Sunday: Covenant First
Daily Lesson for Sunday 9th of November 2025
Read Joshua 5:1-7. Why did the Lord command Joshua to circumcise the second generation of Israelites at this particular time of the conquest?
After the exploration of the country, the encouraging report of the spies, and the miraculous crossing over the Jordan, we would expect an immediate engagement with the enemy. However, there is something more important than the military conquest: Israel’s covenant with God.
Image © Pacific Press at Goodsalt.com
Before the new generation could engage in taking the land, they needed to be fully aware of their special relationship with the Owner of the land. The renewal of the covenant sign comes as a response to God’s gracious and miraculous act of bringing Israel safely across the Jordan.
Our covenant with God should always be an answer of gratitude for what He has already accomplished for us, never an act of trying to obtain some benefit by legalistic conformity to His requirements. (This same concept, no doubt, was crucial to Paul’s struggles with those who insisted that Gentile male converts be circumcised, as seen most clearly in his letter to the Galatians.)
Israel was on the verge of the greatest military campaign of its history, and we would expect the whole camp to be busy with war preparations. It was, but not in the conventional sense. Instead of harnessing the horses and sharpening the swords, they engaged in a ritual that left most of the fighting force vulnerable for at least three days.
They did this in order to celebrate their relationship with their God, who delivered them from Egypt. Why? Because they recognized that the battle belongs to the Lord. He is the One who grants them victory and success. Jesus formulated the same principle in slightly different words: “ ‘But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you’ ” (Matthew 6:33, NKJV). Most of the time, everyday life seems to pressure us with the urgency of so many important things that we forget to give priority to the most important thing in our life: the daily renewal of our commitment to Christ.
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Think about the times you have neglected time with God because of more “important” matters. Why is this so easy to do, and how can we fight against it? |
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There was a time in my life when I did not take part in the ritual of foot-washing. I had a dermatitis condition where the skin of my feet was quite flaky. It was during this time we coincidentally discussed communion on this Sabbath School Net forum. I remember writing a comment, mentioning my non-participation in the ceremony and pointing out that it had given me a pause to consider its real intention. I was quite surprised that a number or commenters tried to persuade me that my non-participation in footwashing was a serious impediment to my salvation. I was touched by one person who said that he would happily wash my feet even though they were diseased.
It was a useful discussion because we often go through these sort of church rituals because they are part of the scenario and forget that they are not just there to be obeyed. I submit that if we all made a serious effort to put things right between one another, as was the original intention, then there would be no need for the ritual. How many of us simply wash the feet of the most convenient person available, chosen on our way to the foot-washing.
We can argue at length about circumcision but our focus should probably be not on the ritual itself but its intent.
Foot washing has the stamp of approval as Jesus Himself made a deliberate decision to demonstrate the ultimate act of humility, offering cleansing to all who are willing to receive it, from the heart. Because as humans, we cannot decern the hearts of men (Jer. 17:9), we may determine to follow the example Christ laid out for us and wash one another's feet, making a public show of our personal conviction; that conviction being that while performing this Ordinance of Humility, self may be crucified and in humility, one willingly serves his/her friend, frenemy and enemy, together, being reconciled to Christ.
I'm glad you refrained from foot washing while your feet were diseased, Maurice.
Your story teaches an important lesson: religious acts are not meant to be done merely out of routine or obligation, but from a heart that understands their true purpose.
For example, foot-washing symbolizes love, humility, and service toward others.
If we participate in such acts without reflecting on love, reconciliation, and genuine service, the act becomes empty and spiritually meaningless.
The Bible emphasizes that it is the intent of the heart that matters most:
> “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” — Matthew 7:21
So the heart’s attitude is more important than outward compliance.
Yes, it is the intent that is important. Speaking on foot washing, I don't see the humility in washing a spouse feet at communion service. It is even more than convenience. Why have our churches adopted this Change? It is not Biblical based nor is it modest. Why is a husband washing his wife feet next to another woman? Women often need to lift their skirts or dress and always take off shoes and socks or stocking.It will lead to looking on the opposite sex,a distraction, instead of people meditating on the act Christ performed. This is unsacred action. It leaves out single people and takes away from the number available to wash visitors feet and thereby not be welcoming to visiting guests. This needs to stop. For foot washing, return to male and female rooms only.
We're getting a bit off-topic, Melanie. 😉 But you bring up a topic that been on my mind for a while.
Foot washing has an interesting history in the Seventh-day Adventist church. Originally, men and women washed each others' feet. Some thought women should wash men's feet, and not the other way around.😉 Keep in mind that these were not couples washing each others' feet. Problems soon became evident, and the believers decided on segregating the men and women so that men only washed men's feet and women only washed women's feet. I think we can all see the wisdom in that arrangement.
I remember the first time the spousal foot washing was suggested some decades ago. It was recommended for partners that were having difficulties with each other. A small room was reserved for the purpose. It seemed rational at the time, but now I see that it was the beginning of the compromise of a biblical principal. Husbands and wives can wash each others' feet at home, and I believe that takes more humility than performing a rite at church. Spousal foot washing is not a communal church activity, but a family activity.
Then, just five years ago, when we moved to a different area and I tried to join the women for foot washing I was clearly told by a guardian deaconess at the door that I was supposed to join the couples, not join the single women! So the spousal foot washing had grown from an occasional aberration to a spiritual requirement. (The woman most vocal in excluding me is now a dear friend. 😊)
I believe spousal foot washing in church to be subversion of Scripture that circumvents the original intent. The original intent was for members of the church family to perform acts of humility symbolizing mutual subjection to each other. This is now missing, as couples wash each others feet, and the only ones that have the option to wash feet outside of the family are single people.
The practice of spousal foot washing is also bad for another reason: It is exclusionary and draws a clear line of distinction between married members and single members. I don't know about your church, but in our church, the largest room is now for couples, and single people are shunted off into smaller side rooms.
But each of us married people can make a difference. We can join the men or women for foot washing and explain why we are not washing our spouse's feet. It's because the foot washing service was designed for the church family to act out service to each other, not for husbands and wives to isolate themselves from the church family.
We can also do more than that: We can speak to our pastors and friends and point to the biblical example. If we are church officers, we can speak up on the board to effect a change. (Our local pastor says it's up to the church. But it seems to me that, if the pastor believes the biblical example, it is his duty to preach it.)
What will you do to correct this aberration in church practice?
Or is this not happening in your part of the world?
What you describe is definitely the reality in my church, though some married people still choose to wash other people's feet. But the largest room is the couples or family room. A lot of people apparently go there now including dating couples. I'm not sure I agree with that.
I am not opposed to couples sometimes washing each other's feet, but I think it should be the exception not the rule. I feel the vast majority of couples go there because they are not comfortable washing the feet of people and the couple element makes it easier.
In my church it was a pastor that began the couple room and no one since then has felt inclined to change it. I'm not sure that it would be well-received if I tried. I'm not sure which is worse - having a couples room which I don't think is the best or having many people skip footwashing which would likely happen if it was eliminated. There are some couples that sometimes take part together and sometimes don't, but the vast majority are always in the couple room. So they would be the majority.
Ordinarily, circumcision was meant to be done on the eighth day after birth (Genesis 17:9-12). The number eight symbolises new beginnings. Therefore, each new generation was consecrated to God from infancy. God instituted this rite to Abraham and his descendants as an outward mark of an inward relationship. It was a seal of belonging to God’s covenant community. It was an identity marker saying, “We are a people in relationship with Yahweh.” Unfortunately, as Israel was on the move from Egypt to the promised land, it failed to undertake this very important rite. However, God, who knows all circumstances, was there at the appropriate time to instruct Joshua to do it. How does God relate to us in times when we delay or neglect to do His will? . What lessons can we learn from this episode?
a) Excuses and delays – Israel might have rationalised disobedience, “we are a people on the move, this is not the right time”. Likewise, we too might say, “I will serve God when life is more settled….when my finances get better….when I retire….”. Obedience should not depend on our circumstances. Delays imply that we do not trust God’s sustaining power.
b) God knows and understands our struggles, but He still requires obedience from us – God patiently waited until it was the right time to require obedience from Israel. God does not waive His will. Divine patience is not divine indifference. God’s grace gives sinners time to repent, but God cannot be hoodwinked.
c) It is never too late to return to obedience – Israel delayed for 40 years to undertake circumcision again, but God’s promise did not expire. God’s grace has the power to give us a new beginning. When the time was ripe, God opened a new opportunity for restoration.
d) Obedience (circumcision) might cause inconvenience, but it leads to victory and blessings.
Excuses have the potential to delay and neglect obedience, but God’s mercy provides new beginnings.
Thank you for this deep insight. When we hear His voice, we must not harden our hearts further. May we be able to see the window of another chance being given to us to be obedient, and in honor for God's grace take it and be restored.
Great insight on the subject. Am blessed
I am glad you moved to foot-washing! As this series of lessons shows, there are literally dozens of violent occasions in the history of God's relationship with the Israelites. Today we find many of these actions, rituals and outcomes to be repugnant. Im so glad we have got beyond all that.
From Ellen G. White's Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 137.4a, "...the rite of circumcision was given to Abraham as 'a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised.' Rom.4:11. It was to be observed by the patriarch and his descendants as a token that they were devoted to the service of God and thus separated from idolaters, and that God accepted them as His peculiar treasure."
So many times in my life, I'm neglectful to take the time to spent time connecting with Jesus, although I consistently claim Him as my best Friend. In my times of "busyness", He tends to be the first and regular casualty.
Here is a stark reminder that as I head into the final stages of the Great Controversy, as did Israel before the conquest of the rest of the Promised Land, I will need more intentionally than ever before to seek God First, in spite of my "busyness", while simultaneously recognizing that it is not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord that ever triumph will be attained. This will be my token of devotion to the service of God.
There comes a time when we feel that God's instructions don't make sense and circumcision at this point in time truly seemed illogical, silly and an act that needed to wait or be delayed at least since it was involving incapacitatation of all men under 40 who Joshua badly needed the for combat! Joshua at this time was leading Israelites into hostile territory, and just after crossing the Jordan, they were camped near Jericho their enemies could have easily attacked. To disable all his fighting men through circumcision was, by human reasoning and standards a strange and risky act. Yet Joshua obeyed because God commanded it, showing that obedience to God must not be humananly logical. As Scripture says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5–6).
In obeying God's command and covenant, Joshua demonstrated complete faith in God’s protection and promise. The act of circumcision at Gilgal was not about military strength but spiritual readiness it renewed Israel’s covenant relationship with God (Genesis 17:9–14; Joshua 5:2–9). Though it seemed a big strategic mistake, it made perfect sense spiritually: God wanted His people to depend entirely on Him, not their swords. After their obedience, God honored them with victory at Jericho, proving that faithful trust always brings divine triumph (Joshua 6:1–20).
After Sabbath yesterday, during our visitation, we met a certain family and we introduced the family to the love of God and reflected on all He has done for humanity from creation to the gift of His only Son. Reading Romans, we saw that though the law demanded death, Christ took that penalty on our behalf. The family was deeply moved, filled with gratitude as they viewed Calvary with new eyes.
The lesson on “Covenant First” reminds us that our relationship with God must come before our actions for Him. Our obedience is not the price of God’s favor it’s the proof of it. Christ already fulfilled the covenant through His perfect life, death, and resurrection.
“If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Love comes first; obedience follows as fruit, not payment. Sound doctrine should lead us to Christ-centered living, not self-centered righteousness.
The covenant is about transformation, not transaction faith precedes works, love motivates obedience, and salvation remains God’s gift, not our achievement.
Thank you Hillary for a clearer understanding of the relationship between the law, grace,faith and righteousness. "Love comes first. Obedience follow as fruit, not payment."
But seek ye first the kingdom of God. Renew our covenant by forgetting ourselves and magnifying the Lord. The first act every day is to fall afresh with our first Love...
All these should be our rising mandate for daily overcoming.
I am reminded that overcoming does not mean the absence of war and daily struggles and crucibles, but it guarantees the victory over the wars that will present itself during the day. God wants us to remember that the battle is not ours it's the Lord.
I focused during the study on the fact that the Israelites should have been sharpening tools for war... humanly speaking, but God directed them to sharpen tools for the renewal of His Covenant with them... spiritually seeking.
His ways are not our ways, but they are always right.
His track record says we can trust Him and so similarly, God wants to set up memorials in our lives that would cause us to forget what is happening around us and focus on what is happening within us, the heart of the matter of life thereby giving us the opportunity to take fresh guard, to re-adjust, to renew, to re-focus, to revive in order to face triumphantly the issues of life. We can trust God because He knows what is going to happen to us every minute of our lives. He knows the future and desires nothing more than to give us an expected future and not to harm us Jeremiah 29:11.
... _today is a good day to renew our covenant with God_
I have always been confused, and I am still confused about circumcision being a covenant relationship with God in the old testament, but not today. Has God changed? If he has changed, then what has changed? He is still God and we are still human.
I'm not an expert, but I believe there are three things to keep in mind.
1. Circumcision was instituted because of Abraham's lack of faith. It was given as a symbol after he tried to get a son through Hagar. So it was a necessary symbol, but to compare it to something like the Sabbath that existed in a perfect world would be inappropriate.
2. The Jews badly misused circumcision. It became a badge of their special status rather than a symbol of trust in God. In many respects it was corrupted.
3. After the cross, Baptism became the main covenant symbol. I'm glad that is the case as circumcision is only for men. I can't see it being an ideal symbol.
Well, that a good point Christina. 🤔
Seems like everyone has a different opinion on foot washing. I personally like washing my spouse's feet. I don't plan on changing.
At that time, circumcision would have been the outward sign of one who has accepted the God who brought the children of Israel out of the land of bondage of those who worshipped false gods. Today, outside of the Jews, it is promoted as a matter of health, but the matter of the spiritual 'circumcision' of the heart has not changed.
Kerubo’s comment quotes Ellen G. White: “... The rite of circumcision was given to Abraham as ‘a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had - yet being uncircumcised.’ And this might just be the best explanation concerning the spiritual aspect contained in the physical ‘circumcision’ – Righteousness of/by Faith in God - Rom.2:27-29.
The lesson is titled ‘Covenant First’. The Covenant between God and His people based on faith in the Righteousness of God. Outwardly signed by the acceptance of circumcision, inwardly/spiritually accepted for the cleansing of the believer’s heart - turning away from sin to loving and obeying God.
It is the Holy Spirit which achieves the ‘circumcision of the heart’ for man and women alike in order to enable us to love our God – Deut.30:6; Acts 7:51; Phil. 3:3; Col.2:11.
The priority has to be the worship of our Maker. We owe everything to Him: our breath and every accomplishment. God is to be the center of our lives, always.