When was the last time you complain to God? On an average, how many
complaints you have to God in a week or month?
What are some of our complaints? How come you don't give that job
which I really want? How come you allow this to happen in my life?
Why are you so unfair? How come every company that hired me went bankrupt
within one year? How come I can never settle down in one place? I
am sure we each have our own complaint list.
However, have we thought that God also complaints about us? What
do you will be some of God's complaints?
This morning we want to take a look at the Israelites who lived about
400 years before the birth of Jesus. The book of Malachi is the last
book in the OT. Malachi was probably the last of the OT prophets.
After this book was written, there was no direct communication and
revelation from God to the Israelites for 400 years until He spoke
again thru Jesus Christ. At the time of Malachi, the Jews had already
returned to Palestine from their Babylonian exile. It was a broken
nation with all its former glories gone. The religious and political
leaders were corrupt, Sabbaths were not observed, the Israelites married
idol worshippers. Marriage vows were broken and tithes were ignored.
Something was terribly wrong in that society. But the people didn't
seem to care. They were complacent. So God spoke thru his servant
Malachi, in the form of complaints and indictments, like a legal court
proceeding, trying to wake up the Israelites, causing them to see
their true conditions and repent.
This morning we'll use this book as a mirror, to examine where we
are spiritually.
I. We are to honor and respect God.
The first complaint had to do with the Israelites' attitude toward
God. In 1:6, A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If
I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where
is the respect due me?" God was complaining that the Israelites were
not showing any respect to him. Their response? v6b,"but you ask,
How have we shown contempt for your name?" v7, You placed defiled
food on the altar. But you ask, 'how have we defiled you?"' We see
a complete lack of sensitivity on the Israelites' part. They had no
idea what they were doing. They were content and complacent.
So, in v8 God explained, You brought those crippled, diseased and
blind animals to the temple and offered them as sacrifices to me."
They kept for themselves the healthy and strong animal. The weak and
the useless ones, they offered to God. This clearly reflected their
attitude toward God. There was no respect or honor. God was not first
in their lives.
Does this sound familiar to us? Sometimes we hear people say, "when
I am not too busy, I will go to church." Because I have to go to that
dinner party, I don't think I can get up early enough to go to SS
or the worship service.
You look at a piece of furniture you have at home. Its getting old,
the color has faded and the legs are wobbly. What comes to your mind?
(pause). Yes, you are right, "May be the church can make use of it!".
Or after completing all your work, there is still some time left.
May be I should read God's word. I give God my left over time. When
we don't have anything else to do, we go to our church. If there's
a schedule conflict between a social event and a church function,
usually the church loses out. Something else is always more important
than church. Such behaviors and attitudes reflect our lack of respect
and honor for God.
In v14b God told the Israelites, "For I am a great King, and my name
is to be feared among the nations." God reminds them about his greatness
and Lordship. He deserves that honor and respect. He deserves the
best from them, He is to be first in their lives.
God still desires the best from us. Which means that as I look for
a career, I ask, "What does God want me to do?" "Is this a job that
will pull me away from God or draw me closer to him?" I give God the
best time of my day to read His word and talk to him. It also means
His church and ministry occupy an important place in my life. I may
have to forgo some Saturday so I can get up early the next morning
for SS and worship. When I give something to church, it has to be
in such condition that I am proud to use it at home.
Since he is the great king, I honor and respect him by giving him
my best, my all.
Let's listen to the second complaint.
II. We are to honor our marriage commitment.
2:10, breaking faith ", v13, 14, broken faith with her " In this
passage, God was telling the Israelites they were unfaithful in their
marriage covenant. Divorce was rampant. And God expressed his will
in no uncertain terms, v16: I hate divorce. For divorce was a direct
violation of God's original intent for marriage. Its a frontal attack
on what God has established. Divorce was common in those days, yet
God's people must not be content with the status quo. Even though
everyone else was doing it, it was wrong.
These words serve as a warning to all of us. Divorce is commonplace
in our society, both in the eastern and western culture. One out every
two marriages end in divorce. We've become insensitized by our surroundings.
When things go wrong in our marriage, we immediately think of separation
and divorce. But here, God says, "I hate divorce"
v15b and 16b also urge the people to guard yourselves in spirit,
and do not break faith". Its not suggesting that since God hates divorce,
so one should just learn to tolerate and suffer the consequences of
a poor marriage. Its more than that. One is to guard himself. From
What? From all those practices and forces that can separate husband
and wife. We are to guard ourselves from forces such as careers, separate
interests, different priorities in life, adultery, apathy, bitterness
and resentment. Guard ourselves from these forces that can come into
our marriage and cause us to break faith with each other.
Its appropriate that we pause and think for a moment. To those of
us who are married, is there anything that has come between you and
your spouse? Has it begun to pull you apart from each other? That
your spouse is more and more like a stranger to you? I can also think
of some when we first got married, there wasn't any vows. And you
have expressed that you would like an opportunity to express your
commitment to each other. In the Fall, we will have a SS class for
couples. We plan that at the end of the SS session, there will be
a very special moment where you can renew your wedding vows to each
other.
III. We are to return to God what belongs to Him.
Another complaint God filed against them was almost hilarious. Listen
to this one, 3:8," You rob me." The Israelites were surprised. "What?
Are you kidding? We robbed you? How can we have robbed you?" Again
this shows insensitivity, utter contempt and complacency with themselves.
They had no idea something was wrong in they way they handled their
money and properties. And God explains in v8b." In tithes and offerings."
You see, the Israelites were to bring to the temple and to give God
1/10 of whatever they had. Beside this, they were also told to bring
other kinds of offerings. Such as the first crop or the first born
of their animals. So their total offering was much more than 1/10.
This 1/10 and other offerings belonged to God. But at this particular
time in their nation's history, they had not been giving to God their
tithes and offerings. They were withholding from God what they should
have given to Him. This is robbing God.
This is getting very close to home now. Money is always sensitive.
Are we giving 1/10 of our income to God? Some may argue that we live
in the NT era, and 1/10 is the OT teaching. But if we carefully study
the NT, even though its rather silent on tithing, yet the NT's teaching
on giving has the basic assumption that giving 1/10 to God is still
the minimal standard for all believers. And beyond that we should
also give in accordance to what we have. The more we have, the more
we give. It still holds true that 1/10 of what I have belongs to God.
So when I fail to tithe and keep for myself what should be God's.
I am robbing God. This is a serious charge. Are we guilty of this?
Why did the Israelites stop tithing? The answer is simple. They were
concerned with what would happen to them after they gave one tenth
of what they had to God. Would there be enough for their families?
And what was God's response to this concern? v10," Bring the whole
tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test
me in this, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven
and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for
it." God is saying, "you're afraid that by giving 1/10, you may not
have enough for yourself. But I want to tell you that if you give
me 1/10, I'll open the gates of heaven and pour my blessings upon
you, so much so, that you'll lack nothing." You're afraid that you
might not have enough after tithing? Test me, try me, and see if I'll
bless you or not. This must not be understood as the more money I
give, the more money I'll receive. We must not limit to God's blessing
to just the big dollar sign. Its more than that. His blessing includes
our whole well being. In the NT, it is known as the heavenly blessings.
The knowledge that we belong to him. You see, as we give to God that
which belongs to him in the first place, in return to have God himself.
Sometimes we're so used to our particular life?style. We see nothing
wrong in not tithing. But this passage clearly tells us that by failing
to tithe, we're in fact robbing God. Its a heavy statement, isn't
it? But at the same time, God is challenging us to test Him. How about
this week, this month, whenever we receive that allowance, or paycheck,
before we budget it or buy anything, bite our teeth, close our eyes,
take 1/10 out and give it to God. The first few times when we write
that check or take the money out of our allowance, it really hurts.
But gradually we'll get used to it and do it willingly. Try tithing
for several week and months, and see how God will bless you.
Many of you have been tithing faithfully for years. I'm certain that
we can all say that we have never lacked anything since the day we
began to give God 1/10 of what we have. Yes, we may not be able to
buy certain things we want. But God has certainly met all of our needs.
Conclusion:
Why did God file these complaints against His people? Was it because
He was mad that he was mistreated by His people?
The key to this passage is really in the 2nd verse of chapter 1,"
????:????????I have loved you." The book of Malachi is also called
God's unchanging Love. These are the last of God's prophecy in the
OT era. After these words were spoken, God was silent for 400 years
until He again spoke to men thru Jesus Christ. So what were the last
words that the Jews remembered? What were the words lingering in their
memories? "I have loved you."
You see, because God loved the Israelites, and He still loves us,
therefore He wants to see them and us experience the fullness of life
when we put Him first and honor him. He wants His children to have
the joy and fulfillment that comes from a healthy and committed marriage.
He wants us to have all the blessings when we give Him 1/10 of what
we have, which is all from Him in the first place. He wants us to
have more than the 1/10 if we are to keep it for ourselves. He complained
out of his love.
So where are we today? Are we so complacent that we're totally unaware
and insensitive to what's happening in our relationship with God?
Are we honoring God by putting Him and His work first? Are we keeping
our marriage covenant, are we guarding ourselves from those forces
that will eventually break our marriage commitment? Are we robbing
God by not giving Him 1/10 of what we receive from Him? In the next
few moments, I would like you to respond to God personally. Some of
us can thank God for enabling us to put him first in our lives, to
be faithful to our marriage partner and to cheerfully give to God
what rightfully belongs to Him. Some of us simply need to repent and
ask for His forgiveness. And then ask him to enable us to put God
back on top of our priority list, to renew our commitment to our spouse
and to stop robbing God and begin giving to Him 1/10 of what He has
so richly blessed us with.
