Posts Tagged ‘jubilee’

Scripture reading for July 31st: Isaiah 49-51

“This is what the Lord says: “In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and reassign its desolate inheritances, to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “(Isaiah 49:8-9)

These next chapters of Isaiah tell of the “servant” of the Lord that will come to bring the promised comfort, salvation, and deliverance to God’s people.  God’s Word is very clear about the plans of the Lord to bring a deliverer.  Isaiah has already said that “Immanuel” would be born of a virgin. (Isaiah 7:14)  In Isaiah 9:5-6 He would be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Prince of peace!  His government would be without end!  In Isaiah 49:5-6 God tells  how He will form this servant in the womb.  This servant will bring Jacob back to Him and gather Israel.  Then God says that He will also make this servant a light for the Gentiles and bring His salvation to the ends of the earth!  The story is so plain now in light of the life of Jesus Christ and all the prophecies that He fulfilled and the mission of His church!

God has a “time of favor” when His salvation is available to all who will avail themselves of it!   This time began when Jesus Christ announced His mission with a quote from Isaiah in Luke 4:18: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Isaiah 61:1-2)  Notice how similar this quote is to our text for today’s devotion!   Jesus Christ announced His ministry of preaching, healing and deliverance to those in His home town of Nazareth.  They did not receive the message with the joy that was expected, however.  Those in the synagogue became furious and tried to throw Jesus off the brow of a steep cliff!  Not everyone responds to a “time of favor”.

In fact, the “time of favor” referred to the year of Jubilee during which every Israelite would have his inheritance restored!  If they had lost property through neglect or illness or bad business dealings, the property was to be restored and the inheritance was to be put back together.  It would be a joyous time of healing and restoration on the 50th years!  (Leviticus 25:8-13)  Jesus Christ was stating that He was their ‘Jubilee’!

Today we live in the “time of His favor” with promise of healing and restoration!  Be sure to thank the Lord for what He has done in Jesus Christ!  Share this good news with someone who needs favor today!

Scripture reading for February 10: Leviticus 24-27

In our culture, Golden anniversaries are special.  When a couple has been together 50 years there is always a celebration!  God also uses the 50th year as a special year.  He called it the year of Jubilee!  It was a year of freedom and restoration for all of God’s people.  On the 50th year, debts were to be forgiven and property that was taken or bought from the original owner was restored and given back.  On this year, no one was to work the land.  The land would be left to rest and whatever grew without any human effort was to  be used for food for the people.  It was a blessed time that the people looked forward to.  It pictured the reign of Messiah, when he would come and restore the fortunes and possessions of his people and vanquish their enemies.

The Jubilee was the culmination of 7 periods of 7 years.  After 6 years, the Israelites were to rest their land for a year.  God promised to provide enough for them in the 6th year to carry them through until the harvest of the 8th year.  There were to be 7 cycles of 7 years and following the 49th year, on the Day of Atonement, the priests were to sound the trumpet and announce the beginning of the Year of Jubilee! (Leviticus 25:8-10) What a joyous occasion!  God giving us a picture of his amazing restoration and rule of grace!

The problem was that the Israelites never took the Sabbath years every 7th year and they never did have a Year of Jubilee.  They knew about it because of Leviticus but failed to do what God asked.  When we fail to obey, God always has his way.  The Israelites went for 7o years of captivity in Babylon so that the land where they had lived and neglected God’s command could have it’s rest! (2nd Chronicles 36:20-21)  God has the final word!

In the New Testament we find the Jubilee in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 4, verses 18-19.  Jesus announces his calling and ministry by reading from Isaiah 61:1-2.  The proclamation of the “year of the Lord’s favor” is a reference to “Jubilee”!  Jesus is our Jubilee!  In him, we have restoration and a return of our stolen property.  God wants us to find our food, fulfillment, and blessing from his grace, not our own efforts!  Jubilee is a picture of Jesus’ provision for every person who trusts in Him by faith!

This is good news for us today as well!  We rest in what Jesus Christ has done for us.  We take a sabbath rest every six days!  We can remember the year of rest every seven years and be blessed with God’s grace to provide for us in supernatural ways.  When we think of Jubilee–God’s promise of restoration and provision for his people, we can be happy and celebrate!

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds  to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will be with the Lord forever.  Therefore encourage each other with these words. 1st Thessalonians 4:16-18