Meditation on the Text of the Week

Cutting to the Heart of the Matter

But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God
Romans 2:29

One of the great contributions made by the Evangelical movement to the history of the Church has been its emphasis upon this one great truth: that in order to enter the Kingdom of God everyone, without exception, must be born again or anew. Jesus said flatly and emphatically that unless one is born again, he will not see the Kingdom of God. (John 3:3) The Evangelical movement has helped bring that truth to the fore in a way not before seen.

This emphasis has led to the phrase “born again Christian”. Amongst evangelicals the phrase refers to one who is a genuine or true Christian. Amongst Unbelievers, the phrase is usually a term of derision and contempt. Amongst those in the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic traditions the doctrine of being born again has never had the prominence and central importance it has achieved in the Evangelical movement. Amongst the Reformed, the doctrine of the new birth has always been believed and confessed.

We believe the doctrine of the need to be born again is particularly relevant and needs to be appropriately emphasized in a culture that has moved from a Christian position to a post-Christian one. That is, in a culture such as ours--the post-Christian secular west. In such a time and in such an age there are many people who consider themselves to be Christian (they declare is to on the census forms) and they retain an outward conformity to the Christian faith.

Now, in a general sense, this self-deceit is rapidly dissipating in the West with each successive generation. The West is becoming more and more overtly pagan and therefore not only non-Christian, but increasingly anti-Christian. A generation that only conforms outwardly to the Living God will be followed by a generation that openly worships idols and militantly rejects God. This will continue until the time of God's choosing when He will judge Unbelief and revive and restore the Kingdom amongst us.

The Jewish people at the time of Christ were led by men whose conformity was outward only; many followed in their train. In our text, Paul, under the inspiration of the Spirit of God Himself, reveals that there were many people in his day who were Jews outwardly, but were not Jews at all (Romans 2:28). The true Jew—or one who in truth and actuality was a Jew—was not someone merely descended from Abraham, or who attended synagogue, or paid tithes—although of course true Jews also had these outward conformities and practices. But the true Jew was someone whose heart had been changed—“circumcised” is the metaphor used by Paul—and who, out of his changed heart, attended synagogue, paid tithes, revered his forefathers, and feared God.

This inner circumcision wrought an inner change; it cut away that which was evil and dead in the intellect, emotions, and will of an individual, and replaced it with truth, light, and faith. To become circumcised in heart is an equivalent metaphor to being born again. Both come from the Spirit of God, not man. Paul declares that circumcision of the heart is “by the Spirit”, just as Jesus declares that being born again is by the Spirit, and the Spirit only.

Just as with our Jewish forefathers, not all Christians are truthfully Christian. In fact, in an age such as ours, many who profess on the census forms are only outward Christians, not true Christians. Their objective and motivation is to have a “little bit” of the Christian faith as an insurance policy, in case it is true and they need it to access the after-life. They remain Athenians, preferring the City of Unbelief, although they concede that fashion and dress sense in Jerusalem has a few things going for it. These people are pulled up short in their delusions with the emphatic Scriptural declaration that they will never get anywhere near the Kingdom no matter how many times they tick the Christian box in the census form, or attend church, or confess, or communicate—they will never even see the Kingdom of God, unless they are born from above, by God's Spirit.

And here is the rub. Being born again is a divine work, not a human work. You cannot do things to make, engineer, or ensure that you are born again. You cannot auto-generate. It is as impossible in the Kingdom as it is in the first birth. That is why Paul says that praise for being circumcised in heart comes not from men—but from God. Men cannot do or achieve this.

What then are we to do? Once again, the Bible is very clear on this. We are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ in our hearts, coming out of the crowd of Unbelievers, and picking up our cross to follow Him. And we are to profess Him with our lips. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. . . . For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” (Romans 10: 9—11)

Those who have been born again by the Spirit of God, falling from above, will be so changed inwardly that repentance and belief in our Lord inevitably and irresistibly follows. Those not circumcised in heart by the Spirit will continue to tick census boxes, and will maintain a Christian appearance hoping that God will notice and have regard for their efforts. He will not. Such a one will not even see God's Kingdom, and the King will say, “Depart from Me, for I never knew you.”

To the one who hears this and becomes deeply afraid, the first signs of new birth from above are showing. To the one who shrugs or who mocks or denigrates, or who starts taking inventory of their “spiritual” accomplishments to counterbalance the threat—while these remain, the outer darkness awaits.