| Introduction Our God the Lord is a great King and his name is feared among the nations (1:14). He is Creator and Redeemer of his people. Surely his people will worship him according to how he told them he wants to be worship, right? WRONG! I. The people of God were not honoring God as their Father by the way they were worshipping him, 6-8. A. The people, and particularly the priests, would refer to God as Father and Master, but their public worship did not back up what they were saying, 6a. B. The disconnect between their profession concerning God and the way that they worshiped him amounted to despising God's name (taking his name in vain), 6b. C. Yet, when God challenged them regarding their public worship, they challenged God back, 6c. D. By not following what God had said concerning worship, they were saying that what God had given them as a means of fellowshipping with him was contemptible, 7. 1. The table here is the altar of sacrifice in the holy place of the temple. 2. They were not literally saying these words, but their worship of God was saying it loud and clear "We find what God has given us to be contemptible." E. Selfish worship is contemptible to the Lord, 8. 1. God required that his people brought to him the best of the flock and fields. Dt. 15:20-21 – You and your household shall eat itbefore the Lord your God year by year in the place which the Lord chooses. But if there is a defect in it, if it islame or blind or has any serious defect, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. Lv. 22:19-23 – … you shall offer of your own free will a male without blemish from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf. And whoever offers a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, to fulfill his vow, or a freewill offering from the cattle or the sheep, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it. Those that areblind or broken or maimed, or have an ulcer or eczema or scabs, you shall not offer to the Lord, nor make an offering by fire of them on the altar to the Lord. Either a bull or a lamb that has any limb too long or too short you may offer as a freewill offering, but for a vow it shall not be accepted. 2. The people, however, didn't seem to think that God was serious about what he said concerning the way that he wanted to be worshiped. a. The people would bring an unblemished lamb to offer as a sacrifice at the temple. b. The priests would reason, "It doesn't make sense to slaughter this perfectly good lamb. After all, it's just going to be burned on the altar. Let's sell it for a decent price and substitute a slightly blemished lamb that's cheaper. Good stewardship demands it. God is about the big picture and he really doesn't care how we do it as long as we do it." c. Or when the people would bring a less than perfect animal to the temple, the priests would say, "Don't worry about it. It was sick, so you couldn't risk eating it. It's just going up in smoke anyway. Sacrificing it helps you get rid of an animal that you didn't need and it helps us keep the fires burning on the altar." d. Everyone wins, except God. F. We are often not far behind the people of Malachi's days. 1. Under guise of wisdom and practicality, we ignore what God says concerning worship and tailor it to fit what we want. 2. We end up worshiping ourselves. 3. We live in a day of convenience Christianity. a. The church is being marketed like a restaurant or store in an attempt to attract more customers. b. Pastors flock to seminars that share methods on how to attract unchurched people. 1) Don't preach against sin, because that threatens people. 2) They want to feel good about themselves. 3) They don't bring Bibles to church, so don't get into in- depth Bible study. 4) Give them something positive and uplifting. 5) They're used to watching TV, so use a lot of drama and visuals. 6) Keep the sermon short15 to 20 minutes maximum. c. Pastors who use these techniques testify how their church rapidly grew into thousands of attenders. 4. Yet, worship is not primarily about the people of the pew. 5. Worship is primarily about the God who saved the people on the pew. II. Though private and personal worship is important, it is the public and corporate Worship of God that causes God's name to be feared among the nations. A. These activities that the priests and the people were conducting were all public and corporate worship activities. B. God considers the precise worship of his name as a primary activity through which his name is proclaimed to the nations, 11. C. Conversely, the careless worship of his name is a primary means of smearing his name to the nations, 10. 1. God says, "Close the door and stop doing what you are doing." 2. To paraphrase what is going on here, God says, "Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not uselessly meet in my name. I am not pleased with you." 3. It would be better to close the doors of the church than to dishonor God when we meet III. They dishonored God with their worship, then waited for all the blessing he was going to bestow upon them, 9. A. The prophet urges them to appeal to God's mercy and grace that they might change. B. God will not accept them favorably. IV. Honoring the Lord means giving him the best in worship and in our lives. A. We should give God the best in terms of cost. 1. These priests in Malachi's day were giving God the leftovers. a. They had no use for a blind, lame, or sick animal, so they would give it to God on the altar (1:8). b. But God tells them that he would rather that they close the doors of the temple than to have them offer these cheap sacrifices to Him (1:10)! 2. Giving God what you really don't need anyway is not giving at all. 3. How does it relate to worship? a. God dictates what we do. b. Worship as a priority. Mt. 6:33 – But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. c. Giving time to be prepared. d. Focusing on and engaging in worship. B. We should give God the best in terms of quality. 1. The Lord only wants unblemished lambs on his altar. 2. If it's a reject, it isn't good enough for the Lord. 3. I think preparation is key for quality. 4. Also a right understanding of what we are doing in worship and who we are worshiping. C. We should give God the best in terms of personal integrity. 1. Here were talking about the motive why you do what you do in worship, 14. a. This guy wants to look good in public, so he makes a grandstand vow to give the best to the Lord. b. But when it comes time to give, he slips in an inferior animal and keeps the best for himself. c. He wasn't really offering his sacrifice to the living God, who sees the motives of the heart. d. He was doing it to be seen by men. 2. Ananias and Sapphira fell into this trap in the early church, Acts 5. a. They wanted the church to think that they were giving the total amount from the sale of their land, but they kept back part of it for themselves. b. As Peter pointed out just before God struck them dead, they were not lying to men, but to God. With our passage in mind, let me ask you five questions: 1. Is your service for God less than you would offer a human dignitary? 8. 2. Is God answering your prayers? 9. 3. Are you playing church? 10. · These priests were going through the motions, keeping the fires burning on the temple altar. · But God says that it was useless. · He would rather that they close the doors than to go on playing their religious games. · It's easy to have all sorts of activities and programs in a local church, and lose sight of the reason why we do these things. · It is not to attract people. · Who cares how many people attend our church if they are just giving God the leftovers of worldly lives? · God looks on our hearts, not on activities or programs. · He is looking for those who worship him in spirit and in truth – that is through Jesus Christ. Jn. 14:6 – Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." 4. Are you bored with worship and/or Christian service? 13. · These priests were tired of the routine. · Offer another animal, go through the motions one more time, put in your shift at the temple to get your paycheck and go home. · They were bored with worship because they had lost sight of the greatness and majesty of God, the Lord of hosts (used 7 times in these verses), which means that he commands all the armies of heaven and all of the galaxies in the universe! · If you're bored with worship or with serving the Lord, you have lost sight of the glory and majesty of God. · Rituals and routines can be pretty boring, but the living God is definitely not boring! · Whenever in the Bible someone got a glimpse of God, they were not glancing at their watch to find out how much longer the service would last! · I realize that not every worship service will give you a glimpse of God, but if you are consistently bored with worship, you probably need a fresh glimpse of the greatness of God. 5. Is your passion in life to promote God's glory among the nations? 11, 14. · If God's aim is that his name will be great among the nations, and you are his blood-bought servant, shouldn't his aim be your aim? · Shouldn't pleasing him be your daily desire? · Shouldn't his kingdom and glory be your passion? · Therefore, shouldn't his corporate and public worship be vital to you?
God calls us to worship him according to his Word; that is the best thing we can do.
http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2017/07/worshipping-god-with-leftovers-mal-16-14.html
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