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The Blessedness of Forgiveness


Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before!  And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised. It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. (Romans 4:9-13) 

          Is the blessedness of forgiveness available only to those who keep the law? It could be argued that David followed the legal requirements for the forgiveness of sins. He presented the proper sacrifices. If that’s the case, what hope do Gentiles (AKA the uncircumcised) have? To answer that, Paul returns to Abraham. Abraham was credited with righteousness before he was circumcised, and about five hundred years before the Law was given to Moses. And yet, Abraham was blessed, and all the nations were blessed through him.
         It is as we walk in Abraham’s footsteps that we are blessed. That doesn’t always mean that we have to go live as a stranger in a strange land, though I am preparing for my third winter of doing just that. What it means is that we believe what God tells us, and obey the instructions He gives. In that, He can and does bless.

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