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I was in Junior High and our basketball team ordered jump suits – pants and jackets with our names on the back. They were our school colors: blue and white, and we had to wear them on game day.
It was easy to identify who we were with these suits. There was no mistaking which school and what team we belonged to.
I was really proud of that suit.
It meant more to me than just an outfit. I belonged to a group, a family. And our team spent a lot of time together and some of the best memories I have from that age are with those girls on the court.
God distinguished Abram too, except not with a jumpsuit, but with a new name.
God made a covenant with Abram to make him the father of many nations. In doing so, he changed his name to Abraham to reflect what was to come.
In addition, God required a sign of the covenant. It was something that would make His people look different than others. It was something that would make them distinguished from the rest of the world and for them to be known as God’s people.
The Lord chose circumcision as that avenue.
“‘This is my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you, which you are to keep: Every one of your males must be circumcised. You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskin to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and you. Throughout your generations, every male among you is to be circumcised at eight days old—every male born in your household or purchased from any foreigner and not your offspring. Whether born in your household or purchased, he must be circumcised. My covenant will be marked in your flesh as a permanent covenant. If any male is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that man will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.’” (Genesis 17:10-14)
Even the slaves in the home were to be circumcised to show they were a part of God’s people.
And today, God’s people are called to look different than the rest of the world. The Scripture tells us that we are to be holy for He is holy.
We are to be sanctified, which means set apart. Our lives should look like what Scripture defines as a follower of Christ and not to be resembling the world.
So, my question to you today is, by looking at your life, would others know you are part of God’s family?
Would they know you belong to Him?
Why not?
What needs to change? Is it the words we speak? Is it our actions? Our attitude? Our friends? Or the clothes we wear?
If you are God’s child, have you kept your part of the covenant? Do others know you are His by the way you live your life?
Copyright © 2020 by Yalanda Merrell. No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org.