Salvation by Ritual

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So Paul urged his people to hold tightly to the truth. There were teachers out there teaching them wrong things, and in verse 10 of Titus chapter 1, he says, “For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group”.

False Teachers Identified

One sign that you might be sitting under false teaching is if the teacher places undue emphasis on laws and rituals. And Paul said it there in today's verse. He said we must be especially careful of those in the circumcision group.

He was talking about a group of Jewish leaders who claimed to be Christians, but they were telling people you have to be circumcised to be saved. It was a massive issue in the early church because in the Old Testament God had made it quite clear that His people had to be circumcised as a sign that they were set apart. So naturally, the Jews of Jesus’ day said we still need to do that.

Heart Over Ritual

What they didn't understand was that Jesus had changed this and that it was all about circumcision of the heart, not the body. I mean, otherwise, where did the woman fit in, right? Doesn't make sense. It's all about spiritual, heart circumcision.

The early church leaders came to see this. Paul especially, who was a very determined Jewish leader before meeting Christ, wrote this in 1 Corinthians 7:19: “Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts.”

So, friends, beware of teaching that says to you, “if you do XYZ, you'll be right with God…” “If you go through this and that ritual, you'll have earned your forgiveness.” That is not the gospel! Circumcision or any other ritual will never be enough to save us.

Faith in Christ

This is the gospel, Romans 3:21–25. Paul said: “God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.” Then he says it again. “People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood.” (Romans 3:21-25 NLT)

And so, friends, your spiritual rituals, your Bible reading, your praying, your attending worship, your receiving communion—they're good for us to do, but they don't earn us our salvation. Good deeds, like being kind and generous and loving to people, are very good for us to do, but they don't earn us our salvation.

None of it makes us right with God. Only faith in Christ's sacrifice does that - a deep-seated belief in you that He died and took away the punishment for my sins by His death. If you truly believe that, God begins to cut away the bad things inside of you—the circumcision of the heart—as a result.

So beware of false teachers who say “do XYZ to be saved”. Only believe with all of your heart and then out of that do all you can for God because of the free gift that He's given you.