In Deuteronomy 10:12-22 this week, we find that as God’s beloved and chosen covenant people, Israel are to circumcise their hearts and no longer be stubborn. This is what the Lord requires of his people if they are to enjoy the fulness of his covenant blessings. Sadly though, even before they enter the land, the Lord foretells their inevitable failure to do this.
However, as Paul tells us in the New Testament, “where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more.” And in Deuteronomy 30:1-10, the Lord declares that he will do for his people the very thing he requires of them – he will circumcise their hearts. Such is the grace of God.
In Christ, this covenant promise is fulfilled. In him, we “have been circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through faith” (Colossians 2:11-12). None of this gives us licence to go on sinning. On the contrary, as God’s chosen and beloved covenant people today, we are called to live in the obedience of faith, putting no confidence in the flesh, but giving all the glory and thanks to the God of all grace.