Through the Bible - Malachi

God, thank you for such a great time of worship. It is a wonderful opportunity to come before your throne and into your presence. Lord, I just want to thank you right now for giving us access to stand before the King of Kings, the one who created all things, and to worship you with our lips. We thank you that you have cleansed us by the washing of the water of the Word and that you are continuing to do that transformative work in us. We ask that tonight, as we dig into this book, you would speak to us and give us understanding, for we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.

Now, the book of Malachi. I have to preface this book by saying that it is rated M for mature. You need to be mature as we look at the things we will explore in this book. I hope that all of you are at a place in your walk with the Lord where you can handle some mature topics. The writer to the Hebrews, in the book of Hebrews, at the end of chapter 5, said that by this time you should all be teachers, but we need to go back to the basic principles once again and establish the basics.

However, I believe that this group here on Saturday nights rightly divides the Word of Truth and studies to show yourselves approved. I am confident that you will be able to handle the mature content in the book of Malachi.

Before we dig into it, we must recognize that this is the last book of the Old Testament. A year ago, on August 11th, we started going through the Bible, specifically the Old Testament. Here we are, exactly a year later, on August 9th, finishing the Old Testament tonight. We have gone through a book a week. There have been a few weeks when I was gone and different people filled in, but it is interesting to me that exactly a year later, we are at the end of the Old Testament. Next week, I am debating whether or not we will start the New Testament.

Or we'll just do one study on the intertestamental period, the time in between the Old Testament and the New Testament. I see some people nodding, so okay, we'll probably do that. Next week, we'll do that, and then we'll start the book of Matthew. We'll go right on through the New Testament, a book a week. You can be praying for me as we go through the Gospels, and I'm praying for you as well, that you'll read the Scriptures together with me. After we've done this study, we'll have gone through the whole Bible together, a book a week, and I think it's just an awesome opportunity to dig deep into God's Word. Amen?

So, the book of Malachi. How many of you read through the book of Malachi within the last couple of weeks? Good. Praise the Lord. It has only four chapters, but they are very potent chapters. These four chapters come on the verge of God taking a 400-year break from speaking to His people. Now, that's a pretty big deal, and I'd like to put it into context for you if I could. Our nation was founded 232 years ago. These are the last words that God would speak to His people before He would stop speaking to them for 400 years.

You can imagine how, after that 400-year period of silence, the people were anxious to hear from God. They were really looking for a divine move; they were looking for God to speak. The prophet Malachi, in Malachi chapter 3, speaks about a messenger who would come and prepare the way before the Lord. Malachi speaks these things 400 years before that messenger would show up on the scene. We know him to be John the Baptist. In fact, when we get into the Gospel of Matthew and on into the book of Luke especially, we're going to see that those two Gospel writers quote this passage and say this spoke of John the Baptist, that this messenger would come.

It's interesting because the name Malachi means "my messenger." God was sending this man Malachi to speak to the people. Now, we have to remember the context of what is going on in the nation of Israel at this point in time. The children of Israel have returned from the exile in Babylon. After they returned from the exile, we've read the historic books associated with this time period, the book of Ezra and the book of Nehemiah. It was during the time of Ezra that the children of Israel were rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. At that time, Haggai and Zechariah, the prophets, came and spoke to them. We looked at that over the last two studies that we've had together, where these two prophets came and spoke to the people to encourage them in the work. They were discouraged.

After trying to rebuild the temple, those who had seen the former temple said, "This temple doesn't fit. It's not good enough." Following that, there was a lot of trash and many difficult things, causing the work to languish for about 20 years. The work of God's temple stopped, but the people continued to build their own houses and establish their own little kingdoms, I guess you could say.

In response, God sent Zechariah and Haggai to the people to shake them up and encourage them to get back to work. They did, and they finished the work of the temple very quickly. They set their hearts to the task.

About 50 years later, God sent another man named Nehemiah to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. Although they had the temple, the people were fearful because they had no protection. Nehemiah was there for a period of time, but then he returned to the Medo-Persian Empire, as he was part of the king's court and served as the cupbearer to the king. His visit to Jerusalem was temporary.

It is believed that during this period, Malachi came and spoke to the people, the children of Israel. This occurred somewhere between 432 BC and 400 BC, addressing a people who, in reality, had backslidden. It's hard to imagine and hard to believe because the 50,000 people who returned to the promised land after being exiled for 70 years in Babylon were the committed ones. They were the ones who wanted to see God's work established once again, to see the temple rebuilt and Jerusalem reestablished.

Interestingly, it was from that group of people that the Pharisees emerged. The Pharisees were a group of separatists who claimed, "We follow the law of God. We follow the traditions of God." During the rebuilding of the temple under Ezra and the wall under Nehemiah, the Pharisees began to stand up. It appeared that they had everything going on. If you looked at the outward appearance of their lives and observed what was happening externally, they seemed to have it all together.

We will really see this when we get into the New Testament and observe the Pharisees in all their glory in the Gospels. We follow these individuals as they pursue the Lord and try to find Him amidst various sins. Alongside the Pharisees, there were also the Sadducees and the scribes, who were also called the lawyers. The scribes were responsible for writing down the law, so they understood what it said. Thus, different religious groups were rising to prominence during this time.

During the time that Malachi came and spoke to a people who, although they were the committed people, had backslidden, they had fallen away from the Lord. God comes to this group of people and has these statements for them through Malachi. Through these statements, God speaks to the people with seven questions that arise. Isn't it interesting that oftentimes, when we begin to backslide, we start to doubt and question God? We want to know some things about how He works and what He does.

There are seven questions that really make up the book of Malachi—seven questions that the people of Israel brought against God during this time of their backsliding. The first one we see is in Malachi chapter 1, verse 2, where they deny God's love. If you're taking notes, note number one: they deny God's love. The children of Israel were denying God's love in Malachi chapter 1, verse 2.

In Malachi chapter 1, verse 6, they were despising God's name. So, they were denying God's love and despising God's name. If I'm moving too quickly, don't worry; you can get these from me afterward. In Malachi chapter 1, verse 7, they were defiling God's table. So, we have denying God's love, despising God's name, and defiling God's table.

More than that, fourthly, in Malachi chapter 2, verse 17, they were distorting God's word. In Malachi chapter 3, verse 7, they were departing from God's law, distancing themselves from what He had called them to. They departed from God's law. In Malachi chapter 3, verse 8, they were depriving God's house.

I'll go over these again in just a second. The very last thing, the seventh question that comes to them, deals with them defaming God's character. In Malachi chapter 3, verse 13, they were defaming God's character.

So, these backslidden people, even though they were the committed in Israel, were denying God's love, despising God's name, defiling God's table, distorting God's word, depriving God's house, and defaming God's character while departing from God's law. God sends this prophet, His messenger, to come and speak to these people, and He speaks to them.

In a very powerful way, we're going to take our time going through this book, and hopefully, we'll make it through the whole four chapters. I want you to note something as we go through this book: there are 55 verses in the book of Malachi, and 47 of them are God speaking directly. God is directly speaking to His people in this book.

We read in Malachi chapter 1, verse 1, "The burden of the Lord to Israel by Malachi, by My messenger." This guy was called by God. We don't know if that's just a title or if that's actually his name; I believe that it was his name. We don't know a lot about Malachi, but God is speaking through him to His people just before He is going to not speak to them for 400 years.

Now, on Sunday mornings, we've been going through the Gospel of John, and we've been in the Olivet Discourse and also in these very last sayings of Jesus. I've talked several times over the last several weeks on Sunday mornings about how the last words of someone are often very potent and powerful. These are the last things that God is speaking to His people before He is going to be silent for 400 years.

So notice what He says: "The burden of the Lord, I have loved you," saith the Lord. What a beautiful way to start a message to His people! Even though they were a backsliding people and had departed from the Lord in many ways, God says to them, "I have loved you."

It is important to recognize that God is not saying this in the past tense, as if He used to love them and doesn't anymore. God is saying it in the present perfect tense. He is saying, "I have loved you. I've loved you in the past, I love you now, and I am going to love you in the future as well."

Interestingly, several years ago, right after September 11, 2001, Pastor Eric, a couple of other guys, Mark Cato, and Rick Kierstedt, and I drove cross-country to New York City. We ministered near Ground Zero, and it was amazing to me that just a week and a half after September 11th, we were up at Times Square.

How many of you have been to Times Square before? It's an amazing place, filled with humanity. Everybody seems to be running all over the place, bumping into people. Nobody says "excuse me," and even if you do say "excuse me," they know you're an out-of-towner. I actually had a guy tell me that when I bumped into him coming out of the subway.

I remember we were up at 42nd Street, right there at Times Square, and we were passing out...

These flyers stated that if you need prayer, you should call this number. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association had set up a prayer hotline for the people of New York City, and there we were, handing these things out. I was standing next to Rick Kierstedt when he handed one to a beautiful lady who walked by. She looked like she had just gotten out of Macy's; she was just decked out. She walked about twenty feet away, turned around with tears flooding down her face, and said to Rick, "God does not love us; He has forsaken us."

It took both Rick and me by surprise. We gathered our composure for a moment and began to talk with her. It turns out that she was a Jewish woman living in New York City, and from her perspective, she believed that God does not love us. However, God, through the prophet Jeremiah, said, "I have loved you with an everlasting love." He says to His people, "I have loved you," saith the Lord. Yet, notice what they say: "Wherein have you loved us?" That is the first question; they deny God's love.

They say, "God, you say that you love us, but wherein have you loved us?" This reminds me of the story of Gideon. How many of you have read that passage in Judges chapter 6? There, Gideon is threshing wheat in a wine press, and God comes to him. This man is fearful of the Midianites; he is afraid that they might come and steal his goods, his fruit. God says to this fearful, cowardly man, "The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor."

On the surface, it almost seems that God is mocking him, and I think that Gideon thought God was mocking him as well. Gideon responds, "If the Lord is with us, then why have all these things befallen us?" He goes on to say, "The Lord has forsaken us."

It is very interesting because if you go to Israel today, I would say about eight out of ten people you talk to about the Lord Jesus or about God in general do not mention Jesus; they will just get angry. However, if you talk about God, they will say, "God doesn't love us; God has forsaken us." Many of the people who are called Jews today believe this. They say, "The Lord doesn't love us."

You know what? A lot of backsliding Christians say the same thing, don't they? They blame God for the difficulties and trials they are going through. Here were these people going through difficulties and trials, and God sends His messenger to say, "I have loved you." But they respond, "Wherein have you loved us? Where is your love for us?" No doubt, they recounted all the difficulties they had faced. This people had seen trial after trial; they had just come out of exile from Babylon. Most of the nation had been destroyed; remember, ten of the twelve tribes no longer exist. Here is the small remnant.

Back in the land, they have gone through so many years of difficulty trying to rebuild the temple and the wall. It has been one fight after another. Here they say, "God, where is your love?" God uses the example of Esau to speak about His love. He says, "Was not Esau Jacob's brother? Yet I have loved Jacob, and I have hated Esau." Many people have a hard time with that verse, don't they? "Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated." We read about this also in Romans chapter 9, where Paul brings up this powerful verse as he quotes it from Malachi chapter 1: "I hated Esau, and I laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness."

Whereas Edom says, "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. They shall call them the border of wickedness and the people against whom the Lord hath had indignation forever." Those are powerful words.

Now, you remember several weeks ago we went through the book of Obadiah. It is just one chapter, but it is a powerful chapter where God said, "I am going to judge the Edomites. I am going to judge Esau and completely destroy them. I will not leave anything left." By this time, the Edomites' nation had been destroyed, though a small remnant of the people group still remained. God says, "This is a people against whom I will have indignation forever."

Why? What is it about Esau? What is it about Edom that God says He hates? There have been many studies where people say, "Well, you know, God didn't really hate him; He just loved him less." Yet several times in the Scriptures, God says, "I hate them." What is it that God hates? Read the Proverbs, and you'll see.

What was it about Esau that God hated? Turn in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 12. We don't really get the answer until the New Testament in Hebrews chapter 12. Notice that Esau is not really mentioned in Hebrews chapter 11, which is the hall of faith, but he comes up in Hebrews chapter 12. Here, we read about him in verse 16. God, through the man who wrote this letter to the Hebrew Christians, cautions them in Hebrews chapter 12, verse 16. Pay attention to verse 15; underline that in your Bibles.

He found no place for repentance, though he sought it bitterly or carefully with tears. God says through this writer of the Book of Hebrews, "Do not be like Esau, who was a fornicator, a profane person who despised his birthright and refused to repent." All he was concerned about was the goods that he could receive here on earth, the blessings that he could have—temporal blessings.

God says, "I don't want you to be like Esau because Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated." I don't have such a hard time with God saying He hated Esau, but I do kind of stumble at God saying He loved Jacob. Follow the story of Jacob in the Bible; read the Book of Genesis and see this guy. His name means deceiver or supplanter, and when you follow him, he really was a deceiver and supplanter. Yet, there was something about Jacob that was very different from Esau.

If you just looked on the surface at the beginning of their lives, you would have probably liked Esau because he was a man's man, a man of the field. In fact, his father really loved him because he was a man of the field. He went out, took his bow and arrow, killed venison, and brought it back to his father. Remember the story? But Jacob, he was a tender man, a man of the tent. He was in the kitchen helping out his mom with things; in fact, he cooked really well. That's what got him the blessing of the birthright.

As you follow Jacob, you find that this guy was a deceiver; he was a difficult guy. Yet, there was a big difference. We read in Hebrews chapter 12 that Esau found no place for repentance, but when we read in Genesis chapter 32, Jacob did. Jacob's name was changed from Jacob to Israel, from one who was a deceiver to one who is governed by God. God can see the end of a thing before the beginning; He knows how things are going to turn out.

So He says, "Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated." This hatred went on down into his descendants. God blessed Esau when he was here on earth. In fact, you read the Book of Genesis and see that he was greatly blessed; he became a great nation, as did Israel, as did Jacob. Yet, God says, "I'm going to destroy his descendants, the Edomites." Through Obadiah, we read it also in Isaiah.

Here we see the proud heart of the Edomites once again; their nation has been destroyed. But what was the proud heart of the people of Esau? They said, "We've been impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places." Boy, is that not just pride written all over it? The Proverbs say that the first thing that God hates is pride. And so God says, "Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated."

Jacob was not perfect, and Israel was not a perfect nation. Yet, God has loved them and blessed them. How is God's love displayed towards them? Well, Esau was destroyed; the nation of Edom was destroyed at the very same time by the Babylonians as Israel was destroyed. Edom had not been rebuilt and would not be rebuilt, but Israel was. Therein we see God's love. He says, "I have loved you." They say, "Wherein have you loved us?" God responds, "Well, I've blessed you, and your eyes shall see, and you shall say," in verse 5, "the Lord will be magnified from the border of Israel." There was no border of Edom any longer; Edom was gone, but there was a border of Israel because God had reestablished them, showing His love to them.

God says to them again in verse 6, "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I be a father, where is my honor?" God asks them. "And if I be a master, where is my reverence? Where is my fear?" says the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests that despise my name. They respond, "Wherein have we despised your name?" This is question number two. Malachi chapter 1, verse 6, reveals that the children of Israel, not just the people but the priests, were despising the name of God. They had denied God's love and were despising His name. The people said, "How have we despised your name?" The priests looked at God, saying, "What are you talking about, Malachi? How could God say that we have despised His name?"

Well, God answers them in verse 7. He says, "You offer polluted bread upon my altar." They were not only despising God's name, but they were also defiling God's table. The third thing they were doing was defiling God's table by bringing polluted bread to His altar. Yet, they asked, "Wherein have we polluted thee? Wherein have we defiled you?" God responds, "Alright, you ask that question; let me answer your question."

In that, you say, "The table of the Lord is contemptible," or "it's despicable." How did they say that the table of the Lord is contemptible? How did they express that the table of the Lord is despicable? Look at verse 8: "If you offer the blind for a sacrifice, is it not evil? If you offer the lame and the sick, is it not evil? Offer it now to your governor; will he be pleased with you or accept your person?" says the Lord of hosts.

God says to this people, "You have denied my love, you've despised my name, and you have defiled my table." They ask, "How have we defiled your table?" Well, God responds, "You bring unworthy sacrifices to me; you bring lame and blind."

Sacrifices were made, and they had good sheep and good goats. However, they would go out into the flock and say, "Oh, look at that one. He's kind of lame; he's tripping around. He's missing a leg. Let's give that one to God." Or they would say, "That one keeps bumping into things; he's blind. Let's give that one to God." The priests would take these offerings, and obviously, they looked at God's table, the altar, and thought, "It's no big deal. We can offer whatever we want."

God responded by saying, "Take that to your governor. Take that to your politicians. Give that to him for his taxes. See how he likes that. Would he receive it? I don't think so." God continued, "You have despised me; you have defiled my table. You don't think that I love you."

How should they respond to these accusations from God? He brings against them great indictments. There are three things He says to them: they have denied His love, despised His name, and defiled His table. What should their response be? In verse 9, it states, "And now I pray you, I beseech you, beseech God that He will be gracious unto you. This hath been by your means. Will He regard your person?" says the Lord of hosts.

"Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for naught? Neither do you kindle fire on My altar for naught. I have no pleasure in you," says the Lord of hosts. "Neither will I accept an offering at your hand." Basically, what God says in verse 10 is, "I wish that there was someone in the temple, some priest, who would say, 'This is bad. Let's close the doors on the whole operation.'"

God says, "I don't want your sacrifices if this is the kind of sacrifice you are going to give. I would rather that you close the whole temple down."

From the rising of the sun even to the going down of the same, His name shall be great among the Gentiles. I love that; in fact, I have it highlighted in my Bible, and you should as well. We read that from the rising of the sun to the going down means from east to west across the entire world. God says, "My name shall be glorified among the Gentiles, the heathens."

In every place, incense shall be offered unto His name, and a pure offering shall be made. His name shall be great among the heathen, and who is that speaking of? You and me. When He says that incense shall be offered, the book of Revelation reveals that our prayers are like sweet-smelling incense to God. So, when we worship the Lord and pray to Him, we, the Gentiles, fulfill this verse that we read here in Malachi chapter 1.

God says to close the doors on the temple, and you know what? In 70 AD, the doors were closed, and the place came down.

The word is fulfilled here, but you have profaned it in that you say the table of the Lord is polluted. How did they say that the table of the Lord was polluted? By their actions, by the things that they were doing and the fruit thereof. Even the meat of His offerings is contemptible. You said also, "Behold, what a weariness it is," and you have snuffed at it, saith the Lord of hosts. You brought that which was torn, that which was lame and sick, and you brought an offering. Should I accept this?

It's very similar to what God spoke to the children of Israel before they went into exile through the prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah chapter 1, read verses 11 on tonight, and you'll see how God says, "Your incense is an abomination to me. Your new moons, your feasts, I don't want them anymore. Stop this!" Yet now, after they had gone into exile and returned to rebuild the temple, God once again says, "You're doing the same thing that you've always done before."

Religion has a way of just becoming rote. It has a way of becoming something that we do on top of the other things that we do, and a lot of times it's mindless. We don't even think about what we're saying or what we're doing, and that's what these people were doing. They just brought whatever they could. They said, "Oh, you know, we don't need that one over there; he's kind of bumping into things. Let's give that to the Lord." They purged the flock, so to speak, and gave their best to the Lord.

God says, "Should I accept this at your hand? But cursed be the deceiver which has in his flock a male and vows and a sacrifice 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." Notice what He says: what a horrible thing it is. You're a bunch of deceivers. You have a whole flock full of good animals, and yet you go and sacrifice something corrupt to me. You don't even recognize my goodness.

They denied God's love, they despised God's name, and they defiled His table. In chapter 2, we see several other things that the people of Israel were doing. The priests, as you go through that chapter, were devaluing God's word. They weren't following God's word wholeheartedly. On top of that, the priests, the Levites, had deserted their wives.

Look at this with me, if you would, at verse 11 of chapter 2: "Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the holiness of the Lord which he loved, and he has married the daughter of a strange God." Here, the Levites in the nation of Israel, there in Judah, the priests that were supposed to be leading the people, had devalued their responsibilities.

God's word teaches that those who have deserted their wives and married strange women will face severe consequences. The Lord will cut off that man, along with the master and the scholar, from the tabernacles of Jacob, and he will not accept offerings from him. This is a serious matter, as the Lord has witnessed the treachery against the wife of one's youth. She is your companion and the wife of your covenant. Did not God make them one?

It is interesting to note that when discussing marriage in the Scriptures, God always points back to Genesis chapter 2, where He made two into one. He did this to seek a goodly or godly seed. God desires that these two, who become one, should not be separated. Therefore, take heed to your spirit and do not deal treacherously against the wife of your youth. The Lord God, the God of Israel, says that He hates putting away.

Does God forgive? Yes, He does. However, we must recognize that divorce is sin, just like any other sin. Some of you here tonight have experienced divorce, and it is important to acknowledge that it is a serious matter. God clearly states that He hates the putting away, for one covers violence with his garments, says the Lord of hosts.

Take heed to your spirit and do not deal treacherously. Understand what God is saying here through the prophet Malachi: marriage is not just a physical union; it is a spiritual bond. He emphasizes this point by urging us to take heed to our spirit in relation to divorce. There is a spiritual union that takes place in marriage, which is why God instructs us in the New Testament that it is not good for a man to join himself to a harlot. We must recognize the significance of this spiritual union.

Do not deal treacherously; do not commit treachery through divorce. You have wearied the Lord with your words. This is the fourth question we read there that they distorted God's word. In Malachi 2:17, it states, "You have wearied the Lord with your words." Yet you say, "Wherein have we wearied him?" Well, when you say, "Everyone that does evil is good in the sight of the Lord," and "He delights in them," wherefore is the God of judgment?

You see, the people were doing the very same thing they had done before they were exiled. Isaiah says, "Woe to this people that calls evil good and good evil." Here again, the children of Israel, after they had been exiled in Babylon for seventy years, returned to rebuild the temple, the city, and the wall. Yet once again, they had turned away from the Lord, departed from Him, and distorted His word. They were saying, "Oh, don't worry; God doesn't mind these evil people. Everyone that does evil is good in the sight of the Lord."

Are we not living in a day like that today? We have perverted God's word, saying, "Oh no, God didn't really mean that." There are many people reinterpreting Scripture in their own way, doing what is right in their own sight, and claiming, "Oh no, that's not what God meant." We are not going to get into that whole lifestyle thing tonight; that's for another study. But needless to say, God says through the prophet Isaiah, "Woe to them who call evil good and good evil, who put light for darkness and darkness for light." Woe to them! The word "woe" means certain destruction.

In the face of all this, chapter 3 brings at least some good things, some light. In verse 1, God says, "Behold, I will send my messenger." These people were discouraged. They had rebuilt the temple, the city, and the wall, and removed all the trash and rubble from the city. You remember, as we went through the book of Zechariah just last week, God came and spoke to this people nearly a hundred years before Malachi. He said to them, "Oh, the glory of the former temple was greater than this glory." Yet God said through the prophet Zechariah, "Don't say that, because my Holy One is going to come into this temple. The glory of this temple shall be greater than that of the last temple."

This people was looking forward to the Messiah coming; they believed that the Messiah would come and step foot into that temple. Yet, to this point, He hadn't come, and so they were discouraged.

God says, "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me." Notice what God indicates through this passage: although the temple had been rebuilt and Jerusalem restored, the way had not fully been prepared for the coming of the Messiah. There was still more work that needed to be done in the nation of Israel before the Messiah could come.

God says, "Behold, I will send my messenger." The word "my messenger" in the original language is Malachi. I will send Malachi, and he shall prepare the way before me. Notice that God, the Messiah, is God. He shall prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek shall suddenly come to His temple. It wasn't their temple; it was His temple.

Interestingly, when Jesus came to Jerusalem in John chapter 2, He said, "My house." He saw it as His temple. He shall come suddenly, just on the scene, in an instant, out of nowhere. In fact, as Isaiah 53 would say, "Who shall declare His generation?" In John chapter 12, we read that the people thought, "No one's going to know where He comes from." The Messiah, when He comes, shall come suddenly, and no one will know where He comes from.

You'll remember they said, "Oh, we know this guy. We know his heritage. We know his father and his mother and his brothers." They had a hard time with Jesus when He came, but He appeared on the scene suddenly. He shall come suddenly to His temple.

Even notice this: the messenger of the covenant. Now, the messenger that will prepare the way of the Lord is different from the messenger of the covenant. Who is the messenger of the new covenant? Jesus, that's right. Remember, on the night that He was betrayed, He took bread, broke it, and said, "This is the blood of the new covenant." He is the messenger of the new covenant, whom you delight in.

Behold, He shall come, says the Lord of hosts. What a great promise! God says, "I am going to prepare the way of the Lord." He shall come, but a messenger will come first, one who will make the path straight, just like Isaiah chapter 40 proclaimed of the coming Elijah, the one who would come in the spirit and power of Elijah, whose name is John the Baptist. We'll get into that in a moment at the end of chapter 4.

But notice what God says: "Who may abide the day of His coming, and who shall stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and a fuller's soap." What is Jesus like when He comes? He is like a refiner's fire and a fuller's soap.

Comes and cleans house, and He has cleaned our houses, hasn't He? He has cleaned our lives in a powerful way. But that cleaning is not over; it's not done. It's going to continue until He comes a second time.

When we read here, "Who shall abide His coming?" it speaks not only of His first coming but more specifically of His second, when He is going to come and transform things. 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. Why is He going to do this? Notice that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.

At this time, during the time of Malachi, the children of Israel were not offering an offering in righteousness. All of their offerings had become sinful to the Lord. He looked at the things that they gave and said, "I just wish you'd close the doors on the whole operation." But there was coming a day when the Messiah would come, and He would make things right, just as all the prophets looked forward to.

Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord. What an awesome verse that is! There is coming a day when an offering will come from the midst of Jerusalem, from the tribe of Judah, unto the Lord God. We are looking forward to that day. Right now, we are in the time when the Gentiles and the heathen worship Him and bring incense and offerings to Him. But there is yet a coming day when the children of Israel will be restored to God.

Paul speaks about this in the book of Romans, chapters 9 and 11, and we shouldn't be ignorant of this as the church. Neither should we be jealous of this as the church. God still has a work for Jacob, for Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated. A restoring work He will do. They shall offer an offering that is pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, as in the former years.

I will come near to you to judgment. God is going to tabernacle with His people at this time that we are looking forward to. It's the time that we read of there, the millennial kingdom, which is going to come at the end of Revelation.

I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against the false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling and his wages, and the widow and the fatherless, and turn aside the stranger from his right, and that fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts. There is coming a day when God, Jesus, the Messiah, will rule and reign here on earth, and He will deal with things in righteousness.

But notice what God says: "For I am the Lord, I change not." Boy, put an exclamation point next to that! I think it is so important that God says this in the very last book of the Old Testament because there are an awful lot of people who wrongfully...

Many think and have wrongfully been taught that the God of the Old Testament is different from the God of the New. Yet God says, "I am the Lord, and I change not; therefore, ye sons of Jacob are not consumed." Why are they not consumed? Well, because God does not change, and He made a covenant with Abraham that He will not break. Although Abraham's descendants have broken that covenant, God will not break His covenant. We should be so thankful for that. We should praise the Lord that He does not change His mind. He doesn't say, "Well, I established a new covenant with you Gentiles, but man, you guys sinned a lot; it's done."

Boy, wouldn't that be horrible if one day we woke up and God decided to say, "You know what? You guys are horrible. I don't like you; we're just done." No! I am the Lord; I change not. Even from the days of your fathers, you have gone away from My ordinances and have not kept them. God says you repeatedly turn away from Me and backslide. He calls to them and says, "Return unto Me, and I will return to you." This reminds me of James 4:8, where James says, "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you."

Listen, the Lord is not far away; He is not distant, just as the prophet Isaiah said. But our sin is what separates us from our God. God says, "If you return to Me, if you repent," and return is the same thing as repent. Turn away from your sin and turn to Me, and if you do so, I will return unto you, saith the Lord.

But you said, "Wherein shall we return?" They had departed from God's law and asked, "Wherein should we return? What have we done wrong?" Look at that; they didn't even recognize their sin. You know you're in a bad spot when you don't even see your sin. Your conscience has been seared with a hot iron when you're distant from the Lord, but you can't even see it. You don't even know; you don't even understand. Here were these people who had departed from the Lord, and He says, "Return to Me, and I will return to you," and they're going, "What are you talking about? What return to You? We're in the land; we have the temple; we're offering sacrifices; we have the priesthood. What do you mean, 'Return unto Me'?"

Yet they were distant in their hearts. They worshiped the Lord with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him. I keep reminding you that this is the post-exilic people—these are the people after the exile into Babylon. Yet once again, they had departed from the Lord. We may look at the 400 years of silence, as we're going to look at next week, and say that's pretty harsh of God not to speak to His people for 400 years. Yet even in that, I see the Lord.

Preparing His way, He is building within the hearts of the people an expectation and a desire for the Messiah. He says, "Return unto Me, and I will return unto you." They respond, "Wherein shall we return?" God answers with a challenging question: "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me." They ask, "Wherein have we robbed You?" God replies, "In your tithes and your offerings." They were depriving God's house. He tells them, "You've departed from My law. Return to Me." They question how they have departed, and He explains, "You are depriving My house by not bringing in your tithes and your offerings."

Every single time we talk about tithes and offerings, the church seems to shift in their seats. There is often reluctance to hear what the Bible has to say about this. Some argue that we shouldn't discuss it because it's only Old Testament, that it's not New Testament, and that we are not under the law but under grace. However, I have a lot to discuss with you tonight, and I hope you're ready. God says, "You have robbed from Me in your tithes and your offerings."

The New Testament states that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. Everything in this world belongs to God. He has given us gifts, talents, abilities, wages, earnings, and salaries, but everything is ultimately the Lord's. By taking and not giving, we are robbing from God; we are stealing from Him. He has a requirement for us: tithes and offerings. Tithes mean a tenth part, and He has required a tenth part. Beyond that, He asks for an offering.

You have robbed Me by not giving these things. I have given you all things abundantly, and you have deprived My house by not bringing anything into the storehouse. You have departed from Me by doing this. He says, "Turn to Me. You have robbed from Me." They respond, "What do you mean we have robbed from You? How dare You say that we have stolen from You?" Yet God puts His finger on it and says, "This is how you have stolen from Me."

We need to understand some important things about giving. Number one, giving is not God's way of raising money; it is God's way of raising children. Why? Well, the most...

The translated verse of the Bible states that God so loved the world that He gave. Our God, our Father, is a giving God; He gives everything pressed down, overflowing in abundance. He wants to raise children who are like Him in their giving. God is not trying to raise money; He is trying to raise children to be like Him.

There are over 2,100 verses in the Bible that deal with giving. One in every ten verses in the New Testament addresses our giving of finances or time. That’s one-tenth of the New Testament. Additionally, 16 of the 38 parables that Jesus spoke about have to do with giving. Do you think He’s trying to tell us something here?

Yet, the church in America today, largely in the West, is the richest church in the world. I’m talking about the people, not the actual establishment. The richest people in the world often say, "Hey, that’s Old Testament; that’s the law, and we’re not under the law; we’re under grace." However, I remind you that the tithe came before the law.

In Genesis chapter 14, you remember the story of Abraham, who had a nephew named Lot. Lot was carried away by some kings who took captive Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham gathered 418 trained men from his house, tracked these kings down by night, and attacked them. They overtook them—talk about a killer army! They need to make a movie about that.

After Abraham had taken the spoil, on his way back, he stopped by a place called Salem, where he met a man named Melchizedek. Melchizedek was the priest of the Most High God and the King of Salem, the King of Righteousness. When Abraham met him, Melchizedek brought out bread and wine, and they sat down to have a meal together. Abraham gave him a tenth of everything he had—not just the things he had taken in the spoil, but a tithe that was hundreds of years before the law came.

Thus, the law has nothing to do with the tithe, although the law prescribes more than just a tenth. Did you know that the children of Israel were supposed to give a tenth to the temple, a tenth to the Levites, and every three years they were to give one-sixtieth to the poor? This equals 23 percent of their earnings, given to God before taxes, from the first fruits. That was under the law. So, you might say, "Well, we’re not under the law." That’s fine.

You don't have to give twenty-three percent, but before the law, there was ten percent. You might say, "Oh, Jesus didn't talk about this; He didn't speak about tithing," and you would be wrong. Remember in Matthew chapter 23 when Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees and saying, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites!" One of the things He says to them in Matthew chapter 23 is, "You tithe on your spices, and yet you've neglected the weightier things of the law: love, justice, and peace." He said, "You should have done these things—love, justice, and peace—without neglecting the other, the tithe."

You see, they were so focused on the tithe that they would take their pepper and say, "Nine for me and one for the Lord." They would tithe on their pepper, their salt, and all their different spices. They were so into it, and yet they neglected the weightier things of the law: love, justice, and peace. But God says you have to keep those things while also keeping the tithe.

Not only that, the Apostle Paul speaks a lot about it in the books of First and Second Corinthians. We'll get there eventually. As you can see, the tithe and giving have nothing to do with the law; it is something that God has called all of us as Christians to do. Notice that He says not just tithes, but offerings. The offering is above and beyond the tithe.

Where should the tithe go? Notice what He says in the next verse: "You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me." God says a curse comes upon those who rob Him in this way, even this whole nation. He says, "This is what you should do: you should bring all your tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house." Notice He says here that the tithes are to go into the storehouse, into My house. The storehouse is where the sheep are fed. The tithe, the tenth part, is to come into the church where you are fed.

But the offerings are to go out into other places. Oftentimes, we receive something in the mail, maybe from World Vision or another organization. Let me tell you something: I think these parachurch organizations are great, and they fulfill a very important role in the body of Christ. But you know why they're there? They're there because the church has not done what it's supposed to do. If the church was doing what it was supposed to do, there would be no need for organizations like World Vision or Samaritan's Purse, or many others that are out there. If the church was doing its job, then...

The parachurch would not need to be there. I'm not saying that those things are wrong; I think they're great. In fact, I support several different parachurch organizations as an offering to the Lord. However, we are to support and bring the tithe into the storehouse, the place where we are fed, that there may be meat in my house.

Notice what God says here: it is the only time in all of the Scriptures where God says, "Test me." We are told not to tempt the Lord our God, and we are told not to test our God. Yet here, God says, "You test me in this; prove me in this." Now, with sayeth the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out upon you a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

I'm not teaching a health and wealth doctrine here, and neither is Malachi, nor is God. But He is saying that there is a blessing in giving. We read that it is more blessed to give than to receive. In giving, there is a reception, and I would say that it is a spiritual thing that we receive. In fact, Paul in the New Testament says that we are to give physically to those that give to us spiritually. There is a spiritual blessing that is received when we give the tithe to the storehouse unto the Lord.

I will rebuke, notice what God says: "I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes." Here is another blessing that He says He will give to you who give to Him: "I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground."

There are a lot of people who say, "I don't have 10% to give. If I gave 10%, I wouldn't have anything for my bills, for my house, for my car, and gas is pretty expensive." But God says, "No, that's not the case."

It's interesting because when we read through the book of Haggai, we remember that the people were all into building their houses bigger and better while the house of the Lord had lain in ruin. God says, "Here you are, working so hard. You plow your fields and hope to bring in 20 bushels, and you only bring in 10. You hope to bring in 50 baths of oil, and you only bring in 10. You work so hard in all of your labor, and all your money goes into a bag that seems to have holes."

Why? Well, because the devourer, the destroyer, has come and taken your fruits because you haven't given your first fruits to the Lord. So God says, "You give the first fruits to me, and I will rebuke the devourer, the one who comes to destroy the fruits."

Of your ground, neither shall the vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. All nations shall call you blessed, for you shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.

So God says to His people, "These things have I called you to do." It amazes me that in this election year, how much money these campaigns are able to raise. In the month of June, the Barack Obama campaign raised 52 million dollars in one month. That seems like a lot, but the Republican Party had at that time 95 million dollars in the bank. When you consider how much money is given to these campaigns, I went on one of their websites today, and it's interesting. The very first thing you see when you go on their websites is "donate." Big buttons urge you to donate. Did you know that you can give up to 2,300 dollars for the primary, but you can also give another 2,300 for the general election? They are saying, "Give us your money, give us your money," and millions of people in America are giving and giving and giving tons and tons of money.

Why? Well, the prospect of change. Maybe that will change our nation. But you know what? Washington's not going to be able to change our nation. You know what's going to change the nation? The church.

Look at every nation that has been changed, that has been revived. It always starts with a revival of the church. Look at Russia 20 years ago. When that nation’s wall fell down, it wasn't Mikhail Gorbachev or President Reagan. There was a work going on underground behind the scenes in Russia for years prior to that, as people were going across the borders and bringing in Bibles. People began to pray, and that nation was changed.

Can a nation be changed? Yes, it can be changed, but it has everything to do with where you're investing your time and your fortunes, your money. I won't endorse a candidate; I won't tell you who I'm going to vote for. I will say that both of these candidates have a lot of things to say, but neither one of them is going to be able to change our nation for good. Only God can change a nation.

He says, "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and call out to Me, I will hear from heaven and heal their land." God can heal a nation. Righteousness exalts a nation, and sin is a reproach to any people. As the church turns to God and moves as God is calling His people to turn to Him, then a nation can be transformed.

Can be restored. If we really desire to change America, it has everything to do with what happens in the walls of this building and in the hearts of the people of this church. Not just this church, but Emmanuel Faith, Cathedral of the Valley, and Bethel Baptist—any church in this town that preaches God's Word knows His name.

If you invest your money in the stock market, you're always looking at the numbers to see how they are changing and to check if you're receiving interest on your investment. If you invest your money in the lottery, you're always checking the lottery numbers to see what's going on. But if you invest in the Kingdom of God, your interest will shift to His Kingdom, to His Word, to His work.

As I was thinking about this this week, I had a great time at the camp with our high schoolers. I was sitting up on the mountain in Big Bear, and as I was looking at this passage, the Lord spoke to my heart. The interest is always in the investment. I'm not just talking about financial interest; I'm talking about our interests always being where our money is. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

God says to His people, "I want you to be interested in My Kingdom, in My work, so you need to put your treasure there." Because where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. If you do these things, I will rebuke the devourer, the one who destroys the fruit of your land.

Now, He says to the people in verse 13, the seventh thing that He brings against them is that they were defaming God's character. "Your words have been stout against Me," says the Lord. Yet you say, "What have we spoken much against You?" God says, "You have been defaming My character; you have been degrading My work." They respond, "How have we spoken anything against You?"

Well, you have said, "It is vain to serve God." Boy, is that not a powerful statement? It's empty to serve the Lord. Some people think, "Why would I give to the Kingdom? Why would I serve the Lord with my time and my finances? What am I going to get from it?" That is a wrong way to look at it. What is the Lord going to be able to accomplish and do?

They said, "It is vain to serve God, and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance? Where is our profit? Where is our inheritance? We want something if we're going to give something, don't we?"

Hosts, now we call the proud happy. They work wickedness and are set up. Yes, they that tempt God are even delivered. Then, they that feared the Lord spoke often one to another. Notice this verse: "Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another." The people that fear God speak of His name and speak of His things.

Notice what God does; He takes notice. The Lord hearkened and heard it. God's ears perk up when His people talk about how good He is. But notice what He does: a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord and that thought upon His name. God says, "I keep a record. I keep a scrapbook of those that talk about Me."

Just about every one of the moms in this room has baby books of their children—little locks of hair, their first tooth that they lost. They've got things written down about the first step and the first time they said "Mama" or "Dada." You know what? God does the same. He has a book in heaven of all the times that we speak good of Him.

For those that fear Him and think upon His name, He has kept a record. "They shall be Mine," says the Lord. "They shall be My children," says God, "in that day when I make up My jewels." He calls them His jewels, and I will spare them as a man spares his own son that serves him.

Then shall you return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serves God and him that serves Him not. For behold, the day comes, and God always wants us to look forward to this day. It is interesting that the last book of the Old Testament and the last book of the New Testament both look forward to the same day.

"For behold, that day comes that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yes, all that do wickedly shall be stubble for that fire. And that day comes; it shall burn them up," says the Lord of hosts, "and it shall leave them neither root nor branch." Notice, He will completely destroy.

As I was up at the camp this last week, they were almost hit by the fire that went through Big Bear this last year. It came right up to the buildings of the camp. Yet here are these great tall pine trees; they were burnt but not consumed, not completely destroyed. But God says those that are proud and do wickedly shall be burned and completely consumed in the day of the Lord.

But unto you that fear My name, those that He has written a book about, look at what He says: the Son of Righteousness.

Shall arise with healing in His wings, and you shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall. That speaks of well-fed, fat, happy calves. You shall tread down the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet.

And that day shall I do this, saith the Lord of hosts. Remember you the law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with all the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send unto you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. He shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to the fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

I'd love to talk about that, but we don't have time. When we get into the Gospel of Luke, we will, because we'll see that there is one who comes in the spirit and power of Elijah. His name is John the Baptist. However, there is yet another coming day when Elijah shall come again before the second coming of Christ.

Hey, let's stand and pray.

God, thank You for Your Word. Your Word is truth, Lord, and we thank You that You have given it to us so that we may know You, Your nature, Your character, and Your will. I ask that You would speak to us. I thank You for the maturity of my brothers and sisters here, and I ask, Lord, that You would help us to rightly divide Your Word and understand it, take it to heart, and that we would see You exalted in Your church, glorifying You here on earth. For we ask it in Jesus' name, amen.