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| Close with this prayer: Spirit of God, anoint each one of us to bring your good news to the people we meet every day. Send us out to proclaim joy, not judgment. Remind us not to oppress others with our words or actions, but to set people free with our love and our kindness. In the name of Jesus, the Messiah who sets us free to follow him, Amen. INSIGHTS FROM SCRIPTURE When Jesus read from Isaiah, his listeners expected him to be the Messiah who was fulfilling the Year of Jubilee. (This scripture from Isaiah 61 was considered both a Messianic text and a passage about “the year of the Lord’s favor,” which was Jubliee). The Year of Jubilee had been established by God for the Israelites. These laws helped promote qn economic system where everyone had a fair chance; those who had gone into debt or slavery were given a second chance at dignified labor. It meant that every seven years, these rules were followed: • rest of the soil—no tillage or harvest beyond what the land yielded spontaneously. Anyone could reap the harvest of this land this year. • the freeing of those Israelites who, through poverty or otherwise, had become slaves of their fellow Israelites. • The canceling of debts. In addition, every 50th year, the land went back to it’s original owner. Continued... |
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