Circumcise your heart. Humble yourself. Strengthen your faith. Renew your hope. Broaden your charity.
Mary, after giving birth to Jesus, was considered unclean. She had to purify herself for seven days so that, on the eighth day, she and Joseph could take Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem for circumcision.
Circumcision is a rite that requires an offering of thanks and praise to God. In this ceremony, the baby is welcomed into the covenant between the Hebrews and God. In the Old Testament, it involves a blood sacrifice and a specific piece of the baby’s flesh.
Today, we don’t do the same rituals. We operate out of the New Testament’s “new thing.” We no longer need to offer blood sacrifices. Jesus is our blood sacrifice. When we accept Jesus into our hearts, we are born again. We become the newborn. Our new world and our new work starts there.
Like Mary, baby Christians must also purify themselves so our hearts can be circumcised. We must get rid of anything that displeases God: anything we think, the things we do or do not do, and the words we speak. We are charged with building God’s kingdom on Earth by spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to all corners of the world. In order to do that, we have to do our inner spring cleaning. We must teach by example, just as Jesus did.
As we ring in this new year, let us all take a moment to do some spring cleaning. Let us search our hearts for impurities, things that would make God sad or angry. He is a merciful and gracious Father, and He’s worthy of our respect and our love. Give Him a larger room in your heart so He can fill it with the peace, love, joy, and hope we were promised during the Advent season!
Spread the Love 