Sunday, July 28, 2024

Having Our Hearts Baptized

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh— Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab and all who live in the wilderness in distant places. For all these nations are really uncircumcised, and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.” Jeremiah 9:25-26.
Circumcision of course was the mark of God’s covenant with Israel. In this text it is applied figuratively to “all” and to “various nations”
These nations were only “circumcised in the flesh” they were not “circumcised in their hearts”.
The mark of God’s people today that parallels circumcision is baptism. With baptism comes the “gift of the Holy Spirit” and the initiation of our relationship with God.
So what happens if we have our flesh baptized but our hearts remain un-baptized? Presumably the “day of punishment” awaits for those just like it did for the ones who were “uncircumcised of heart”
So is it possible to have only our flesh baptized? Of course it is. Especially if we do it for the wrong reasons… maybe to please a spouse or a parent or an employer or just to bring attention on to ourselves.
Here’s a question… does a baptized baby only have its flesh baptized? I think we know the answer to that one.
God wanted the hearts of his people of old and he wants the hearts of his people today. You may appear to human eyes to be baptized but human eyes can’t do what God’s eyes can do. They can’t look at the heart.

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