ESOCS Devotional 31 October 2025 – True Circumcision – Transforming Our Dead Hearts
MEMORY VERSE: “When you came to Christ, you were ‘circumcised,’ but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision — the cutting away of your sinful nature.” Colossians 2:11NLT
TEXT: COLOSSIANS 2:11-23
In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. 18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.
20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
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Circumcision was of great importance to Jews, serving as a covenantal sign since the time of Abraham (Genesis 17). Moses faced a serious problem over not circumcising his own sons (Exodus 4:24–26). Jewish male infants were circumcised on the eighth day according to the Mosaic law, and Jesus mentioned circumcision being performed on the Sabbath, so as to keep the law (John 7:22). Because circumcision was so important, that term is often used as a short-hand for the entire Law.
However, once Jesus came according to prophecy, He became the fulfilment of the law. Paul wrote, “For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God” (1 Cor. 7:19). Circumcision remained a controversy for the very early church, though the apostles clearly taught that such rituals were not necessary for Christians (Acts 11:1–18). Here, Paul notes that what circumcision does, physically, faith in Christ does, spiritually. In other words, what matters is, knowing Christ, not physical circumcision. It is the transformation of one’s heart through faith in Christ, which results in the old flesh being put off. Salvation is not and never was accomplished through good works or the law. It is through the mercy of God and His work in transforming our dead hearts.
Colossians 2:6–15 describes Christ’s superiority in defeating sin. This is shown in stark contrast to the failure of the unbelieving world. Paul encourages the Colossians not to be tricked by deceptive arguments. This passage also explains the drastic nature of salvation. Those who put their faith in Christ are ”spiritually” circumcised and are identified with God through their faith. This act of forgiveness by God frees us from the eternal penalty of sin, restores our relationship, and defeats the evil forces fighting against us.
In this passage, Paul warns Christians not to be taken in by deceptive arguments. These claims are attractive, but are merely tricks: they sound true, but they are not. Arguing for self-denial, legalism, visions, and other practices only looks good to observers. None of these are the real source of spiritual growth. Paul emphasizes the way Christ accomplished everything we need to be justified before God. As a result, there is no reason for believers to pursue these false, shallow ”shadows.” We have the real substance: Jesus, so we should follow Him.
CHALLENGES
- Are you in any way relying on your own good works to merit favour with God?
PRAYER POINT
- O merciful God, have mercy upon us and transform our dead hearts.
FURTHER READING: Job 1:1-End; 2:1-13; Colossians 3:1-13
ESOCS Devotional 31 October 2025
