King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Thursday, September 30, 2021
Chapters: The Book of Malachi
Message: True Fear
Hello My Friend,
As I was reading through these chapters I kept thinking that God is speaking these very words to His Church today. We have surely made a mess of things, and this goes beyond robbing God financially of tithes and offerings, we have robbed Him of the very thing that He truly longs for, and is not money, it is our fear of Him. It is like Jesus said, [Matthew 15:7-9 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, 8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. 9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.]
Interestingly enough, we will get to Isaiah at the end of the book, although Malachi is a small book, it is a powerful one and one that every Christian ought to take very seriously. Fearing God is not the sense that we need to be afraid of our losing salvation, we can never lose our salvation. That is of course, unless we believed in Christ in vain and never found it in the first place. The fear of God is reverencing Him, meaning give Him the love, honor, respect, thanks, faith, trust, and dedication that He rightfully deserves for saving our soul, [Colossians 3:22-24 Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: 23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; 24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.]
The Book of Malachi contains four chapters, the author is Malachi, and it was written to Israel. The timeline for these events took place approximately between 440BC and 410BC. The purpose of the book was to call Israel to repentance and return to righteousness in order to restore the nation, with great emphasis on the Levites. What we are to learn from the book is that God only accepts the sacrifices (offerings) of those who love Him wholeheartedly, [Malachi 2:2 If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart.]
You see, going to church every Sunday, giving tithes and offerings, or even serving in the Church is not what pleases God, it is actually in doing these things with a willing heart that pleases Him. You can give Him a million dollars a week in tithe and He not be impressed one bit, it is not what we give, it is how we present it to Him. Malachi was the last of the Old Testament prophets, and he would be the last prophet to speak God’s words for over four hundred years. When the Jews returned to Jerusalem from Babylon they did not expect it to be in ruin and began questioning God when they saw how corrupted it was. Well, God responds to their questions.
[Malachi 1:1-4 The burden of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi. 2 I have loved you, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the LORD: yet I loved Jacob, 3 And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. 4 Whereas Edom saith, We are impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the LORD hath indignation for ever.]
[And I hated Esau] Esau is a picture of the world, he was fully aware of God and His blessings, but he not only despised his birthright, he sold it for a bowl of soup, and for that reason God despised him, [Genesis 25]. It is a common misconception that all mankind is God’s children, well, technically a baby and child up until the age of accountability are safe in the hands of God, and are not subject to hell because they are unaware of their sin. Likewise, are those who are born with special needs who are not aware of their sin, and example will be those born with cerebral palsy or retardation. God’s children have always been from the very start, those whom believe in and follow Him by faith, and He is their Father. And speaking of a father, God goes on to address their complaint to Him in regards to their being His father and those who despise His name.
[Malachi 1:6-8 A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? 7 Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. 8 And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts.]
[Wherein have we despised thy name?] God loves all of mankind, He created them in His very own image, and gave His life to save them from a fiery pit of hell, but He will not accept one person who does not accept Him nor one who wants to choose their own terms of coming to Him. There is only one way to the Father, and that is through His Son, and if we do not accept that, then He will not accept us, [Matthew 10:32-33 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.]
[will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person?] This is a very good question. If we were to do sloppy work at our job would our work be accepted? No, it would not. We would either do it over again and do it right or we would get fired. You see, two things were going on here, the congregation was offering offerings that were blemished. And the priest’s were not keeping themselves out of sin, and still accepting the sacrifices. If the world would not accept the lame offerings then, why should we expect God to accept ours? And God goes on to reverence why He does not accept their halfhearted offerings.
[Malachi 1:10-13 Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand. 11 For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts. 12 But ye have profaned it, in that ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible. 13 Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the LORD.]
[and ye brought that which was torn,] This is the same as a person who goes to church, pays tithes, volunteers, becomes part of a church, but never receives Christ. God will only accept one offering to save our soul, and that is Jesus Christ. Do you know how many people are serving in His Church, including preachers and teachers, who are not saved? Well, God does. And who do they blame for their churches being a mess? God. Even the priests were complaining to God, and He called them out too.
[Malachi 2:1-2,5-9 And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. 2 If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart. 5 My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me, and was afraid before my name. 6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips: he walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from iniquity. 7 For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. 8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts. 9 Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.]
[for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.] Those who serve God in and out of His church are messengers of Christ, if they are not saved, or have any kind of doubt about God, it will reflect off into the congregation. Men and women of God should be knowledgeable in the things of God., especially the Gospel, and seek to know and teach them everywhere they go, [Titus 2:1-3 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: 2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. 3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;]
The Jews enjoyed all the same privileges and advantages, there were many of very different characters, some very good and others very bad, some plainly appeared to be the children of God and others discovered to be the children of the devil himself. Those who are God’s are written in His book, not from any righteousness of their own, but of their faith. Through Malachi, God reveals the messenger He will send before He sends His Son.
[Malachi 3:1-4,6 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. 2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: 3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. 4 Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years. 6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.]
[and he shall purify the sons of Levi,] I have read this book dozens of times, but this is the first time that I have have seen this as more than a foreshadow of John the Baptist. God used John, in fact, John himself said, [John 3:31-36 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. 32 And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony. 33 He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. 34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. 35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. 36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.]
God also used John to purify the Levites of their sin, and I believe this went all the way back to Aaron and the golden calf. You see, God had specifically chosen the Levites for the work of His ministry, of whom John was born of, but only sanctified high priest’s were permitted to present the sacrifices of the people to God, they were their middleman to God. This opened the door for Jesus, who descended here in the flesh from Judah, to be able to not only present the offering as the high priest, but be the offering as well, [Hebrews 5:1,4-5,8-10 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: 4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. 5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.]
I really do not like it when God calls me out for trying to use past devotions to make references, it always takes me that much longer as He tells me, “That is not what I want you to talk about today.” and shows me these things I would have never thought of. Last night at church, the message we got was interestingly from Psalm 126, which we had read yesterday also. We were reminded to love people as Christ does, to have compassion on them and how what we do every day reflects Christ off of us. If we are living like the world, they are not going to be receptive to Christ. That got me thinking of this past year, and a half, while I am struggling with some things, and how God pointed out to me that He finally taught me how to love all like His Son. Well, at least, He said I am making some progress in that. God never changes, what He believes and taught from the very beginning is the very same thing that He teaches us today. God’s children, those who believe in and receive Him, actually have their names written in a book, which God refers to as the book of remembrance.
[Malachi 3:13-18 Your words have been stout against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? 14 Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? 15 And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered. 16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. 17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. 18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.]
[ in that day when I make up my jewels;] More precious to God than any jewels on the earth are the souls of man, which is why He made one way for all who truly want Him in their lives to be saved. Through Malachi, God reminds them of the day that all the earth will be gone and why the only ones to survive will be His jewels.
[Malachi 4:1-6 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. 3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts. 4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.]
[I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming] This is also speaking of John the Baptist, he had a particular message, the coming of Christ. Many of the Jews questioned if Jesus was in fact Elijah, even Jesus asked His disciples who they thought He was, but those who truly believe will know who Christ is, and will accept Him without a doubt, [Matthew 16:14-17 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.]
Jesus Christ Magnified: [Malachi 1:14 But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen. Malachi 3:16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. Malachi 4:2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for giving us the one perfect sacrifice that will redeem our souls forever. We can live in such a way that our limitations define us and guide us in all that we think, do, and say to the point that we do not give You our very best. Lord, we recognize the true freedom that comes when You accomplish Your will in our lives as when we humbly serve You with the very best of our abilities. The constraints we place on ourselves can be lifted by the power of Your Holy Spirit as we wholeheartedly devote ourselves to You and Your service. When we give You our very best, that is when You give us Yours. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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