Malachi 1-4

October 10

Malachi 1-4

In the days that Malachi was living, the people of Israel were going through the motions of worshiping God, but they were not worshiping with their heart. They looked for shortcuts and sought ways to lessen the cost of sacrifices. They did not honor God and wondered why they followed Him.

God called for the people to bring the best of their flock, a lamb without blemish. The people began to count the cost. They realized that this lamb brought for sacrifice was going to die anyway, why not bring a blind or cripple lamb for the sacrifice and keep the good lamb. This was a sign they did not really trust God. If they trusted God, they would realize He could bless them with more than they brought as a sacrifice. He could give them multiple, high quality lambs, but they brought their leftovers. God wants our best; our best time, our best effort, our best thoughts. God wants the best we have to offer and not just what we have left over at the end of the week.

Peter says we are all priests. We represent God to the people around us and represent the people to God when we lift them up in prayer. Priests should turn people toward God and should speak justice and truth. The priests of Malachi’s day caused people to stumble as they sought to benefit themselves instead of pointing people to God. Many people today will tell you they do not go to church because they have had negative experiences with Christians.

The men of Malachi’s day were leaving their wives in their old age. God refused to listen to their pleas because they were seeking self pleasure. They were breaking up their families and it affected their children. God created the two to become one and there are consequences for breaking the covenant of marriage. God hates divorce.

The people were also robbing God by not bringing a full tithe as an offering. God said He cursed them because of their actions. But He also invited them to test Him in their giving. He promised to bless them beyond what they could give. The average giving by Christians in the church today is 2-3%. What difference does it make? Our giving reveals our trust in God. We can say we trust Him, but when we are willing to open our checkbooks, we reveal whether or not we really trust Him.

Finally, some of the people questioned the advantages of serving God. They focused on the things of the world instead of the things of God. Their attitude was the effect of their faith. They did not really trust God or sacrifice to God. They lived as they wanted to live, with cursory worship of God as an add-on to their lives. God wants us to give ourselves to Him; to trust Him and to put ourselves aside. If we will give our best to Him and trust Him with all of our lives, we will see the advantages of serving Him as He pours out His blessings on us.