Covenant FirstRead 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.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’ ” (Matt. 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.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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