This sermon, titled “A Future Coming, A Full Cleansing, and A Fearful Conclusion,” delves into the prophetic warnings of Malachi, exploring the themes of divine justice, purification, and the impending judgment. Through the lens of Malachi 2:17-3:5, the message highlights God’s weariness with Israel’s complacency, the promise of a refining fire that will cleanse and purify, and the fearsome consequences for those who exploit and deceive others. The sermon underscores the need for repentance and righteousness in anticipation of the Lord’s coming.
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Malachi 2:17 You have wearied the Lord with your words; Yet you say, “In what
way have we wearied Him?” In that you say, “Everyone who does evil is good in
the sight of the Lord, and He delights in them,” Or, “Where is the God of justice?”
Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger
of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 3:2 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when
He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap.
Malachi 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of
Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering
in righteousness.
Malachi 3:4 “Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord,
as in the days of old, as in former years.
Malachi 3:5 And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness against
sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers, against those who exploit wage
earners and widows and orphans, and against those who turn away an alien—
Because they do not fear Me,” Says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:17 You have wearied the Lord with your words; Yet you say, “In what
way have we wearied Him?”
Nahum 1:3 The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, And will not at all acquit
the wicked.
Malachi 2:17 “… Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord and He
delights in them,”
Malachi 2:17 “… Where is the God of justice?”
Matthew 5:45 “… For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends
rain on the just and on the unjust.”
I. THE FIXED FUTURE COMING.
Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me.
Matthew 11:10 For this is he of whom it is written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger
before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.’
Matthew 11:11 “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has
not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom
of heaven is greater than he.
Malachi 3:1 And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even
the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 3:2 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when
He appears?
Acts 9:3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone
around him from heaven.
Acts 9:8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw
no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.
Acts 9: 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
1 Timothy 6:15 “… He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and
Lord of lords,
1 Timothy 6:16 who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom
no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.
II. THE FULL FINAL CLEANSING.
Malachi 3:2 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when
He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap.
Malachi 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of
Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering
in righteousness.
Proverbs 17:3 (TPT) “In the same way that gold and silver are refined by fire, the
Lord purifies your heart by the tests and trials of life”.
Zechariah 13:9 “And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as
silver is refined”
1 Peter 1:7 “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold
that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ”
Romans 8:29 “… He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son,
Malachi 3:2 “…For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap.
Jeremiah 2:22 (ESV) Though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the
stain of your guilt is still before me, declares the Lord God.
Ephesians 5:25 “… Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
Ephesians 5:26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water
by the word,
1 John 1:7 ” … and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin”
1 John 1:9 (ESV) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Mark 1:4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism
of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
John 13:8 “… Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
III. THE FITTING FEARFUL CONCLUSION.
Malachi 3:5 And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness against
sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers, against those who exploit wage
earners and widows and orphans, and against those who turn away an alien—
Because they do not fear Me,” Says the Lord of hosts.
1. Sorcerers.
If Satan can talk angels out of heaven, he can talk you into hell. Be careful what
voices you listen to
2. Adulterers.
3. Perjurers
4. Exploited Wage Earners
Leviticus 19:13 ‘You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of him
who is hired shall not remain with you …”
1 Timothy 5:18 …The laborer is worthy of his wages.
James 5:4 Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you
kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears
of the Lord of Sabaoth.
James 5:5 You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened
your hearts as in a day of slaughter.
5. Exploited Widows and Orphans.
James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit
orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
6.Those Who Turn Away Aliens.
Malachi 3:5 “…I will be a swift witness … against those who turn away an alien.”
Ephesians 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but
you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household
of God,”
Malachi 3:5 And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness against …
Because they do not fear Me,” Says the Lord of hosts.
Ephesians 5:15 (NLT) So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those
who are wise.
Ephesians 5:16 Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.
Malachi 2:16 reveals God’s stance on divorce, stating He hates it because it represents a violent rupture of the marital bond. This passage highlights the gravity of divorce, emphasizing that while God condemns the act, He does not condemn those who have experienced it. Despite high divorce rates and their impact on families, the Bible allows divorce in cases of death, abandonment, sexual immorality, and treachery. However, it also encourages reconciliation and underscores that God’s grace is available for healing and forgiveness, offering a path forward even after divorce.
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Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce, for it covers
one’s garment with violence,” says the Lord of hosts. “Therefore take heed to
your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”
Malachi 2:16 (MSG) “I hate divorce,” says the God of Israel. God-of-the-Angel-Armies
says, “I hate the violent dismembering of the ‘one flesh’ of marriage.” So watch
yourselves. Don’t let your guard down. Don’t cheat.
Malachi 2:16 (NLT) “For I hate divorce!” says the Lord, the God of Israel. “To divorce
your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.”
Statistically, 91% of us will be married at some point.
50 percent of all marriages in the United States will end in divorce or separation.
Every 16 seconds, there is a marriage in the U.S.
Every 42 seconds, there is one divorce in America, That equates to 86 divorces
There are nearly 3 divorces in the time it takes for a couple to recite their wedding
vows (2 minutes).
430 divorces happen during the average wedding reception (5 hours).
The United States has the 6th highest divorce rate in the world.
The divorce rate among people 50 and older has doubled in the past 20 years
Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I do not change;
Hebrews 13:5 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
I. GOD HATES DIVORCE, NOT THE DIVORCEE.
Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord God of Israel says That He hates divorce …
Pat Conroy said, ‘There is not metaphors powerful enough to describe the moment
when you tell the children about the divorce, to look into the eyes of your children
and to tell them that you’re mutilating their family, and changing all their tomorrows.
Personally’, it felt as though I had doused my entire family with gasoline and struck
a match’.
Malachi 2:16 (KJV) For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away …
Someone has said: ‘Fifty years ago parents were apt to have lots of kids, nowadays
kids are apt to have lots of parents’…
Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord God of Israel says That He hates divorce, For it
covers one’s garment with violence,” Says the Lord of hosts …
Malachi 2:16 (MSG) “I hate the violent dismembering of the ‘one flesh’ of marriage.”
Matthew 19:6 ” …. What God hath joined together let not man put asunder.”
II. GOD ALLOWS DIVORCE, FOR A FEW REASONS.
1. DEATH.
Romans 7:2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband
as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband.
1 Corinthians 7:39 A wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; but if her
husband dies, she is at liberty to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.
2. ABANDONMENT OR DESERTION.
1 Corinthians 7:15 But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister
is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us to peace.
3. SEXUAL IMMORALITY AND ADULTERY.
Matthew 5:32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except
Hebrews 13:4 Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators
and adulterers God will judge.
Deuteronomy 22:22 “If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband,
then both of them shall die—the man that lay with the woman, and the woman;
so you shall put away the evil from Israel.
4. TREACHERY.
Malachi 2:10 “…. Why do we deal treacherously with one another
Malachi 2:14 “… the Lord has been witness between you and the wife of your youth,
with whom you have dealt treacherously
Malachi 2:16 “… He hates divorce, For it covers one’s garment with violence ….
“Therefore take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”
Ephesians 5:28 So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies;
he who loves his wife loves himself.
Ephesians 5:29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it,
just as the Lord does the church.
5. HARDNESS OF HEART.
Matthew 19:8 He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts,
permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.
Proverbs 11:14 Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of
counselors there is safety.
III. GOD ADDRESSES DIVORCE, BEFORE AND AFTER.
1. Christian couples don’t fall out of love, they fall out of repentance.
Matthew 4:17 From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to
God …”
2. God has given us the ministry of reconcilliation.
2 Corinthians 5:18 “God … has given us the ministry of reconciliation,
2 Corinthians 5:18 (NLT) “…God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.
1 Corinthians 7:10 Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife
is not to depart from her husband.
1 Corinthians 7:11 But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be
reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.
Gary Chapman (quote)
“Irreconcilable differences is such a lame and hollow phrase. That’s what you say
when you’re afraid to say anything. It’s the legalese that allows you to walk away.
From my vantage point, we had one irreconcilable difference: I wanted her to stay,
and she wanted to leave. Everything else, God could have reconciled.”
3. There still is a road to recovery, after divorce, through the grace of God
Matthew 12:31 “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men …”
Adrian Rogers (quote)
God is a God of forgiveness. God is a God of grace. And if you’ve failed, and your
marriage is irreparably broken,and you’ve remarried, you’ve got a second home and
so forth, you can’t unscramble eggs, you can’t go backwards.
And one thing that really bothers me today is there are those who want to make
divorce the unpardonable sin. They want to make divorce a dead end street.
They want to treat divorced people like second–class citizens in the kingdom of
heaven, and they sit around and pass judgment.
It’s an amazing thing:that if a Christian could be a murderer or something, and he
gets saved, and they put him on “From the Prison to the Pulpit,” How wonderful
he’s a preacher of the gospel! Or somebody who has been, maybe, a whoremonger
before he got saved, and he got saved from all of this, and we say, “How wonderful!
Look what God has done for him!”
But let somebody get a divorce; let somebody get an irreparable divorce where it
cannot be put together, whether they be the guilty party or the innocent party, and
then there come those people who want with great judgment to say somehow that
they are second–class citizens in the kingdom of heaven.
My dear friend, if you have repented of your sin and given your heart to Jesus Christ
there is no such thing as a second–class citizen in the kingdom of heaven.”
1 Timothy 3:2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate,
sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;
1 Timothy 3:12 Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and
their own houses well.
1 Timothy 5:9 Do not let a widow under sixty years old be taken into the number,
and not unless she has been the wife of one man,
1 Timothy 5:14 Therefore I desire that the younger widows marry, bear children,
manage the house, give no opportunity to the adversary to speak reproachfully.
1 Timothy 3:2 (NLT) So a church leader must be a man whose life is above reproach.
He must be faithful to his wife.
1 Timothy 3:12 (NLT) A deacon must be faithful to his wife, and he must manage his
children and household well.
1 Timothy 5:9 (NLT) A widow who is put on the list for support must be a woman
who is at least sixty years old and was faithful to her husband
4. Don’t run into marriage, and don’t run out of marriage.
Proverbs 19:3 (NLT) Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; Haste makes
mistakes.
Proverbs 19:3 People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry
at the Lord.
Love can still be found.
The second time around.
Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these
things shall be added to you.
This sermon, “Holy Covenants, Broken Vows and Godly Children,” emphasizes the sacred nature of covenant relationships, particularly focusing on marriage and its impact on family and worship. Drawing from Malachi 2:10-16, it highlights the seriousness of treachery against one another and the consequences of breaking marital vows, contrasting the spiritual depth of covenants with mere contracts. The sermon underscores that marriage is not only a personal commitment but also a spiritual one, aimed at producing godly offspring. It calls believers to honor their vows faithfully, recognizing that their commitment to God and one another shapes their legacy and worship.
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Malachi 2:10 Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do
we deal treacherously with one another by profaning the covenant of the fathers?
Malachi 2:11 Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination has been
committed in Israel and in Jerusalem, for Judah has profaned the Lord’s holy institution
which He loves: He has married the daughter of a foreign god.
Malachi 2:12 May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does this,
being awake and aware, yet who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!
Malachi 2:13 And this is the second thing you do: You cover the altar of the Lord
with tears, with weeping and crying; So He does not regard the offering anymore,
Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands.
Malachi 2:14 Yet you say, “For what reason?” Because the Lord has been witness
between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously;
Yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant.
Malachi 2:15 But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit?
And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit,
and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.
Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce, for it covers
one’s garment with violence,” says the Lord of hosts. “Therefore take heed to
your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”
I. THE BRUTAL VULGARITY AGAINST THE HOLY COVENANT.
Malachi 2:10 Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? …
What do you think happens when we die?
Bruce Springsteen replied “OK, individual consciousness, adios, but our souls
and our spirits, I think, grow and live on with the people we loved and who loved us,
and the people who we think we’ve had an impact on with our work in our daily
experience, so, I’m going with that.”
What happens when you die according to Singer Billy Joel
Billy Joel said, “I believe you go into other people’s hearts. When you pass, you pass
into other people’s hearts and are taken into their lives for the rest of their lives and
they pass that on. Just like music it never ends … it goes on and on.”
Malachi 2:10 ” … Why do we deal treacherously with one another by profaning
the covenant of the fathers?
II. THE BROKEN VOWS OF THE MARRIAGE COVENANT.
Malachi 2:11 Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination has been
committed in Israel and in Jerusalem, for Judah has profaned the Lord’s holy institution
which He loves: He has married the daughter of a foreign god.
Malachi 2:12 May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does this,
being awake and aware, yet who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!
John 4:16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”
John 4:17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her,
“You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’
John 4:18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not
your husband; in that you spoke truly.”
Ecclesiastes 5:4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it;
For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed—
Ecclesiastes 5:5 Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.
Malachi 2:13 And this is the second thing you do: You cover the altar of the Lord
with tears, with weeping and crying; So He does not regard the offering anymore,
Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands.
God doesn’t bless our plan, God only blesses His plan.
Malachi 2:14 Yet you say, “For what reason?” Because the Lord has been witness
between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously;
Yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant.
Malachi 2:14 (NLT) You cry out, “Why doesn’t the Lord accept my worship?”
I’ll tell you why! Because the Lord witnessed the vows you and your wife made
when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained
your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows.
Matthew 19:6 ” …. What God hath joined together let not man put asunder.
Malachi 2:14 (MSG) “… God was there as a witness when you spoke your marriage
vows to your young bride, and now you’ve broken those vows, broken the faith-bond
with your vowed companion, your covenant wife.
The difference between contract and a covenant
A contract is legally binding, while a covenant is spiritually binding.
In a contract, a professional relationship is established,
In a covenant a personal relationship is established.
A contract is based on mistrust between two people.
A covenant is based upon trust between two people and God.
While a contract is legally binding, a covenant is a spiritual agreement.
In a contract, there is only law.
In a covenant, there is grace.
In a contract, performance is recorded; In a covenant, no record of wrongs is kept.
In a contract I seek my will, in a covenant, We seek God’s will.
A contract expects restitution while a covenant seeks resolution.
In a contract you give to get, in a covenant you give to give.
A contract holds on to an offense or debt.
A covenant releases an offense or debt.
A contract expects you to come to them for forgiveness.
A covenant freely gives forgiveness.
In a contract, the goal is winning.
In a covenant, the goal is preferring one another.
III. THE BROAD VIEW OF GODLY CHILDREN.
Malachi 2:15 (NLT) Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit
you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your
heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth.
Matthew 19:5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?
Matthew 19:6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.
Malachi 2:15 But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit?
And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit,
and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.
This sermon, titled “The Priesthood: Past and Present,” delves into the role and responsibilities of the priesthood as outlined in Malachi 2:1-9 and contrasts it with the New Testament understanding of priesthood. It begins by highlighting the failures of the Old Testament priests, who were admonished for their failure to honor God properly, leading to curses upon them and their descendants. The sermon underscores the importance of priestly integrity and the impact of their failures on the people. It then transitions to discuss the exemplary role of the priesthood under the covenant with Levi, emphasizing that priests were to be models of truth and righteousness.
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Malachi 2:1 “And now, O priests, this commandment is for you.
Malachi 2:2 If you will not hear, and if you will not take it to heart, to give glory
to My name,” says the Lord of hosts, “I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse
your blessings. Yes, I have cursed them already, because you do not take it to heart.
Malachi 2:3 “Behold, I will rebuke your descendants and spread refuse on your faces,
The refuse of your solemn feasts; and one will take you away with it.
Malachi 2:4 Then you shall know that I have sent this commandment to you, that
My covenant with Levi may continue,” says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:5 “My covenant was with him, one of life and peace, and I gave them to
him that he might fear Me; So he feared Me and was reverent before My name.
Malachi 2:6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and injustice was not found on his lips.
He walked with Me in peace and equity, and turned many away from iniquity.
Malachi 2:7 “For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, and people should seek
the law from his mouth; For he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:8 But you have departed from the way; You have caused many to stumble
at the law. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:9 “Therefore I also have made you contemptible and base before all
the people, because you have not kept My ways but have shown partiality in the law.”
We need to know that Christianity’s a covenant.
Whenever we have the Lord’s Supper we are celebrating our covenant with the Lord.
Malachi 2:1 “And now, O priests, this commandment is for you.
I. CLOSED EARS AND HARD HEARTS.
Malachi 2:2 If you will not hear, and if you will not take it to heart, to give glory
to My name,” says the Lord of hosts, …
Oftentimes, the resistance to the truth is not that we don’t understand it, but it’s
that we don’t like what’s being said.
Malachi 2:2 If you will not hear, And if you will not take it to heart,”
II. CURSED CHILDREN AND MANURE MAKEOVERS.
Malachi 2:2 “…I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings, Yes, I have
cursed them already, because you do not take it to heart.
Malachi 2:3 “Behold, I will rebuke your descendants and spread refuse on your faces,
The refuse of your solemn feasts; and one will take you away with it.
Malachi 2:3 “Behold, I will rebuke your descendants …”
Malachi 2:3 (MSG) Yes, and the curse will extend to your children…
Matthew 15:14 “… if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.”
Some of us have lived under the elustion that we’re an individual and that the decisions
we make don’t affect anyone else.
Malachi 2:3 Behold, I will … spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your
solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.
Malachi 2:3 (NLT) I will … splatter your faces with the manure from your festival
sacrifices, and I will throw you on the manure pile.
Nahum 3:6: “I will pelt you with filth, I will treat you with contempt and make you a spectacle.”
Malachi 2:3 … And one will take you away with it.
III. GOOD JOB, GOOD EXAMPLE.
Malachi 2:4 Then you shall know that I have sent this commandment to you, that
My covenant with Levi may continue,” says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:5 “My covenant was with him, one of life and peace, and I gave them to
him that he might fear Me; So he feared Me and was reverent before My name.
Malachi 2:6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and injustice was not found on his lips.
He walked with Me in peace and equity, and turned many away from iniquity.
Malachi 2:7 “For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, and people should seek
the law from his mouth; For he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.
IV. BAD JOB, BAD EXAMPLE.
Malachi 2:8 But you have departed from the way; You have caused many to stumble
at the law. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 2:9 “Therefore I also have made you contemptible and base before all
the people, because you have not kept My ways but have shown partiality in the law.”
We can have partiality for different doctrines.
Proverbs 29:25 (VOICE) If you fear other people, you are walking into a dangerous
trap; but if you trust in the Eternal, you will be safe.
Galatians 1:10 (ESV) For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am
I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of
Christ.
You can’t make everyone happy. You’re not pizza.
Isaiah 8:13 (TLB) Don’t fear anything except the Lord of the armies of heaven! If you
fear him, you need fear nothing else.
V. THE NEW COVENANT AND THE NEW PRIESTHOOD.
1 Peter 2:5 (ESV) You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual
house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through
Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9 (ESV) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who
called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Revelation 1:6 (ESV) And made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him
be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
As priests we are to become intercessors.
1 Timothy 2:1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions,
and giving of thanks be made for all men,
This sermon, titled “Flesh Failures, Sloppy Seconds, and Weary Worship,” focuses on the rebuke God delivers through the prophet Malachi concerning the failures of His people in honoring Him. In Malachi 1:6-14, God critiques the priests, sacrificial system, and worship practices of the Israelites, pointing out their lack of reverence and the degradation of their offerings. The sermon examines how the priests failed to honor God appropriately, offering defiled sacrifices and showing contempt for the sacred duties of their ministry. It highlights the broader implications of these failures on the temple and worship, stressing that a true relationship with God involves sincere, wholehearted devotion rather than mere ritual. The message challenges believers to reflect on their own worship practices and commitment to God, urging them to offer their best and engage in worship with genuine reverence and enthusiasm.
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Malachi 1:6 “A son honors his father, And a servant his master. If then I am the Father,
Where is My honor? And if I am a Master, Where is My reverence? Says the Lord
of hosts To you priests who despise My name. Yet you say, ‘In what way have
we despised Your name?’
Malachi 1:7 “You offer defiled food on My altar. But say, ‘In what way have we
defiled You?’ By saying, ‘The table of the Lord is contemptible.’
Malachi 1:8 And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, Is it not evil? And when you
offer the lame and sick, Is it not evil? Offer it then to your governor! Would he be
pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably?” Says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 1:9 “But now entreat God’s favor, That He may be gracious to us. While
this is being done by your hands, Will He accept you favorably?” Says the Lord
of hosts.
Malachi 1:10 “Who is there even among you who would shut the doors, So that
you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain? I have no pleasure in you,” Says the
Lord of hosts, “Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.
Malachi 1:11 For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down, My name
shall be great among the Gentiles; In every place incense shall be offered to
My name, And a pure offering; For My name shall be great among the nations,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 1:12 “But you profane it, In that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is defiled;
And its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’
Malachi 1:13 You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ And you sneer at it,” Says the
Lord of hosts. “And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; Thus you bring
an offering! Should I accept this from your hand?” Says the Lord.
Malachi 1:14 “But cursed be the deceiver who has in his flock a male, And takes
a vow, But sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished– For I am a great King,” Says
the Lord of hosts, “And My name is to be feared among the nations.
Adrian Rogers once said, “Wicked rulers are God’s reward for wicked people.”
(Quote)
“What if we prayed, ‘Lord you know my future. If you see that I’m going to do
something to hurt my family or destroy my ministry, would you, by your grace,
take me to an early grave.”
I. THE PRIESTS WERE FAILING.
Malachi 1:6 “A son honors his father, And a servant his master. If then I am the Father,
Where is My honor? And if I am a Master, Where is My reverence? Says the Lord
of hosts To you priests who despise My name. Yet you say, ‘In what way have
we despised Your name?’
People who don’t honor God are simply people who don’t take God seriously.
Malachi 1:6 (VOICE) From your self-centered oblivion you ask, “How have we despised
Your name?”
II. THE SACRIFICIAL SYSTEM WAS FAILING.
Malachi 1:7 “You offer defiled food on My altar. But say, ‘In what way have we
defiled You?’ By saying, ‘The table of the Lord is contemptible.’
Malachi 1:8 And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, Is it not evil? And when you
offer the lame and sick, Is it not evil? …
Malachi 1:12 “But you profane it, In that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is defiled;
And its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’
Malachi 1:8 “… Offer it then to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would
he accept you favorably?” Says the Lord of hosts.
2 Corinthians 9:7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or
of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
Acts 20:35 (AMP) “… Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said,
‘It is more blessed [and brings greater joy] to give than to receive.’'”
The giving is not to get a blessing.
The giving is the blessing.
The blessing is not in the getting, the blessing is in the giving.
III. THE MINISTRY WAS FAILING.
Malachi 1:9 “But now entreat God’s favor, That He may be gracious to us. While
this is being done by your hands, Will He accept you favorably?” Says the Lord
of hosts.
Malachi 1:9 (NLT) “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring
that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord
of Heaven’s Armies.
Malachi 1:9 (GNT) Now, you priests, try asking God to be good to us. He will not
answer your prayer, and it will be your fault.
James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you….
IV. THE TEMPLE WAS FAILING.
Malachi 1:10 “Who is there even among you who would shut the doors, So that
you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain? I have no pleasure in you,” Says the
Lord of hosts, “Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.
If God’s people don’t take God’s glory seriously, then no one will.
10,000 churches in America have disappeared in a five-year period.
50% of new church starts never make it to a second year
V. WORSHIP WAS FAILING.
Malachi 1:13 You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ And you sneer at it,” Says the
Lord of hosts. “And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; Thus you bring
an offering! Should I accept this from your hand?” Says the Lord.
Malachi 1:14 “But cursed be the deceiver who has in his flock a male, And takes
a vow, But sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished– For I am a great King,” Says
the Lord of hosts, “And My name is to be feared among the nations.
We will become weary if our heart is not in it.
Psalm 73:26 My flesh and my heart fail ….
1 Timothy 3:14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
1 Timothy 3:15 But if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to
conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar
and ground of the truth.
