[Steve Myers] And so we have the precursor to the Feast of Tabernacles, we are right before the Feast and this is a great day. The Day of Atonement is one of those opportunities that we have to really dig into God's Word in so many different ways. There are so many different facets and great symbolism to the Day of Atonement. If someone were to ask you, "What is the purpose of the Day of Atonement?" Especially if you think about it in the context of the Old Testament, why did God give them the Day of Atonement? Now, as you think about that, what probably comes to mind, the high priest and the temple. And that was a focal point of the Day of Atonement, to consecrate the temple, to make it Holy, to clean it up. And the high priest would go into the Holy of Holies, just that one time every year, to consecrate the temple and also for the people as well. To make sacrifice for the people so sins could be covered.

There was a way that God made for the people's sins to be covered on the Day of Atonement, and so great sacrifices were given. And, of course, as we recognize that, much of that is described through Leviticus 16. I'm not going to turn there this afternoon, but it details all of those different activities that took place on the Day of Atonement. It talks about the goats, one for the Lord, and one for Azazel, one for Satan, the demon. And it points out that God put that sin on the one that represented Jesus Christ. And, ultimately, Satan has a part to play as we heard in the sermon at this afternoon, ultimately symbolizing the antitype, when, ultimately, Jesus Christ will return, and an angel, then, will put Satan in the bottomless pit. And this day symbolizes that. Ultimately when his influence on this world will be removed. And we have that amazing symbolism behind those activities that took place in the Old Testament.

And, spiritually, we recognize that this is a very important day. Symbolically, we recognize this was a day of reconciliation. The Day of Atonement, well, in a sense, represents a day of pardons, a day of restoration, a day of forgiving. And so, one that has such great symbolism that points, ultimately, to the fact that relationships are going to be different. They're not going to be like they are today, relationships are going to be restored. And think about the most important relationship that must be restored, the relationships between God and mankind. The need that is there is going to be emphasized in the symbolism of this day. It pictures that time when we can actually be at one with God. We can have a relationship between man and his Creator. The all-sufficient, all-powerful, all-knowing God that we have represented through Jesus Christ our Savior. And by doing that, we see that we can enter the Holy of Holies. We can come into the presence of God through our Savior Jesus Christ. We can be restored, not someday in the future, but right now. Right now, we have that opportunity to be in a right relationship with God. And, in fact, the Day of Atonement carries all of those facets of meaning plus many more.

Now, if you'd like to turn with me, I will turn to Leviticus 23 where it begins to tell us this is a Feast day. In fact, all of these days that are mentioned in Leviticus 23 starting with the Sabbath are feasts of the Lord, these are God's feast days. And down in verse 26, we have that familiar passage that discusses this day, the Day of Atonement. And God gave this to Old Testament Israel by saying some interesting things that carry over to today. Because we recognize, this is not just something that was a part of an old covenant, that this is something that represents so much more to us than what the ancient Israelites recognized. Verse 26 of Leviticus 23, here God is speaking to Moses.

Verse 27, "On the tenth day of the seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement." And, of course, according to God's calendar that's today. He says, “It shall be a holy convocation." We have a sacred gathering, an opportunity to come together, and praise and worship God. And then He says, "You shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord." So we look at this verse and we're doing these things. This is a day that's been set apart as a Holy convocation to come together as God's people, and worship, and praise Him. We also afflict our souls which means too fast, we don't take any bread or water. It's a solemn feast day, in fact, it says that all the way down in verse 32, "It shall be a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month from at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your Sabbath." So we recognize that's true, on a Friday night to a Saturday night, we recognize it's true today as we fast from Friday evening to Saturday evening. And we afflict our souls and we fast, and so we recognize these things. And, probably, these are the things that may come to mind, initially, when we think of the Day of Atonement.

Yet there's another aspect. We turn the page to chapter 25. We find another aspect that is very critically important about the Day of Atonement. Leviticus 25:8 gives additional instructions about this very day. Notice what Israel was to do. Leviticus 25:8, it says, “You shall count off seven sabbaths of years…” so, now, God is giving some instructions for something very specific. It says, "seven times seven years; so that the period of seven sabbaths of years gives forty-nine years.” So God is instructing them to count. Then verse 9, they're told, "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 so, on the Day of Atonement, after 49 years, the trumpet was to sound, the jobel, the Jubilee trumpet. In fact, that word for Jubilee literally means ram's horn. Ram's horn, because what was commemorated by the blowing of that ram's horn? Well, it was this Jubilee year. It was commemorating this special year. And, of course, if you were to look into the Latin version of the Bible, they translate this, Jubilaeus which is, it sounds like Jubilee because it was to be a special time to rejoice, to celebrate, to have Jubilee, to be exalted, to be, especially, blessed. And so you wonder how in the world is afflicting your soul and the sacrifice it takes to go without food and water during this time, how is that connected to Jubilee because it's supposed to be a solemn day, a solemn rest, and yet God connects jubilation with it?

Well, let's think about that for a minute, what is the biblical concept of Jubilee, and how does this historical setting affect us? Why is it important for us today, I mean, isn't this long, long ago, thousands of years ago, so what possible importance could it have to us especially on this Day of Atonement? Why was 50 so special? In fact, why did Jubilee happen on the Day of Atonement, and what was God's purpose behind it? Is there any significance spiritually for us? Let's think about that this afternoon as we consider four points to Atonement Jubilee.

Point number one, freedom. The Jubilee pointed to freedom. There was to be liberty for all. In fact, if you look at verse 9 once again, it says, "Then you shall have the trumpet sounded, the trumpet was blasted." "The Jubilee trumpet," it says, "on the tenth day of the seventh month," and it says, "Make it known throughout all your land." So it began with a trumpet call, the blast of the shofar, the Ram's horn. And we recognize, that has tremendous significance, prophetically, of what's going to happen. At the return of Christ, the trumpet will sound and everything, the nations of this world will become the nations of God, the Kingdom of God will be established. And, ultimately, what 1 Corinthians 15 talks about will begin to take place. If you want to hold your place here in Leviticus 25, go over to 1 Corinthians 15.

1 Corinthians 15:51, this is taking place at that last trumpet. The blast of the trumpet that would announce a Jubilee, that would announce something to all the land is typified by that trumpet in 1 Corinthians 15. Notice in verse 51, it says, "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in the flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality. All those who are in Christ whether dead or alive at that trumpet will be raised, and the sound will go out through all the world. All the world will recognize life is changing, Jesus Christ has returned. And all the inhabitants of the land will be forced to recognize things are going to be different."

Now that's exactly what happened in the Jubilee year. Now, if you've still got your place in Leviticus 25, go back. Go back to verse 10. Leviticus 25:10, here they're told physically to “consecrate [or hallow] the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his possession." So not only was there freedom, there was liberty. Everyone was able to go back, all its inhabitants. It impacted everyone because Jubilee gave liberty to all. Now, in different ways that happened but 50 became so critical, the blast of the shofar announced the Jubilee, the antitype, spiritually speaking, the blast of the trumpet of God gives freedom to everyone, to all mankind, all mankind. In fact, it's kind of summarized through the next few passages of what it meant to them. In fact, if you skip down all the way down to verse 47, it also talks about the sojourner. Yeah, even a traveler was impacted by this, or a stranger. A stranger could be impacted by this. If they were among the people and they became “poor, sold themselves to the stranger or sojourner close to you, to a member of the strangers family,” it says “after he sold he may be redeemed again. One of his brothers may redeem him.”

In other words, this wasn't a permanent situation. When someone went into debt, the land was sold, it wasn't intended to stay that way. Think about that for us, this world society is not intended to stay this way. Mankind doesn't know how to rule himself, he doesn't know the way to peace, he doesn't know the way to prosperity, he doesn't know the way to true liberty, and freedom, and peace. So God never intended this system to stay intact, it's got to be replaced. Freedom will come through the Jubilee, through the blast of that trumpet. And it is a gift. This is a gift. The people didn't earn a right to be redeemed, to be able to buy back their land, or just to be given back to them. They didn't deserve it, it had to be redeemed for them. And so this concept of freedom in the Jubilee is such a good reminder, freedom is a gift. It is a gift, it is not a right. It is a gift to sinful people not a right to those who deserve it. And that fulfills this antitype of what Christ will accomplish in the ultimate Jubilee. Hold your place here in chapter 25, go to John 8:31.

John 8:31, we see an Atonement Jubilee connection to Jesus Christ and what He taught. Notice the impact of liberty and freedom in the teachings of Christ here in John 8:31. Here, “Jesus says to the Jews who had believed in Him,” verse 31, He says, "If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples. And you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." Verse 33, "They answered Him," I'm sure saying in a questionable kind of a way, questioning Christ. "They answered Him," they said, "Well, wait a second, we're descendants of Abraham, we've never been slaves to anyone. What do You mean saying ‘You will be made free’?" Well, Jesus answered, "Very truly," or in other words, "Amen, this is a critical statement that I'm saying and you've got to listen to this. I'm telling you everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not have a permanent place in the household, the son has a place there for forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed."

And, of course, as we think about that in connection to Atonement, our sins need to be atoned for. There needs to be a reconciliation. There needs to be redemption, and we can't earn that redemption. But we have a Savior, we have the Christ. And despite the fact we were once slaves to sin, through Him, we are free. Through the ultimate Jubilee, we can be forgiven. Of course, in the Old Testament, that Jubilee spoke to the cancellation or the covering of debts on this day. Think about that spiritually for a moment. Spiritually speaking, all sin is debt. We owe the debt of sin, we owe our life but we can't redeem ourselves, the only one that could redeem us is Jesus Christ. And He even taught about that in that model prayer. Remember that model prayer in Matthew 6? You know, in Matthew, it talks about, "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." Luke says it a little bit differently. Luke says, "Forgive us our sins." He spells it out perfectly clear, "Forgive us our debts, our sins, and help us to forgive those that are indebted to us." And so, we recognize, ultimately, we are given freedom from sin.

But if we stop there, I think we miss something really important. Have we ever considered, not only do we have freedom from something, but what about freedom to? Freedom to what? What does atonement, what was Jubilee about, freedom to what? Well, of course, we are so grateful for freedom from sin, freedom from Satan, freedom from society around us, freedom from the evils of this world, freedom from our own sins through the sacrifice of Christ. Yes, that's important and that's critical, we have been given liberty from those things. But if that's the only thing that we see, that's a pretty shallow understanding because we've been also given freedom to. And you think about that in the context of Jubilee, it was about a celebration. It's about a celebration, jubilation, freedom, exaltation. And where does that take us? That's freedom to worship God, freedom to obey God, freedom to follow Him, freedom to start over.

Anybody need a fresh start, to hit the reset button? That's what you believe was about, it was a total reset for our society. And, today, who would benefit from a true Jubilee, you think there'd be rejoicing? If you've got a credit card, imagine that debt gone. Do you think you'd smile about that? Boy, absolutely. Imagine that scenario. I mean, who today, would fear a Jubilee, would that be possible? I mean, when we're given the freedom to obey God, the freedom to start over when we go before God and ask forgiveness for our sins, what an awesome blessing that is. In fact, if you think about it in terms of the Old Testament, what would a wealthy landowner who had accumulated all this land over the decades suddenly faced with Jubilee, what would his understanding have to be to turn over that land back to its original owner? How would he understand Jubilee, would he be mad about it, would he be upset? I mean, I don't find that in scripture. God says it's supposed to be a Jubilee for everyone, for all the inhabitants of the land, even the one who had accumulated wealth in that meantime. It's, kind of, interesting to think about it in those terms.

And, of course, if you think of it by extension today, what are we to be collectively, when we think about it collectively as the people of God, as God's Church? There is a Jubilee connection to freedom as well because we're to be a beacon of freedom to this world, the Church. When people come to the Church as God calls them and they respond to that calling, when they come in this door, this should be a release, a release from the world out there. We should be a different people than the world out there, that people that come to the church come to freedom, they come to release. Because, beyond these walls it is a mess, it is a mess of a world. And people that come have been enslaved to the ways of this world, but through Jesus Christ, we proclaim freedom. Freedom because God has released us from the slavery of sin to, as Christ said, become slaves of Christ. And to go from a slave of sin to a slave of Christ ultimately equals true freedom. True freedom, the world doesn't understand it, but that's what it's all about. So I think, first and foremost, Atonement Jubilee represents freedom.

All right, number two. Number two points to the anchor. The anchor of Jubilee, especially when we look at the Old Testament example, was the land. The anchor, the land, was returned to its original owner. To ancient Israel, the land was its anchor. I mean, think about how the land was used back in the day, what was the basis of their society? What was agriculture and flocks? It was what the land would give them or what the land would produce. And when you read through those boring sections of the book of Joshua, I'm saying that facetiously because I teach this at ABC. When you look at the distribution of the land, in the book of Joshua, it describes all the land that's given to the various tribes, and the clans, and the families. And who got what, and where they were. And it's very specific about where they were and what they received. And when you read through those sections that may not be the most stimulating at times, what does come out when you read through those sections is, God gave them that land. They didn't deserve it, they didn't earn it, but God gave them and made sure every one of them, every Israelite family had land. They had land that they could survive, and grow, and prosper. Their flocks would be fed, their crops could grow.

Now, the challenge was, what happened if they became destitute? What happened if they made bad decisions and lost their land, had to sell their land? Well, you see, when you think about that, if these people were to survive, they had to have land. Land was life. Land was life, and in the Jubilee, if they had lost their land over that previous 49 years, this was the time it reverted back. And were told about that in Leviticus 25:13. So turn back to Leviticus 25 or if you've got your place held there, good for you. Leviticus 25 once again. Verse 13 describes this scenario of what would happen at Jubilee. So Leviticus 25, we'll look at verse 13. It says, "In this year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his possession." God had gave it to them, now it's still theirs. He didn't intend for them to totally lose... Now, this is totally different to our modern way of thinking, you buy a house, you buy a lot, it's yours. Who cares who used to own it, it's mine now. And so for American mindsets, it's a little tough to, kind of, dial in to this way of thinking. But this is what God told them, it would return to them.

Verse 14, "When you make a sale to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not cheat one another." Oh, that's also another un-American thing, right? Cheat your neighbor, wow, that is the American way, isn't it? Okay, you're not supposed to do that. Verse 15, "When you buy from your neighbor, you shall pay only for the number of years since the Jubilee; the seller shall charge you only for the remaining crop years. If the years are more, you shall increase the price, if the years are fewer, diminish the price; for its certain number of harvests that are being sold to you. You shall not cheat one another, but you shall fear your God; I am the Lord, your God."

And so, what we see, the value of the land was determined, not by how much the value of the property went up. You see in our world, you know, "What are property values today?" "Oh, they're on the rise." "Why?" "I don't know." "Because people are paying more. They'll pay it, it's worth it, we don't have a recession, that's great." So our value is based on what somebody will pay for it. Do you notice that's not God's system? God's system wasn't about the land itself when it's connected to the Jubilee, what was it connected to? The harvests. It was the crops. What was really sold was not the land, it was the crops during that time, the crops until the next Jubilee. And so, it, really, in a sense, it was more of a limited-land lease. We leased that land until the next Jubilee then it reverted to its original owner. Talk about fairness, talking about equity, this is fair. This is fair, nobody's going to be cheated. Boy, if I pay you what you, or you pay me what you'll pay for it, I could cheat you blind. I could take you... "Oh, you're willing to pay that, give it to me." Is it worth it? No. Yeah, that's the American way, right? But that's not God's way.

So during this time, God designated a fair system. A fair system, in fact, wow, what a system it was. During this time, if you look, they weren't to sow seed or reap. So, no planting, no harvesting during this time. Also, a blessing to rest the animals. Boy, can you imagine farm animals not having to work? Yeah, they got a rest too. And so, we see this anchor of the land was something that kept Israel secure. Look at verse 18. He says, "Observe my statutes and faithfully keep my ordinances, so that you may live on the land securely.” You're going to get it back if you went destitute. "The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and live on it securely. Should you ask…” rhetorical question here. It's like, "Wait a second, if I'm not supposed to plant, how am I going to eat? If I'm not supposed to harvest, how in the world is that going to take place because I'm not going to plant in the... Wow, how is that going to work?" Well, look at verse 20, "Should you ask, ‘What shall we eat in the seventh year, if we don't sow or gather our crop?’” Verse 21, "I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year, so that it will yield a crop for three years. When you sow in the eighth, you'll be eating from the old crop; until the ninth year, when its produce comes in, you shall eat the old."

Now, imagine the faith that was necessary here. Talk about being anchored to the land. Whatever that land was going to produce in that 48th year, it was going to have to be a triple portion to carry them through two years when the land lay fallow, when crops weren't... But God says, "Trust Me." God says, "Trust Me because I'm not only going to provide for you…” I love the wording in verse 21. He's not just going to provide for it, He's not just going to protect them, He says, He's going to command it. He is going to order His blessing, "I'm going to order My blessing in that sixth year." Because it wasn't the time for planting, it wasn't the time for harvesting, the proof was going to be trusting God. Trusting God. God ultimately, by means of the land, was the true anchor, wasn't He? The true anchor, well, yeah, land, but, ultimately, it was God working through this land. And it was a time of rejoicing because by the time you got to the Jubilee, God had ordered and commanded that triple blessing that was to take place.

And so, when we consider the antitype to this, I think we can say, no matter what our circumstances look like, no matter what our difficulties are, if we trust, we obey God, we act upon His Word, we live His way, He will command a blessing. Now, that doesn't mean a bigger house, a bigger car, all our debts paid. No, there are consequences for our actions, no doubt. But, will God meet our needs, will God take care of us? Undoubtedly. Today, we don't give the property back, but think about this concept in a little bit different way. What is, to revert to its original owner, for us? Think about it a little differently, who owns me? God owns me. Have I reverted my life to God? He is my original owner. My career, my family, my stuff, my house, who owns it all? I mean, do I really own it? Anybody see anybody that could take it with them when they go? They don't own it.

You see, the Jubilee, the atonement, for us, is such a great reminder, we've been reverted back to our original owner. We're no longer of this world, we're not of its ways anymore. We are sons and daughters of God. We, God looking at it as though it is, are sons and daughters right now. Right now, we're a part of His people. We belong to God, He owns us. And so, Atonement brings up that question, are we a faithful steward of what God owns? We're temporary owners of whatever it is we have, but are we managing those things as good stewards for the Kingdom, and are we exemplifying what it means to be owned by God? Is He really Lord of our life, is He really the one who is our anchor? Atonement presents us with that question.

That brings us to number three, Atonement Jubilee also means stop. Stop. For ancient Israel it was, stop working, stop planting. For us, we... Well, for them too, stop eating, don't eat. For today, we might say, stop yawning, wake up, don't fall asleep, stop. Part of the stopping was that land laid empty, it was fallow, uncultivated, unplanted. The land was to rest in that way. It wasn't to be, well domesticated, you could say, right? It was supposed to grow wild for a year. Whatever grew, grew, that's the way it was. And also recognize the fact, they couldn't rely on the crops, they had to rely on God. What about us? What do you rely on? “Well, I've got my abilities, my talents, my gifts, I can provide for myself pretty good.” Really? Do we rely on our own strength, our own power, our own jobs? Is that where our reliance is? You see, Atonement Jubilee reminds, you can't rely on the land, you can't rely on your crops, you can't rely on your own hand. You're forced to rely on God, you have to trust God. When God calls us and opens our minds to His truth, we must rely, we have to stop relying on our own means, our own power, our own talents. And our faith and the calling that we've been given, really, should, in a way, be like the land. And what happened during that time? The land grew wild. We're called out of this system, you ready to grow wild? Not wild, crazy, sinful wild, that's not what we're talking about. But let go of those things that hold us down, those things that weigh us down, and, biblically, spiritually, just go crazy growing in God's way.

I think Atonement has that emphasis. Because it seems, sometimes, we try to find this comfortable, kind of, convenient, domesticated relationship with God. That we've got things in order and, you know, God has got a nice little place that He fits into in my life just right. God doesn't want to be domesticated, He wants to go wild in our life. He wants our life, our spirituality to go over the top. Isn't that what He wants for us? And, yet, sometimes we try to confine God. But Atonement reminds us, God is not going to take the back burner. He doesn't want to be the back of the stove, He doesn't want us to have our own pile of things. We've got our things, and our house, and our job, and our career, and our families. And we've got our pile of stuff, and we're going to just put this little bit of whipped cream on the top, and that's God. That's not what He wants. God says, "I'm not going to be the little whipped cream on the top, I'm not going to be second place."

Atonement reminds us, we have everything relying on God, because if we don't eat tonight, or we don't eat tomorrow, or eat the next day, what's going to happen to us? We're going to die. We will die. What happens if we do the same to God spiritually speaking? We don't partake of God, we don't allow God, in spirituality, to run free in our life, we're going to die spiritually, we're not going to be there. And so, God points us in this way, He's not second place, He has to be first. And so, we too, then, must allow that faith to grow. To grow in our life, and don't with strain it in any way. In fact, Isaiah 40:28 speaks to this very thing. Because the amazing concept here is, God says, "This is the way it needs to be, I'm not taking second place. But if you put me there, okay, that's where I am." Because God gives us the choice. He gives us the opportunity to put Him wherever we want to, either for good or, ultimately, for evil. And so, He gives us the choice.

Isaiah speaks to that. Isaiah 40:28 emphasizes that very point. Isaiah 40:28, he says, "Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Eternal, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He never faints or is weary." Boy, we get a little better idea of what that means today when we're a little tired. It says, "His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and those who have no might He increases strength." For us, that's true spiritually speaking. He says, "Even youth shall faint and be weary, the young men shall utterly fall. But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." And so, we wait on the Lord. And, hopefully, we're waiting the way that the Hebrew says here, the waiting on the Lord is not just hanging around twiddling our thumbs hoping He is going to return sometime. That's not what this wait means. This weight means I'm looking for it, I'm anticipating it. I'm hopeful for it, I'm eager for it to come. I'm expecting it. And my life and my example, my character exemplifies that very thought so that I can run spiritually speaking and not get tired.

Even though the crop wasn't planted this year, I'm trusting God, I'm relying on Him. I'm not becoming weak. And so I get the opportunity to choose and really be strengthened by God, and not hold Him at arm's length. So we can choose, and now is the time to begin to do that. I can choose to give, really give. I can choose to help. Even help when it's not convenient. I can serve, not because people notice me, but because who I am. I am a servant, and I'm choosing, waiting on the Lord, eagerly anticipating His return. I'm choosing to change. I'm choosing to fully give every part of my life over to God. And Atonement Jubilee points to that very fact that God holds us, and He strengthens us, and He sustains us, and we rely on Him. And when we step out in that kind of faith, there is no doubt, God will give the increase. In fact, I think part of this concept of stop also means God is not done yet. Because I know we can step back and look at our life, and we see all the negatives. See where I don't measure up and I fall short, and I am a sinner. And that's true, and it can be discouraging. But this is Jubilee, God doesn't want us to be discouraged.

I think stop also means God is not done with me yet. God is not done yet. I mean, aren't you glad that God isn't like a camera where He just takes a snapshot of us and says, "Yep, that's the way they are. That's them.” You see, God doesn't do that. It's not like Facebook, "I posted that, and that's who they are." It's not like that, God is in the video, right? He's in the streaming because He wants the results. It's a moving picture. You see, God doesn't take a snapshot and label us, and say, "You're a terrible sinner." While that may be the fact that that moment, it's streaming, it's a video, I can change, I can respond to God. I mean, isn't a great that God doesn't take a snapshot at us at our very worst? That'd be awful. Jubilee reminds us, God wants the best for us, He knows we're a work in progress. I mean, we heard about the prodigal son earlier, is it a great, he didn't take a snapshot of the prodigal son when he's lying there with the pigs wanting to eat all their pods in there? He didn't call that individual in that place, "Well, you're going to be at the pigs forever because that's who you are." God doesn't do that, and at Jubilee, it's such a great reminder of that. He releases us from debt, He returns us to a right relationship when we come before Him and we ask for forgiveness and He forgives us. And all too often, I think, sometimes, we're guilty of that. We're guilty of taking a snapshot of ourselves. And that's the only way we see ourselves, as down there in the muck with the pigs. But Jubilee reminds us, God doesn't want us to see ourselves that way either because He has given us the freedom of forgiveness, the freedom of reconciliation. And when we think those certain things about ourselves, we're limiting God to free us. We don't let God free us from what we could be to what we could become. You see, we were of those things, but God sees us as what we can become. And He has, like the land, freed us.

In fact, I think there's also another little facet of this idea of stopping, and that's included in the idea of rest. God wanted the land to rest. You know, what did Christ say? Christ said, "Come to me all who are heavy laden, and..." Well, our 21st-century version of this would probably be, "Come to me all who are heavy laden and I'll give you so many things to do, endless business, frenzied life, overwhelming problems." Yeah, that's our world. But He says, "Come to me and I will give you rest, I'll give you a whole different mindset." When we are weary, when we're carrying a burden, you know, Jubilee is right here on the horizon. We are burdened with sin, and when you think of what Christ brings us, "Come to Me and I will give you rest. I will hit the reset button, I will refresh your life. I'm like that oasis in the desert that you can drink." And so Atonement reminds us of that. Yes, we have to stop. Stop work, we assembled together. But the planting and harvesting, like ancient Israel, there's a whole new perspective, there's a fresh start and a fresh reliance on God. And we can trust in Him no matter what life's circumstances are. What a blessing for Atonement Jubilee.

All right, that brings us to number four. Number four is timing. Timing. The Jubilee took place at a specific time, it was that 50th year. And there's a connection between the message of Jubilee and another very specific time that is coming forth in perfect timing as well, the return of Christ. The Jubilee and the coming of Messiah are intricately connected. Flip back to Leviticus 25 and we'll see a type of this very thing in the Jubilee. In fact, this time it's in Leviticus 25:25. Notice the connection here, thinking about Jubilee and the return of Christ. Keep that in the back of your mind as we read through verse 25 and we'll go down to about verse 28. Leviticus 25:25, "If one of your brethren becomes poor," one of your brothers, “has sold some of his possession, if his redeeming relative comes to redeem it, then he may redeem what his brother sold. Or if the man has no one to redeem it, but he himself becomes able to redeem it, let him count the years since its sale, restore the remainder to the man whom he sold it, that he may return to his possession."

So we think of this, the land has been sold, the man is destitute. A brother could come and buy it back, could redeem those years of crops. And whether it was his debt that put him into this situation, bad decisions, whatever it was that brought him here, it could be restored. And even, we get down to the fact that if nobody could restore it, no brother could come he is destitute himself, verse 28 gives the means by which it could be reconciled, which it could be restored. It says, "If he's not able to have it restored to himself, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the year of Jubilee. And in the Jubilee, it shall be released, and he shall return to his possession."

Now think of that in a spiritual sense. If we think about that spiritually, we are sold to sin. What happens at that last trumpet ultimately? The dead in Christ are resurrected, they become spirit beings. They are ultimately redeemed by their brother. We are redeemed by our elder brother Jesus Christ. Spiritually, He redeems us. And, of course, we don't have to wait until the return of Christ for that redemption, we can have that reconciliation every time we go before God and we ask for forgiveness, we can be forgiven and redeemed. But in order for that to happen, we recognize, "I can't do that myself. I need this kinsman. I need this brother who will pay the price for me." And we know, "Christ paid the price, I deserve death." We know. John tells us, "The wages of sin is death." That's what I earned, that's what's owed to me, death. How can I be bought out of death? How can I be redeemed? Because I have a Brother who is perfect, one who never sinned, one who is the ultimate Redeemer, my kinsmen Redeemer, my elder Brother, Jesus Christ. And His life not only paid for mine, it paid for the entire world. And so that spiritual lesson comes to the front throughout the New Testament. You might just write down Titus 2. Titus 2:14 describes our Savior, that He redeems us from every lawless deed and purifies us as His own special people. That's Jesus Christ, that's our elder brother. Our elder Brother does that very thing, in fact, He's got a great reward that He has in store for us. In fact, part of this timing, it's at the right time, we read that in 1 Corinthians 15 as well, at the exact moment, Christ will return. And that goes for us at our calling as well, why are we called now and others later? I believe because it's the time for us. This is our best time. This is the time when we have the best opportunity to become a part of the family of God. This is our time, others come at different times. But the timing for us, like the Jubilee, is perfect timing so that our debts, our sins can be forgiven.

Now, there's one other aspect, I think, that's also interesting when it comes to the Jubilee. There was a group of people that didn't have a part of the land in ancient Israel. They weren't given an inheritance in the land. Do you know who they were? Those were the priests, the priestly tribe, the Levites. Instead of receiving property like all the other tribes, like land, they received cities. There were certain cities that the Levites could dwell in. Were told about that back in Leviticus 25:32. Let's notice what it says here about the Levites and this connection to the timing, just the right time, the Jubilee, and also this connection to the antitype, to the return of Christ.

Leviticus 25, let's notice verse 32. Verse 32, it says, "As for the cities of the Levites, they shall forever have the right of redemption of the houses in the cities belonging to them. Such property, as may be redeemed from the Levites, houses sold in the city belonging to them, shall be released in the Jubilee, because houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the people of Israel." You see, it's kind of interesting, houses, otherwise, were not a part of the Jubilee. The land was a part of the Jubilee, but the work of man, the housing, was not a part of the Jubilee. It was the land and the people that were released. The only group it was different for where the Levites, the priestly family. The priestly family, they were given these houses in their cities, and it was their possession. And, of course, you think about these particular cities. These cities were special places for them, for the family of priests.

What are we intended to be? When we look forward to the resurrection, what does Revelation say about us, what are going to be our duties, our responsibilities? Well, Revelation talks about kings and priests or a kingdom of priests that will serve God and help during this time of the Millennium. We really are an antitype of the priestly group of people here in Leviticus 25. These priests were a type of Christ, and, by extension, what has our High Priest prepared for us? Do we have a city that He has prepared for us as well? Oh, Hebrews 11 sure talks about that. It talks about Abraham looked forward to that city that has foundations, that city, and architect that has the builder of God Himself. That's what we're looking forward to. The Jubilee was a reminder of, not some temporary Levitical city, but, ultimately, the future, New Jerusalem, is what Jubilee points to. The Jubilee points to a city that has walls that cannot be taken down, that has foundations that cannot be destroyed. And so, the antitypical Jubilee city is the city that we're going to receive. That city that will come down from the Father out of heaven, that God, ultimately, wants us, like the Levites, to dwell with Him, that He will ultimately be our dwelling place. And Christ spoke about that very time. In fact, the Jubilee that pointed to that time. Look at Luke 4:14. Look at the timing of the ministry of Christ as He began His ministry, He reads this section of Isaiah. This is Luke 4, notice verse 14.

Luke 4:14, we see, kind of, a summary of these various things that all revolve around the timing, and the type, and the antitype of what Jubilee is all about. So, Luke 4, take a look at... Let's see, where should we begin? Let's begin down in verse 14. Well, let's go just a little bit... I'm on chapter 5, that's what's wrong there. Yeah, verse 14. Verse 14 is a good place to start. It says, Luke 4:14, "Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding regions. He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. He came to Nazareth where He'd been brought up. He goes into the synagogue." Verse 17, "He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He opened the book, He found the place where it was written." So now He begins to read from Isaiah 61 and He says this, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor." What was good news to the poor when it came to Jubilee? Redemption, restoration, reconciliation. Going on, "He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, the recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." It says, "He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, sat down." Verse 21, "And He said, 'Today, this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’" He proclaims the acceptable year of the Lord. Some translations say, “The year of the Lord's favor." The year when God, ultimately, would show kindness.

What would instantly pop into an Israelite's mind? The year that we trust God, the year He shows an abundance, the year of rest. Well, Jubilee. Christ was proclaiming the year of Jubilee, not just a physical Jubilee, the spiritual Jubilee, the year that pleases God the most, looking forward to, ultimately, the return of Christ, the year of release. The year of release for all people. You see, Jesus Christ certainly fulfilled that in His coming. And for us right now, Jesus Christ is our Jubilee, we don't have to wait 50 years to find our freedom, to find our release, to find our redemption. We don't have to wait for that, we can have renewal right now. And for you and I, the year of the Lord's favor is now. It is now if we accept it. If we accept it, God has then provided us, until His return, in a sense, it's a perpetual Jubilee that we're free from sin. And the Day of Atonement, then, becomes a reality. That, it's not just a once a year thing like the high priest going into the presence of God, for us, it's every day. In fact, we live in the Holy of Holies because we have a continual relationship with God the Father, and with Jesus Christ. And so we're reminded of that through Jubilee, through these four points that actually are an acronym. The acronym of the four points, Freedom, Anchor, Stop, Timing, FAST.

Fast, because today certainly is a reminder, eating is certainly key to physical survival. Fasting and what it represents is absolutely key for spiritual survival. We must submit to God in prayer, in fasting, and trust in Him. We go above and beyond the flesh. Atonement reminds us of that, Jubilee certainly reminds us of that, we must turn to Him and trust Him with everything. We reject Satan, we've got him in the bottomless pit already. In our hearts and in our minds, that's where we want him. Fasting is showing we totally rely on God like we rely on food for our physical existence, because completely abstaining from food and water reminds us, humanly speaking, we're weak. We're weak and we fall short. And we draw close to God, especially close to God, whenever we fast. And this is the kind of fast that God ultimately blesses. So don't forget, this is an amazing day with so many beautiful facets of meaning and so we fast. It's the Day of Atonement so let's be sure that Jubilee has begun.