Please turn in your Bibles to the last of the Old Testament books, Malachi, as we continue our study through the Word of God. Now we don’t know much about this prophet of God except that his ministry was some time after the temple was rebuilt, putting him with the other post exilic prophets, Haggai and Zechariah.
Now the name "Malachi" means "My messenger" and he was the last messenger of God, the last prophet of God until John the baptist came on the scene. God was silent for some 400 years, until He raised up John the baptist and that silence was then broken. And John the baptist broke that silence by saying, "...‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’" Matthew 3:2. In fact, the book of Malachi closes with the promise of Elijah coming to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah and John the baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah, preparing the way for the Messiah, Jesus Christ! And we will look at this more as we finish the book next week.
As you read through this book the time period of Ezra and Nehemiah seem to come to the forefront. The same things these prophets spoke against the Jews, so too did Malachi. Ezra’s ministry was around 458 BC, and Nehemiah around 445 BC, which would put Malachi some time during these prophets, or shortly after them.
Just to give you an example of what was going on during this period of time, keep your finger in Malachi chapter 1, and turn for a minute to Nehemiah chapter 13, and let’s begin reading in verse 23. It says "In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke according to the language of one or the other people. So I contended with them and cursed them, struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, ‘You shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or yourselves. Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, who was beloved of his God; and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless pagan women caused even him to sin. Should we then hear of your doing all this great evil, transgressing against our God by marrying pagan women?’ And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was a son-in-law of Sanballat the Horonite; therefore I drove him from me. Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites. Thus I cleansed them of everything pagan. I also assigned duties to the priests and the Levites, each to his service, and to bringing the wood offering and the firstfruits at appointed times. Remember me, O my God, for good!" Nehemiah 13:23-31.
Nehemiah was a tough guy. He struck those living in rebellion, pulled out their hair. I guess if I did that I would not have too many counseling sessions. But he did get his point across! Now as you have that for a background, the spiritual apathy that was taking place, God sends His prophet Malachi, My messenger, to awaken the people and get them back on track. With that said, let’s dig into Malachi chapter 1, beginning in verse 1, and see what the Lord has for us this evening.
VERSE 1
1. Malachi establishes these words as coming from the LORD, YAHWEH, and not from his own heart. That is important for the words that Malachi will speak are going to challenge the faith of the Jewish people, and it did need to be challenged!
VERSE 2a
1. Times were not easy and because of that they were questioning God’s love for them. But God affirms His great love for the Jewish people. God said it and yet, they are not going to believe it! Now don’t be too harsh on them, for we do the same thing. God has given to us many precious promises in His Word and we too doubt what He has said many times. May were learn to trust that what God has said is the truth and He will bring it to pass!
VERSE 2b
1. Notice their challenge to God. They want God to tell them how He has loved them. They let their difficult situations cloud over and block out God’s love for them, they couldn’t see it any longer. How sad and yet we do the same thing. We let our problems get so big they block out the Son of God!
VERSES 2c-3a
1. God is speaking about election here, that He chose Jacob over Esau before these twins were even born. In Romans 9:11-13 Paul speaks of this when he says "(for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, ‘The older shall serve the younger.’ As it is written, ‘Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.’" It was not because one was better than the other, but God’s sovereignty.
2. Now here is something that is troubling, God hating Esau and loving Jacob. There are a couple of ways you can look at this. First that God loves Esau less than He did Jacob, not hating him. Another way to look at this is that God, being all-knowing, knew what Esau and his descendants would be like, and thus could rightly say He hated their actions, for God does love the sinner but hate the sin! On the other hand, Jacob and his descendants weren’t perfect, but they at least had a desire to serve the Lord. God hated their actions, but He does love sinners and came to die for them. And what we may see here is that difficult concept of election and free will. It is all God and yet, we do have a choice. I can’t explain it, but it is what the Scriptures tell us. Now some may say that this is not fair, but make no mistake about it, it is totally fair for our God is a holy and righteous God and Paul continues to say in Romans chapter 9, "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.’ So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy." Romans 9:14-16.
3. One last point I want to make from Warren W. Wiersbe. He said:
Someone said to Dr. Arno C. Gaebelein, the gifted Hebrew Christian leader of a generation ago, "I have a serious problem with Malachi 1:3, where God says ‘Esau I have hated.’" Dr. Gaebelein replied, ‘I have a greater problem with Malachi 1:2, where God says, ‘Jacob I have loved.’" We certainly can’t explain the love and grace of God, nor do we have to, but we can experience God’s grace and love as we trust Christ and walk with Him. The Lord is even willing to be "the God of Jacob."
- Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Amazed, p. 141
VERSES 3b-5
1. God is saying that the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, will be wiped out. They may think they will recover, but they won’t, the race of the Edomites will be done away with. That is the fate of the Edomites.
2. On the other hand, God will restore Israel, they will see their greatest restoration in the kingdom age and in their restoration, the Lord will be glorified. He will be magnified, as His promises to Israel will come to pass!
VERSE 6
1. The Law said they were to honor their father, a servant was to honor his master, and yet, the giver of those laws they did not honor, they did not respect! And talk about your hutzpa! Here the priests challenge God by saying, "In what way have we despised your name?" Well, God is going to tell them!
VERSE 7
1. Notice how hard they had become towards sin, it did not even affect them any longer. And this defilement of food on the altar was not speaking of the table of showbread in the holy place, but the bread that was offered to God on the altar. And please understand that God is not chastening them for not doing it, but how they were doing it, the attitude of their hearts, and thus, that was unacceptable to the Lord. It is as Paul said in Hebrews 3:12-13, "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."
VERSE 8
1. Not only were they giving to God out of the wrong heart, but they gave to Him that which was worthless, of no value to them. And the point that God challenges them on is this, would they give these things to their leaders? Of course not! Then why give them to God? Remember several years ago when the Mississippi River overflowed its banks and many lost their homes, they lost everything. Several women from a local church decided to help out and they were collecting used underwear for the flood victims. You would not give them to God, so why give them to man as His representative!
VERSE 9
1. Their attitude was bad, they gave to God that which is worthless, and yet the call is to seek the Lord for He is gracious and His judgment He may hold back. The key is to seek, to return, to do a about face from the direction you are going!
VERSE 10
1. I think the idea here is serving for monetary gain. If they don’t make money, then they won’t do it. First of all if that is your reason for serving, get out! God does not want us serving to make a profit off of Him, doing it grudgingly or out of compulsion. He wants us to serve Him out of love, for it is a honor to serve the King!
VERSE 11
1. The partial fulfillment of this is seen in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as God poured out His Spirit upon the gentiles. We are part of that group who praise the Lord. But the ultimate fulfillment of this is seen in the kingdom age.
VERSES 12-13
1. Notice their attitude towards the things of God. There is no love, only a work theology and they hate it. They are only interested in their own well being. They are trying to make a profit off of God!
VERSE 14
1. They were suppose to offer the male animals as a sacrifice, and yet, they lied and said they had none, offering a female sacrifice instead. And they saw no wrong in lying to God. They saw no wrong in giving to God that which was blemished or imperfect. And God nails them here by telling them "I am a great king." In fact, He is the creator of heaven and earth and thus should be honored that way. It is as Psalm 47:1-2 says, "Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! For the LORD Most High is awesome; he is a great King over all the earth." May we, as Christians, not forget that and give to God that which is blemished or out of a wrong heart attitude!
VERSES 1-2
1. God is speaking to the spiritual leaders, that they need to honor God, take their position seriously. In fact, it is not a profession, it is not a job, it is a calling by God! And the consequences of not taking it seriously, not honoring God, is that He will send a curse upon them, in fact, it has already begun. I will say this in regards to what the Lord is saying here. If you don’t take Him seriously, if you don’t honor Him, you won’t have a respect for His Word, which leads to all kinds of liberal ideas, making the Scriptures say what you want them to say instead of what God wants. Be careful!
VERSES 3-5
1. First of all, those who brought dishonor to Him He would bring dishonor to them, and that is illustrated by spreading dung, refuse on their faces. Not a pretty picture, but it was what they needed to see.
2. Secondly, God used the tribe of Levi as His priesthood before Him. And they feared the Lord because they knew Him, they honored Him. And He instructed them to give to the people life and peace that is only found in God. And today, God still offers to us a covenant of life and peace that is only found in Christ. It is as Jesus said in John 5:21, "For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will." Also, in Romans 5:1 Paul tells us, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." That is what God has for us and as representatives of Him, we can give to others that same life and peace that is found in Christ!
VERSE 6
1. As a minister of God that is what I am to do. Speak the truths of God found in the Word of God that the people of God may turn from their sin and live in peace not only with God, but with his fellow man. David, in Psalm 119:9-11 speaks of this very thing, how the Word of God keeps us on the right path and when we fall, it exposes our sin. David said "How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You!"
VERSE 7
1. Again, notice what God expects of His ministers, that they give His people the Word of God and there is no getting around that, nor should we try! It is as Paul said in I Corinthians 11:23, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you..." You see, you can’t give to people what you don’t have. Thus, as I teach the Word of God, as God speaks to me, I give to you what He has shown me. If you are not giving people the Word of God, then what in the world are you giving them? NOTHING!
VERSE 8
1. Here is God’s rebuke, they turned from God’s law, His truth, His Words, and thus, they have caused many to stumble! In Amos 8:11 we are told "‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘That I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.’" Truly, in the church at large, there is a famine in regards to the teaching of God’s Word. People have itching ears, they want to be entertained, and they are starving to death, spiritually speaking. Paul, warning Timothy of these days, says "Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." II Timothy 4:2-5.
You see, just because it may not be popular to teach the Word of God, Paul is telling Timothy to continue on, don’t give up, fulfill the ministry for which you have been called into. And I believe that is what needs to be done with all my heart, the teaching of the Word of God to keep the sheep healthy and strong!
VERSE 9
1. Because they negated God’s Word and were more interested in being people pleasers instead of God pleasers, God caused the people to turn against them. If you are in the ministry, this is an important lesson to learn. You will never please everyone and to try, you will go crazy and you will have to compromise what you believe, to negate the Word of God to be popular, and in the end, it won’t make you popular and it is displeasing to God. Paul makes this point when he says in I Thessalonians 2:4-6, "But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts. For neither at any time did we use flattering words, as you know, nor a cloak for covetousness-- God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, when we might have made demands as apostles of Christ." May we not forget the lesson!
VERSE 10
1. God’s rebuke against His people is that they are dealing treacherously, taking advantage of each other, when God has created us all, and to go against His people, you are going against Him. May that stop the bickering, backbiting, gossip, put downs, and-so-on in the body of Christ!
VERSE 11
1. This is another sad statement. The men of Israel were divorcing their Jewish wives and marrying gentile women, and in God’s eyes, that is wrong. And the implication seems to be that in their actions, they are being drawn away from God and towards the gods of their gentile wives.
VERSE 12
1. God is not going to ignore their sin, but He will deal with them, cutting them off. And do you see how blind to their sin they were? They did these abominations before the Lord and yet they were going through their religious activities, offering sacrifices to God, and God says that He won’t accept them.
VERSE 13
1. First of all, the women who were divorced by their husbands are weeping over what has taken place. And then these men are crying because God is rejecting their sacrifice. But please understand, there is not a heart of repentance here, only a heart of weeping over what the Lord was doing to them. They did not get back with their wives, but continued in their sin and yet they wanted God to accept them anyway! God does not accept us according to our standards, but His!
VERSE 14
1. Now God is going to express His will in regards to marriage and divorce. First of all they broke the marriage covenant they made with their wife. The vows they made were not real, but empty words. And we see that so often today. I believe it was the governor of Oklahoma who said "It is easier to get out of a marriage contract than it is from a Tupperware contract!" We are seeing divorce rates exploding across this nation and what is happening outside of the church, is also happening inside the church! Those words "Till death do us part" are meaningless today. What we really should say, because that is what we believe, is "I’ll stick with you until I have found someone prettier, younger, richer, stronger" or whatever reason people find to break their marriage covenant!
VERSE 15
1. The union of a godly husband and wife produce godly offspring or godly children. Does that mean all children born to godly parents will grow up loving the Lord? Of course not, but they do have a better chance, and divorce can destroy that!
VERSE 16
1. Do you see how God feels about divorce? He hates it! Why? Because it destroys lives, and not just the husband and wife, but children, parents, relatives and even their friends! And instead of covering your spouse with the love of God, you are covering her with violence. Instead of loving her as Christ loves the church and died for her, you are tossing her in the garbage! Harsh? Yes! But God hates divorce!
VERSE 17
1. Notice what they did with God, they brought Him down to their level, saying that God will accept all in the end. He doesn’t really care what we do or if He really does, He can’t do anything about it! In Isaiah 5:20 the Lord said, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" That is how God feels about evil, and when he says "Woe" He means it! And in Psalm 7:11-13 David said, "God is a just judge, and God is angry with the wicked every day.
If he does not turn back, he will sharpen His sword; he bends His bow and makes it ready. He also prepares for Himself instruments of death; he makes His arrows into fiery shafts." You see, God does care about evil, He will judge it, and don’t confuse His longsuffering with His inability to do anything about it. He will deal with it! But for those that have been cleansed by the blood of Christ, we are told in Matthew 13:43 "Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" What a glorious promise that God has given to us, may we not forget that!