Lessons From Malachi
Malachi 1:2 (1/5/17)
January 5, 2017 • Flip Benham
* Romans 9:10-13 - Jacob I have loved and Esau I have hated. * This was quoted by Paul from Malachi. * Jacob and Esau represent two nations. * Jacob represents God’s people who want the blessing of God and are willing to give of themselves to Him. * Esau represents people of the world who want the blessing but aren’t willing to give up themselves to God. * There’s something about Jacob God loves - he understood the value of God’s blessing and wanted it. * There’s something about Esau God hates - he despised God’s blessing - he only needed God when it was convenient. * So the question is - which brother will we be?
Malachi 1:8-13 (1/5/17)
January 5, 2017 • Benham Brothers
* God was reprimanding the priests for their lousy service. * They honored Him with their lips but not their hearts. * Today we are all priests of God, so we can apply this to the work God has given us to do. * They had a few things going on: * 1) They didn’t do a good job - their job was to distinguish between clean and unclean sacrifices. * They failed in two ways: * They were motivated by greed to just take any animal because it was their food - any animal was better than no animal. * They routinely went about their job without a heart to honor the Lord. * 2) They wouldn’t do something if they weren’t paid for it - they lived a “what’s in it for me” life. * They didn’t do more than what they got paid for. * Their main concern was their own gain. * 3) They complained about their work - they thought the rules surrounding the priesthood were too burdensome. * They began to grumble. * Because their hearts did not honor the Lord their jobs turned from delight into drudgery.
Malachi 2:14 (1/3/19)
January 3, 2019 • Benham Brothers
* One of God’s major problems with the Jews was that they had slapped Him in the face. How? * By treating the covenant with their wives with contempt. * All Jews knew that a covenant involved three people - husband, wife, and God. * They vowed to God they would love their spouse. * So when they flippantly divorced their spouses with no thought toward God and the covenant it was a slap in His face. * It revealed their cold hearts toward God. * This applies to all of us, but especially those who are married. * How are you treating your spouse and the covenant you made to him/her? * Don’t forget - God is not just your Father but also your Father-in-Law.
Malachi 3:7-12 (1/5/17)
January 5, 2017 • Benham Brothers
achi 3:7-12 - Robbery * Where our treasure is there our heart will be, and vice versa. * The people were robbing God of His tithe. * Giving back to God is our greatest form of worship - it shows we are devoted to Him. * The Israelites were committing robbery in three ways: * 1) They were robbing God (vs 8) - without paying tithes the priests and Levites had no sustenance. * 2) They were robbing themselves (vs 9) - God withheld blessings from them. * If we don’t let go of what’s in our hands God won’t let go of what’s in His. * 3) They were robbing others (vs 12) - God blesses others “through” us. * If we don’t give of ourselves and our stuff others suffer for it.
Malachi 4/ Matthew 3
January 2, 2014 • Benham Brothers
300+ years were between Malachi and Mathew There was no prophecy or prophets during this time Then John the Baptist enters the picture (hence fulfilling the prophesy) He was "the voice" not the speaker - God was the speaker His message was repentance, which they were familiar with But his reason for repenting was different - it went from "national" to "personal" He encouraged people to repent for salvation personally, not for God to save them nationally This prepared the way for ALL people, not just Jews, to receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance into heaven