A JUBILEE BLESSING by Larry W Peebles August 30, 2019 19.29
My wife and I celebrated 50 years of marriage this year. The Lord has been a major part of any success that we have had in our marriage, and He has told us to celebrate. In fact, He said celebrate all year, and declare a Jubilee blessing. At family gatherings and in our travels this year we have done just that. We have announced the occasion we are celebrating, given God the glory, and declared the Jubilee blessing over anyone who would listen.
The Jubilee was instituted by God as “a year of release”. It dealt largely with land, property and property rights. According to Leviticus, slaves and prisoners would be freed, debts would be forgiven, and the mercies of God would be particularly manifest. The Jubilee was announced by a blast from the shofar, which is a trumpet made from a ram’s horn. The sound burst forth to mark a celebration of liberty and joy.
Leviticus 25:8-13- “And you shall count seven Sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years; and the time of the seven Sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years. Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee to you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of itself, nor harvest the untended vine. For it is the Jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you shall eat only what is taken directly from the field. In this year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his own property.”
The Jubilee blessing meant that anyone in bondage (physical or spiritual) would be freed, including slaves and prisoners. Land and property would be offered back to the original owner or family. It was to be a year of great joy and liberty. It was to be a year free from the back-breaking work of agriculture. Debts (monetary and spiritual sin debts) were to be forgiven. Everyone and everything was to be released into freedom. It was to be a year of fresh starts and new beginnings.
So in our ministry travels this year, we gladly proclaimed these blessings from God over His people. In India, a Bishop over several hundred Christian churches declared a blessing over us in recognition of our year of Jubilee. It is so impactful it must be shared. Psalm 20: 1-5- “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble; may the name of the God of Jacob defend you; may He send you help from the sanctuary, and strengthen you out of Zion; may He remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice. May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your purpose. We will rejoice in your salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners. May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.”
David wrote approximately half of the 150 psalms in the Book of Psalms. This Psalm of David is an assurance of God’s saving work. There are seven blessings or assurances contained in the first five verses-
- “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble” (v. 1). May the Lord show himself in your day of distress. In the Book of Daniel, Chapter 3, we read of three of Daniel’s friends who refused to bow to King Nebuchadnezzar and worship his gold image. They had already decided to serve the one true God, and worship Him only. In anger, the King had them thrown into a furnace of fire so hot it killed the guards who put them in the furnace. When the King looked into the furnace, he saw a fourth figure in the fire with them. Jesus will stand with us in the midst of our distress. When the three came out of the furnace, the Bible says “they (the King and his governors and counselors) saw these men on whom the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them.” (Daniel 3:27). Not only did they survive the fiery furnace, they came out as a witness to their persecutor. In John 14:27 Jesus says- “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
- “May the name of the God of Jacob defend you” (v. 1). May the Lord protect you. David learned a hard lesson and suffered a punishment at the hand of the Lord when he counted the size of his army in 2 Samuel 24. The Kings of Judah and Israel were to depend on the Lord for protection. Counting the number of soldiers was for other kings. A king that had the Lord on his side had all that he needed. There was no need to count soldiers, count chariots, or supply the latest weapons. The Bible is filled with conflicts where the descendants of Jacob defeated larger armies with more chariots and superior weapons. God even caused their enemies to turn on themselves. Consider Isaiah 41:10-12- “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Behold, all those who were against you shall be ashamed and disgraced. They shall be as nothing. And those who strive with you shall perish. You shall seek them and not find them—those who contended with you. Those who strive with you shall perish.” He not only protects us from our enemies, He annihilates them. As they were about to cross the Red Sea, Moses told the children of Israel to take a look at the approaching army, because the Egyptians who pursued them they “would see no more”.
- “May He send you help from the sanctuary” (v. 2). May He send you aid. Abraham came to know Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides, when God provided a ram for a sacrifice. God had asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac. Abraham was being tested, and he was willing to obey. God relented on the request, and supplied the substitute sacrifice. Genesis Chapter 22. God has also said He supplies the seed for planting, the rain, and the increase. We are to supply the labor to plant, and to harvest. He is our provider, and our helper. Psalm 145: 15-16- “The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in due season.” Ephesians 3:20- “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.” Philippians 4:19- “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” The cross of Jesus supplies aid better than the Red Cross.
- “May He strengthen you out of Zion” (v.2). God is our strength and support. When I was facing reconstructive knee surgery and having difficulty supporting myself while standing, a dear friend gave me this scripture to encourage me- “He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youth shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up on wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40: 29-31). His strength is a shield, which protects without having to use strength or force. His strength is also a song, which speaks of inner strength in the heart of man.
- “May He remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice” (v.3). One of the main reasons God initiated the sacrifice system was so that man could ask for and receive forgiveness of sins. Throughout the Old Testament, we see the sacrifice of sheep and bulls for the atonement of sin. Then Jesus came to offer Himself as the final and perfect sacrifice for all the sin of all mankind. (Hebrews 10:3-10). But our offerings and sacrifices serve other purposes. They both worship God and honor Him. When David bought the land that would become the site of the temple in Jerusalem, the seller offered to donate it. David insisted on paying a full and fair price for it, saying “I will not offer burnt offering to the Lord my God with that which cost me nothing.” (2 Samuel 24:24). David knew that to properly worship and honor the Lord, his offering should cost him something. Cornelius feared God, gave alms generously, and prayed. One day an angel of the Lord told him- “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before the Lord.” (Acts 10:4). This led to an important meeting with the apostle Peter. We know we cannot buy an answer to prayer, but it is interesting to see that both our offerings and prayers are a memorial before the Lord.
- “May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your purpose” (v.4). May He fulfill the good plan He has for your life according to Jeremiah 29:11. May He give you the desires of your heart according to Psalm 37:4, which reads- “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” In our heart is a purpose He placed there, and when we find that purpose by asking and following Him, we truly find a satisfying and meaningful life.
- “May the Lord fulfill all your petitions” (v.5). May the Lord answer all your prayers. Scriptures are rich in assurance that God hears and answers prayer. Here are four: John 15:7- “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” Psalm 66:19- “But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer.” Jesus said in Mark 11:24- “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” Finally, Psalm 116:1- “I love the Lord, because He has heard my voice and my supplications.”
These first five verses of Psalm 20 contain seven rich blessings from God. As we celebrate our Jubilee anniversary, we speak these blessings over the people of God. May we all come to know Him more, and walk in these blessings.
