Propheting: Returning to God

Propheting: Returning to God

Malachi 1:11-13, 2:10, 17, 3:6-10, 4:5-6

Malachi 1:11-13 ¹¹ My name wi= ll be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations," says the LORD Almighty.

¹² "But you profane it by saying of the Lord's table, 'It is defiled,' an= d of its food, 'It is contemptible.' ¹³ And you say, 'What a burden!'= and you sniff at it contemptuously," says the LORD Almighty.
"When you bring injured, crippled = or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from yo= ur hands?" says the LORD.

Malachi 2:10, 17&nb= sp; ¹⁰ Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us? Why do we profane the covenant of our fathers by breaking faith with one another?....

¹⁷ You have wearied the LORD with your words.
"How have we wearied him?" you ask.
By saying, "All who do evil are go= od in the eyes of the LORD, and he is pleased with them" or "Where is the God of justice?"

Malachi 3:6-10 (Robbing God)   ⁶ "I the = LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. ^{7
Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees
and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says =
the
LORD Almighty. "But you ask, 'How are we to return?' ⁸
"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.

      "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?'=

      "In tithes and offerings. ^{9
You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are
robbing me. ¹⁰ Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that t=
here
may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty,
"and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour ou=
t so
much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.}}

Malachi 4:5-6 ⁵ "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. ⁶ He will turn the hearts of the fathers = to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I = will come and strike the land with a curse."

Monday morning at the “Y,” the conversatio= n in the locker room focused on a school teacher who’s been in the news lately. He’s the one who wrote the word “Loser” at the to= p of a student’s assignment. This has caused much controversy and raised questions about whether this teacher sho= uld keep his job.

Well, I had a teacher who used similar tactics. I remember it well; and feel that,= at least in my case, the approach was pretty effective. I promise you I never wanted to gi= ve him the opportunity to say that kind of thing to me again! That’s not an endorsement of = what the teacher did—just a suggestion that it’s possible that a bit= too much has been made of it.

After that conversation, though, I had this thought. Those who find it so inappropriate= for the teacher to use the term “Loser” in reference to a student’s work—or lack thereof—should probably just steer clear of the Minor Prophets. = These guys are tough.

Whether their words are directed at the Northern Kingd= om of Israel or the Southern Kingdom of Judah, or toward their enemies--like the Babylonians and their capital city of Nineveh, or the Edomites and their “rock city” of Petra (Obadiah)—it really didn’t mat= ter who these guys were talking about—their harsh words made it clear eno= ugh that they were ALL LOSERS!!!

But remember this: the prophets’ ultimate goal w= as to bring people back to God. Hos= ea, the first of the Minor Prophets, tried to show how much God loved His peopl= e and how He had reached out to them over and over again, even after they had betrayed Him and chased after other gods.&= nbsp; Hosea only wanted to get God’s people to return to Him and be faithful.

Now, as we come today to the last of the Minor Prophet= s, we find that Malachi is also revealing God’s heart--that He simply wants= His people back. He wants the relationship to be close and loving once again. Malachi’s book is all about “Returning to God.”

Remember that Malachi is one of three prophets who did= their work after the exile. God’s people have returned to Jerusalem. At the urging of the prophet Hagga= i, they rebuilt the Temple. They expected this to usher in a n= ew “golden age” for Israe= l, but this didn’t happen.

Conditions did improve some under Ezra and Nehemiah. There seemed to be revival in the land. But it didn’t last. This is when Malachi co= mes on the scene to issue God’s final invitation found in the Old Testament: “‘Return to me, and I will return to you,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Malachi 3:7)

I wonder if God might be extending the same invitation= to us today. Hardly a week goes by = that I don’t have a conversation with someone who is deeply disturbed by what they see as a lack of commitment to God in our society, demonstrated by an onslaught of moral and ethical failure.&nb= sp;

Sometimes their concern is brought on by something the= y observe out in the world. At other ti= mes, it caused by a crisis much closer to home.= Either way, they will often express with a conviction bordering on desperation, “We’ve got to find our way back to God!”

Well, this is the message of Malachi! We’ll try to get at this by = asking two questions that I believe the prophet seeks to answer for us in this boo= k.

1. DO WE NEED TO RETURN TO GOD? <= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Malachi points to several problems = in his day which indicated that people had wandered far away from the Lord. Let’s take a look:

A. First, he says they are DISRESPECTFUL. Malachi begins his prophecy by reminding people that they have been chosen by God and nurtured by His lovi= ng care, yet they show God no respect in return. Listen as God speaks through Malac= hi:

"A son honors his father, and a servant his maste= r. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?" says the LORD Almighty. (Malachi 1:6)

They are like children who’ve been given too much already, but it’s never enough. God wants us to be like children who always seek to bring their Fath= er honor.

But we are also reminded in this verse that God is not= only our Father. He is also our Master. As a loving Father, H= e has certainly earned our respect. As our Master, however, He has every right to demand respect as well.

But this wasn’t happening. They were disrespectful toward God= . So we are left to ask if this shoe= also fits us—do we also suffer from a lack of respect in our relationship = with God?

B. There’s more. Malachi says the people have becom= e DISOBEDIENT toward God. I’ll point to two examples:<= /p>

1) “‘When you bring = blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Wo= uld he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?’ says the LORD Almighty.= ” (Malachi 1:7)

Scripture tells us to offer to God only our best. We may fool others, but we donR= 17;t fool God when what we bring before Him is something less than the very best= we have to give.

How often do we offer to God something that’s “pretty lame,” to pick up on the imagery in this verse? Offering God damaged goods is evid= ence of a spiritual blindness, a sickness of the soul.

2) Here’s a second example of disobedience: R= 20;Judah h= as broken faith. A detestable thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusa= lem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the LORD loves, by marrying the daughter of a foreign god. (Malachi 2:11)

God made it clear to His people that their relationshi= p with Him was to be so important to them that they would never choose to form a l= ife partnership with someone—in other words, to marry someone--who did not share their belief in and commitment to God. In the New Testament, it’s c= alled being “unequally yoked.”

Marriage is a relationship in which everything is mean= t to be shared. When faith cannot = be shared between husband and wife, this will either hinder the marriage or it will g= et in the way of someone’s relationship with God.

So, God told them to avoid this conflict. But they didn’t obey—a= nother indication that they needed to return to God.

C. They w= ere disrespectful and disobedient—sure signs that their relationship with= God was not close. And now we learn that they were also DISTRUSTFUL. Hear= the evidence Malachi presents:

“You have wearied the LORD with your words. ‘How have we wearied him?R= 17; you ask. By saying, ‘Al= l who do evil are good in the eyes of the LORD, and he is pleased with them’= ; or ‘Where is the God of justice?’" (Malachi 2:17)

Once again, we find them acting like spoiled children.= There was no gratitude expressed f= or what they did have, only questions and complaints because, in their eyes, somebody else seemed to have more. They accused God of being unfair—unjust.

There was evidence everywhere Malachi looked that these people had gone far astray and needed to get back to God. So what about us? Do you think any of these problems= ever show up in our lives? Bottom = line: do WE “need to return to God?”

2. Now, let’s assume we do--tha= t this is also our need, that we are willing to admit our need, and that we truly desire a closer relationship with God.&nbs= p; Well, the second question that Malachi speaks to is this: WHAT WILL SHOW THAT WE HAVE (returned to God)? What is it that would clearly say = to God that we’re back—that we have returned to Him?

A. Eviden= tly, God is looking for something more than just “talk.” For example, God wants to see in u= s RESPONSIBILITY.

Listen: "‘Will a man rob God? Yet you rob m= e. But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' <= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the wh= ole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse…” (Malachi 3:8-10)

Don’t you just hate this Scripture? Well, no, of course you don’t—if you practice the spiritual discipline of tithing, if y= ou are being obedient to God and living responsibly as His child—then you don’t mind this passage at all.

In fact, I find that many people love this Scripture&#= 8230;because it commends them as faithful stewards of God’s blessings. I hope you love this passage and l= ive by it, because you will never be close to God until you do.

Could it be time to return to God? Could it be time for us to be more responsible in getting God’s tithe back to His storehouse?

B. Let’s continue. Closely coupled with responsibilit= y is REVERENCE. I believe it’s reverence that Malachi is getting at when he says, “A scroll of remembrance was writ= ten in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name.&= #8221; (Malachi 3:16)

We don’t talk in those terms much any more—‘fearing the Lord and honoring His name.’ I wonder--have we become too casual about the things of God?

Can we still recognize that there are sacred times and sacred spaces, which means there’s still a time and place for reverence? Malachi says that reverence should find its place in our lives. It’s another sign that we are drawing closer to God.

C. Next, we find what we might call <= /span>REFLECTION. In the verse we just considered, t= he phrase “honored his name” can also be translated “thought= on his name.” <= /span>

How often do we spend time thinking about God, reflecting on the lo= ve of God, pondering the mysteries and majesties of God, or seriously consider= ing the ways of God? Returning to the= Lord includes having moments of deep thought and serious reflection focused on Him. “Let the…meditation of= my heart be acceptable in your sight, O God.” (Psalm 19:14)

D. Another indicator of renewal = in Malachi could be called RE-ENGAGEM= ENT. Listen to this verse: “I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him.” (Malachi 3:17b) If our relationship with God is fr= esh and alive, if we are drawing nearer to God each day, then we are also watch= ing to find where we can plug in to what God is doing in His world.

Opportunities to serv= e God surround us every day. Some of them are right here in church. When we= get to the New Testament, we learn that God has placed spiritual gifts in the l= ives of His people, and He expects us to use them in service. People who are close to the Lord do things for Him. We are servin= g Him anytime we choose to serve others in His name. Maybe it’s time for some of = us to re-engage. =

E. Now, l= et me mention just one more indicator I find in Malachi that says we are making o= ur way back to God. We’ll = call this RELATIONSHIP: “Then= those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard= .” (Malachi 3:16a)

Friends, our relationships are directly affected by ou= r walk with God. The closer we are t= o the Lord, the closer we can be to one another. When there is too much distance between us and God, we tend to drive wedges between us and others.

It works this way in families--in churches, too. In fact, I don’t suppose the= re is any aspect of human relationship where this doesn’t happen. As we grow closer to God, we are a= lso drawn closer to one another.

“Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard.” (Malachi 3:16a) That’s pretty remarkable, wh= en you think about it. In our everyd= ay interactions and conversations, the Lord is listening in. Young people, it’s sort of l= ike we have this built in spyware, right?

So how does this affect our relationships? Well, if we’re not close to = God, it doesn’t affect them. But if we are drawing near to God, and know that--just as He promised, He’= ;s also drawing near to us--this will have a profound affect on all our interactions and conversations.

Our relationships with each other are barometers of our relationship with God. When t= hey’re improving, it’s often because we are also drawing nearer to God—which is exactly what He wants for each one of us. He wants us near to Him and near t= o each other.

Jesus said it like this: ‘Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.’ = (Mark 12:30-31) Even a Minor Prophe= t knew that you have to be close to God for that to happen!

So, are there any signs that we need to “return = to God?” If we’re ho= nest, there’re lots of them—including some that Malachi didn’t = even mention.

Nor did he talk about all the ways we can know that we= ’re getting closer to the Lord. B= ut, hey, we have to start somewhere on this journey back to God, right? And Malachi’s list looks to = me like a pretty good place to get started!&n= bsp; Please hear God’s invitation to us today: “Return to Me!”

Malachi 2:10, 17&nb= sp; 10 Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us? Why do we profane the covenant of our fathers by breaking faith with one another?....

Malachi 4:5-6 5 "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the fathers = to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I = will come and strike the land with a curse."

B. Let’s continue. Closely coupled with responsibilit= y is REVERENCE. I believe it’s reverence that Malachi is getting at when he says, “A scroll of remembrance was writ= ten in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name.&= #8221; (Malachi 3:16)

C. Next, we find what we might call <= /span>REFLECTION. In the verse we just considered, t= he phrase “honored his name” can also be translated “thought= on his name.” <= /span>

Malachi 2:10, 17&nb= sp; ¹⁰ Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us? Why do we profane the covenant of our fathers by breaking faith with one another?....

Malachi 4:5-6 ⁵ "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. ⁶ He will turn the hearts of the fathers = to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I = will come and strike the land with a curse."