The miracle of Christianity is that it involves an inward change of the heart. It results in new life, new thinking, and new behavior. Apart from Christ’s work to change your heart of stone to a heart of flesh, there’s no assurance of salvation. Your reputation, your lifestyle, your boasting in God, your knowledge, your approval of what is right, and the fact that you’re well instructed—none of these externals can ever save you. Christianity works from the inside out: so do you love God with all your heart?
Sermon: https://churchandfamilylife.com/sermons/64d9e942262ff39658bae1ce
In Romans 2, 17 through 19, the apostle Paul is talking about the delusion of inclusion. He does it by explaining the miracle of a circumcised heart. The miracle of Christianity is an inward change of the heart. It results in new life, new thinking, new behavior. The circumcised heart has changed from stone into flesh.
The veil is taken off of the heart. That's what's in these verses. And what the apostle says is that, For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, Nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart in the Spirit, not of the letter whose praise is not from men but from God. Many years ago when I was in my teens I read a book called my heart, Christ's home.
And the brilliance of this book is that it illustrates the changed heart by the fact that when a person turns to Christ, he's indwelt by Christ. He walks through all the rooms of the house and he asks, has Christ dominated that room of your heart? He goes to the library, he goes to the dining room and the living room, the work room, the rec room, the basement, the hall closet. And he's making the point that Jesus Christ takes up resident in your heart, which means he takes up residence in everything. And that the things that you used to tolerate you can't tolerate.
The things you used to love you don't love them anymore. A changed heart causes a desire for obedience. That is the circumcision of the heart. David illustrated it in Psalm 119 verse 10, with my whole heart I have sought you. Oh, let me not wander from your commandments.
Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you." So David is talking about this changed heart and he talks about things that that don't change your heart. Going to a church, participating in church matters, being part of the right denomination. Baptism should give you no assurance. Keeping the law should give you no assurance. Being a nice person should give you no assurance because what Jesus Christ does is he changes the heart, which changes the externals.
Our modern world and often the psychological community have it all backwards. Christianity starts from the inside out while worldly philosophy begins with the outside in. You know, back during COVID, there was a very weird thing going on in the airports in the line at in TSA. When you got to the kiosk, they would look at your ID and then your boarding pass, and then they would say, please lower your mask. In other words, who are you really?
Do you love the Lord your God with all your heart because Christianity begins on the inside and works its way out to the outside. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever. Scripture applied as a production of Church and Family Life. Visit churchandfamilylife.com for more resources.