“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.”
Romans 2:25-29
The Jews took great pride in two things; the law and circumcision. The primary reason the law was so important to them is that it was through the law that the wrath of God came. As Paul explained, without law, there is no transgression. (Romans 4:15) The law makes us conscience of sin and in need of God’s grace.
The act of circumcision, according to Jewish law, is the physical representation of the covenant between God and Abraham described in the Old Testament and is required to include males in the Jewish faith.
Paul’s statements in the above verses explain the differences in obedience of the flesh to the law and the observance of the heart to the same law. Jesus was the only one able to initiate a new covenant to all those who, through faith, believed the Gospel that Jesus taught, receiving forgiveness of sins and its penalty.
Many today believe that if they only obey a few simple rules, such as being a good person, God will accept them into heaven. I also think that many of these people rely on their good deeds, such as donating to non-profits, attending church, and being all-around good people, believing their good deeds will outweigh the bad ones when they stand before God. The Bible doesn’t teach a “law of goodness” by which we can be “saved.” However, it teaches the law of grace that comes by faith in Jesus.
For the sake of your eternity, I encourage you to research it.
Here are a few places to start:
Romans 3:31 “Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.”
Romans 6:14 “For sin will have no dominion over you since you are not under law but under grace.”
Romans 7:6 “But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.”
Romans 7:7 “What, then, shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”
Romans 10:4 “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”