15 We will give our consent to you on one condition only: that you become like us by circumcising all your males.
Religious form without any substance. One of Israel’s granddaughters has been raped. The father of the young man has come to try to make it right, to get the girl for his son and to make peace with the family. Israel’s family is furious, so they act cunningly. They ask them to perform the religious ritual that signifies the separation of Jews from non-Jews of the time. They don’t explain the circumcision ritual, that it is a sign of the agreement between the Lord and His people. They give them the form without the substance. A modern parallel might be water baptism. I does no good to just dunk someone under water. It is only when someone has come to a saving relationship with Jesus that water baptism has any meaning. We must be careful of religious form without substance. Let’s make sure that we understand the meaning of what we do. Let’s not do things just because they have always done it that way.
The Arnold Journey 