on these things. So I hope you get your Bibles open and go with me as we just look at a lot of scriptures concerning this subject of circumcision. Make sure that we get a balanced scriptural understanding of it because it's real easy if you just preach kind of what I did this morning and not get into the New Testament as much as we should to get a little off balance. The Bible says to rightly divide the word of truth. So let's go to Genesis 17 again. This is your law of first mention, this first time circumcision is mentioned in the scripture. So that's the basis of it. Genesis 17 verse number 10 again is where God has given him this covenant I'm not going to take time to read all this but it's mentioned several times He tells me exactly what to do and when to do it and it might make mention there in verse number 12 He says and he that is eight days old shall be circumcised. It is a medical fact that a baby boy at eight days of age, his level of vitamin K is the highest it will ever be in his life on that day, which causes the blood to coagulate the most of any day of his life. And so that in itself tells you there's a God in heaven who has created and designed. But there's one day in a baby boy's life that his vitamin K will shoot through the roof, and that's on the eighth day. And that is to enable him to be able to coagulate and heal. the blood. Isn't that something? And so God knows. God created us. God knows what we are. And anyway, he told them there in that pastor's scripture. Now let's go to verse 23. We read that this morning, so I'm trying to get some time. I want you to watch verse number 23. And Abraham took Ishmael, his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among them. By the way, Abraham was a slave owner, so you ought to hate his guts, right? A lot of things in the Bible don't agree with the modern junk. Anyway, I can get into that. Boy, I'll tell you what, some of this stuff is going on in America now. I'm just so put out with it, the hypocrisy and the double standard that's going on. But anyway, he said, Abraham's house, and circumcised, and placed their foreskin to sell the same day as God had said unto him. And Abraham was 90 years old then, and he was circumcised and pledged his foreskin. I'll tell you one thing, Abraham, I guarantee you that wasn't, I wouldn't think it'd be an easy decision, but here's the key. Abraham was obedient. God said, do it. We're going to do it. God didn't explain it to him. God didn't, all that stuff. He just obeyed. That's why Abraham is, you ought to watch Abraham real close because he is a father of faith. Now I'll make a mention right here quick. Abraham is how far before the law, before Moses? Long time. Okay. Here's what I want to get your point of. Moses was given the law and then but you got Abraham way before him many people will talk to you about circumcision Oh, that's law. That's law. That's law. Jesus even said in John chapter 7 verse 22 points it out that circumcision came before the law Just like faith was before the law, Abraham was saved by faith. And so, don't let these people entrap you, just keep rightly dividing the Word of Truth and make sure you understand. But anyway, verse 25, "...And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, and so the same day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son." All the men of his house born in his house bought with money of the stranger of the stranger were circumcised with him I want you to keep that deal about 13 years of age on Ishmael there Once you just keep that in mind as we go through other scriptures. Let's go to Genesis chapter 21 and verse number 4 again We're going to run Real quick verse and Abraham circumcised his son Isaac now Isaac has been born on down the road here to the way Ishmael Isaac was not in that scene This was before Isaac ever came on the scene here comes Isaac and being what eight days old as what? God had commanded him Abraham is being obedient to God This was the big difference between Abraham and Moses the situation Moses was being disobedient but there is a catch and I give Moses a little bit a little bit you find out in the New Testament that And in the book of Joshua you find out that evidently, this is the best you can tell, that in the latter years of their slavery, the 400 some years, they had become so infected with the paganism, the heathenism, the idolatry of Egypt that they had ceased to perform circumcision on their children. This is what it seems like if you read all the Bible about Egypt and the latter, because when they get up into the land, the Canaan, Joshua circumcised them. They have a national circumcision because many of the late ones were not. So, I give Moses a little bit of credit in that. You know, there was a lot of influence of the Egyptian culture. Someone mentioned to me this morning, and I've read about it, I don't know the exact details, I hope I don't say anything that's not exactly right. But in the state of California this past year, they've tried to introduce legislation or pass legislation that would prohibit anyone from having a child circumcised. That's California for you. And what that's all about is that their mentality is to increase, to pamper the flesh, to increase sensualism and physical enjoyment and so forth, which I believe personally is a lie. I don't believe it's true. But anyway, that's their basis for that. In other words, everything about the flesh and anything against the Bible, we want to do. That's California right now in their mind. And so one of my sons mentioned to me after church today, he said, Daddy, you're going to see more and more of this. There's this movement against circumcision. It's like a blatant in-your-face against anything the Bible would say, and especially to subdue the flesh or to crucify the flesh. Let's go now to Exodus chapter 12. Now, we were in Exodus. I would go to Exodus chapter 4, but we were there this morning. That was our text. or Moses, had failed to circumcise God. And I tell you, as I was studying, you know, I'm preaching through the life of Moses, and you just hear these three verses, and all of a sudden it's like God wants to kill him. That got my attention. That's why I preached on that. And then what really got my attention was the aspect that he was neglecting his family spiritual duties and getting ready to go do a great work of ministry. And boy, that's so consistent in Scripture, God says. And that was probably this morning the main thing I wanted to get across. was do not neglect your family, even in whatever you're trying to do for the Lord or your other work. Don't neglect that spiritual needs of your family. You miss that, the rest of it's not going to matter. In Exodus chapter 12, you find the Passover is being instituted in chapter 12, and we get to verse number 43. Talking he said the ordinance of the past over there in verse 43 and here he starts out verse 44 But every man's servant that is bought for money when thou has circumcised him Then shall he eat thereof a foreigner and a hired servant shall not eat thereof one house shall be eaten and it goes on down through their verse number 48 and when a stranger shall sojourn with thee to keep the Passover Lord let all his males be circumcised The last part of the verse says, For no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof. God says, don't say something right now. This is serious business, important business. Don't you overlook it. Don't you neglect it. It's serious. And God is telling us that. Now this whole thing about circumcision has to do in the New Testament with what's called the mortification of the flesh. Anybody know what a mortician is? To mortify means to put to death. Mortify means to put to death. Paul said, mortify the deeds of the flesh or the deeds of the body. And what he means is that, again, these things that are fleshly, they're worldly, they're sinful, he's saying put them to death. Put off that old man. Crucify him. Cut off the old man. Put off the old man. Connect it. Put off the old man. Circumcise the four skins of your heart. Okay, so we look at the Passover. God is reminding them. Hey, make sure that circumcision going to live big Leviticus chapter 12 verse number 3 Leviticus chapter 12 and he's giving them here laws to live by statutes and judgments that causes a good by the way as laws and statutes that cause a a superior way of life. I read a report today about in the South Pacific during World War II, soldiers on ships, United States soldiers on ships in World War II. There was an outbreak of a problem, and I won't go into detail. When they researched it out, it was every time it was in an uncircumcised mail, every time. And that was World War II. It had to do with the heat and the climate down there from boys that had been used to being in more northern climates. And so God knows what he's doing, folks. God knows what's best for us. In this chapter, he's given the law of motherhood. And he talks about there in verse number two, speaking of the children of Israel, saying, if a woman hath conceived seed, born a man child, then she shall be unclean seven days, according to the days of separation for infirmity, that she shall be unclean. Then you get into verse number three, God is giving it again. And in the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. And then it talks, it gives her the directions for her life in that situation. Now, you begin to move on out. Let's go down into, I want to hit this thing in Deuteronomy again. Deuteronomy. And when you get into the book of Deuteronomy now, understand that by the time Moses is getting into Deuteronomy, He is now taking many of the things that have been written before, and he's moving these people into the spiritual aspect of what its meaning is. It has a positive, solid, sure application to their life. God says, do it, do it, but there's many blessings that'll come from it. Then he starts moving them over and saying, listen, there's a higher thing, there's grace. There's a higher thing going on here. God has layers of importance and purposes of what He's doing. And in Deuteronomy, He starts showing them that circumcision is not about, it's about far more than just a physical act. It is about a spiritual issue in our hearts, in our minds, about crucifying the place. So in Deuteronomy, chapter 10, verse number 16. Deuteronomy chapter 10 and verse number 16. He says there, circumcise the foreskin of your heart. and be no more stiff-necked." And, boy, you know, I'm sure those Israelite people were saying, well, good land 11, what are we talking about now? Well, Moses knew exactly what he was talking about. By the way, he inspired the Word of God, and he's telling them, listen, it's not just about your physical body. That is a sign. That is a covenant sign, sure, but it's got so many implications. God says, I want Inside to be right. How many of you understand tonight? I want to take the flesh lust against spirit spirit against flesh So that you cannot do the things you would to or contrary one to the other one Tell you what's a battle and God understands that battle God wants to make provision for that battle and God wants us to learn how and I'm telling you I'm 60 years old and And I just don't know, I've said this often times, a church or a family cannot go any higher or much further than what a preacher is trying to lead them. And I wish if there was something that I could have done better, it was about this thing of crucifying the flesh, learn how to put off the flesh, not be led of the Spirit, walking more in the Spirit of God. I'm serious with you. I mean, I'll just tell you, that's the whole thing. Because you see, that's what's destroying Christian people. That's what messes them up, is not walking in the Spirit. and being controlled by the flesh. And so, this is a very important subject. Look at Deuteronomy chapter 30, verse number 6. Deuteronomy 30, verse number 6. And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to do something. To love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, that thou mayest what? Live. I said I want this to be more of a relaxed service night, and I thought about this in relationship to this subject. Donnie mentioned this morning in Sunday School class about riding the tractor down there and people giving you obscene gestures, is that correct? And I listened to him real careful about that, and that got my attention because he was talking In times past, what you're thinking about is, can I make this tractor go fast enough to catch them? I remember one time I was over here in the parking lot, and some boys came by, and I was counting some hay bales, and my whole family was with me. And they, I mean... And I, to this day, wonder if they even knew who he was, but, you know, I don't know. I just sometimes wonder if they just weren't being, you know, crazy boys, but they let out a big string of obscene ults, I mean, right at us. My wife was there, my kids there. I mean, and I was pastor of this church at this time, just no joke. I threw that family in the Suburban, and I caught them. They had a blowout tire. They were running from me. I caught them up here, about right spot on the old highway, when they tried to get on the other end, and I mean, they were flying. And I was so mad because they, you know, cussed us out right there, my wife and everything. And I hate to even say that, it pissed her with me. I was so mad. I was like, if I get in a confrontation, I'm just, I thought, I am not putting up with this. And I was in the flesh. I know that. But I never will forget, man. I mean, they start saying, hey, we didn't mean anything by it. Well, they didn't mean anything by it. They're going to get away. But I don't know what you're saying there. But here's what caught me. Donnie said, I've had a heart attack, and I don't need the what? The conflict. And I thought when I heard that, I thought, Lord, is that the only way sometimes we get our flesh? Crucifies it. You know, what's it going to take for me to be crucified? What's it going to take for me to get somebody make obscene gestures at me and I don't get hot about it? What's it going to take for me to somebody cuss me out and I don't get hot about it? What's it going to take for me to, you know, Brother Danny, you know, I'll be honest with you. I don't know how this works. My wife, her whole family, their whole family make up a different mind. They just do not get irritated as fast as if they do, they don't show it. Danny, you're kind of like me. You don't act like you get mad about it. Do you ever get mad about anything? I know that, but that's my problem, is how are you dead? He said being cussed out and so forth and all these things happen, don't bother dead people. And we're not dead, that's our problem. Our flesh is not what? Crucified. Not crucified. But then you go back, Paul said, you know, that that I would not, I do, that that I do, I would not, oh, wretched me. He said, how to perform that, I find not. And that's what I struggle with, because I seem like I've got an extra dose of flesh. I mean, God took some of you guys that seem like you don't have the flesh, these problems, and give it to me. You know, and somebody had a hand up back here somewhere. Brother Queen. Well, I can't stop. Huh? Yeah, it is. That's a wonderful thing, isn't it? My body is going to die. I know. Yeah It I'll tell you this much and well, I do want to move past this on some other things a little bit but You know, I was fourth born son and be honest with you I mean I can still hear my older brothers telling me you don't let anybody give you any flack. You don't take any lip off anybody I'm serious Alvin Rainey, my high school principal. How many members of Alvin Rainey? Anybody remember Alvin Rainey? Alvin Rainey, I can still see him standing up in front of my history class saying, I'll tell you boy something, you don't take no lip off anybody. You knock their teeth down their throat. That's a high school principal. That's right. And I tell you what, further, I will tell you this, high school principal, yeah, he's a principal, not just in the history. He take his fist like that and he say, you knock, you put them knuckles right where their teeth are. That's right. And that's, I mean, you know, I'm just honest with you. I grew up in that culture. I grew up in a culture, if I would go to town with my brothers and they didn't dump me off the laundromat, I'm telling you, it was not unusual just to drive around the Dairy Queen or, and a fight break out. I'm serious. I've seen it happen many times. I mean, guys, just walk over, just walk over to look in the window and say, you bunch of punks, anybody want to take me on? And if you're feeling real good, you jumped out of the car and away you went. I mean, that may sound weird to all of you. You know what the problem is? Some of you were born in the peace and love days. That's probably, you know, I mean, no, but the culture did change. By the time I was in college, there was a cultural change about it. And I'm not, I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses, but I want to tell you something right now. I've got a problem with the flesh. I've got a problem with flesh, and I think the first thing is at least be honest about it and say you do. And I just want God, you know, I don't want to die, and I do not want to pass on to my heritage. Because one of the things, I was going to do it on Father's Day, and I was just extremely tired, first time in forever. I went on to sleep before everybody left. But I want to ask, I want to have a sit-down with my family, just my six kids and my wife, and I want to ask them one question. I've got a lot of grandkids coming down the pike now, and I want to ask them the question, Bring it down to the bone. What are the issues in my life and in the life of this family that would hinder our descendants from carrying the faith on? What is in our hearts and our lives that is displeasing to the Lord that would cause our descendants to look at us and say, I don't want the faith they had? And are we willing to address that? Let's go to Colossians. Let me check these off as we go. Let's go to the book of Acts, I guess, first of all. Now, I want to remind you of something, that when David came, when Goliath came up and challenged the bid of Israel, David made that great speech about, who is this what? This uncircumcised Philistine. You go study the word uncircumcised, you'll find out that most of the time it was used by the Israeli people to describe the godless and the god-haters. And it was a thing that showed division. So you need to understand it coming into the New Testament. We come into the book of Acts. Let's go to Acts chapter 16 and begin to see what's going on here. Acts chapter 16, verse number 3. Paul here is with Timothy. He is a son of the faith. He is in the ministry. And verse 3 says, him Paul would have go forth with him and took and circumcised him because of something. Because of the Jews. Which rid those quarters for they knew all that his father was a Greek. And why did Paul do that? Paul did not want that to hinder His ability to minister to those Jewish people. He didn't want them throwing that up as a block to him all the time. He was removing roadblocks in the ministry. I think you'll find, though, that in looking, let's go to Galatians chapter 2, we'll see something a little bit different here that Paul was doing. Galatians chapter 2. Now, there's a great ministry thing to learn right here. That Paul is testing, Paul's not being weakly. Paul's not blowing with the wind here. Paul is trying to take down obstacles to people listening to the Gospel. Okay? And that's an important thing. If you're going to be a minister of the Gospel, you've got to understand, what is it that might hinder that person from listening to my testimony? And get that thing out of the way if you can. This is important in your own families, in the people you're with. Once in a while. And the Holy Spirit will bring things to mind. But Galatians chapter 2 and verse number 3, he said there, But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised." Alright, here's a situation where he said, hey, we're not going to do this just to make these guys happy. And one of the reasons he didn't do it was because he was trying to teach them that circumcision was not part of your salvation, and being circumcised didn't have anything to do with obtaining salvation or keeping your salvation. Because now there's a word in the New Testament called the concision. The concision. And that word is referring to the Jews who were requiring and saying that you had to be circumcised in order to be saved. They're called the concision. Paul said, beware of the concision. All right. Now, I want you now to take that principle and apply it to your spiritual life today. How, who are the concision in the religions and Christianity today? who are telling you that, yes, you get saved, but... Okay, does anybody say, yeah, yeah, that's fine to be saved, but have you been baptized? Baptism, actually, in the Catholic Church is almost like circumcision was to the Jews. Because if you ain't sprinkled, if you've not been, that's one of their, what do they call it? Sacraments. Some of you former Catholics, tell me, is there any hope for you to go to heaven if you haven't been baptized? So unless somebody baptized for the dead, well then it's a mix of Mormon and Catholic, so that goes really well. But like, if you're not... Yeah. And so, but if somebody said they're not, if a Catholic priest came up to a person dying to do last rites, And he was not baptized. They would have to baptize him. In other words, it's one of the things the Catholic Church teaches, whether you believe this or not, that unless you've been sprinkled, baptized, you cannot go to heaven. OK, so what is that? That is concision. That is adding some religious work to faith to be saved. Van told me this past week that he was at some church visiting, and a lady made the statement that, and about it, they were singing a song about being saved by grace alone, and she said, that song's not scripturally right. And he said, what do you mean it's not scripturally right? You don't believe in salvation by grace alone? Oh no, no, you got to do this, this, and this. Church of Christ. Guarantee you and even but even your baptism if you've been baptized but not according but not to be safe You can say well, I've been baptized. What's the big deal? They say no, you didn't get baptized to be saved You got you got baptized because you thought you were saved and you're not either Ring that one around your neck That's what's called in the Bible concision. They're adding works to faith. I They're adding some kind of religious ordinance, whatever, in order to be saved. And I'm going to tell you something, that's heresy. That's false doctrine. It's the blood alone that saves. It's faith alone that saves. And I'll die on that. Now, I know, I know what James 2 says, but James 2 is talking about you seeing. James 2 is talking about what people see in you. And the Bible says without works, the Bible talks about works there. That's in Ephesians 2.10, by the way. You're created unto good works. You and I know that if we are saved, that we're saved unto good works, and that good works should follow salvation. Titus and Timothy's full of it. Well, the curse on the church today that has understood salvation by grace alone is they've knocked works out for fear of being called their worst religion. I have been accused from this public, from people who have attended this church, oh, you preached works last Sunday, just because I preached that you ought to live right after you get saved. Anyway. But here Paul just what's what Paul's doing Paul is he's not blowing in the wind there. He's hold that thing all right now. Let's go to Let's go to Let's just kick it off. Let's go to Acts 15 there and verse number 1 Acts 15 back up one there And here's the crux of it about this concision and certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren and said Except you'd be circumcised after the manner of Moses. He cannot be saved There it is right there This is what Paul is dealing with. This is what Paul is dealing with in this thing, that they were teaching that unless they were circumcised, they could not be saved. Look at verse number 24 in that same chapter. Verse number 24. For as much as we have heard that certain went down from us of troubles, you weren't subverting your souls, saying you must be circumcised and keep the law. Oh, see how it grows. They come in and said, yeah, Jesus died on the cross for his sins, but now if you haven't been circumcised, you're not saved. And then 24 bachelors later, and keep the law. There's no end to it. You know, pretty soon, you know, you've got to do this. You've got to do, your hair's going to be fixed like this. Your dress is going to look like this. I mean, I'm just, I tell you what, I think the world of a lot of the Amish that are around here, I mean, I don't know all their stuff, but I'm going to tell you right now, that Amish bishop that tells them guys that they can't have a front end loader on their tractor is crazier than a bed bug. You can tell him Reg Kelly said so. That's not in the Bible nowhere. And they also have them believe it. By the way, they believe if they disobey Him, that they'll die and go to hell, that they're in eternal damnation. I'll tell you what, I've got good friends that are Amish, and I'll tell you I appreciate it, but I think God sent them in here for a united way, and we just will tell them the truth. And putting a dress down to your ankle won't save you. I think you ought to be modest, but putting a dress on down to your ankle won't save you. If we tell people that they've got to be saved, then you've got to wear a dress down to your ankle, or you've got to wear a collar up to here, or the men can't have their top button unbuttoned. And all that kind of stuff, that's adding to, that's concision. And it makes the cross of Christ of none effect. For why Jesus died for, if you button your shirt to the top button, it's what keeps you saved. You say, Reggie, this isn't important. I'll tell you how important it is. All of civilization has battled with it. from time immortal. Cain and Abel battled with it. It was either the blood, or it was the stuff he was doing. Cain brought the stuff he was doing, and Abel brought the blood, and God rejected that other, and I'm telling you something, it's serious as anything. So, I just hope you understand, that's what the deal is. Let's go to Acts 7.51. Acts 7.51. I'm jumping around a little bit, but we'll get there one way or another. This is an important verse right here. This is right before the stoning of Stephen. Stephen says, you stiff-necked and what? In heart. In heart and ears. Amen. In ears. You do always resist the Holy Ghost. Your fathers did so do you. He understood it. You know what? Somebody says, whoa, Philip really got that. No, he didn't. He read Deuteronomy. He just got through reading Deuteronomy. We read Deuteronomy. Moses said, Moses said, Moses finally got it. Be circumcised in your heart. What does that have to do? Let's go to now get into Let's go to Romans. This is where we're going to park for just a little Romans chapter 2 Romans chapter 2 and again I wouldn't normally do this But I want to make sure that nobody gets this off-balance and nobody goes out of here saying Reggie Reggie got from priest that you gotta be circumcised. I didn't get up in preset and I think we ought to be in the heart but And by the way, I think we ought to follow the Bible physically. But if somebody doesn't, we're going to find out that it's not the issue. Verse 26. Let's go to verse 24, Romans chapter 2. Brothers, say amen. Amen. For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you as it is written. For circumcision verily profiteth if thou keep the law. But if thou be a breaker of the law, which one do you fit into? Keeper or breaker? Breaker. Thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. Therefore, if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? I'll tell you, ain't that a wonderful thing? Now listen to me tonight. I'm not interested in pining your private business, and don't nobody get offended, but I'll tell you right now. If I was standing up behind this pulpit tonight, and my folks had not had me circumcised, whatever like that, and what the Bible's comforting me and saying here tonight, this thing's of the heart. This ain't about that physical thing. And don't be condemned tonight if you were born into a family where it wasn't circumcised, maybe they didn't do that. I don't know, for whatever reason it may have been, but don't let the devil condemn you tonight about that, because he's teaching you right here. Then he said, you know, a guy that wasn't circumcised, he said, if he is honoring the Lord, obeying and walking with God, he's the one who's got the real thing that God was after to start with. He's the one who really understands it. Even if he's not physically circumcised. Amen. That's why sometimes you can take a dope head that's just been saved three weeks and he's more spiritual than an old crank that's been saved for 42 years. Okay. Verse 27, "...and shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfill the law, judge thee who by the letter and circumcision does transgress the law." He says, you run around circumcised, you don't do nothing God says. Moses! Verse 28, "...for he is not a Jew which is one outwardly, neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh." He is a Jew which is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart, here it is, in the Spirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not of men, but of God. That's the Holy Ghost's final statement on this whole issue, although we're going to look at a few other scriptures here. Let's go to Romans chapter 3 now. Don't throw circumcision out, okay? What advantage then hath the Jew, or what profit is there of circumcision? Look at the answer to verse number two, much every way. Chiefly because unto them were committed the oracles of God. Paul's saying now listen, don't just throw the baby out with the wash water. Understand that God had a purpose in doing that, and there's a good purpose in doing it, and if God said do it, there's a reason, you ought to follow it. And so, anyway, let's hit Oh my, I want to get into the book of Galatians. Go to Romans chapter, let's hit verse 30 in chapter 3, I think it's verse 30. Yeah, verse 30. Romans chapter 3, verse 30. Seen it as one God which shall justify the circumcision by faith and the uncircumcision through what? Faith. Amen. Amen. All right, now, let's hit Galatians, because Galatians is the book on which... All right, let's go to Romans chapter 4. We've got to do Romans 4 before we go there. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Romans chapter 4, verse number 9. Verse number 9. Here he's talking about Abraham, the father of faith. Come with this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also. What blessedness? This imputation of salvation by faith. That's what he's talking about. That's the blessedness that he's talking about. For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. How was it then reckoned? Watch this, folks. When he was in circumcision or in uncircumcision? Now, without reading your Bible, what's the answer to that question? Righteousness was imputed to him before he ever got circumcised. Bingo! He was saved before he got circumcised. The argument here is that his circumcision did not save him. That salvation, righteousness of Christ was not imputed to him when he got circumcised. That happened when he believed on the Lord. See, what this does, it's really good to study because it sweeps up all this religious activity and this religious stuff. Oh boy, I got that mean streak running up me again here. Sam, I tell you, there's so much junk going on. Now there's a movement that you're not supposed to say Jesus, it's Yahshua. Yeshua. I want to tell you right now, it's Jesus. Jesus. And, you know, we're going to worship on Saturday and all kinds of things. It just never ends. Pretty soon you're going to have to go up to a certain sea level, you know, to be saved. I mean, you have to worship at a certain sea level. I don't know. It's just on and on and on and on. They never stop. I'll tell you one thing, folks, it's Christ and Christ alone. That's where I want to camp my soul at. Well, verse number 10 said, last part, not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. And he received a sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of faith, of the faith which he had yet, of the faith which he had yet been uncircumcised. His faith was before the circumcision. That he might be the father of all them that are circumcised? No, that believe. Though they be not circumcised." Boy, I'm glad for that verse, amen? I'm glad for that verse. "...that righteousness might be imputed unto them also, and the Father's circumcision to them who are not circumcised, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our Father." What is his argument here? His argument is that, particularly at this time here, the Jews were trying to tell people, hey, by the way, that's what you get into when you get into the book of Hebrews. You know the good word of God? Here's what they were doing. The Jews were reaching out and trying to pull all these Christian converts back into Judaism. And they were using these arguments. Hey, wait a minute. You're getting in with that uncircumcised. Don't you remember what David said about Goliath? That uncircumcised Philistine? And now you're yoking up with him and you're going to church with him and you're worshipping with him. Those people are uncircumcised. They can't be saved. They're a team of someone who says they won't be circumcised. And they were reaching out and trying to pull them back into law. Pull them back into Judaism. And that's what this all ties in together. Well, let's go to Galatians now, see if we can get there. Galatians chapter 2, and we talked in verse number 3 about Titus there. Let's jump down to verse number 8. Let's see how effective, how this works out in verse number 7, how it works out into organized religion. Now, in verse number 6, they're having a conference. And there were some somewhats in conference. Y'all have met somewhats before, haven't you? Anyway, in conference, and Paul said, they don't add nothing to me. Look at verse number seven. Now, look where he takes off with that. But contrary wise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, who would that be to? That's Paul and his gospel, the gospel of uncircumcision. Who is he talking about there? The gospel of the uncircumcision. the Gentiles. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Peter was the apostle to the Jews. That's what he's getting to there. He said, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision, the Gentiles, was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter. And you know that if you read your Bible and all about their stories. Paul is designated to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. That's why the Gentiles love Paul so much. That's why Paul is a great man in the church. Peter was to the Jews. But watch what happens here. Verse number 8, For he that wrought affectionately in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles. And when James, Cephas, now that's Peter, and John, who seemed to be pillars, that's quite a phrase, isn't it? Seemed to be. Perceived the grace that was given unto me they gave to me in Barnabas the right hands of fellowship But now I understand something Paul's coming back into this situation after having been 14 years in Arabia That's down in verse chapter 2 verse number 1 first verse in the chapter there It says that we should go Unto the heathen and they unto the circumcision all right, so now here's this direction of ministry Verse 10, only they would that we should remember the poor, the same which I was also forward to do. And when Peter was come to Antioch, watch this. I'd love to have been a mouse in this church service. I withstood him to the face. Woo! How would you like to be in a church service where Paul and Peter gets into it? To the face. You talk about love of the brethren. I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed." Now what did Peter do wrong? Verse 12, "...for before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles. But when they were come," who's they? The Jews, "...he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them," and it's a special word here, "...which were of the circumcision. He's making it very clear. What did Peter do? He was in the conference situation, and some people came in that he knew were pushing this thing about circumcision, and he didn't want to be excluded and shunned and put aside. And Peter compromised the gospel of grace in order to please the people who were pushing circumcision and works added to faith. Look at verse 13 and other Jews watch this dissembled likewise with him in so much the Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel I said unto Peter before them all If thou being a Jew live us after the manner of Gentiles and not as do the Jews Why compel us now the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? You know what he's saying? He's in peer. You're just being a hypocrite Now why could he say that to Peter? Anybody remember what happened to Peter? Brother Lakey, what happened to Peter? Yeah, I know you know where I'm at. What's the situation in Peter's life that made this such a problem? That's a good point, but it ain't the one I thought you was going to make. How many remember that Peter was up on the rooftop back in the book of Acts? He's up on the rooftop. Yeah. And this stuff come down on a sheet. Vision. Peter said, Oh, Lord, I'm Jew. I ain't never ate nothing unclean. God said, Rise and eat, Peter. What was God teaching Peter? You're entering into a new dispensation. You're entering into a new time. And he said, we're going to reach the Gentiles and the churches. And he said, I'm going to go outside the gate. We're going to bring these Gentiles in. And Peter, I don't want you. He's teaching Peter. They're talking about eating with him and having fellowship with him. And Peter, watch this, the reason Paul got this face about it was, Peter, of all people in the world who should know that you don't do this, you don't act like, oh, I'm a Jew and I can't eat with you heathen Gentiles, you uncircumcised. You ought to know that more than anybody. God took special times with you, that vision that came down the roof and about that and told you to eat. Explaining to you that the gospel is going to the Gentiles all the apostles Peter should have known better than anybody And Paul walks up and straightens the thing out now. That's a great lesson in that you listen to me tonight. I Love old Peter. He I'm gonna tell you what Peter's a great man And Peter loved the Lord Jesus Christ and Pete was so serious I'm tell you folks and history says he was crucified upside down for his Lord He said when they're going to crucify him that he said I do not want to be cute He said I'm not worried to be crucified as my Lord was crucified crucified me upside down. I He loved the Lord. But here's the deal you ought to watch. Very easy for you, no matter how much you love the Lord, no matter how much Bible you know, to get carried away with some stupid stuff that comes into a church. Very easy to get carried away with something that's really not scripturally right. Sounds real good, but you know what the lawyers do? Watch this. It'll cater to your flesh, because you know what was happening? What happened when they separated themselves from the Gentiles? What was they saying? We're more spiritual than you are. You're not up to speed with us. pride, and God hates pride. You know what it would do? It would discourage those Gentile believers and say, well, I thought we could get saved. Maybe we can't be saved. I don't know. It would cause confusion and pervert the gospel of Jesus Christ. That's why Paul was such a great man. Paul was not afraid to stand for the truth if it cost him everything. I mean, whether he was inside church, outside church, we're going to go by what the Bible says. We're going to go by the word of the Lord. It's easy to get carried away with junk theology. There is nothing going on in the churches of America today that they don't justify using some little piece of scripture somewhere, I promise you. And let me tell you something. I say this, if Paul had the guts to stand up against Peter in the middle of a church service, we ought to have the guts to stand up against anybody, whether it be church, family, friends. And we ought to be gracious. We ought to be kind of say, listen, ain't doing that. Ain't going on. That's wrong. You can take scripture out of context if you want to. The devil always finds scripture to get you what you want, but you don't do that. Well, it caused pride and it fed the flesh. Let's go to Galatians chapter 5. Galatians chapter 5 and verse number 2. Galatians chapter 5 verse number 2, Behold I, Paul, say unto you that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. Galatians is all about going back into bondage, going back into the law, going back into ceremonies instead of trusting thy faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse number 1, Stand fast therefore in the liberty that wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I, Paul, say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. I testify again to every man, verse 3, that is circumcised, that he is debted to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you. Whosoever of you are justified by the law, you are fallen from grace. Amen. And that's what happens. And by the way, after you get saved, you'll hit this somewhere in your life. Somebody will try to tell you, if you're not doing this, you're not saved. They'll try to take away from the finished work of Jesus Christ. Go to verse number 6. Look at verse number 6. For when Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but faith. And by the way, that's not a new doctrine. That was what Abraham believed back and that's what he's trying to tell you in the Book of Romans, that it was Abraham's faith saving, not his circumcision. That circumcision was a sign of the covenant about the land and the blessings. It was not about his salvation. Alrighty, let's go to chapter 6 in the Book of Galatians and look at verse number 12. Verse number 12, as many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh. How many's ever seen a fair show in the flesh? How many's ever made a fair show in the flesh? Boy, I tell you what, I know flesh will put on the show now. My, my, my, I'm spiritual. My, I'm the nicest person you've ever seen. Until I get my husband along. Until we get back at our house, I'll show you what I like. You want to see my flesh? We can put on a flesh... Can I just be honest with you? How many thinks that possibly we might have a lot more flesh shows in the public and at church than we'd like to admit? We're just... We don't act like we... How many have not acted today in church like you acted at your house this week at some point in time? How many would not want people in church tonight to know how you acted this week some point in time? You know, God is just a God. I just love the Lord. One of the reasons I love Him is because He... I'll tell you how I'm made. God is... He's rough in a way. He'll tell you the truth about yourself. And I do love that. It hurts. Sometimes it makes me hate myself. But I know that without it, I can't ever get nowhere. And I'm glad when God exposes the fair show of the flesh. Would anybody like to comment on what a fair show of the flesh would be like? You know what we do? We do it and don't even know we're doing it. It's just that deceitful, putting on a fair show of the flesh. They constrain you to be circumcised only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law, but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh." I want to say this, and I'll probably get a letter or two over this. I'm much indebted to what I would call the independent Baptist, fundamental Baptist movement. I've had some wonderful, good influence from a lot of people in there. Let me tell you why I'm not an independent fundamental Baptist. It's because what I've watched in conferences and in places where I've been at is that there's kind of a glory. If they can get people conformed to their set of standards and their set of deals, there's kind of a glory in it. Instead of being a glory in Christ, it's a glory in that we don't do this, and we don't do this, and we don't do this, and we don't do this, and we don't do this. And I'll tell you what I think it does. I think it destroys their children. I think children can see a fair show in the flesh of their mom and dads faster than anybody. And I'm not knocking at all, because I do appreciate people who try to hold standards. But I'm telling you about a standard. A standard better be held in grace, not in law. It better be held in love and not in judgment. So, I want to close out tonight. Let's go to Colossians, chapter 2, verse number 11. Colossians, chapter 2. Verse number 11. In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, and putting off the body of the sins of the flesh. There it is. By the circumcision of Christ. Folks, I suppose when it comes down to it, it's not me or you trying to do better, it's the Holy Spirit working in us. Let's go to verse number 5, chapter 3. Colossians 3, 5. Mortify, therefore, you members which are upon the earth. There it is, that mortification. That's the same deal. Upon the earth. Fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concuspicence. concovitousness, which is idolatry, for which things sake the wrath of God cometh upon the children disobedience, in which ye also walked some time when ye lived in them, but now ye also," and here it is, put off. This is where God is just giving you absolutely practical, day-by-day essence of circumcising the heart. Put off all these. Anger, wrath, malice. blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing you put off, there it is again, the old man with his deeds. And I thank the Lord for this and have him put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him. And so we see the New Testament doctrine of that. Now, I'm going to stop right there. There's a few other verses we could hit in the scripture. do your own study on this, but what I want to finish up tonight is this. When I got home, actually before I got home, I don't hardly ever do this, but this message really, I don't know, I was very, very, very sober when I came to church today because of, you know, just the Lord working in my own heart and life and mind about this issue. One of the big things that had been bothering me, Brother Phil, was that I had never, ever, ever discuss circumcision when I realized I'd never discussed circumcision with my own sons. I got to wondering, well, you know, what do we do? So anyway, I asked my wife on the way home, and I don't do this, and Karen can tell you, I never ask her, well, how'd you like that message? But I just don't do that because I fear she'd be honest with me and say, well, you know, did you realize what you said? But I asked her, I said, honey, what do you, what's your thoughts about that? And we had a discussion on it on the way home. about the fact that Moses, you know, about Moses' neglect. You know, and I know Moses loved the Lord, but he had just let some things go. And so we discussed that a little bit, and we got home. I asked Zach, and then I asked Nathan about this issue of having never discussed it. And Zach, if you want to jump in here, I want you to feel welcome. Zachary said something to me that just confirmed all that the Lord had been doing in my heart all week long. He said, Daddy, yeah, he said, I think you're right. It would have been wise to have discussed with us the fact that we were circumcised and why we were circumcised and how that circumcision should affect our spiritual life. And he said this, he said, there's two things. Number one, Every young person is going to find out about the physical aspects of life one way or another. They're going to learn it from some kid on the block, some kid they're running around with. They're going to hear things from other adults in situations where you're not around. Or they're going to hear it, and he said, I think it would be a lot better to hear it from their dad than from other people. Then he said this to me, and this is what really struck me. He said, Daddy, I believe what it would do is open the channel of communication where a young boy could feel like he could talk to his father when he had questions, concerns, trials, or temptations, whatever that concern. Because I don't know about you guys, but as a father, it's just like, you know, you don't have these discussions. And I just think that, you know, it might have helped And that's why I said in this church, I hope maybe this might help fathers be able to, if this Father's Day, it makes the difference in one father being able to talk to his son about this issue and develop a channel of communication about, and by the way, if you don't think this is major with a boy, you're just crazy. This is major with a boy. Because, you know, and so we got, so remember back Ishmael, 13 years of age? So we talked about, well, how old should a boy be before you really talk to him? And we talked, maybe, and Nathan said, well, you know, really, that's probably just kind of feel the child out, you know, where they're at in their life. It doesn't necessarily mean an exact age, but at a time when you feel after prayer and you know that child. But I said probably somewhere between the ages of 10 and 13 years old. I think before a child goes into puberty, they ought to have dealt with this thing. And I really think that if a father opens up that channel of communication and talks to that child, because here's what the boy said, Nathan said, Nathan's not here. Zach, straighten me out if I get something wrong, OK? I think Nathan said, Daddy, he looks to me like he's going to be three or four or five generations. They're not even going to know why they're circumcised. They're not going to connect it to any Judeo-Christian heritage. There's not going to be a basis for why. In fact, he said to me, he said, right now, he said, it's just considered by most people to be a medical procedure that's done and who knows why. So what we've done is we have, the devil's done to us, he has disconnected one of the most. Yeah, it just disconnected it from our lives and now it has no meaning and it's something that should have the utmost meaning and can have very profitable spiritual implications for a young man. And I just think, I'll just be honest with you, this thing's kind of rattled me. I'm 60 years old and I'm like, yeah, my boys are already grown, you know, but maybe they can start with their boys. Maybe it can be better in the future. So I would just encourage us that way because I'm telling you right now, I think what Zach said is true. If you don't discuss with your children issues of life, somebody else is going to. They're going to get their idea about it from somebody. And if you'll go back to the circumcision issue, this is what I really believe coming down the pike. If there's one thing the Holy Ghost is trying to do, if you read all that stuff, because you've read Galatians chapter 5, Colossians chapter 3, when it talks about the works of the flesh, it always pops out first thing, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, blah, blah, blah, lasciviousness. You know what that tells me? That circumcision primarily, in its finest deal, has this issue of moral purity. It is promoting moral purity. And let me tell you why I think this is arid devil. I grew up, this is sad when I look back at it, having a disdain, see this, watch this fair show of the flesh, a disdain for that girl who was promiscuous, okay? In other words, kind of, you know, well, she's a slut. And you wouldn't want her for a wife. But at the same time, the hypocrisy of it is just fine for a boy to go out and be a whoremonger. Is that not what our culture is like? It's exactly what it's like. What that tells me is that because we have not emphasized moral purity among the young men, because we're sending the mixed signal, we're saying on one hand we want our wives to be pure and holy and nice and all that kind of stuff and somebody we'd want to marry, but on the other hand, we're promoting them, if they want attention, and they want boys to be brought to attention, then they should live immoral. And it's sending this confused message into the hearts of our children. So there's just I hope you can see there's a lot of things that I've been going through my mind about this thing Of how we need to get realigned to scripture, but I believe the final deal is moral pure That's what God was telling Abraham. You're gonna have a special covenant and part of that covers it I want my people to be morally pure Well, Donnie, that's the thing about that. There's three verses that gives this whole account. It's never mentioned again the Bible, but I know of I And there's not much been given about it. But evidently, they went on down to Egypt. He did eventually send his wife and kids back to his father-in-law, if you continue reading the story. But I think what it did was get Moses' attention. And what God would want us to know from it is that Moses may have been called to great work. He may have been called to great ministry. But he was neglecting basic elementary areas of obedience to God. And God wants to get that lined up so that it, because God is not going to circumvent and jump sin in our lives and disobedience in our lives. But what he did afterward, as far as I know, is he went on down, he met Aaron, and they went on into Egypt and done the work of the Lord. What it tells me is that God was saying, whoa, whoa, whoa, we're not going until we deal with this. You know what I think God does? I think God waits on us as long as He can wait to get obedient before He brings the hammer down. But the beautiful part about this picture, this story is, it's unbelievable. I read that real close about Zipporah. That is a picture of a mother and a wife who is trying to deal with a husband who's being spiritual publicly but not privately. And the bitterness and the anger and the junk that comes from it. I just think that, I will say this to you, and the Holy Spirit is our teacher and so forth, but whenever we come to a passage of Scripture, You know, don't always think you just got to get it right then. Because I'm telling you, I've never, same way, never in my life until this point in time did God open that up to me and start associating scriptures with it to see it. But when He did, when He did, it became huge to me. It became big to me because all of a sudden I could see how this affected my life, my family, my home, how it affected our church, how this could be a blessing to us if we would listen to what God is saying there. The thing I would like to leave us this Sunday with this thing is this. It depends on what stage of life you're at. But I would really encourage fathers, where you can, to have a discussion with your son about this. And try to make him understand the purposes of it, what God's trying to do in our lives through it. And if you have to, go back and get that list of things that I wrote about why the circumstances, which was the first one, is that you have... I prayed, I said, Lord, show me the deeper reasons for certain things. And the first thing, if you'll remember, when I preached was, It should remind us that we have an intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father. If that is not the supreme thing, then the rest of it's really not going to matter. I'm going to tell you what, relationship is what will motivate you to do right. And if that covenant of circumcision reminds us that, you know, that's what God wanted to remind them. Day by day, you have a special relationship with the God of creation and glory. So I just hope it'll help us now. And I know the Holy Spirit has to do that. But anyway, anything else before we go? Well, it's been a good Sunday. Thank you for putting up with me because, hey, I wasn't real comfortable preaching, you know, this morning. It was a little tough for me. And, you know, it's not not easy to you. You want to be discreet, but you want to be biblical and so forth. So appreciate your prayers. Let's stand, I guess, and go home. Brother Ray.