A person in our congregation has been seeking a reliable vehicle for months. Given their financial situation, our church Leadership Team approved using money from our Care & Share Fund to help them with the down-payment on the vehicle.
During the past two months, they looked at numerous vehicles, and two really good possibilities fell through. They were praying and praying that God would provide. Last week, they found a vehicle for sale by a private owner on Facebook Marketplace. They inquired, and the owner told them that twenty people had also inquired about the vehicle. It wasn’t looking good.
Before I tell you the rest of the story, let’s conclude this week’s blog series about God’s heart for Jubilee.
Throughout this series, we’ve learned about the Year of Jubilee and how Jesus’ teaching and ministry embodied God’s heart of Jubilee. But did Jesus’ followers practice the heart of Jubilee? Sometimes we read Jesus’ teaching such as “sell all you have and give it to the poor,” and we can think that he is exaggerating and thus not really seriously expecting that of us. But those first followers show us that they too got the heart of Jubilee, and they lived it.
Just a few weeks after Jesus ascended back to heaven, we read in Acts 2:42-47, “All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.” Do you see the heart of Jubilee in that?
Maybe that was a one-time thing? Maybe that was just in the first few days of the church? They couldn’t possibly keep that Jubilee going, could they?
Turn to Acts 4:32-37, “All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need. Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.”
In the time period between Acts 2 and Acts 4, it seems that the believers are even more committed to Jubilee. As followers of Jesus, we too are people committed to Jubilee. We divest ourselves to help those in need. Consider how the Apostle Paul would go on to enshrine the heart of Jubilee in his teaching about generosity. He says this in 2 Corinthians 8:13-15. I can hardly believe this is in the Bible.
“Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written: ‘The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.’”
Did you notice the word that is repeated in verses 13-14? Equality. The goal, Paul says, is equality. Equality is a Jubilee word.
What I’m getting at is that Christians are people who embrace God’s heart for Jubilee, and that means freedom and liberty, for the purpose of equality. When we have more than enough, we willingly part with it so there might be equality. We open our hearts, our minds, and our hands, and we generously and sacrificially give. Instead of spending our time, our money, our resources primarily on ourselves and our families, when we have God’s heart of Jubilee, we look for others in need, so that we can bring equality to them. That is heart of Jubilee.
I started this post with the story of a person from my church that found a vehicle for sale online. The owner of the vehicle has a heart for Jesus and wanted to bless someone in need with a reliable vehicle for sale much lower than market value. One of church Leadership Team members inspected the vehicle to see what shape it is in. Everything came back green lights, and the sale went through. It gets even better. The owner decided that they were not going to charge any more than the money from the church, when the car is worth more than twice that.
Praise God! What an example of a person demonstrating the Jubilee heart of God. How will you demonstrate the Jubilee heart of God and be the answer to someone’s prayer? Do you have an extra property, home, vehicle, possession, that you can bless someone with?
Engaging Scripture 
Jubilee as a way of life while being in retirement. When COVID began, my wife and I knew we wouldn’t be going anywhere. I then surmised that food banks might experience shortages.
So, looking at the half acre beside our house, I decided I could grow vegetables to supply the food bank. I was able to ship 6000 pounds of produce that year. Now, several years later, growing 6000 lbs of vegetables has become a way of life.
We work vacation time around the planting, weeding, watering, and harvesting time. I welcome those who would like certain fresh vegetables to meet certain diet or health needs. I get repaid in thanks, in baked goods, or in help with the garden.
It’s a great place to spend the first couple hours of the day when I wake at 4:30 or be it 7 am.
I love this. What a wonderful Jubilee approach to retirement…plant a garden and use its produce to bless people! Thanks for mentioning this.