The year of Jubilee

The Year of Jubilee

Buried in the pages of Leviticus you will find an interesting command.  God tells His people, the Israelites, to practice what God called 'The year of Jubilee'.  Basically here is how it was to happen.
First, mark off every 50 years and call it a year of Jubilee.  During that year have fun--don't work.  Celebrate being God's chosen people.  Don't plant crops, work the fields or gather a harvest of any kind.  Just party!
Second, cancel all debts.  If money was owed for things--the debt is cancelled.
Third, if for certain reasons property had been sold some time during the previous 50 years, the land was returned to the original owner.  Every 50 years the land allotted to a family would be returned.
Wow!  Hardly capitalism!

Here's the reasons why an Israelite was to celebrate the year of Jubilee:
First, he does not own anything.  God owns everything.  The Israelite is just a stewart.“The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you arestrangers and sojourners with Me.” Leviticus 25:23 (NJKV).  What the Israelite has, he has by grace, not his brains, hard work or diligence.  He has what he has by grace and by faith and obedience to this law.  Think of this.  Not only was there this year of Jubilee, there is also this law.  Every seven years he has to treat his land like it was the 50th Jubilee year.  He cannot gather a harvest--he is to leave his land fallow.  That makes no sense, except to a person who lives by grace and walks by faith and obedience. 
Second, the year of Jubilee helps him NOT to take advantage of people.“Show your fear of God by not taking advantage of each other. I, the LORD, am your God.” Leviticus 25:17, (NLT).  There was a code between Israelites--they were all on the same page.  If a person was having a difficult year, another Israelite could not advance himself at the cost of a fellow Israelite.
Third, their submission to this program ensured the following:
a)  So much food, he would end up tossing out the grain from the previous years. God promised such a blessing that the Israelites would be rich.
b)  He and his descendants could stay in the promised land for ever and ever.
c)  He would have lots of children.
d) God would live among them.

““I will look favorably upon you and multiply your people and fulfill my covenant with you. You will have such a surplus of crops that you will need to get rid of the leftovers from the previous year to make room for each new harvest. I will live among you, and I will not despise you. I will walk among you; I will be your God, and you will be my people.” Leviticus 26:9-12, NLT.


For us today, all this boils down to something very similar.  We are stewarts.  What we have we are to use for God's kingdom and God's glory.  We need to be more generous-- less grabby--and more focused on God's generosity.  We need to keep praying; "Lord, what do you want me to do with my stuff, my house, my money?"  After-all, as the old saying goes:  'You will never see a u-haul trailer behind a hearse.'




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