Steve,
You also asked this;
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When you say circumcision was an "outward, physical type" that was changed, are you contrasting it to baptism? Is not baptism also outward and physical? Do they not both signify an inward spiritual reality? Are you saying circumcision was merely — only — an outward type?
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I believe circumcision in the OC. was meant to speak about the regeneration that is only possible In Christ.
What was outward and typical did not signify"an inward spiritual reality" unless the person who received it was elect.Which everyone understands.
But rather in Romans 4;
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11And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had |
that he might be the father of all them that believe
In speaking about Abrahams seed, ie, not the outward physical seeds[plural,national Israel as a whole]
but rather-
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14That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
16Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
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You agree with this in your second post, but it seems like you are seeing the seed as plural,rather than singular.here
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And the nature of the covenant made with Abraham and his seed is that He would “...be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee” (Gen 17:7). The blessing of the covenant is partaking in the blessing given Abraham: the very friendship of God (Isaiah 41:8; 2 Chron 20:7; James 2:23).
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The seed after thee/ It is not every single child of all jewish people ever born! Everyone knows this is not so, and you post this same fact in the next few lines of your post;
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Nor was it a covenant of mere external, material blessing (as noted above in my earlier post), made to a partly unbelieving nation – a “mixed bag” of people – but it was made to the genuine seed of Abraham, those of faith, those “children of promise [who] are counted for the seed.” (Ro 9:8)
Moses makes plain that the promise of God to His beloved children was spiritual and not carnal:
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. (Deut 30:6)
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I am in total agreement here. you also post this:
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And what was the Promise received? In essence it was union and friendship with God through the Person and work of Jesus Christ, the promised Seed of Abraham. This commencement of the New Covenant promise was dramatic and in the power of Jesus' resurrection, in order to jar His elect from the corrupted religion: "Save yourselves from this untoward [perverse] generation!" (2:40).
These were Jews, newly believing in the Seed, their Messiah, now themselves the spiritual seed of Abraham as well
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But when you finish this quote you point out from acts 2, that the promise is to you and your children.Acts 2:39 does not stop with you and your children,
So you would say that if baptism is the replacement sign that the believer and his children should be given a replacement sign and be included in the "outward,and visible administation of the church, and covenant of grace, although they might not be savingly united to Christ in the covenant of redemption.
What I tried to get at with Acts 2 is this;Let me illustrate it this way-
39For the promise is unto
you [The believer gets water baptism]
For the promise is to
your children[ they get water baptism and are included as church members and in covenant with God,unless they show that they are not? by failing to "improve their baptism"]
For the promise is to
all that are afar off[ if water baptism is a sign of the promise, then of necessity all that are far off should also be given water baptism as a sign of the promise until they show they do not believe?]
For the promise is to
even as many as the LORD our God shall call.
[ The children of God are scattered worldwide, as we do not know who they are, all in Adam must also be given the sign of the promise,ie water baptism, so we do not leave out anyone who might be called]
Steve, I am not trying to be obtuse here. If in the OC. God primarily called his elect from households in Israel . Now the field is the world.
There is no verse that says baptism is equal to circumcision. why assume an equivolence.
God saved many in households before the sign given to Abraham.Those among the godly line between Adam and Abraham had no external sign.
The promised
SEED is Christ.
We can only be
In saving union with Christ by Spirit Baptism.
Christ has already come.Why do we have to go back to any sign that was in type or shadow? Col 2 speaks regeneration; not any sign, but actual
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11In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
12Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
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