Leviticus 25:15

And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family

I met an elderly gentleman close to 90 at a local course last year. He told me he plays five days a week, Monday through Friday at 8 am each morning. He went on to add he doesn’t play Saturday or Sunday because those days are for the working man to play. He said the Lord has blessed him with the health to play five days. He felt “the working men need to have the course on Saturdays and Lord’s house needs me on Sunday.” Plus, he said he had to rest up for Monday morning. What a testimony!

The year of Jubilee was to be a glorious time for the observant Hebrew. Every seven years, all debts and obligations were to be forgiven. The year of the Jubilee was celebrated the year after seven times the seven years of the Sabbatical or on the 50th year. This year was hallowed. No work was to be done in the fields, slaves were set free by the master, and loan debts were forgiven. The people were without excuse to praise God for His bestowed blessings. Indeed, it was a few days off!

The year of the Jubilee was a time to be thankful to our God for his rich blessings. Instead of just a Sunday of church worship, it was an entire year of worship. We too were slaves and debtors to our sinful condition. In our time of Jubilee, our sins and debts were eternally forgiven. Much praise is due him. When we take time off from our usual vocation, much of it should be to worship and glorify our Lord for the many blessings he has bestowed upon us. Ironically, the more we are blessed by our Lord, the more we feel the need to serve Him. The farms were prosperous during the Sabbatical year and following year of Jubilee. The crops flourished even though no one tended to them. This harvest greatly reflected the hand of God since man had no hand in it.

Additionally, we should act in the spirit of forgiveness to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We do not do so in anticipation of a greater blessing from God, but we act in total gratitude of the freedom we have through His son. Forgiving the debt of others often results in a monetary loss for the creditor. However, the larger the debt forgiven, the more the debtor feels blessed.

We are living in a constant spiritual state of Jubilee through our salvation in Christ. We have great freedom and are without any bondage or debt other than under the obligations in which we voluntarily place ourselves. Sometimes it is good to take some time off and realize our greater blessings in every aspect of our life.