Leviticus 25:20-22 You may ask, “What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?” 21 I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years. 22 While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in.
Sometimes blessings are so great that we lack words to express our gratitude. Have you ever been in this situation? It is very humbling when it does happen. The outpouring of grace can take your breath away. I hope everyone has this experience at least once in their lifetime.
Our text tells us about one of the special elements of Israel’s calendar: the Sabbath rest for the land. Not only did the Israelites themselves live by a calendar driven by sevens, resting every seventh day, but their agricultural calendar was also driven by a seven year cycle. And we know that this cycle of sevens started back on page one of the Hebrew Bible.
But think about the practical nature of this Sabbath rest for the land. The cycle of sevens was the LORD’s way to give Israel the opportunity to exercise faith in His promise. The LORD promised to take care of them. Their response to this promise was to trust Him. Every seven days they got to practice their trust.
And then the LORD gives them a big opportunity to trust: the Sabbath year for the land. The level of trust id exponentially increased. It starts with the faith that the LORD will provide a super-abundance in year six. That is His promise.
And if they trust Him, that year six harvest will be enough to carry them until the year eight crop is harvested. Think about it. Food for year six. Food for year seven. Seed for year eight planting. Food for year eight. Food into year nine when year eight harvest comes. That is a lot of food.
And this trust exercise happens every seven years. Talk about a workout program for faith! This would certainly build my faith if I saw the LORD providing in this way every seven years.
But it would be difficult to actually do. Your heart must be in the right place to trust the LORD this much when you are planting for the year six harvest. You would have the tendency to try to hedge your bet, plant a larger field, figure out a way to make sure you have enough to eat in your own strength and power.
But that is not what the LORD is calling His people to do. Trust. That is what He wants. He doesn’t want human efforts in year six to provide for the year seven and eight needs. He wants trust.
Now this sounds completely bonkers. How is this possible? How can the LORD create such a bumper crop every seven years in the sixth year? Why doesn’t He just make the crops always be abundant and bless His people every year? Because that wouldn’t require faith! Abundance would become the norm. The power of the sign would be eliminated.
But when the LORD creates a super-abundance in year six, that would be seen and understood. Think of it. Every six years the crops produce triple the normal amount of grain! That would be amazing. That would be something to build faith.
But most of us don’t live in an agricultural framework. We go to the store and purchase our food. So how does this apply to us? How can our faith be built like this? I would suggest start with obeying the prompting of the Holy Spirit in the area of giving. Don’t be afraid to listen and give generously, even when it looks as though you will run out yourself. If it is the LORD prompting, the LORD will provide.
The Arnold Journey 