God's Heart for Freedom
Opening Prayer
God of freedom, You have set my heart free. Let me bring Your freedom to the world.
Read Leviticus 25:8-17
[8] “‘Count off seven sabbath years-seven times seven years-so that the seven sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. [9] Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land. [10] Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each of you is to return to your family property and to your own clan. [11] The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines. [12] For it is a jubilee and is to be holy for you; eat only what is taken directly from the fields. [13] “‘In this Year of Jubilee everyone is to return to their own property. [14] “‘If you sell land to any of your own people or buy land from them, do not take advantage of each other. [15] You are to buy from your own people on the basis of the number of years since the Jubilee. And they are to sell to you on the basis of the number of years left for harvesting crops. [16] When the years are many, you are to increase the price, and when the years are few, you are to decrease the price, because what is really being sold to you is the number of crops. [17] Do not take advantage of each other, but fear your God. I am the LORD your God. Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What modern actions reflect the heart of Jubilee?Today’s passage showcases a wonderful, community-wide declaration of liberty. For the Israelites, every fiftieth year would see land returned to original owners, slaves freed, people returning home and a fallow year for the land. In this way God establishes measures to keep balance in the community of his people. The Jubilee prevented the accumulation of power or possessions to the extent that it damaged others. It ensured that no one was enslaved forever, in debt for a lifetime or inherited poverty. Jubilee is not solely an Old Testament theme. In Luke 4:18,19 Jesus proclaimed his fulfillment of the familiar text in Isaiah 61 which speaks of the liberation of captives and the year of the Lord’s favor. Today, although the fight against legalized slavery has largely been won, human trafficking, ethical trade and social justice remain prevalent issues in society. But God’s heart has not changed; he is still for freedom–both physical and spiritual. So whether we have little or much (talent, resources, finance, power), we have a responsibility to use what we have for God’s Kingdom and his glory.
Apply
Consider the ways in which you can implement the Jubilee principles of justice, peace, compassion and help for the poor.
Closing prayer
Righteous and loving God, open my eyes to the enslaved and to my part in bringing freedom.
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