Lectio
“Or, by the acceptable year of the Lord, he means this day extended through endless ages, which knows of no return to a world of labor, and grants to men everlasting reward and rest.”
— St. Ambrose, as quoted in Thomas Aquinas, Catena Aurea
Meditatio
In Luke’s Gospel, when Jesus stands up in the synagogue at Nazareth and reads from the scroll of Isaiah, He speaks of “the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:19) which refers to the Jubilee, the year prescribed in Leviticus when debts were forgiven, slaves freed, and land returned to its original owners: a periodic reset written into the law itself, a limit set on how long anyone could remain bound in servitude to another. Jesus then tells the crowd that He is the fulfillment of this word, in the flesh and in their midst, implying that He is the Jubilee, that He is freedom itself — from debt, from slavery, and from exile — but not merely for a year. Christ is Jubilee itself, now and forever. He is the prophecy foretold, a promise fulfilled, and a gift to all who will receive Him.
Christ, Himself, is our rest. He is our reward. He is our Jubilee, our eternal freedom from labor, suffering, and death. And though we may toil today, as Adam and his descendants did before us, through Christ, the curse of original sin is lifted and we are brought beyond the Garden, beyond the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil that separated us from God, and into the new Jerusalem with the Lord to eat from the Tree of Life that was always meant for us. Through Christ, we are brought back into perfect communion with the Lord because Christ, Himself, is the Tree of Life.
Jesus Christ is the good news brought to the poor, the release proclaimed to every captive, the sight restored to eyes long closed, the freedom given to all who are oppressed — not only spoken over us in empty words, but the living Word fulfilled in us, and for us, today and every day, without end. He is not a mere season, no matter how healing and replenishing that season may be, but eternity itself made flesh — the Son of the living God born, crucified, and resurrected for us, with us, and in us, now and forever.
Oratio
Word Become Me
Your word passes through me
Your word passes by me
floating through the air
settling upon my heart
as you see fit
as I am prepared to receive it
Your word is sometimes my comfort
sometimes my conviction
sometimes my inspiration
sometimes my exhalation
may Your word O Lord
become my very breath
my heartbeat
my word
may Your word O Lord
become a living word within me
may Your word O Lord
become me
O my Word
Contemplatio
There is no far off future this grace is waiting for. It is already present in this moment. It is already yours, already breathed into you. Remain here a moment longer, not seeking to control what comes next, simply allowing His presence to have its way with you.
Related Scripture
“And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family.”
For Further Reading
If you enjoyed this post, you may also like Right-Sized and Beloved: John Chrysostom on the Humility of a Child (Lectio Divina), which turns from a freedom given once for all time to the humility required to receive it, trading the grasping heart for the trust of a child.
Robert Van Valkenburgh
Grappling With Divinity.
Wrestling With God.
Returning To Love.
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