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Chapter 114: Some Guidelines for Understanding Christ’s Teachings. The Jewish Circumcision Practice Greatly Differs from the Christian Baptism Ritual.
THE HOLY SPIRIT SOMETIMES MADE SURE THAT CERTAIN EVENTS: which symbolized the future, were clearly carried out. At other times, He spoke about what was going to happen as though it was happening at that moment, or had already happened. If readers do not grasp this technique, they won't be able to understand the words of the prophets properly. To illustrate, I will repeat some prophetic passages so you can understand my point. When He speaks through Isaiah, saying, 'He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb before the shearer,' it is spoken as if the suffering had already occurred. And when He says, 'I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and challenging people,' and 'Lord, who has believed our report?'—these words are presented as if describing events that have already happened. I have shown that Christ is often called a Stone in parables and symbolic language, using names like Jacob and Israel. Moreover, when He says, 'I shall behold the heavens, the works of Your fingers,' without understanding His way with words, I would misunderstand, as do your teachers, who mistakenly think that the Father of all, the unbegotten God, has hands, feet, fingers, and a soul like a physical being; and therefore, they teach that it was the Father Himself who appeared to Abraham and to Jacob.
Blessed are we who have been circumcised a second time with stone knives. Your first circumcision was and is done with iron tools, for you remain hard-hearted. But our circumcision, the second one, which came after yours, cuts us off from idolatry and every kind of wickedness with sharp stones, through the words preached by the apostles of the cornerstone that was cut out without hands. Our hearts are circumcised from evil so that we gladly die for the name of the good Rock, which causes living water to flow for those hearts that by Him have loved the Father of all, and offers water of life to those willing to drink. But you do not understand me when I speak of these things because you have not realized what it was prophesied Christ would do, and you do not believe us when we draw your attention to what has been written. For Jeremiah cries out: 'Woe unto you because you have forsaken the living fountain and have dug for yourselves broken cisterns that can hold no water. Shall there be a wilderness where Mount Zion is, because I gave Jerusalem a bill of divorce in your sight?'