Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound;
on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo
throughout your land.
This fiftieth year you shall make sacred
by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants.
It shall be a jubilee for you
The LORD wants to set aside special times for us to draw near to him.
Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus (see Acts 3:19-20).
In order to receive the blessings of the jubilee we must repent and put aside injustice. Our enjoyment cannot be predicated on the misery of others. No dishonesty or cheating can be permitted. This is actually a bit of a challenge because the intentional focus on God that the jubilee requires means that we let our other work take a back seat. We don't sow or reap but instead rely only on what can be taken directly from the field. This tempts us, on the one hand, to ignore the jubilee, and on the other, to make up for the shortfall by dealing unfairly with others. Extreme examples would be stealing to have money for the collection plate or speeding to get to work on time.
The blessings of the jubilee are worth pursuing. Who doesn't need times of refreshing from the LORD? Yet in our modern world we are so committed to other things. We can't imagine setting them aside for a period of time. We make ourselves slaves to the way we choose to order our lives.
Herod is an example of how this slavery to one's own plans can get carried away. In John the Baptist he has an opportunity to find repentance, times of refreshing, and jubilee. But he is so committed to the normal order of things that he can't release himself from that commitment even when it goes awry.
The king was distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests who were present,
he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison.
We all have our areas of authority and kingship. But we need to recognize that these are not absolute. Before we even feel the temptation to act unjustly let us heed the prophets the LORD sends us. Let us make space in our lives for jubilee. We shouldn't have to work so hard to sell ourselves on the idea. It is an experience of joy that we will not otherwise know.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
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