SERIES
Acts: Empowered to Extend
2017-10-29T08:00:00-05:00
27 And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”28 And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30 And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.
31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
9:1 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright (c)2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org
Let’s talk about circumcision. This is perhaps not the introductory sentence one might expect for a reflection on Acts 2. Circumcision is nowhere mentioned in chapter 2 or anywhere close. The first time it’s referenced is Acts 7:8 during Stephen’s history lesson from the Old Testament. That’s because it was an Old Testament idea. Circumcision was an act that represented the sign and seal of God’s covenant with Abraham. It marked the Israelites—literally—and set them apart as God’s people.
One of the clearest, sweetest pictures for understanding circumcision comes from C.S. Lewis’ The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. One day, after wandering from the group, Eustace (the obnoxious cousin of the Pevensie siblings, Peter, Edmund, Susan and Lucy) found himself transformed into a dragon due to his own greed getting the best of him. As a dragon, he underwent deep personal transformation, softening greatly despite his ongoing sufferings. After days of pain, Aslan, the great lion, approached him and called, “Follow me.” Leading Eustace to a pool, he commanded him to “undress.” Confused at first, he remembered that reptiles can shed layers, so he began to peel at his skin. Layer after layer, his efforts were ultimately futile. Finally, Aslan responded, "You will have to let me undress you." Eustace complied. Later on, he would describe the experience of Aslan clawing deep into his calloused skin: "The very first tear he made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I’ve ever felt."
He then described how he felt once Aslan completed his work: "And there was I smooth and soft as a peeled switch and smaller than I had been. Then he caught hold of me – I didn’t like that much for I was very tender underneath now that I’d no skin on — and threw me into the water."
Circumcision. God commanded the Israelites to perform a bloody, painful act as a sign of His covenant with them. But His real desire? That they might circumcise their hearts, not just their bodies (Deuteronomy 10:12-21; Romans 2:25-29). He longed for them to cut away all that was not of Him. But what we learn from history is that the Israelites, like Eustace, were no match for the layers of sin and brokenness around their hearts. The Israelites could not circumcise their own hearts. Only by the Spirit could their delicate, tender hearts be dislodged from their calloused encasements.
While circumcision may not be mentioned in Acts 2, it’s there. It’s the reaction of the people to Peter’s sermon. Verse 37 says they were “cut to the heart.” They were changed. When they inquired about next steps, Peter told them to be circumcised? No. Baptized; the sign and seal of the New Covenant; an outward sign representing an inward reality.
We have been cleansed! God always has and always will desire inward transformation.
What is your response to the Gospel? Have you been cut to the heart? Have you been “thrown into the water?”