Previous post: Genesis 16
Today, we’re going talk a little about the silence of God and circumcision. Sounds like a great combination, right?
Chapter 17 picks up 13 years after chapter 16. 13 years after the birth of Ishmael. For all we know, God was silent during this time. Of course, we don’t know this for sure…which means that what I’m about to say is conjecture not scripture. So, take this with a grain of salt. Let’s suppose that Abram spent 13 years at the tail end of his life hoping, wondering, and waiting in the silence of God…wondering about a promise that was originally made to him around 30 years prior. That’s a long time. Personally, I would’ve found a way to rationalize that God had changed his mind over 13 years of silence, especially after the whole sleeping with the maidservant debacle. I probably would’ve been resigned to the idea that I could die any day without seeing God’s promise fulfilled.
Here’s a great thing about Christianity and the Bible as a whole: God does not remain silent. As I type this, we continue our 24/7 fight for the life of our wonderful son. Our battle began 05/04/2019. It has grown more challenging every year. There have been many times where I didn’t believe I could wait another second on God to show up. I’ve yelled out, “Where are you in this mess, God?!” and some version of, “How long, Oh Lord? How long?” Plenty of times, my cries have been answered with silence in the form of continued torture. Another seizure begins. The oxygen alarm blares. Isaiah’s trach becomes clogged. Sleep evades us. Thankfully, those moments are not the prevailing theme of our post-2019 life. In the midst of the pain, we often feel the calm, peace, and joy of the presence of God—sort of how I imagine Daniel must have felt in the lion’s den…or, how Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednigo must have felt amongst the flames. But, if I’m honest, I haven’t had the booming voice of God talk to me and reiterate his promises in a Genesis 17-type way. So, why believe in a God who allows such pain?
For starters, Christ didn’t promise me the total healing of my son. (Actually, he warned all of his followers, “In this world you will have trouble.”) My hope isn’t in my perfect vision for my perfect life. My hope is as follows…and I would extend this hope to all of us have who’ve experienced a “9” or a “10” on the 1-10 pain scale of life. Pain, suffering, and darkness—they all have an expiration date. The second verse of the Bible, Genesis 1:2, paints a picture of a dark, empty void (which is sort of how life feels at times); but it also builds hope and anticipation…the hope of a hovering Spirit.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:2, NIV)
It’s as if the Spirit of God is hovering in a holding pattern there over the darkness, void, emptiness, inky blackness…whatever you choose to call it. Then, God speaks. Out of the empty and eerie quiet, sound bursts forth. God’s voice booms. “Let there be light.” In an instant, the Spirit moves—like a strike of lightning or rush of a flame into the void (at least, that’s sort of how it looks in my mind). The wait is over. God’s plan explodes into motion. Love strikes the emptiness. Light. Creation. Life. Order. Goodness. Joy. A chorus follows for the rest of chapter 1. “And God saw that it was good.” … “And God saw that it was good.” … “And God saw that it was good.” … “And God saw that it was good.” … “And God saw that it was good.” … “It was very good.”
A rush of order, meaning, and love was injected into chaos and emptiness.
The New Testament tells a similar creation story. Actually, the New Testament contains many similar stories…where, in an instant, love strikes emptiness.
I bet Abraham felt a bit of Genesis 1 joy when God broke the silence in Genesis 17.
When the hovering ends…when joy comes, I think those of us who’ve experienced a “9” or a “10” on the 1-10 pain scale of life will have a deeper appreciation for the “10” on the joy scale of life. Actually, I think that those of us who have experienced the deepest pains of this life are in for unimaginable joy when the time for hovering is over. 10 out of 10. Perhaps you can’t even comprehend a “10” of joy if you haven’t experienced a “10” of pain. I don’t know.
At some point, the time for the Spirit hovering over the chaos and emptiness of life on this earth will be over. The silence of God—real or perceived—will end. That moment will come. The Spirit, in God’s perfect timing, will strike the void. The power of redemption, order, love, meaning, and all the Galatians 5:22 things will strike the emptiness of your life and mine. This weird gap we all live in—the gap between the fall of man and the redemption of all things—will end one day. “The hovering” will be over. Pure joy will come. I pray for that moment every day. Hopefully, it will come sooner than 13 years. Hopefully, during this life. Certainly, it will come during the next. It may come through miraculous healing. It may come through a long road to recovery. It may be delivered through death. We aren’t promised a specific time; but we are promised that love will strike the emptiness and chaos in our life. Until then, we pray and wait.
“Everything sad is going to come untrue and it will somehow be greater for having been broken and lost.” – Tim Keller
I’ve decided that the English language does not contain adequate words to create a graceful transition from all that to the topic of circumcision. Also, I’m too lazy to figure it out. Sorry. But, I can’t help but at least mention the topic here. Again, sorry.
"This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised." Genesis 17:10, NIV
Circumcision is mentioned throughout the Old and New Testament. Here are a few verses if you’re thinking to yourself, “You know, I think I’d love to do a deep dive on circumcision today.”
Galatians 5:19-21
Ephesians 2:3
Romans 2:28-29
Colossians 2:9-12
Galatians 6:12-15
Anyhow, what a weird command, right? Why such an emphasis on this? Why this at all? Why not something more normal…like “all followers of God shall henceforth all wear yellow hats, so everyone will recognize you’re my people. Thus sayeth the Lord.”? Or Christian fish tattoos? Or maybe buddy bands or something? Well, I have some ideas. For starters, it’s the cutting off of the flesh—symbolic of the hidden, intimate, sinful nature. It’s the cutting off of those deep down sinful things that the Bible often refers to as “the flesh”—things that don’t really stand between you and others but do stand between you and God. It’s those things that others don’t know and may never know about you. It’s those things that are the most difficult to release to God.
Have you ever sat in a Sunday school class where all the prayer requests are consistently non-personal? “Please pray for my grandma’s ailment.” “Pray for my neighbor’s dog.” “Pray for my cousin’s soul.” “Pray for something I can’t share but God knows.” Week after week of surface-level requests?
Have you ever sat there and thought, “Ok, we’ll pray for your 93-year-old grandma’s arthritis again, John; but maybe we should also pray for your alcoholic, adultering soul that no one ever seems to confront you about.”? Circumcision, I think, is symbolic of things sort of like that…those things we hold onto in secret…those things that some people may know but most don’t…those things for which we say, “I’ll submit everything in my life to you, God…except this one thing. I’m not giving you this one thing, God. It’s too personal. It’s too painful. I’ll just deal with it myself.”
That’s what I leave you with today: God wants a relationship with you where you take drastic action to remove the sin in your life that no one else but you knows about. Find a support group. Call a hotline. Reach out to a friend. Call a mentor. Then, march forward with the God who loves you and heals.
Here’s this week’s completely unnecessary hip hop rap summary:
Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Another AI generated song? That’s pretty awesome!
Really meaningful! I look forward to these insights on Saturdays. 😊