Paul: “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh...” (Romans 2:28). How does Paul, a Hebrew of Hebrews, come to have this insight?
We see that circumcision occurs in 5 areas:
2. The heart needs to be circumcised (Deuteronomy 30:6)
3. The lips need to be circumcised (we can infer this from Moses’ statement in Exodus 6:12)
4. The ears need to be circumcised (Acts 7:51)
Heart, lips, ears, fruit trees, and the male organ: what do all 5 have in common? Seed! Seeds of life pass through all 5. Therefore the blockage must be removed from those areas, so that issues of life can pass through without resistance, without hindrance.
To break it down: male seed passes through the male organ, obviously. Proverbs 4:23 tells us, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out if it flow the springs of life.” And Matthew 12:34: “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” The mouth––the lips––speak words which then travel through your ears, so of course, the ears must also be circumcised. And then in Leviticus, God gives away the key to the whole matter: fruit trees. The youngest fruit is considered “foreskin.” (Note: it doesn’t get translated as foreskin, but that is Hebrew word used in Leviticus 19:23: orlah.) And of course, the seed of a tree passes through its fruit, so its fruit must be circumcised.
Paul came to realize that circumcision teaches a deeper message. Circumcision is about us removing the blockage of flesh that would obstruct or encumber the passage of life. Outward circumcision is a picture of the inward circumcision that must take place. Do you and I have to be circumcised? Well inwardly, yes!
You can’t respond to the Holy Spirit until your ears are circumcised (Acts 7:51). You can’t love the Lord fully until your heart is circumcised (Deuteronomy 30:6). Your ability to speak to others about God will be hindered until your lips are circumcised (Exodus 6:12). And here’s what is cool: when it comes to circumcision, we see two parties taking on that responsibility: in some cases, a man has to do it for himself; in other cases, the father does it for his child, when the child is too young to realize what is going on. When it comes to inward circumcision, first your Father does it for you, before you realize what was going on, so that you can encounter the life He wants for you. But, with that said, there will be times when you have to remove the blockage yourself. And just as outward circumcision is painful, so too is inward circumcision.
As unpleasant as it is, outward circumcision is a beautiful picture. It’s like God creates the human body exactly as He wants it; however, He leaves just a little extra flesh on the end, and then He tells us to cut it off. Why is this? Why not just de-create that part if He wants it removed anyway? Well the answer is, by doing it this way, He invites us to participate in our own creation. He does 99.99% of the work, and then He says I’ll let you do the rest. You can handle that much yourself.
