Extreme Honesty

Leviticus 27:33 “No one may pick out the good from the bad or make any substitution. If anyone does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute become holy and cannot be redeemed.”

A person’s Last Will and Testament is usually their last official words spoken by a person. Although they are often read by a lawyer, they express the deceased person’s desires. They usually contain the disposition of their earthly wealth. Sometimes there are surprises. Thus the movies on Netflix & Prime!

In today’s age, some have made their wishes known through audio or video Testaments. They sit in front of the camera and tell what they want. Those can be a bit more dramatic when viewed than when a lawyer reads them.

Have you ever wondered what the last law given by Moses to the people was about? I would expect a restatement of on of the Biggies, you know, the Top Ten, the Ten Commandments. I mean the first one is worth repeating. Put in today’s terms, there is only one God (Big G), so make sure you only seek relationship with Him.

That one needs to be shouted from the house tops today, only, for many of us we have pitched roofs and that would be dangerous to climb up to shout. And our houses are so far apart, we would only reach a few people. But when that phrase came into being, they lived in densely packed towns, with no noisy electronics, and not triple-pained sound stopping windows.

Our text contains the last command that Moses passed along from the LORD to His people. The previous chapters have been about property, what to do if you fall into debt and have to sell your land, your stuff or yourself to pay the debt. AND about the great leveler the Year of Jubilee when everything gets returned to the original owner, with a few exceptions.

The value of things was determined by how many years remained until the Jubilee Year. So if the Jubilee was a long time in the future, it had a lot of value. The land, for instance, would have many crops to be harvested over those years, so its value was high.

And our text deals with things that are vowed to the LORD, promised in a sacred context. If the people were to calculate the value of property based on Jubilee value, now much more should they be honest about what they vow to the LORD. If you vow it, give it.

Imagine if you had two cars, and you promised to give your good car to a struggling single mom who needed a car for work and care for her kids. Both are your cars, so you can do what you want with them. She would probably be happy with either car.

But what about your integrity? You promised the best, and now you want to substitute your old clunker because you have reconsidered. You don’t want to be seen in that old clunker.

The penalty for substitution was that both cars became the LORD’s property. That encourages extreme honesty. When you vow, make it count. When you give your word, fulfill it. Don’t make excuses. Do what you say, even when it hurts.