Gilgal: Rolling Stones (1 Of 4) Series

Joshua 5:9 – “Then the Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.’ So the place has been called Gilgal to this day.”

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Introduction – No Satisfaction to Gilgal

Back in 1965, a band called The Rolling Stones released a song that went straight to number one. Some of you know it well: “I can’t get no… satisfaction.”

Mick Jagger sang about trying and trying, chasing after everything the world advertised — success, pleasure, possessions — but every time he reached out, his hands came back empty. “I try, and I try, and I try, and I try… but I can’t get no satisfaction.”

And isn’t that the cry of humanity? Ecclesiastes 1:8 says, “The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.” People chase careers, relationships, money, entertainment, but without Christ, they end the day empty.

But the Bible talks about another place of rolling stones. Not a band, but a city. Not a song of emptiness, but a promise of fullness. That place was called Gilgal.

Joshua 5:9 says, “Then the Lord said to Joshua, Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” And they called the place Gilgal, which means “rolling away.”

At Gilgal, God rolled away the shame of the past. At Gilgal, God cleared the clutter of Egypt’s reproach. At Gilgal, God said: “You are no longer slaves, you are My covenant people. You are no longer bound to yesterday, you are free to step into promise.”

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1. Gilgal: The Rolling Away of Shame

Israel had wandered for forty years in the wilderness. A whole generation was born and raised in the desert, carrying the reproach of Egypt. They were out of Egypt, but Egypt was still in them.

And at Gilgal, God said, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” (Joshua 5:9)

Before they fought Jericho, before they raised a sword, before they took a single city, God said, “We must deal with your past.”

Isaiah 43:18–19 says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!”

Friend, you cannot walk into your future while dragging the chains of your past. Some of you are trying to conquer Jericho while still carrying Egypt. But Gilgal is where God says: “Lay it down. Roll it away. The shame no longer defines you.”

Romans 8:1 declares, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” At Gilgal, the reproach is rolled away.

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2. Saul at Gilgal: The Clutter of Compromise

But Gilgal is not only about rolling away shame. It’s also about rolling away compromise.

In 1 Samuel 15:2–3, God told Saul: “Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have.” The Amalekites were Israel’s tormentors, sneak attackers, always striking from behind (Deuteronomy 25:17–18). They symbolized the flesh — ambushing when least expected.

But when Saul came back from battle, 1 Samuel 15:9 says, “Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves.”

When Samuel confronted him, Saul insisted, “I have obeyed the voice of the Lord.” But Samuel replied, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears?” (1 Samuel 15:13–14).

And Samuel declared, “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.” (1 Samuel 15:22)

There at Gilgal, Saul lost the kingdom because he refused to roll away the clutter.

Galatians 5:9 warns, “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” Friend, Agag may look small, but left alive, he will destroy you. You either kill Agag, or Agag will kill you.

Some of us are carrying Agags into church — little sins we excuse, habits we protect, compromises we justify. But Gilgal says: “Deal with it. Don’t coddle Agag. Roll it away.”

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3. Elisha at Gilgal: Clearing Out the Old Life

When Elijah threw his mantle on Elisha, 1 Kings 19:20–21 says, “He left the oxen and ran after Elijah… Then he took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went after Elijah and assisted him.”

Elisha slaughtered the oxen. He broke up the plows for firewood. He had a barbecue farewell party and burned the bridges behind him.

Why? Because Elisha knew: “I cannot carry the mantle if I keep the plow. I cannot follow the call with a backup plan.”

That’s Gilgal. That’s rolling away the clutter. Burning the plow. Clearing the old life.

Jesus said in Luke 9:62, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” Elisha was all in. No turning back.