While reading chapter three in Malachi, my mind recounted times that God was gracious to me when I recognized my wrong ways of living and turned to Him. I thought about those times when I was led through the fire and how those moments in life refined me to be more like Christ. I recalled the last check my late mother-in-love wrote in her checkbook was to the church. She was always firm in giving God a tenth of what they earned. I even projected my imagery ahead of seeing the Lord open The Book of Life, turning the pages until He reached my name, and hearing Him say “Well done, thy good and faithful servant.” Ahhhh. A deep sigh of gratitude just was exhaled.
In the book of Malachi, we have learned to take God’s love, worship, covenants, and marriage seriously. Malachi 3 continues with the “take God serious” approach when it comes to His promises, reflecting Him, His unchangingness, God’s grace and mercy, and our honoring Him.
If I were a preacher, which I am clearly NOT, there could be about eight sermons in these eighteen verses.
Y’all, God is so clear in His thoughts and actions. We need to strive to be more like God each day. Not be God, just more like Him. He is God and God alone.
Continuing with my readings in Malachi, here are my notes from chapter three:
- Verse 1, God is speaking. What He says will happen, has happened. (Mark 1:2, Luke 7:27) This verse just puts a smile on my face.
- 2-4, When metal is refined, it is put into a fire. The impurities will separate and rise to the top. Once they rise, the impurities will be removed leaving the metal to be pure. At the end of this process, the worker will be able to see their reflection in the metal. In life, we (Christians) will go through an exercise of being refined. (See Hebrew 12:1-22) When the heat is turned up, turn to Jesus. Let others see His reflection in your life.
- 5, Here are a few things listed that God says are just not right. He will judge us all. Be wise in how you live your life for Christ. Don’t be a hypocrite. Show respect to the Lord.
- 6, Remember…God does not change. People do, but God is constant. Let that settle in as a testament of the strength and steadiness of our Lord.
- 7, Y’all, God is so gracious. If you have turned away from Him, He is waiting for you to return to Him. He hasn’t moved. Remember verse 6, “I am the Lord, and I do not change.” Sometimes, like the Israelites in verse 7, we don’t or can’t accept that we have sinned and gone away from The Way. Let me encourage you to first of all evaluate your life and notice you’ve gone astray, then RUN, do not stop, to Jesus. He is waiting.
- 8-11, In Luke 4:12, Jesus tells Satan “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’” (see Deuteronomy 6:16) Yet, in verse 10, God says to put Him to the test. This is the only testing we are allowed to do…with our tithes and offerings. All we have and have been given to us belong to God anyhow, so why not do as we are instructed to do and give 10% of our earnings back to Him. When we do this, He will (like the ERV states), “Good things will come to you like rain falling from the sky. You will have more than enough of everything.” Notice that God doesn’t promise to make you wealthy or have material things, yet blessings. Abundant blessings. Try Him on this. Tim and I are faithful in giving what the Lord tells us to, and often beyond. We don’t do it to test God, we do it because 1) He tells us to, and 2) we have seen and continue to live in, with, and through His blessings.
- 12, a little reminder that people will notice. Unbelievers and believers will witness how you obey God in this matter. Be a positive testimony for the Lord.
- 13-15, Ouch. Don’t live this way. They had an attitude of “what’s in it for me” when it came to obeying God. Y’all, it’s not about us, it is ALL about Jesus Christ. How we live our life should not be lived by greed, selfishness, and pride. We need to live as if everything we do is for the Lord. We want to glorify Him in all we say and do (1 Corinthians 10:31, Matthew 5:16, Colossians 3:17, Psalms 86:12, …)
- 16-18, Do you want God to listen and take notice of you? Do you want to be called His? Do you want to be God’s special treasure? All you have to do is respect and honor Him. I know my name is written in His book. How? Because I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Personal Savior and strive my best to follow His example every day. Honoring the Lord should bring about joy, peace, security, and love to your heart. It’s not and “I have to” thing, it is an “I get to” way of living.
Here’s some questions for you to ponder on:
- Think about a time you were put through the fire in life. Did you turn to God? Can others see Jesus’ reflection in your life in the end?
- Have you strayed away from God? If so, He is waiting for you. What are you waiting on?
- Do you tithe 10% of your earning to the church? Test Him. It may be $5, $100, $1,000, or whatever your income is. He WILL bless you.
- How is your attitude in worshiping and honoring God?
I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. Psalm 86:12
Blessings to you and yours,
Stephanie
