Leviticus 25
“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you,” Leviticus 25:2-6
God was trying to tell the Israelites that even the land needed a Sabbath rest. When we take a Sabbath rest, not only does it honor God, but it also helps to refresh us spiritually and physically. After we take this time of needed rest, we are rejuvenated and more readily equipped to handle the stresses of the rest of the week. We can be more efficient at our assigned tasks, more patient with others, and can more fully enjoy life. In the same way, the land would be able to produce more abundantly if it was able to rest periodically. There is no part of the created world that is exempt from the detrimental effects of the fall outlined in Genesis 3. The apostle Paul wrote “For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Romans 8:22). So make the time each week to rest, pray, enjoy God’s blessings, and spend time with God and family!
“You may ask, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?’ I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years.” Leviticus 25:20,21
The Lord promised the people that IF they followed His instructions about allowing the land to have a Sabbath rest, He would provide enough food for them. There are many places in the Bible where God promises to meet the needs of His people. Many times the promise is attached to a requirement that we need to follow His instructions and obey His commands in order to receive the blessing. One example is found in the book of Exodus: “But if you are careful to obey him, following all My instructions, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will oppose those who oppose you” (Exodus 23:22). In this instance, God was talking to the Israelites and asking them to obey whatever the angel told them to do. Another example is: “but whoever listens to Me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear or harm” (Proverbs 1:33). What blessings are you missing out on because of your disobedience in a certain area of your life? Pray to God for help to follow His will, then make the necessary changes and wait and see what God has in store for you.
“Even if someone is not redeemed in any of these ways, they and their children are to be released in the Year of Jubilee, for the Israelites belong to Me as servants. They are My servants, whom I brought out of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 25:54-55
God makes it clear in these verses that the Israelite people belonged to Him, and they were His servants. This was a great honor, and it allowed them to obtain certain freedoms during the year of jubilee, including being released if they had been enslaved. In a similar way today, anyone who professes faith in Jesus is one of God’s chosen people. Therefore, we are God’s servants. Everyone is a slave to something or someone. You can either be a servant to Jesus, doing God’s will with your life, or you can be a slave to the things of this world (money, possessions, work, etc.). The apostle Paul reminds us about Jesus’ death in 1 Corinthians 7:23: “God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.” Paul knew one of the greatest secrets to life: that there is true freedom when you are a servant of God, as opposed to being a slave to the world.