Another Look at Sex and Circumcision

Genesis 17:8-14: "'The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.' Then God said to Abraham, 'As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner . . . . My covenant of flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people, he has broken my covenant.'"





The topics of sex and circumcision are not ones proclaimed regularly from the pulpits in Christendom. It seems that the Church is either uncomfortable and/or confused as to its significance and purpose for the covenant community. This should never be, for God discusses both in His Word. Thus, we should take the time to reflect upon their significance in our lives.





In order that we can best understand the significance of circumcision, we first must look at the topic of sexuality to see its divinely created purpose. Whereas we know that the act of sex was established for the procreation of Godly generations that would give praise to the Lord (Psalm 145:4-7. Malachi 2:15), still there is another foundational purpose for sex. Specifically, we can see in the act of sex between a husband and wife in marital covenant the beautiful imagery of God with His covenant bride (the Church). When God penetrates the heart of the newly redeemed, He infuses life into the one who otherwise is barren (i.e. spiritually dead [see Ephesians 2:1ff]), and as a result of that spiritual union, there is joy on the part of both God (the husband) as well as the Church (the bride).





We must re-emphasize that this spiritual union is relegated specifically to the marital covenant between God and His bride. God does not join with those outside the covenant (i.e. unbelievers) and infuse spiritual life into them. They forever will remain barren, and subject to God's eternal wrath. This is why God sees with disdain any human sexual behavior that occurs outside the marriage covenant. Since the Lord has created sexuality for the primordial purpose of helping us better appreciate the divine union of God and His bride, any aberrant sexual behavior (be it fornication, adultery, homosexuality, etc.) is seen as contemptible to His Sovereign Will and His Holiness. God is mocked when humanity treats with sacrilege the institution that was created to help us reflect upon God and His salvation for the redeemed through Jesus Christ.





Now, there have been times when I have wondered, "Why is the sign of the covenant the act of circumcision? Why could it not be the cutting of the arm, a big toe, or something less intrusive?" I wonder what the 99-year-old Abraham was thinking when God came to him and proclaimed that circumcision would be the sign of the everlasting covenant between the Lord and Abraham's descendants? I'm sure that when the men lined up to participate in the ceremonious act, there were mixed feelings about what was about to happen; nonetheless, we know that Abraham "believed the LORD, and it was credited to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:6). Abraham had the faith and insight to know that God was offering a tremendous gift of His eternal mercy to those who otherwise were without hope; to participate in the act of circumcision was a small price to pay given the overwhelming gift that God was offering. [We must note here that the act of circumcision did not merit salvation for Abraham and his "children"; rather, it was faith in the promise of redemption by God that was credited for Abraham's righteousness (see Romans 4:9-10)].





If we can see Abraham (and all men) figuratively as the LORD and Sarah (all women) as the covenant community (i.e. the Church), we can see why circumcision was the determined sign of the covenant. Whereas, the act of circumcision involves a sacrifice of pain and the shedding of blood before the infusion of life into the bride, so too we see that the Messiah was to endure the pain of the cross before there was an infusion of life into the Church. Thus, we can see in circumcision a symbolic portrayal of the sacrifice of Christ.



We in the Church are not unlike Abraham's wife, Sarah. She was unable to produce a child through herself, and due to her age (she was 90-ish) it looked as if she would never produce a child. God proclaimed to Abraham that when all seemed hopeless, He would demonstrate His power by transforming Sarah's barrenness into fertility. Praise be to God that He takes us who are beyond all hope and infuses life into us, making us righteous before His eyes. This is the re-birth of God's love and mercy that is lavished upon the redeemed (Ephesians 1:8). Maybe this is why the act of circumcision was observed on the eighth day. Whereas the first creative process occurred over seven days (six days of creation and one day of rest), God's re-creative process through His sacrifice on the cross bringing re-birth, symbolically occurred on the following (eighth) day.





The Apostle Paul also saw a figurative significance to circumcision, in that it is the circumcision of the heart that is of importance, not merely the external act per se. No man or woman will be transformed by the power of Christ by merely going through the motions of religion. A cutting of the heart through repentance and confession is necessary, for only the penitent heart will be redeemed. The Scriptures proclaim that "neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation" (Galatians 6:15). As mentioned before, we can see beautiful imagery in the act, but we should never relegate the practice (or any ceremonious act) as the medium that bestows grace. Only God bestows grace to the heart that by faith submits to His Lordship.