“And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the justice of the faith, which he had, being uncircumcised; that he might be the father of all them that believe, being uncircumcised, that unto them also it may be reputed to justice: and he might be the father of circumcision; not to them only, that are of the circumcision, but to them also that follow the steps of the faithful, that is in the uncircumcision of our father Abraham. For not through the law was the promise to Abraham, or to his seed, that he should be heir of the world; but through the justice of faith. For if they who are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, the promise is made of no effect. For the law worketh wrath. For where there is no law, neither is there transgression.”
Like a seal placed on a letter wraps up what is truly important, the seal itself being a symbol of the one who wrote it: “Thou wast the seal of resemblance, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty” (Ezechiel 28:12), so too is the sign of circumcision an expression of the covenant between God and Abraham that was already instituted: “And God said to him: ‘I Am, and my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations” (Genesis 17:4). It was a removal of superfluous skin from the organ by which his line would be multiplied, and likewise to the Christian, “But he is a Jew, that is one inwardly; and the circumcision is that of the heart” (Romans 2:29), is the removal of all that is superfluous that the heart may dwell in love alone: “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, to refrain yourselves from carnal desires which war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11); “Love not the world, nor the things which are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15), that the fruits of the heart may be plentiful: “I am the vine; you the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Now, this justification that came before circumcision, but sealed with circumcision, made Abraham the father of all believers, circumcised and uncircumcised, because he tread the path of faith for those that would follow him in the way of trust and faith: “If you be the children of Abraham, do the works of Abraham” (John 8:39). It is by imitation of Abraham, always holding fast to the love and goodness of God, that one is justified, not by external signs: “And I testify again to every man circumcising himself, that he is a debtor to do the whole law” (Galatians 5:3), nor by rigid following of the commandments: “in the spirit, not in the letter” (Romans 2:29). No, Theophila, it is knowing and trusting in the infinite love of God that He desires from you: “Yea rather, blessed are they who hear the word of God, and keep it” (Luke 11:28), for it is better to love your Jesus than any mountain of great works without this same love: “And if I should distribute all my goods to feed the poor, and if I should deliver my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:3). It is the manner of children to have someone they desire to look up to and imitate, and this is the nature of the veneration of saints, thus does it say in the Song of Songs: “If thou know not thyself, O fairest among women, go forth, and follow after the steps of the flocks, and feed thy kids beside the tents of the shepherds” (Canticle 1:7), that is, if you don’t know how to express love in your own way, look to the example of the saints gone by and the lovers of God around you, and look to their love and think on how to love in turn. Abraham is the preeminent example of faith, which is adherence to the goodness and truths of God by love even when circumstances make these things seem otherwise: “Now faith is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things that appear not. For by this the ancients obtained a testimony” (Hebrews 11:1-2). By trusting in this goodness, which is the expression of God’s mighty love, Abraham was justified by faith. Now, Abraham’s seed is in reference specifically to Christ: “To Abraham were the promises made and to his seed. He saith not, ‘And to his seeds,’ as of many: but as of one, ‘And to thy seed,’ which is Christ” (Galatians 3:16), showing that even the faith of Abraham points ahead to Christ. The faith of Christ, who is heir of the world: “All power is given to me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18); “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the figure of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, making purgation of sins, sitteth on the right hand of the majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3), is faith in God as His Abba: “Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee” (Mark 14:36); “I also have kept my Father’s commandments, and do abide in his love” (John 15:10). It is Jesus who is heir of the world. This then extends to you, “for whom he foreknew, he also predestinated to be made conformable to the image of his son; that he might be the firstborn amongst many brethren” (Romans 8:29), for as spouses hold all things in common, so too does the inheritance extend to you as a Spouse of God; all things therefore are yours, to lead your mind to God: “For the world fighteth for the just” (Wisdom 16:17). Moving forward, family members don’t love each other because of their merits, but simply because they are each other’s, and so too does God love you not because of your excellence, but because you are His; if it was because of your excellence, it is no longer love. When you trust in God’s merciful love, letting Him love you, this is faith, when you build yourself into something gloriously meritorious, though this leads to a beautiful, upright life, it is not the fullness of faith, which is animated by love: “If I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2). The law, then, brings wrath, because it shows what is the good and the evil, without conferring grace, and therefore simply highlights what is wrong with a person’s behavior without applying the medicine to cure it: “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh; God sending his own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh and of sin, hath condemned sin in the flesh; that the justification of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the spirit” (Romans 8:4). Finally, the natural law written in the conscience and the explicit commandments of God in the Old Covenant give liability for transgression, which is not a blessing, but a curse: “Cursed be he that abideth not in the words of this law, and fulfilleth them not in work: and all the people shall say: ‘Amen’” (Deuteronomy 27:26), but the love that animates faith is a loving knowledge of God, with this love not desiring to sin against Him, for this would be akin to committing adultery against a spouse: “Lift up thy eyes on high: and see where thou hast not prostituted thyself” (Jeremias 3:2), or acting with malice against the love of a parent: “For the Father himself loveth you” (John 16:27). Thus, the law works wrath, but faith brings joy and love to the soul: “O clap your hands, all ye nations: shout unto God with the voice of joy” (Psalm 46:2).