving themselves. But God,
and His word, stand forever. "[As for] man, his days are as grass: as
a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over
it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. But
the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them
that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children".
(Psalms 103:15-17)
If the enemies are continually attacking us, and when we are
afflicted in a high degree; if all sorts of evil run over our head;
all this matters not if we but have put our trust in God. And how can
we do that? Not without having formerly received His promises. For,
without promises, we have nothing to rest on. But when we have once
heard His voice, then we may say with the poet: Remember the word once
given unto me, o God. Thou have caused me to hope thereon. However
great the afflictions may be, yet, Thine promise is my comfort. It is
Thine word, which has quickened me.
How happy are God's people. For, they have God as their Father,
Who cares for them. The more appears their happiness to us, when we
compare it with the world. The world does not know God. They assail
the godly, and even God Himself. They have no hope. They see, when
they at least are not spiritually blind, that this world comes to an
end. Their future is but darkness, at least, when they are not blinded
by satan, who deludes many. The future of the world is dark. But God's
people, maybe attacked in this ruined world, have yet their hope in
God; their future is not dark, but full of hope. And it is sure, that
they will not be ashamed. Yes, the promise will not be fulfilled at
once. We see that in our poet. He asked that God would remember His
promise; so it was given long ago. We see it in Abraham, who had
received the promise of land, and of seed in multitude. How many years
did it take before God gave it? It was centuries after Abraham's
death. The promise then, will not be fulfilled at once. Though it is
not fulfilled now, it yet gives trust, gladness and hope. It makes us
adhering to the Lord, in Who only is our life.
3. 1 Corinthians 11:1 - Followers of Christ's followers
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Be ye followers of me,
even as I also am of Christ.
This are the words of the apostle Paul. "Be you followers of me, even
as I also am of Christ". Brethren, he says, look to the example I give
you in my conduct, and do the same. Follow me, says Paul, as far as
you see me following Christ, and not further. He not only _preached_
the truth to the people, but he also gave an example though his way of
_living_. That is the way a good pastor does it. Not preaching good
things, and living a bad life, but both his words and his deeds will
be according to Scripture. "Follow me", says Paul, "likewise I also am
a follower of Christ". A good shepherd goes before his flock. They
follow him, trust him, and look at him. Likewise will a good minister,
that is, a pastor, go before his congregation. They look at him, and
follow his conduct, like he also that of Christ. "Brethren, be
followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us
for an ensample." (Philippians 3:17) Christ suffered greatly on earth.
Likewise will a good pastor do, since he follows Christ. The same
applies to the congregation. Also they will suffer greatly, since they
follow their shepherd and Christ. Be Christ's followers, brethren,
says Paul. Did Christ pray whole nights to God? Do you the same. Was
Christ always busy in doing good? Do you the same. Has Christ "learned
obedience by the things which he suffered"? (Hebrews 5:8) Yes, and the
same will the ministers do, together with their congregation. Through
suffering, they have to learn obedience.
We see here, that the minister of Christ teaches the people, both
through his words, and through his life. A bad teacher however, maybe
that he speaks good words, but his life you shall not follow. Why not?
Because he does not follow Christ. Such teachers were on earth in
Christ's time. "All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that
observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do
not." (Matthew 23:3) The spiritually blind, who not are able to
discern between good and evil, will follow the bad conduct of their
minister, that they together may perish. But the people of God will
take heed, and follow a bad minister only so far, as he follows
Christ. But a good minister may say, with Paul, "brethren, be you
followers of me, even as I am Christ's follower".
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Teus Benschop -- t.benschop@pobox.ruu.nl
Listowner of chr-exp@nic.surfnet.nl
"A Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel"
Institute Practical Bible-education
Web: http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/ipb-e/ipbe-home.html
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