Wow! Thanks to everyone who responded...great stuff!
First, can someone send me that famous Jewish prayer where the guy said, "I thank God that I'm not a dog, a Gentile or a woman!" Or something like that...
Second, I went back to Genesis 17 and read about Abraham and how he was credited with God's righteousness simply because he believed God when he was told that he'd have a son in his old age. Then, after that, he was told that he should circumsize himself and every male in his household as a SIGN of the COVENANT with God. Even the males who were bought from foreigners! So Abraham and his household were actually the first GENTILE believers as well as the first JEWISH believers, right?
So in Galatians, Paul seems to be saying that believers no longer need a "sign of the covenent" to be "in" the faith and in the family of God. There are verses on circumsized hearts, which some have said happens during baptism.
My question is this: What are the "marks" of a believer today? If someone is Jewish or Gentile, male or female, slave or free, what is it that "sets them apart" as a child of Abraham???
Diamond Dave
