02/25 Reading - Thoughts & Comments DX3

25-Feb Leviticus 25-27 Acts 21-22 Psalms 126-130 Proverbs 25

Lev 25:1-5 (NIV) 1 The Lord said to Moses on Mount Sinai, 2 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. 3 For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. 4 But in the seventh year the land is to have a sabbath of rest, a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. 5 Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest.

Lev 25:20-22 (NIV) 20 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.

God issued a very specific command in the Old Testament that we really take for granted in the New Testament.  He required a Sabbath year of rest for the land every seven years.  And he promised the Israelites that if they would do this, that HE PERSONALLY would send such a huge bounty of harvest in the sixth year that they would have enough food to eat for three years to come so that the land could rest.  This obedience to God would reap a huge bountiful harvest that everyone could see.  Heaven would touch the earth, and a field would give three times more than normally possible.  Why?  Obedience to let the land rest.

Today, the Sabbath rest is indicative of Jesus Christ, the perfect man, the number seven man.  He IS the day of rest, and when you come to Him, you rest from your works.  He is the finished work of God and through Christ, God is now at rest.  The number seven is a powerful biblical number, and the secret starts unlocking in the pattern of the garden of Eden.

However, there is still value in applying this number seven to every area of our lives.  Seven indicates perfection, completion, a finished work, and the rest of God.  There are seven days in the week, and we should apply this principle to our day number seven.  People and businesses who allow the rest of God to permeate them will tell you that supernatural supply and abundance come upon them because of their commitment to apply the "DAY OF REST" to their work, their bodies, their businesses, etc.  

I remember when I was 17, I worked on a road paving crew in the Summer between junior and senior years.  The road crew had to finish a highway in a certain amount of time and they had us work seven days per week, ten to twelve hours per day.  It was fun and the money was great for the first few weeks. But something began to happen. I lost track of time, and I lost my bearings. I remember getting up and not knowing if it was Monday or Friday.  It didn't matter because they would all be the same - work.  While everyone would be sleeping in and resting in my town on Sunday morning, I was jumping in the car with the other workers at seven AM and heading to another day's work.  I lost focus, vision, my senses, and any purpose that I might have had before.  The money didn't even mean anything to me after six to eight weeks of this.  It became grueling, my co-workers and I became zombies, and none of us had any spark of life in us.  As I think back on that day 34 years ago, I'm not sure where I put that extra $500.  And it doesn't really matter because I now know that MY GOD would have gladly made that up to me in a different way if I had known and obeyed the principle of seven during that Summer.  I wonder how much health, vision, and divine opportunities I lost that year.  I may never know.  But I can guarantee you that I didn't see God bring me any special blessings during that time.

As you review your goals and priorities in Christ, make a particular effort to implement the principle of seven in your goals, targets, and ventures.  Honor God and allow REST to permeate your arenas of work.  Work is good. But all workers need rest.  And keeping this balance and honoring God with the principle of seven will unleash a powerful interaction between Heaven and earth.  Your business bottom line will boom.  Your farm will grow more food.  Your family will grow healthy and strong. and REST will permeate your health and well being.      

Tomorrow's Reading:
26-Feb Numbers 1-2 Acts 23-24 Psalms 131-135 Proverbs 26