If it had not been for the covenant of grace entered into in the stillness of eternity, God would have destroyed the whole human race the instant Adam fell. The fury of God’s wrath upon sin is so intense that it caused Christ to sweat blood in the Garden of Gethsemane. He took upon Himself to be made sin for His church. 2CO 5:21 says, "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

In GEN 2:17 we read, "...for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." That penalty of death was to be instant; it was to be in that day. The covenant of grace that Christ had entered into with the Father to take the penalty and fulfill the law obtained the forbearance of the Father, so Adam and the whole human race were not instantly destroyed in hell.

We see Christ’s pledge to fulfill the law and the prophets in the ceremonial law. The covenant of circumcision was Christ’s pledge to keep the whole law for His church. The burnt offerings were Christ’s pledge to pay the penalty and cleanse His church from sin with His blood. Christ’s pledge is revealed in the Old Testament ceremonial laws. It was in those burnt offerings that we see the type of the wrath of the Father coming down upon sin. It was in those burnt offerings that we see how the Father was appeasing His wrath with the sacrifice of His Son.

As noted earlier, in REV 13:8 we read how "...the Lamb [was] slain from the foundation of the world." It was the Father’s eye looking upon that perfect pledge in the covenant of grace that restrained His wrath for His people before Christ came and fulfilled the law for His church.

In HEB 9:13 we read, "For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"

The Lord wants us to serve Him with fear (holy reverence) and without reservation. He wants us to serve Him with our whole heart. Scripture says, "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself..." without reservation to serve God’s intent of the law. It points to how that "...blood of bulls and of goats and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean," typifies the blood of Christ that purges away all guilt. The Old Testament sacrifices were the pledge of the coming of Christ to purchase the remission of sins for His church by fully satisfying the law.

In HEB 9:21-22 we read, "Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission." This shedding of blood that took place through all these ceremonial laws was Christ’s pledge that He would come and pointed to the covenant of grace wherein Christ covenanted to come to pay that penalty for sin with the shedding of His blood.

In that ceremonial law we also see circumcision. What was that? Circumcision was Christ’s pledge to satisfy the law with perfect obedience. Salvation is two-fold. Two things were necessary for Christ to accomplish to earn our salvation. He had to come in our place and fulfill that covenant of works with perfect obedience. The Old Testament church had His pledge that Christ would come in the way of perfect obedience; this was the covenant of circumcision which served as the hedge around about that blood of the covenant, around that wine press spoken of in MAT 21:33, to keep out the unrepentant. No person can come under the blood of Christ without repentance.

Circumcision was Christ’s pledge to satisfy the law with perfect obedience. In Gal 5:3 we read, "For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law." That circumcision covenant was to pledge that Christ would come, and that He would be a debtor to do the whole law for His church.

Look at what we read in GAL 4:4, "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law." Christ was sent under the law to fulfill our debt of obedience under the law. He was brought under that pledge of circumcision to come and fulfill the whole law for His church. We have to understand that Christ was sent not only to pay the penalty, but also to fulfill that broken covenant of works. Both of these were co-essential to our salvation. When the fullness of time came "God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law." That circumcision of Christ on the eighth day bound Him to the pledge. He became a debtor to do the whole law and fulfill that law with perfect obedience, i.e., fulfill the intent of the law.

In GAL 5:5 we read, "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith." It is righteousness by faith in Christ; it is by the faith of Jesus Christ. Abraham saw his righteousness in the circumcision of Christ, by faith. By faith Abraham saw the imputed righteousness of Christ, i.e., Christ’s conformity of life to the divine law which was pledged in the circumcision of Christ.

In JOH 8:56 we read, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad." Abraham received circumcision as a seal that the obedience of Christ was imputed to him by faith-- even as the burnt offerings were a type of the sacrifice of Christ being imputed to him to remove the penalty of sin.

In ROM 4:11 it says, "And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised...." We have to understand that word sign as taken from the original means a type.

The circumcision of the flesh was a type of that circumcision of the heart. It was a type of that true work of repentance, of true conforming to the image of Christ, of that work of sanctification in the soul. It was a seal of the imputed righteousness of Christ by faith. The word seal means the mark of the genuineness. That righteousness, that circumcision of the heart, is a mark of the genuineness of the righteousness that Christ was coming to fulfill on Abraham’s behalf, which he saw by faith.

ROM 5:19 says, "For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." The perfect obedience of purchased our righteousness. Christ’s perfect obedience is imparted to us as our perfect conformity of life to the divine law. Christ’s righteousness being imparted to us was obtained by the Lord Jesus Christ when He came out of the grave on the third day which is typified by baptism. He came to perform the end, or intent, of the law.

Jesus was circumcised and baptized. When He was circumcised He became a debtor to do the whole law for His church. When He was baptized, He was marked for death to pay the penalty for sin.

We have to understand that the salvation for our souls has to be two-fold. We have to be redeemed from the penalty of the law by the perfect sacrifice of Christ for the payment of the penalty. We also have to be redeemed from our debt of disobedience to the law by His perfect obedience. We have to be redeemed because we are no longer capable of performing perfect obedience to the law. We need the imputed righteousness of Christ in the way of obedience, as well as His atonement to remove the penalty.

Now we see how when He was circumcised He became a debtor to do that whole law for His church. When He was baptized He was marked for death to pay the penalty. Therefore, we are complete in Him. We see that we are perfectly complete in Christ. He has come not only to take away the penalty of sin, but He has also come to fulfill the full intent of the law by way of perfect obedience.

In COL 2:10-11 we read, "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power. In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ." That circumcision of Christ must be imputed to us. We must have that circumcision of Christ as our pledge, as our emblem, and as our badge of perfect obedience being imputed to us. It says, "In whom also ye are circumcised [How?]... by the circumcision of Christ."

Continuing on with Verse 12 we read, "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." "Buried with him in baptism" means He was marked for death. There’s where it points to the paying of the penalty. We also see that baptism goes much deeper than that. He was marked for death to take away the Father’s wrath upon sin.

Christ was to be buried; He was to be raised again the third day, Why? So now we have His resurrection as the pledge of our justification. The resurrection of Christ is the New Testament pledge. The covenant of circumcision became fulfilled in the circumcision of Christ, therefore if we yet preach circumcision, we make the circumcision of Christ of none effect unto us; we remain a debtor to do the whole law.

This is what Paul is saying in GAL 5:2-4; and Verse 11; "Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace...And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased."