“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision” (Romans 2:25).
All nations feature roadways that limit the maximum speed of the motor vehicles that travel those roads. However, every nation also features its share of motor vehicle drivers who routinely ignore those limits. If law enforcement apprehends any of those speeding drivers, their knowledge of the posted speed limit offers no value in itself. In fact, their knowledge of the speed limit only serves to increase their guilt, for they knew the law, but failed to keep it.
In a similar manner, there is little value in possessing God’s Word if one fails to read it and act upon it. Much like Paul the Apostle’s argument here in Romans 2:25, it was a great advantage for the people of Israel to have access to God’s Law. But that advantage was invalidated if they failed to act upon it. In fact, their guilt was compounded by the fact that they possessed God’s Law but failed to keep it.
We will close our brief look at this verse with some contemporary applications from this passage…
“Paul is arguing against a view commonly held among the Pharisees that because they were the physical descendants of Abraham, they were redeemed; they didn’t need repentance as displayed in the baptism of John. Some assumed that because they were circumcised, they were therefore saved. But that idea was negated by the prophets in the Old Testament who talked about the remnant who would be saved and the children of promise who would be saved, and that not all the descendants of Abraham would, in fact, be saved. Paul makes it abundantly clear that even among the Jews, circumcision did not guarantee redemption…
Of course, the same problem arises with respect to baptism. Some believe that baptism in itself saves; the same error that occurred in the Old Testament with respect to circumcision is often repeated by Christians today. New Testament baptism is the sign of the covenant of God’s promise, but the content of that promise rests on the exercise of faith, just as in the old covenant the content of the promise signified by circumcision rested on the exercise of faith.” (1)
“If you have been trusting in your baptism, If you have been trusting in your confirmation, If you have been trusting in your church membership, or your knowledge of the Bible or doctrine, or in your generous stewardship, If you have been trusting in your Christian upbringing, If you have been trusting in anything other than Jesus Christ and his death upon the cross in your place, throw whatever it is completely out of your mind. Abandon it. Stamp upon it. Grind it down. Dust off the place where it lay. Then turn to Jesus Christ alone, and trust him only” (2)
Image Attribution: Maximum 50” by djhsilver, CC BY 2.0
(1) Sproul, R. C. (2023). What Are the Sacraments? [p.51]
(2) Boice, J. M. (2005). Romans: Justification by Faith (Romans 1-4). Baker Books. [p.256]