Deuteronomy 15: 1 – 23
Can I get a ‘second chance
15 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of debts. 2 And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the LORD’s release. 3 Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother, 4 except when there may be no poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance— 5 only if you carefully obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. 6 For the LORD your God will bless you just as He promised you; you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow; you shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you. 7 “If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, 8 but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs. 9 Beware lest there be a wicked thought in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,’ and your eye be evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing, and he cry out to the LORD against you, and it become sin among you. 10 You shall surely give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand. 11 For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land.’ 12 “If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. 13 And when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed; 14 you shall supply him liberally from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the LORD your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him. 15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today. 16 And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you, 17 then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise. 18 It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away free from you; for he has been worth a double hired servant in serving you six years. Then the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do. 19 “All the firstborn males that come from your herd and your flock you shall sanctify to the LORD your God; you shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock. 20 You and your household shall eat it before the LORD your God year by year in the place which the LORD chooses. 21 But if there is a defect in it, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the LORD your God. 22 You may eat it within your gates; the unclean and the clean person alike may eat it, as if it were a gazelle or a deer. 23 Only you shall not eat its blood; you shall pour it on the ground like water.
Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. We all need second chances. This isn’t a perfect world. We’re not perfect people. I’m probably on my 1000th second chance right now and I’m not ashamed to admit it. Because even though I’ve failed a lot, it means I’ve tried a lot too.
If you have any children then you can relate. When your child is an infant and falls while trying to walk you do not respond, ‘That’s it. Pack your bags and leave. You keep failing.’ Of course not!
We rarely get things right the first time. Almost every major accomplishment in a person’s life starts with the decision to try again and again – to get up after every failed attempt and give it another shot.
The only difference between an opportunity and an obstacle is attitude. Getting a second chance in life is about giving yourself the opportunity to grow beyond your past failures. It’s about positively adjusting your attitude toward future possibilities. Here’s how:
1. Let go of the past.
What’s done is done. When life throws us nasty curveballs it typically doesn’t make any sense to us, and our natural emotional reaction might be to get extremely upset and scream obscenities at the top of our lungs. But how does this help our dilemma? Obviously, it doesn’t.
The smartest, and oftentimes hardest, thing we can do in these kinds of situations is to be more tempered in our reactions. To remember that emotional rage only makes matters worse. And to remember that tragedies are rarely as bad as they seem, and even when they are, they give us an opportunity to grow stronger.
Every difficult moment in our lives is accompanied by an opportunity for personal growth and creativity. But in order to attain this growth and creativity, we must first learn to let go of the past. We must recognize that difficulties, mistakes, failures, and sins pass like everything else in life. And once they pass, all we’re left with are our unique experiences and the lessons required to make a better attempt next time.
2. Identify the lesson.
Everything is a life lesson. Everyone you meet, everything you encounter, etc. They’re all part of the learning experience we call ‘life.’
Never forget to acknowledge the lesson, especially when things don’t go your way. If you don’t get a job you wanted or a relationship doesn’t work, it only means something better is out there waiting. And the lesson you just learned is the first step towards it.
3. Lose the bad attitude.
The book of Romans chapter 8 teaches us that, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
God Is at work and He Is faithful to you and me. He watches over you and takes care of you. You are in good hands with The Lord Jesus.
5. Focus on the things you can change.
Some things are out of your control. The best thing you can do is do the best with what’s in front of you with the resources you do have access to.
Wasting your time, talent and emotional energy on things that are beyond your control is a recipe for frustration, misery and stagnation. Invest your energy in the things you can change.
6. Figure out what you really want.
You’ll be running on a hamster wheel forever if you never decide where you want to go. Figure out what’s meaningful to you so you can be who you were born to be.
Some of us were born to be musicians – to communicate intricate thoughts and rousing feelings with the strings of a guitar. Some of us were born to be poets – to touch people’s hearts with exquisite prose. Some of us were born to be entrepreneurs – to create growth and opportunity where others saw rubbish. And still, some of us were born to be or do whatever it is, specifically, that moves you.
Don’t quit just because you didn’t get it right on your first shot. And don’t waste your life fulfilling someone else’s dreams and desires. You must follow your intuition and make a decision to never give up on who you are capable of becoming.
In the book of Philippians chapter 4 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
7. Eliminate the non-essential.
First, identify the essential – the things in your life that matter most to you. Then eliminate the fluff. This drastically simplifies things and leaves you with a clean slate – a fresh, solid foundation to build upon without needless interferences. This process works with any aspect of your life – work projects, relationships, general to-do lists, etc.
Remember, you can’t accomplish anything if you’re trying to accomplish everything. Concentrate on the essential. Get rid of the rest.
8. be very specific.
You have to know what you really want. If you don’t know where you want to go then how will you ever know how to get there? When you set new goals for yourself, try to be as specific as possible
9. Concentrate on DOING instead of NOT DOING.
By relentlessly trying not to do something, we end up thinking about it so much that we subconsciously provoke ourselves to fail or fall – to do the exact thing we are trying not to do.
Instead of concentrating on eliminating bad habits or sins, concentrate on creating good habits (that just happen to replace the bad ones. After a few weeks or months of concentrating on this good habit it will become part of your routine. You’ll start doing the right thing without even thinking about it.
The Psalmist teaches an important help in 119 verses 1 -16, “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD! 2 Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart! 3 They also do no iniquity; They walk in His ways. 4 You have commanded us to keep Your precepts diligently. 5 Oh, that my ways were directed to keep Your statutes! 6 Then I would not be ashamed, when I look into all Your commandments. 7 I will praise You with uprightness of heart, when I learn Your righteous judgments. 8 I will keep Your statutes; Oh, do not forsake me utterly! 9 How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 10 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! 11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. 12 Blessed are You, O LORD! Teach me Your statutes. 13 With my lips I have declared all the judgments of Your mouth. 14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. 15 I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways. 16 I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.
10. Create a daily routine.
It’s so simple, but creating a daily routine for yourself can change your life. The most productive routines, I’ve found, come at the start and end of the day – both your workday and your day in general. That means, develop a routine for when you wake up, for when you first start working, for when you finish your work, and for the hour or two before you go to sleep.
If you love someone you want to be with that special someone as often as you can. I suggest that you begin you day with the One Who loves you and takes care of you. There is nothing better than to take a few verses from the book of Psalms and meditate on them as you enjoy a nice hot beverage. In the evening it is harder since we are so revved up. You should try to get alone before you call it a night and read a few verses from Proverbs. This way you go to be with the last thing on your mind is all about our Lord.
Doing so will help you start each day on point, and end each day in a way that prepares you for tomorrow. It will help you focus on the important stuff, instead of the distractions that keep popping up. And most importantly, it will help you make steady progress – which is what second chances are all about.
11. Maintain self-control and work on it for real.
The harder you work the luckier you will become. Stop waiting around for things to work out. If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting.
While many of us decide at some point during the course of our lives that we want to answer our calling, only an astute few of us actually work on it. By “working on it,” I mean truly devoting oneself to the end result. The rest of us never act on our decision. Or, at best, we pretend to act on it by putting forth an uninspired effort.
If you want a real second chance, you’ve got to be willing to give it all you got. No slacking off! This means you have to strengthen and maintain your self-control. The best way I’ve found to do this is to take one small bite at a time. Start with just one activity, and make a plan for how you will deal with troubles when they arise. It will be hard in the beginning, but it will get easier over time. And that’s the whole point. As your strength grows, you can take on bigger challenges.
Remember, life is not easy, especially when you plan on achieving something worthwhile. Achieving your dreams can be a lot of work, even the second time around. Be ready for it..
12. Forget about impressing people.
Just keep doing what you know is right. And if it doesn’t work, adjust your approach and try again. You’ll get there eventually.
When it comes to God we can't run out of second chances...only time.
I came across a song which is called ‘Second Chance. Here are the lyrics which I think you will like;
Lord I need to feel the touch of Your hand
Your will for my life I want to understand
Lord forgive me like only You can
For You’re the God of a second chance
Lord I'm tired of the way that I am
In Your love I want to live and stand
To adhere to Your every command
For You're the God of a second chance
Show me.
All of my wrongs
Forgive me
And make strong
Oh Save me
Restore my song
For You're the God of a second chance
You gave me
A second chance
You forgave me like only You can
You gave me
A second chance
Today I hope you come away with the Amazing Love our Holy Yahweh God has towards us. He knows we mess up and often. In His Great Love He wipes the slate totally clear ever 7 years. Wow, what a Holy and Loving Father we have folks.
15 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of debts.
The idea of looking after the poor and needy is being spoken of and continued from our last chapter study. It was not even intended to deal with general debt. Rather it was seeking to deal with the problem of debt for the poorest in the land. As with the three years it was a new announcement made on the verge of entering the land, making provision for the poor to be released from debt, for it was only when they had entered the land that men might find themselves in real hardship through debt. In the wilderness it was probably not such a problem.
Our Lord knew that the ownership of land, and the obligations and necessities connected with it, could bring problems with them, especially in times of shortage, which could put people into debt simply in trying to deal with them. So in the seventh year there was to be a ‘release’ (a ‘letting go’) from debt for those who were finding it hard to cope
The unwillingness of people to lend if they knew that they would not receive it back might be a better argument, but that is actually what verse 9 is all about. It declares that Israelites must be willing to lend even in spite of this release and the danger of losing their silver, because of what Yahweh would otherwise think about a man in destitution, left unaided, a position that would be a major slight on Him. It is difficult to see how a mere year’s delay could cause such unwillingness to lend. (Someone who felt such reluctance about a mere delay would be doing their best not to have to lend it anyway).
2 And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the LORD’s release. 3 Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother,
The release is to be granted to neighbors and brothers, not to foreigners. Again we must recognize that such borrowing between Israelites would only take place under circumstances of real need. It was not in that sense a ‘borrowing’ society. Thus the probability is that if the person had been unable to pay it back by the seventh year it would indicate deep poverty. That is why Yahweh in His goodness proclaims freedom from the debt.
4 except when there may be no poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance— 5 only if you carefully obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today.
A further reason for the release is that the need for it would only arise if Israel had been disobedient to Yahweh. For if they listened diligently to His voice, to observe all the commandments given by Moses, there would be no poor, and therefore no borrowers, among them, for Yahweh would then bless the land, which He had given them as an inheritance that they could possess, to such an extent that poverty would be ruled out. Thus the fact that there was a debtor would indicate Israel’s failure, and release of the debtor would be a kind of partial atonement for that failure.
6 For the LORD your God will bless you just as He promised you; you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow; you shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you.
A point is made that if they were truly faithful to Him and His covenant, and laid up their tithes as Yahweh decreed, Yahweh would so bless them that as a nation they would never need to borrow, while at the same time having so much in abundance that they would be in a position to lend to other nations. They would store up abundance of wealth for themselves. They would be creditors not debtors. Furthermore because of their wealth they would rule over many nations, for wealth brings power, but none would ever rule over them. This was the glittering future promised under the kingly rule of Yahweh that would follow true response and obedience.
Having laid down the law for the relief of debtors the question of those who might seek to avoid it is now raised. They are not to seek to avoid their responsibility; otherwise Yahweh will be displeased and will act accordingly.
7 “If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, 8 but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs. 9 Beware lest there be a wicked thought in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,’ and your eye be evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing, and he cry out to the LORD against you, and it become sin among you. 10 You shall surely give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.
In these verses we read of a sincere warning by our Great Yahweh God. This is a powerful demand that could be seen as having in mind postponement of a debt for one year as being something that hindered the lender from lending but the realities of life and the depth of argument in fact demand that the sacrifice required is seen as something much greater. Postponement of a debt for one year would quite frankly hardly have such an influence as this. It would be shrugged off as slightly unfortunate but not too much of a problem.
The whole point here is that the creditor is required to face up to something more extreme, to go beyond what would seem reasonable, and is required to make a financial loss, because his ‘brother’ is poor, and because Yahweh Is watching and may be appealed to, and because Yahweh Himself will reward him for willingly doing so. It is to be an exercise in loyalty and in compassion.
The reference here is to a would be borrower who is in desperate straits. He is a ‘poor man’, a ‘poor brother’, who comes and appeals to the heart. And the point being made is that no godly Israelite could possibly close his heart to such a person, even though it involved real loss, for that would be not like the Loving and Gracious Yahweh. To such they must not be tight-fisted but must be open-handed and lend whatever is needed at whatever reasonable cost? To do otherwise would put them in the wrong with Yahweh. Indeed to make such a refusal would be seen as a response to someone’s desperation that could only be made by someone utterly callous and totally ungodly. It would count before Yahweh as a sin against the covenant.
11 For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land.’
Again it is emphasized that we are dealing with a loan to the poor. For the practical truth is that the poor will never cease out of the land. The promise of verse 4 was very true, but it was dependent on a condition that would never be fulfilled. Our Holy God, knew the heart of man too well. Thus the command came that they must be open-handed to their fellow-countrymen, both to the needy, and to the poor, and that at the end of every seven year period all debt owed by the poor should be cancelled. This was to be out of compassion for them, out of loyalty to Yahweh, and because the poverty was in the end the fault of all Israel.
The result of these provisions would be that no one in Israel would be left destitute, neither the helpless resident aliens, the fatherless and widows, nor the families hit by extreme poverty through circumstance not of their own choosing. There would be no ‘poor’, for all would be provided for.
How does this information apply to us?The lesson for us is clear. We are to be concerned at the poverty of others and be willing to do what we can to help to alleviate that poverty, even making sacrifices in order to be able to do so. Indeed in many countries the laws of bankruptcy result in someone unable to repay a debt being finally released from it.
If you were from another country yet knew what the God of Israel was doing for His people you would want to be part of His kingdom. This glowing picture of a land where the poor were fully provided for, and where debtors were treated with such compassion, fits neatly into their looking to the place which Yahweh Himself will choose. The third (and sixth) year, together with the seventh year will be a manifestation of the glorious covenant between Yahweh and the people who have received His inheritance.
Similar generosity must be shown to ‘Hebrew bondsmen and bondswomen’ when they are released after completing their seven year contract. What follows is emphasizing attitudes of heart, both the generous attitude which must be shown to the bonds people when they leave service, and the wonderful relationship that could have been built up between maser and servant which went even beyond that. And while Exodus 21 has in mind a foreign Habiru, here Moses is speaking of a ‘brother or sister’, an Israelite or circumcised proselyte. The emphasis is all on the generosity and love which will be pleasing to Yahweh our Holy God Yahweh when they come to Him in worship.
12 “If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
There were a variety of different forms of service in Israel (and among their neighbors). Putting it simply these included hired servants, debt slaves who had to work off a debt by a period of service, and people who entered into a bond to perform service for a certain period in return for an initial payment or a guarantee of a livelihood or some other basis of obligation (bondsmen). The hired servant often survived in this way so that ‘a Hebrew man’ probably means that this man was taken on on the same basis as a hired servant. Then there were foreign slaves who were purchased or captured, and so on. The position of these last was permanent. But Leviticus 25.39-41 says that no Israelite must be enslaved by another Israelite. He may be purchased but he must be treated as though he were a hired servant and released in the year of Jubilee.
13 And when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed; 14 you shall supply him liberally from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the LORD your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him.
Because he is a brother/sister, when he is released he must be amply provided for with food of all kinds, on a level consonant with the wealth of the master who releases him. The master must give as Yahweh has blessed him and provide for him liberally with ample food and wine to take with him. He must not go away empty.
15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today.
The master will do this generously because he will remember that he himself had been a bondsman in the land of Egypt, and that he himself had been delivered by Yahweh Who had bought him out of his bondage. In gratitude he will be as generous as Yahweh has been to him. It is this generosity to his bondsman that is the major emphasis here. It will bring pleasure to Yahweh.
16 And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you,
However, even an Israelite bondsman/woman may prefer such service to being released and having to face the world. In those days such people could hold high and privileged positions and be seen as one of the family. They may well prefer to remain in their cozy secure spots. In that case they could request to become a permanent servant. This might especially appeal to an older person without family, or someone who might find it difficult to build a life on the ‘outside’. They would have a place for life in a satisfactory environment, loving and being loved.
17 then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.
This ceremony is paralleled in Exodus 21 but there it is an official one before justices. The fastening of the ear to the door represented him/her as becoming a member of the household forever. He/she had been permanently adopted into the household. All would recognize their ‘attachment’ to the household.
18 It shall not seem hard to you when you send him away free from you; for he has been worth a double hired servant in serving you six years. Then the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do.
On the other hand if the person opts for freedom, the contract being ended, the master must not be grudging about it. The master is promised that Yahweh will see his generous attitude and bless him in all he does.
Moses now reintroduces the firstborn males. These are Yahweh’s because He spared them on the night of the Passover and they must therefore be sacrificed to Him, with the meat originally going to the priests. They can therefore actually represent poor people and bondsmen before Yahweh, for they represented the firstborn who were spared in Egypt who were in such a situation (Exodus 13.2, 11-16), thus they fit very suitably here in a context of ‘the poor’. And in eating them before Yahweh, along with their servants and bondservants, the people will be assuring Him that they are being generous to the poor and to those of their brothers who experience bondage, as well as rejoicing in their own deliverance.
19 “All the firstborn males that come from your herd and your flock you shall sanctify to the LORD your God; you shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock.
The recognized responsibility is reasserted here. All the firstborn males born to herd or flock, that is the first male young that opened their womb, were to be seen as holy to Yahweh, being separated off for Him so that they could be taken to the place where Yahweh had chosen to dwell, to be presented to Him. And they were so seriously ‘holy’ (separated off to Yahweh as His) that no personal advantage was to be taken of them. No work must be done with them and they were not to be sheared. They must be kept pure from earthly activity. They were Yahweh’s right from the start and were to be treated as such. They were in total contrast with the poor and the bonds people who both had to work, and metaphorically could be ‘fleeced’. But those who ate the firstborn would remember what they themselves had been and how Yahweh had spared their firstborns and would behave rightly to the poor.
20 You and your household shall eat it before the LORD your God year by year in the place which the LORD chooses.
So the firstborns were to be taken to the Sanctuary year by year, in the year that they were born, by a household representative, and presented to Yahweh in the place which Yahweh would choose, there to be offered as a sacrifice after which they and their household could receive a share of them from the priests and consume them before Yahweh in a joyous religious feast in the place to which Yahweh had chosen to welcome them. And they could do it with a clear conscience because they had treated the poor well.
21 But if there is a defect in it, if it is lame or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the LORD your God. 22 You may eat it within your gates; the unclean and the clean person alike may eat it, as if it were a gazelle or a deer.
However, if the firstborn turned out to be blemished prior to this, whether through lameness, or blindness, or any other blemish whatsoever, it must not be taken to the sanctuary and presented before Yahweh, or be sacrificed to Him, it must be eaten at home (within their gates), and in this case both clean and unclean could partake of it for it is like the gazelle and the hart, clean, eatable but no longer sacred. The impression given, however, is that there was not the alternative of it being retained. It must be eaten. For it had at one stage been set apart to Yahweh.
The reason why something blemished could not be offered to Yahweh is the same as that which excludes the ‘unclean’. It was because they came short of perfection. To offer them to Yahweh or bring them to Yahweh would thus be an insult, for He is deserving of the very best. It is not that God looks with disfavor on the blemished, it is that man should not even consider offering such. The principle stresses to all men the perfection of God and that only the best should be offered to Him.
23 Only you shall not eat its blood; you shall pour it on the ground like water.
As always the blood must not be eaten or drunk. It must be poured out on the ground to Yahweh like an offering of water.
The lesson for us from the firstlings is that just as Israel gave of the first of all they received to God because He had delivered them from Egypt, only to receive some back again, so must we give the first of all we receive in gratitude to God, looking to Him to discover what we should do with it. The practice may need to be worked out, but the principle is clear, gratitude for what He gives us, and gratitude especially for His great Deliverance in Jesus Christ for which we should be willing to give Him all things.
