In his sermon on Romans 4:9–12, Stephen Davey shows how Paul dismantles the Jewish belief that circumcision played any role in earning salvation, using Abraham’s own timeline as undeniable proof. Abraham was declared righteous in Genesis 15 when he was about 85 years old—fourteen years before he was circumcised at age 99. Davey explains that circumcision was never a means of salvation but a sign and seal: a sign marking Israel as God’s distinct people and a seal affirming a relationship that already existed. By Paul’s day, however, rabbis had exalted the ritual itself—teaching that circumcision guaranteed escape from hell and that Abraham even guarded its gates to prevent circumcised Jews from entering. Paul corrects this, insisting that Abraham is not the father of the circumcised, but of all who share his faith, whether Jew or Gentile. Davey then shows how Abraham “blazed the trail” of faith—believing God’s promises without seeing them fulfilled, and believing in the future Messiah without seeing Him in person. Just as Abraham trusted God’s Word and looked forward to God’s kingdom, so every believer today—like Caleb, Rahab, Ruth, the Magi, Cornelius, and countless others—walks in his footsteps. Salvation, Paul argues, is not based on a physical mark but on a spiritual birth, making all who believe in Christ true sons and daughters of Abraham.
The Sign and Seal of Faith
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