Ancient Israel’s Torah was a forerunner for freedom the U.S. Declaration of Independence started bringing to the wider world roughly 3,500 years later. While the U.S. effort to free captives had fits and starts, Israel’s declaration of freedom brought with it the power of Heaven’s Messiah. And that power eventually flowed through all nations that listen to His voice.
Tag: Leviticus 25
We’ve all had days when we are so physically or mentally exhausted that we long to go home and relax, or better yet, nap. The LORD gave our forefathers in faith memorials and reminders in time to nudge us to seek Him Who can truly bring us rest from guilt, fear, loneliness, etc. That’s the lesson in the combined Torah readings בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” Sinai) and בְּחֻקֹּתַי Bechukotai (“in My statutes”) that wraps up the book of Leviticus.
The Torah reading בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” [Sinai]; Leviticus 25) teaches us how to be a kinsman-redeemer. It’s a beautiful ancient role for a family member with the character to step up and bail out a relative who has fallen on hard times.
The Bible book of Ruth provides an example of such a redeemer in action, and the Messiah is foretold to be the ultimate one for the world.
In the greater family of God on Earth, the lessons of the annual festivals of Shavuot (Pentecost) and Sukkot (Tabernacles) plus the multiyear cycles of Shemitah (sabbatical year) and Yobel (Jubilee) instruct us in how to be of service to the less fortunate within our sphere of influence.
A successful kinsman-redeemer helps others with the blessing of means that God has provided. We are not called to go into debt to help others, we are not compelled by God to drown ourselves to save someone else.
From these cyclical memorials of God in action past, present and future, we also can learn how God is building up His Kingdom. It starts with the call of individuals then nations into His Kingdom to live as citizens in His presence.
A common catchphrase for believers in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus the Christ) is “walk by faith and not by sight” (2Cor. 5:7). Key memorials from God’s calendar that help with practicing the faith that is preached are the Shevi’it or Shemitah (“seventh” [year] and “release,” respectively, i.e., sabbatical year) and the Yobel (Jubilee). They are the focus of the Torah reading this week, Behar, covering Lev. 25:1-26:2.
We often think that the walk of Torah only concerns itself with one’s relationship with God and one’s relationship with others. This is not true. An observant reading of the Torah shows us that God also concerns Himself with how we treat the land that sustains us. That’s a key lesson of the dual Torah reading of בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” [Sinai]) and בְּחֻקֹּתַי Bechukotai (“in My statutes”), which covers the last three chapters of Leviticus.
God promised the land of Israel as a special inheritance to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and they were expected to respond by treating the land itself with dignity as much as He expected them to treat Him and their neighbors with dignity.
Sins against the Land are atoned by exile, not by blood. Learn more through this Bible study.
The reading בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” [Sinai], Leviticus 25:1-26:2) is the shortest parashah (portion) of the entire Torah cycle, but it gets to the heart of a recurring problem as God has been working to call back mankind from wandering away from the only Source of life. Just as land needs rest from cultivation to produce bounty, how much more do people need to be freed from the burdens weighing on their hearts and minds.
Here’s what true freedom looks like: Yeshua (Jesus) preached it, died in it, rose in it and intercedes for us to make us continue in mercy and grace.
There is no freedom in a society without a baseline of laws that help people balance their rights and responsibilities to themselves and to their neighbor. There’s also no freedom in a place where people do not consider each other as brothers and sisters. At Mt. Sinai, God made all those who left Egypt kinsman under the law. At Pentecost, Yeshua made all those who believe in Him heirs of Abraham and the freedom and responsibility that comes with being sons and daughters of God.