In our passage today we will see the contrast between a group who scoffs at the idea of fearing the Lord and a group who honors His name.
"'You have spoken arrogantly against Me,' says the Lord." (Malachi 3:13a) We talk so much throughout the day that it's easy to take on a casual attitude about the power of words. But God doesn't take a casual attitude about the things that come out of our mouths, "For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of." (Luke 6:45) Our words reveal who we are inside. It matters whether we honor the Lord with our mouths or whether slander Him with our lips. Today's passage will prove to us that Jesus spoke the truth when He said, "A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:35-37)
The people who have spoken against the Lord deny that they have done it. It could be they don't even realize how bad their attitudes have become. Malachi tells us they respond to the Lord's accusation like this: "Yet you ask, 'What have we said against You?'" (Malachi 3:15) We can gradually lapse into a negative attitude without realizing it. If the Lord points this out to us, as He does to some of the citizens of Israel in the book of Malachi, we are wise to take heed.
The Lord gives a detailed description of how the people have spoken arrogantly against Him. "You have said, 'It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out His requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty? Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.'" (Malachi 3:14-15) How many of us have never had these thoughts, whether we put them into words or not? Haven't we all wondered in times of trouble why the wicked seem to be living without a care in the world while we, the body of believers, are dealing with problems? The people of Malachi's time can't stop thinking about how poorly their current situation compares with the former glory of Israel. They have done the backbreaking work of rebuilding the temple and the walls, and yet the city still looks like a poor shell-shocked hick town on the backside of nowhere. They are still under the rule of the Persian Empire and must submit to it and pay taxes to it. This is not what they had hoped for, and they can't help wondering why the pagan nations are so wealthy and prosperous while they themselves, the children of God, are working their fingers to the bone and are barely getting by.
The Lord has already pointed out why they are not as prosperous as they could be. They are not obeying Him regarding tithes and offerings. They are breaking the law by divorcing their wives to marry pagan women. They are judging matters of the law by showing partiality to those with wealth or status. They are bringing blemished sacrifices to the temple instead of giving God their best. What has happened is that they have gotten caught up in a negative loop. They began by feeling discouraged about their situation and that led to them not being obedient to the Lord, probably because they felt bitter toward Him. This is why they've not been bringing their tithes and why they've stopped being faithful to their godly wives and why they judge unfairly and why they bring unacceptable sacrifices. But their disobedience has caused more problems, not fewer problems. Their bitterness has done them no good; bitterness never does anyone any good. In yesterday's passage the Lord promised the people if they will only do what He commands them to do, He will pour out more blessings on them than they can take in. But some of the citizens are caught in a loop of negativity and bitterness and can't seem to break free of it.
Not everyone in Israel is caught up in this sad loop. There are still those who honor the name of the Lord, as there always are in every generation. The Lord is listening to what they say, just as He is listening to what the bitter ones say. "Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in His presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored His name." (Malachi 3:16) The Lord has heard every good and sincere thing we have ever said about Him! Imagine how humbled and honored we will feel if when we get to heaven someday He reads to us from a scroll that contains the honorable things we've said about Him! Wouldn't that be something? The God whose words spoke the universe and all of creation into existence listens to our words and cares about what we say! There's something about this that we, as humans, can identify with. Don't we store up in our minds the nice things people have said to us? Doesn't it warm our hearts when we hear that a friend or co-worker has said lovely things about us to someone else? It would appear that, although the Lord doesn't need anyone's approval, He enjoys keeping a remembrance of words spoken that honor His name.
This is what the Lord has to say about those who fear Him and honor His name: "'On the day when I act,' says the Lord Almighty, 'they will be My treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.'" (Malachi 3:17-18) He speaks here about what is known as "the day of the Lord", the day when He will "bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil". (Ecclesiastes 12:14) This is the day in which He will "separate the wheat from the chaff" (Luke 3:17) and will "separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats". (Matthew 25:31) On that day it will clearly be seen who is righteous and who is wicked. On that day the Lord will reward the faithful ones and will judge the evil ones.
The Lord knows those who are His. (2 Timothy 2:19) When He performs His act of final judgment, those who are His will be considered His treasured possession. I love the way the KJV phrases verse 17, "'And they shall be Mine,' saith the Lord of hosts,' in that day when I make up My jewels.'" We who fear the Lord and honor His name are as precious as jewels to Him. He knows the attitudes of our hearts and He hears the words from our lips. Let's honor Him for who He is and for all He has done. Let our sincere prayer be the same as David's, who said, "May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." (Psalm 19:14)
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