The Sign of the Covenant"

(Romans 4:9-12)

Introduction: It has been our pleasure this mo to witness the covenant

baptism of three children. It is a pleasure because it reminds us of the
covenant mercies of God, that He would include the children of those who
have believed in the covenant that they might receive th.e mElny benefits of
living within that covenant. It is for this reason that we baptize them,
not because we necessarily believe that they are saved, but because we
recognize that God includp.s them in Hts covenant. Baptism is the of
the covenant. It is a sign and seal of the covenant of grace and the
covenant grace of God. That, by the way. is also what circumcision was for
the Old Covenant people of God. Those who were in the covenant> i.vhether
they were adults or infants, all received the because they were all
inc Juded in the covenant. They \vere not necessarily saved by that
inclusion, for we understand that in all ages there have been those branches
of the covenant tree which stood by faith, and those which were cut off
through unbelief; there were those branches which were connected to the life
which is in Christ, and those which only looked as though they were; those
which \"ere the true vJheat which hore fruit and those which i.vere the tares
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which hrought no fruit to maturity. The d:ifference between the two groups,
of course, was whether or not they had true saving faith through the new
birth \'\lhjeh comes sovereignly from above. It did not and does not depend
upon the s itself.
In Ollr text th1,S morning, we learn that Abraham believed in the Lord and
through the instrumentality of his faith. he received the righteousness
which comes on the basis of fattlI, the imputed righteousness of Christ, He
received this righteousness before he was circumcised, shm¥ing us that it
was not his circumcision that saved him, but. his faith, He also received
circurtlcis:lon after He \.;ras justified, to show to both the Jews and the
Gentileb that it is his faith that we need to imitate, not his circumcision,
at least, not that circumcision which was outward in the flesh. What we
rea] ly need is that circumcision \vhich is inward, the circumcision of the
heart. that \¥hich produces faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And what I want
you to see this morning is that,

Circumcis.ion ami baptism both ami seal tbe same

the COllenant o.f Grace to those who receive it, but those bl
only received through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

r{hat I would like us to consider this nwrning is {;That circumc:is.ion

is, that it is a sign and a seal of the covenant grace of God, that
baptism sign.ifies and seals the same b.l as that of cin.:umcL<:;jon,
bllt tbat these blessings are not conferred by the and seal :itse.Z[
but through [aith in Christ.

I. First, I liTant You to See What Cjrcumcis~ion Is.

A. F.irst We Learn from Our Text that Ci:rcLlrnc~ision Is a Sign.
L A is that which points away from iLseLf to someth~ing {;lse<
a. It is really not that much different from the way that {,le
use signs in our culture.
b. When we see a stop sign we knoffJ that it points beyonr.lHselr
to the law of the land which commands us to our cars
to a complete stop before we cross the ~intersection.
c. When we see a which tells us that: Sacramento :is 30
miles away, tlle understand that it is pointing beyond itself
to the city which is yet up
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d. Even the words v.lhich we speak are symbols which

are poLnting beyond themselves to Ivhich they

e . i s something fdlich represents .some else. It

causes us to look beyond it to f;,!i18t .-it represents. It is
not tbe jise.If, but ~it us to it.
f. The sacrament ot' circumc.ision was a sign of the covenant
grace of God. It was not tbat grace, but it pointed the
people of God to .-it. It po.inted th(~m to the grace of the
new birth through .f[d th in Chris t ,

2, The BibJe tells us that c:ircumcision IfiNU3 a s .in t"l0 {<lays,

a. It was a of inchls:ion in the COIlenant community of God.
) The Lord said in Genesis 7,: 10···11, >tTIlIS IS lilY COVENANT,
WHICH YOU SHALL KEEP, BETWEEN ME AND YOU AND YOUR
DESCENDANTS AFTER YOU: EVERY lvfALE AMONG YOU SHALL BE
CIRCUMCISED. AND YOU SHALL BE CIRCUHCISED IN THE FLESH
OF YOUR FORESKIN; AND IT SHALL BE THE SIGN OF THE
COVENANT BETWEEN ME .4ND YOU,"
) Th-i.c.:, in otber words, was bow tlIe Loyd designa t ed who
was included in the covenant. Everyone who was .in the
covenant had to rece.ive that sign. I f a male did 11ot,
then he {iJas cut out of the covemmt. The Lord said,
"BUT AN UNCIRCUMCISED MALE WHO IS NOT CIRCUMCISED IN
THE FLESH OF HIS FORESKIN, THAT PERSON SHALL BE" GUT OFF'
FROM HIS PEOPLE; HE HAS BROKEN MY COVENANT" (Gen.
17:14).

b. It wa.s also a. of the inward change of the heart which

is necessary to become a partaker of the ricl1 blessings of
the covenant.
(1) It was a sign of the grace of God in regeneration. It
r..a.s a of that im4anl change of heart which .is
necessary to pI ease the Lord.
(il) Moses [.;}'Tote in Deuteronomy 10, "AND NOW, ISRAEL, WHAT
DOES THE LORD YOUR GOD REQUIRE FROM YOU, BUT 1'0 FEAR THE
LORD YOUR GOD, TO WALK IN ALL HIS WAYS AND LOVE HIN, AND
TO SERVE THE LORD YOUR GOD filTH ALL YOUR HEART AND riITH
ALL YOUR SOUl~, AND TO KEEP THE LORD'S COMMANDMENTS AND
HIS STATUTES WHICH I Mf CONJ>fANDING YOU TODAY F'OR YOUR
GOOD? BEHOLD, 1'0 THE LORD YOUR, GOD BELONG HEAVEN AND THE
HIGHEST HEAVENS, THE EARTH AND ALL THAT IS IN IT. YET ON
YOUR FATHERS DID THE LORD SET HIS AFFECTION TO LOVE 1111711,
AND HE CHOSE THEIR DESCENDANTS AFTER THEM, EllEN YOU ABOVE
ALL PEOPLES, AS IT IS THIS DAY. CIRCUt\fCISE THEN YOUR
HEART, AND STIFFEN YOUR NECK NO MORE. FOR THE LORD YOUR
GOD IS THE GOD OF GODS AND THE LORD OF LORDS, THE GREAT,
THE MIGHTY, AND THE MIESOME GOD WHO DOES NOT SHOW
PARTIALITY, NOR TAKE A BRIBE. HE EXECUTES .JUSTICE FOR
THE ORPHAN AND THE WIDOW, AND SHOWS HIS LOVE FOR THE
ALIEN BY GIVING HIM FOOD AND CLOTHING. SO SHOW YOUR LOVE
FOR THE ALIEN. FOR YOU WERE ALIENS IN THE LAND OF EGYPT,
YOU SHALL FEAR THE LORD YOUR GOD; YOU SHALL SERVE l-lIN AND
CLING TO HIM, AND YOU SHALL SWEAR BY HIS NAME" (lTv.
12-20) •
Liii) They did not nC?ce.ssari1y rece.i'Te tbe c:ircl1mcis~ion o.f
the heart through the circumcision of their [oresldn,
but i t showed them that that of betl.rt I,fas
necessary Lf were to please the Lord.
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(iv) Notice that though .it was not within their power to
circumcise their hearts so that they would not stiFfen
theLr necks against His commandments, .it \:\la8 sti.!]
tbeir yesponsibility to do so.

B. Secondly, Our Text Tells Us that It Was a Seal of the i:eousness

which Abraham Had Ivllile Unciycumcised.
1. A. seal is a gUarantee that the one who has made a promJse will
fulfill it.
il. A king would have a s:ignet fAli ill fvhich he would
his seal upon an offieLd document, thus guaranteeing {;lith
a 11 his authority that that document was authentic and that
wlJat was written in i t would be ca.rried out
b. Tile of a seal continues to be the same even today.
c. The President has what is calf ed the Great Seal which he
pu/;s to his official documents for the same purpose.
d. And often you will bear a minister say t,lhen he is
admLnis the Lord IS Supper, that this is God IS personal
and autllOLitative prom:ise to you, that i f you TAlill meet the
requirements of fai th and repentance, then YOlI wi11 rec£'.ive
the benefits of what .1.s _in the Supper, the
cleansing al1d strengthening g.l:-ace of Christ.

2.. In the ,c:;,:une way, Paul tel1s us that circl..!mc.ision was a seal of
~e ~hi~.
a It attested to the Fact that does come through
faith.
b. I f a person believed, his heart had been circumcised, and he
had received tbat which God contInned to him in circwllc.isiol1,
the promi:se of a new heart.
c. The seal then is God's promise that He w.i.l1 bestow the
righteousness of fai th to those who meet tiw qua1.ifications
of faith and repentance, realizing that God is the One I-Iho
mus t change the heart or .it wi n )Jot happen.

C. NoUce Thirdly, that Circumcision Was Administered to Every Ma1e

Which Was Included in the Covenant. "THIS IS MY COVENANT WIlICH YOU
SHALL KEEP, HETWEEN ME AND YOU AND YOUR DESCENDANTS AFTER YOU:
EVERY MALE AMONG YOU SHALL BE CIRCUMCISED" (Gen. 17: 10).
1. Tl1isincluded Abraham himseLf, "BETlil.EEN HE AND YOU."
2. It .included every ma.le chi1d wh.ich was born to him, "L1ND YOUR
DESCENDANTS AFTER YOU."
3, It also included every male servant, "AND EVERY MALE ANONG YOU
WHO IS EIGHT DAYS Of,D SHALL, BE CIRClflVCJSED THROllGHOUT YOUR
GENERATIONS, A SERVANT WJIO IS BORN IN YOUR HOUSE OR WHO IS
BOUGHT WITH MONEY FROM ANY FOREIGNER, WHO IS NOT OF YOUR
DESCENDANTS. A SERVANT WHO IS BORN IN YOUR HOUSE OR WHO IS
BOUGHT WITH YOUR MONEY SHALL SURELY BE CIRCUMCISED; THUS SHALL
NY COVENANT BE IN YOUR FLESH FOR AN EVERLASTING COVENANT" (vv.
12-13).
4~ We are riot to th_i111{ Cha.t tl1e fe.mclle cl1~i ltJretl were 110t~ included
in the covenant because they were incapable o.f being
c:i rcumcised. If a had been given whic.h could have been
administered to them, i t surely wouJd have been, for Wf;re
included in the covenant.
5, We see then that the covenantinc1uded the v.7!10} e flOusehold of
t11e 011e who heJ ieved,
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Second}y, I Want You to See that Baptism Signifies and SeaJs the Same

as tbat of Circumcision.

A, The Scr_ipture 8hol/IS U.s that Circumcision and Baptism the

SaJlle of t i o n , i n a Different Way.
L the nef.!l b.irtl1 through a bloody
It the circumc.is.iorl of the heart. DeuterOrlOYfij/
10: 16 Literally reads, "CIRCUMCISE THEN THE FORESKIN OF YOUR
HEART. "
b. It is tbe removal of the heart of s tone and the put ting .in
of a heart of flesh by the Lord~ In Ezekie.l 11: .19-20, f.7hl::'re
the Lord is speaking of the promised blessings of the Net.;
Covenant to HLs people, He says, "AND I SHALL GIVE THEM ONE
HEART, AND SEMLL PUT A NEW SPIRIT WITHIN THEM. AND I SihlLL
TAKE THE HEART OF STONE OUT OF THEIR FLESH AND GIVE THEM A
HEART OF FLESH, THAT THEY M4Y WALK IN NY STATUTeS AND KEEP
MY ORDINANCES, AND DO THEN. THEN TlJEY ~lILL BE NY PEOPLE,
AND I SHALL BE THEIR GOD. 1/
c. He circumcises theIr hearts so that they ,vi.11 walk In a.11 of
His commandments,
d. This is vlh.ich only God can do. It .is tbe
which He g:i.ves to His elect in the Covenant of Grace. Moses
says, "MOREOVER THE LORD YOUR GOD fllILL CJRClLMCISE YOUR ilEA.RT
AND THE HEART OF YOUR DESCENDANTS, TO LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD
WILL ALL YOUR HEART AND [,71TH ALL YOUR SOUL. IN ORDliR THAT
YOU MAY LIVE" (Deu. 30:6).
e. This change of heart was s:ignified by the bloody sign of
circumcision, showing that .it was through blood thai the
Lord would accomplish tilis, the blood of Christ.

2. Baptism the new bIrth through a non-bloody

It
il. washing and cleansing of the .soul through
tbe tioll of the grace of Cl1rist by the Holy Spirit:.
Paul writes in Titus 3:4-7, "BUT WHEN THE KINDNESS OF GOD
OUR SAVIOR AND HIS LOVE FOR .MANKIND APPEARfW, HE SAVED US,
NOT ON Tl:lE BASIS OF DEEDS WHICH r~E HAVE DONE IN
RIGHTlJOUSNESS, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS NERCY, BY THE w:.4SHING OF
REGENERATION AND RENEWING BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, WHOM HE POURED
OUT UPON US RICHLY THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR SAVIOR THAT
BEING JUSTIFIED BY HIS GRACE WE MIGHT BE 1'1ADE HEIRS
ACCORDING TO THE HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE. /I
b. Paul even dX·i:lws the meaning of the two signs together in
Colossians 2: 11-1 where he wr.ite8, ".AND IN }fIN YOU i\fERE
ALSO CIRCUMCISED WITH A CIRCUMCISION M4DE WITHOUT llANDS, IN
THE REl"10V.4L OF THE BODY OF THE FLESH BY THE CIRCUMCISION OF
CHRIST; lIAVlNG BEEN BURIED WITH HIM IN BAPTISM, IN wHICH YUU
WERE ALSO RA.ISED UP WITH HIM THROUGH FAITH IN THE fllORKING OF
GOD WHO RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD. tf
c. Tl1e resu.lt, of course, of regeneration .in the New Covenant
Ls the same as .in the Old, tbe fnUt of good tvorks. "FOR WE
ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP, CREATED IN CHRIST JESUS FOR GOOD WORKS,
WHICH GOD PREPARED BEFOREHAND, THAT riE SHOULD WALK IN THE!t"
(Eph. 2: 10).
d, The fact that the of tlie New C(HTenant :is not bloody can
be attributed to the fact that Chr.ist had already shed rris
blood. There was no .longer the need of a bloody sign to
point forward to it, but now a non-bloody to point back
to .it.
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B. Furthermore, Because of the Close Parallel Between the Tt,;-o and

Because of the Same Recip:ients, There Is LitUe Doubt that Tt Is
A}so a Seal of God's Covenant Promises.
I ~ fve must notfon5et that both covemwts are adm.inistratio1]s of
the same covenant of Grace,
a. TlLis is one of the reasons ~"hy t,'e are not surprised
fact that there .is such an between the two
b. Both signify tbe sa_me b.l for they are the blessings
of the same covenant. The only d.ifference is that they
those bl a sign which is appropriate fay
their time.

The are aJso substantial tIle same.

a. All who believe and their l1011seho.lds receive the sign.
b, There is nothing in Scriptnre which indicates that God has
changed His way of deaLing with His peop.le, but strong
indications tllat; He hasn 't. He has altvays called whole
famil.ies into His covenant. and not tindividua.ls.
c. And this shou.ldn It surprise us, for the NevI Covenant .is
nothing more than the Fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant
which d.id include the wllO.le household.
d. , it is the same covenant of Grace.

3, It therefoye seals to the recipients the same promises, tl1e

righteousness of fa.ith •.i f tl1ey wLll repent and beLiel.Te.
a. We etTfm have the Abrahamic repeated in the New
Testament to show I1S that tl1:is Ls the case.
b, In Genesis 7: 17, we read, "AND I lV'ILL ESTABl.ISH NY COVENANT
BE7'f4!EEN HE' AND YOU AND YOUR DESCENDANTS AFTKR YOU THROUGHOUT
THEIR GENERATIONS FOR AN EVERLASTING COVENANT, TO BE GOD 1'0
YOU AND TO x'OUR DESCENDANTS AFn'R YOU."
c, And in Acts 2:38~39, when 011 the day of Pentecost the people
were struck to the heart by Peter's sermon, they said,
'" BRETHREN, r"HAT SHALL WE DO?' AND PETER SAID TO THEN,
'REPENT, AND LET EACH OF YOU BE BAPTIZED FOR THE FORGIVENESS
OF YOUR SINS; AND YOU SHALL. RECEIVE: THE GIFT OF THE HOLY
SPIRIT. FOR THE PROMISE IS FOR YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN, AND
FOR ALL WHO ARB' FAR OFF, AS MANY AS THE LORD OllR GOD SHALL
CALL TO HIMSELF. '"
d, Here f~7e have the idea of promise ,'It tached to the reaS011 for
bapti:r:ing. The prom:ise pertains to you and to your
ch:i1dren. Bul it is in fact g.iven only to those whom the
Lord wiLl call to Himself through faith _in Christ and
repentance t"rom sin.
e. tism tllen signifies and seals the same blessings that
circumcision does, only nov.? i11 a non-bloody "lay,

III. Lastly, I Want You to Rea.lize That Whether or Not You Receive that
, You Win Not Be Saved Apart from Faith .in the Ri.sen and Living
Sav.ior.
A. Palll Asks the Question, "IS THIS BLESSING THEN UPON THE CIRCUNCISED
OR UPON THE UNCIRCUMCISED ALSO'?"
1. Notice that he says that Abraham received this blessing apart
from circwncision.
a. "FOR f.JE SAY THAT FAITH WAS RECKONED TO ABRAHAN FOR
RIGHTEOUSNESS. HOW THEN WAS IS RECl<~ONED TO ABRAHA}:f, WHILE
HE w:.4S CIRCUMCISED OR UNCIRCUl'1CJSED? IT tvAS' NOT RECKONED TO
ABRAHAllf WHILE HE WAS CIRCUNCISED, BUT IT lvAS RECKONED TO HIM
WHILE HE rvAS STILL UNCTRC[JNCJSED. AND HE RECEIVED THE SIGN
 OF CiRCUMCISION • • • SO TR4T HE MIGHT BE THE F.4TIlER OF ALL
WHO BELIEVE WITHOUT BEING CIRCUl1CISED, SO THAT RIGHTEOUSNESS
NIGHT BE RECKONED TO THEN ALSO, AND THAT HE MIGHT BE THE
FATHER OF THE CIRI7UMCISTON, TO THOSE t"HO ARE NOT ONLY OF THE
CIRCllMCISION, BUT ALSO TO THOSE WHO FOLLOW IN THE FOOTSTEPS
OF THE FAITH OF OUR FATHER "4BRAHAM, WHICH HE HAD ¥tfHILE
UNCIRCUMCISED. "
b. Abraham was salTed through the righteollsness o.f
Christ, through faitb ,in H:im. He was not saved through his
circumc_ision. He was in fact circumcised a.fter he was
saIled.

2. Those wlJo receilTed the of circumcision as well did not

receive the blessing unZess they believed.
a. To those who were circumcised, the Lord sa_id, "CIRCUMCISE
THEN THE FORESKIN OF YOUR HEART" (Deu. 10: 16) •
b. CirClllJlci,siol1 o[ tlle flesh dJd not that tlu,dr
hearts r.;ould be aiIected.

B. It Is Not Your Circumcis,ion or Your Baptism That You Are to Rely

lIpan, But Faith :in Christ Aione to Receive the Blessings which Are
S;igni.fied and SeaJed in BapLism.
1. Certainly if you trusted il1 circumcision to save you, you mllst
also keep ther(~st of the Law.
a. Paul t~rites in Galatians 5:2-5, "BEHOLD, PAUL, SllY TO YOU
THtlT IF YOlf RECEIVE CIRCllMCISION, CHRIST WILL BE OF NO
BENEFIT Tn YOU. AND I TESTIFY AGAIN TO EVERY MAN WHO
RECEIVES CIRCUMCISION, THAT HE IS UNDER OBLIGATION TO KEEP
THE WHOLE LAW. YOU HAVE BEEN SEVERED FROM CHRIST, YOU ll!lfO
ARE SEEKING 1'0 BE JU5iTIFIED BY LAW; YOU HAVE FALLEN FROM
GRACE. FOR WE THROllGH THE SPIRIT, BY FAITIJ,ARE WAITING FOR
THE HOPE OF RIGHTEOU,':;NESS. If
b. I f you were to turn circumcision into a work: whereby you
t be saved, then you would be under the curse. Aga_ln,
Paul wr_ites, "FOR AS HANY AS ARE OF THE WORJ(S OF THE LAW ARE
UNDER A CURSE; FOR IT IS fvRITTEN, 'CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO
DOES NOT ABIDE BY ALL THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF THE LAW..
TO PERF'O&"'l THEM" ((:':BL .3: 10).

2. The same is true if you trust in your baptism as a kind of work

whereby you might be saved. You as well would fall under the
curse.
3. What really matters is faith in the Lord Jesus ChYist.
a. Again, look at our text, THIS BLESSING THEN UPON THE
CIRCUMCISED OR UPON THE UNCIRCUMCISED ALSO? FOR WE SAY,
,FAITH WAS RECKONED TO ABR4HAN AS RIGHTEOllSNESS. I HOW THEN
WAS IT RECKONED? WHILE HE WAS CIRCUMCISED, OR
UNCIRCUMCISED? NOT WHiLE C1RCllMCISED, BUT ~1HILE
UNCTHClTMCISED. "
b. Circumcision, and more important bap are signs and
seals of the covenant grace of God which is bestowed tJll<Jugh
faith in Christ.
c. You must not trust in your baptism to save you. You mllst
not tTust in anything but a whole-hearted res in the
Lord Jesus Christ and in His merits .3,lone to save you.
d. This is, in f.3.ct, what YOllr bapLi,'::m calls you to do.
e. Your tisJ]) is a symbol of your dying with Chris!: > and
yising with Him io ..{ !alk in newness of life.
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f. OUY Book of Church Order po,ints t1ris out fv'lwre ,it tells us,
"And since baptized pex-sons are called upon to assume the
obliga Lions of the cfnrenani, bapLis111 summons us to renounce
the devil, the 'World and the flesh and to walk humbly ~vith
our God ~in devotion to his commandments" (Directory IV; B: 1).
g"", I,f you ax'e in God's covenant:; it" you beal-­ the covena11t Sigl1
of bapti",;])), t.hen you are His servant" and you are to serve
Him 'with a1.l your heart, mind, soul, and strength, for a11
of your days. You are never to turn back or to hold
anything back. You are to claim noth,ing as your m....l 1.
h. And for those of YOll who are parent.s, you are to be fait11fl1,1
in ,rais,ing YOllr children according to God's ways. You haFe
r.ommitted yourse.lf to do this in oFfecil1g your children in
baptism. You have committed .vourself to raise them to be
children of the covenant, to wa.lk before them as an examp.le,
to pray for them, and to seek by a1,l the means appointed by
God for their salFation.
i. And so are you trusUng in Christ this morning? Are you
living up to what your baptism has engaged you to? Are you
seeking by all the means of God's appointment to enter ,into
the kingdom of God, and seeking that your children might
enter there as wel]? May God gxant you the grace to fully
app.ly yourself to this most holy task, and may He grant you
SHccess. Amen.