Jubilee
Vendee- September 24, 2003
After Jesus was baptized, he spent 40 days in a wilderness area, in prayer and drawing close to God, and under attack from the one who wanted to topple him from his high position of Messiah. Jesus won! He returned from the wilderness ready for his ministry and ready to fulfill the mission he was sent to fulfill. Then he went home, and we can read of this in:
Luke 4.14, 16-21. I’d like you to try to place yourself there, in that synagogue in Nazareth as Jesus read this portion of OT scripture, which all recognized as a prophecy of the Messiah proclaiming the Jubilee. What was the Jubilee? In the sequence of holy occasions that God prescribed for Israel, there was a weekly gathering (Sabbath), there were monthly gatherings (new moons), and there were annual gatherings (special holy days). Finally, there was to be an incredible occasion each 50 years (called Jubilee) in which all debt was forgiven and slaves were able to return to their properties- it was a time of release. We have no record that this ever occurred; maybe Israel was too selfish to permit it, or maybe other factors prohibited its occurrence- we don’t know.
However, in Nazareth, Jesus proclaimed the Jubilee- the favourable year of the Lord. Then he took his seat, which was the proper place for a teacher to give further comments on the reading, and he said, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing!”
This first sermon of Jesus consisted of three points: He was Messiah, the Jubilee had come, and His mission was one of liberation- of setting the captives free! Imagine how this would stir you, as you sat there. You’d be stirred with hope, wanting to believe this was true. You’d be skeptical, too, likely, as this homegrown boy made such a declaration. You might be stirred with some anger at the audacious statement. However, you’d want to believe it, too, as generations before you had wanted to experience what you had just experienced.
Jesus’ ministry can be called “Jubilee”. I’ve thought this would be a great name for a church, actually- “Jubilee”- as a body that reflects what Jesus’ ministry was, and is, all about. Let’s think about the points of Jesus’ sermon.
Jesus declared that he was Messiah. He quoted Isa.61.1, which is a messianic prophecy couched in Jubilee language and a phrase from Isaiah 42.7, “To open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who dwell in darkness from the prison.” Let’s turn there to see the context:
Isa. 42.1, 6, 7, 9, 10. This tells us about Jesus, the “Servant”, and the Messiah.
1. He is God’s chosen (elect) One (v.1).
2. He has the Spirit of God upon Him (v. 1).
3. His ministry brings justice to the nations (plural) (v. 1).
4. He is a covenant to the people (v. 6).
5. His work is to free those living in bondage (v. 7).
6. He declares “new things” (v. 9).
This ministry cannot fit within the framework of the old covenant. Let us remember the Jesus ministered before the New Covenant began- at the very end of the Old Covenant. Not until he died and rose did the New take effect. Jesus’ ministry, without question, was transitional, as he ministered to an old covenant people and under old covenant stipulations, while he began to inaugurate the new. The Messiah is now the elect One. Through the long centuries from the day when God told Abraham “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed,” God had slowly been narrowing ‘the elect’. First, it was through Isaac, and then it was narrowed as only Jacob, of Isaac’s sons, was chosen. Then the promise of rulership was narrowed to the house of David. Then it was narrowed even further to One who was to be born in Bethlehem. In fact, the prophecy of Isaiah speaks of ‘the elect ONE’. The disciples believed they had found him when they announced (John 1.41), “We have found the Messiah!” Jesus was the One, and from him flows out an incredible and joyful proclamation of blessing and forgiveness to all nations.
The ministry of the Messiah was to be a Spirit-filled ministry, and Jesus came that way (Lk.4.1, 14). No longer is the covenant limited to the ‘sons of Israel throughout their generations,’ but Jesus is to bring justice to the nations. No longer is the covenant the words engraved on two tablets of stone; Jesus is the covenant (Isa.42.6!). The ministry of this Servant is a liberating ministry. We see Jesus releasing the demonized (Lk. 4.31-36), rebuking fever (Lk. 4.38, 39), healing various diseases (Lk. 4.40) and preaching the gospel to the oppressed poor (Lk. 7.22). The coming of the Messiah is a new revelation- Lk. 4.36.
This Lukan passage and the OT scriptures quoted by Jesus in these verses openly teach that Jesus is the promised Messiah.
What was the Jubilee about and how did Jesus fulfill that, as He fulfilled each other day, thus bringing them to an end (Ga. 3.24)? We wrestle with this, to some degree, but have to recognize that these were in place to lead us to Christ, much as a map is something we use to get from our home to someplace we want to go. But once we’re there, we fold up the map and don’t look at it again because it has fulfilled its purpose.
Lev. 25.8-17- tells us a number of important details about Jubilee:
1. Started on the Day of Atonement (v.9).
2. Was ushered in with the blowing of a ram’s horn (v.9).
3. Was a proclamation of release to all inhabitants of the land (v.10).
4. Made provision for each to return to his own family and property (v. 10).
5. Allowed for no slowing or reaping (v.11).
6. Instructed the people to eat the crops directly out of the field (v.12).
7. Brought justice to all (vv.14-17).
The heart of the Jubilee was the proclamation of release to all of the land. Jesus used that word- Lk. 4.18, and it’s the same word that the LXX used in Lev.25.10. But, the NT expands the meaning of this word to include not only release, but also forgiveness of sin. In fact, this word became one of the key words used in the NT for forgiveness.
Jesus proclaimed both release and forgiveness. When he healed a woman a bit later (Lk. 13.10-17), he declared her forgiven, for instance.
One of the highlights at the coming of the Jubilee was that each person was to return to his own family and the land of his fathers. It is no accident that Luke records that Jesus went to Nazareth (Lk. 4.16). In his hometown, with his family present, Jesus announced that Jubilee had arrived.
While the Day of Atonement is not mentioned by name in the NT, the book of Hebrews shows how this OC Sabbath pointed forward to the atonement brought by Christ’s death on the cross. In the OC, the Day of Atonement had to be repeated every year. By contrast, see what happened in Christ:
Heb. 10.1-4, 12, 14- Jesus not only fulfilled the Day of Atonement, but the atonement He brought far superseded the OC concept of atonement. The Day of Atonement served as a pointer to direct the people to the death of Christ. But when this “one offering” was sacrificed, the function of the yearly Day of Atonement ceased to exist in the presence of the true atonement for sin: Jesus Christ.
The blowing of a ram’s horn ushered the Jubilee in. It was a way of proclaiming the good news of freedom, rest, and release to the captives. With the coming of Jesus, the fulfillment of the Jubilee, we see a proclamation of even better news than the OC Jubilee.
Lk. 2.10, 11; 4.14; 24.46,47.
The proclamation of the Jubilee pointed forward to the proclamation of the gospel. During the Jubilee there was to be no sowing or reaping- people were to eat the crops out of the field. We, actually, find Jesus behaving in this way with his disciples:
Matt. 13.1.
Jesus ushered in and fulfilled the Jubilee. The Jubilee was a shadow of a greater rest, a greater release, a greater redemption and a greater proclamation. The Gospels teach that Jesus “fulfilled” that to which the Jubilee pointed. As the Messiah, He proclaimed the favourable year of the Lord- the Kingdom rule of Christ. Not only did Jesus announce that Jubilee had arrived, but His ministry testified to that truth.
Conclusions
There is a tone to Jesus’ ministry that is too often missed in Christianity. There is joy that is not often present. There is acceptance and healing that is not often known. (I’m not speaking of physical healing, but of the emotional, spiritual and psychological healing that comes through Jesus.) So often, in Christianity, there is more putting hurt on people than lifting of it off. In the name of doctrinal purity, people take second place. Jesus always put people first. He ‘tramped’ on the Sabbath, for instance, and he broke ceremonial taboos to show that people and relationships are what his ministry is all about. He touched dead bodies, for instance, which shocked some who watched him, but which he used to teach about liberation and what is really important to God. Over the years, Christians have tramped on people of other colours, people of other faiths, people of other life-styles (a current issue in our country). Somehow, Jesus’ ministry brings Jubilee, and we need to capture that. I don’t know all about how to do that- I simply know this is what it’s all about and what our quest needs to be. We’ve been ones who tromped on people, too, in the name of doctrinal purity. Doctrine is not more important than people and relationships. Doctrine is a guide and gives a framework for action. Jesus put people first. On so many Sabbaths, he healed, showing people who thought they were so good because they kept that day that was required under the OC, but is not under the NC, that they were missing what it was all about. Jesus declared Jubilee when the nation had never done it, likely because they couldn’t stand to forgive debts and lost servants, and the like.
Where do we go with the message of Jesus fulfilling Jubilee? Let us permit this idea to go deep inside ourselves and let us ask God to reveal to us how it is meant to apply in our lives and in the lives of those we encounter in our living. Do we reflect Jubilee in our lives? Do we reflect the burden lifting of Jesus, or do we add burdens? Are there times we can lift, rather than add? To do this would seem to have us entering Jesus’ pattern of ministry.
I want us to think this concept through ourselves. It doesn’t mean that ‘anything goes’. It simply means that we find ways to put people before dogma and that we allow doctrine to inform us about how to do that. Some have stood firm on days, for instance, over the years, and would still add the burden that days can add to people’s lives, rather than accepting the biblical message that Jesus supercedes days. Some would ostracize people by colour, or other superficial qualities, rather than finding a way to reflect Jubilee to these people and finding a way to help them to enjoy what Jesus brought. May we be servants in the Jubilee nature of Jesus- our theme is that Jesus is our source of rest. May we be ones who serve ‘rest’ to others, as Jesus always does.
