Silence Doesn’t Mean Abscence

400 years of silence!!!

Wow! I can look at this and say that is crazy! Such a long time. Then I’m amazed at people like Zechariah and Simeon who faithfully went about doing what God called them to do when for generations their families waited and waited for the coming Messiah. That is some serious dedication.

When I don’t start seeing results or God working within a week I get discouraged.

400 years? That’s twice the life of our nation! 400 years!!

God’s time table does not match ours. When I look at my life from my perspective it is easy to get impatient. I must look at life from God’s vantage point. Thankfully we have the Bible.

Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. Malachi 3:1

Then when Jesus came, God didn’t just announce him to Mary and Joseph. Many affirmed that he was the long awaited Messiah. There was, of course. Mary and Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth, the Shepherds, the Wise men, even Herod was threatened by this baby, and then Simeon and Anna.

The book of Matthew contains 47 some quotes from the Old Testament. 12 Old Testament prophecies were shown to be fulfilled in Matthew.

The confirmations of the Bible are incredible! We serve a faithful God. One whose love never lets go!

Malachi turned out to be such a wonderful book to study. I was a little scared at first. It seemed kind of harsh. But as we dug deeper, I saw over and over God’s love and grace.

I’m foolish to think I can be good enough for God. I just need to be humble enough to let him be good enough for me!

Oh God! When I think I can please you with my efforts, I’m a fool. Thank you for loving his fool! It is only by your grace and mercy that I enjoy your company!

I love you more and more as I see how you are and who you are! Such comfort I receive knowing you don’t change. You always seek us out. We just need to acknowledge your work in and through us.

I see why the angels constantly cry out, ‘Holy! Holy! Holy! They get it! Help us get it.  In Jesus most holy name, Amen!

Join us on our next adventure as we study the miracles of Jesus. See the ‘Miracles’ tab for details.

Thank you, again for joining me as we dig deep into the Holy Writ! Blessings!

Hope Springs Eternal

Psalms 130:7 (BBE)
O Israel, have hope in the Lord; for with the Lord is mercy and full salvation.

Psalms 131:3 (BBE)
O Israel, have hope in the Lord, from this time and for ever.

God continues to give hope to his people. To those who seek him.

Remember as you read next week that there was about 400 years between the writings of Malachi and the New Testament. That is nearly two times the life of our nation.

Lord, thank you for being so faithful and showing yourself when we seek you! You are our hope! Amen.

Next weeks assignment:
Read:
Matthew 1&2
Luke 1&2

Robbing God? The Audacity of it All!

Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me..

I read this and am appalled. How in the world? Yet I look around me and I see it happening in so many places.

I want to say it is ignorance. Ignorance in how incredible God is. Ignorance in how much God loves us. Ignorance in how futile our efforts are…how weak our goodness is.

When I look around and see dear friends who are good people, yet they haven’t accepted God as part of their lives, my heart weeps.

When I look around and see bad people prospering, my soul cries out, “How can this be?”

When I see people who are trying their best in life and they seem to get knocked down time and time again, I just can’t wrap my mind around it.

Then I read Malachi and see there is NOTHING new under the sun.

I don’t like curses. (I’m using the word “I” a lot in this post. Sorry about that. My mind is doing some serious wrestling this week.). ;-). Why would a God who says he loves us, curse us?

Why would a God of justice bless us when we don’t always deserve it?

As I look at all we expect from God, yet we don’t want him to interfere in our lives when we think we’ve got life by the tail, I am perplexed. We are such a peculiar lot!

Think about a family structure. We don’t choose our family of origin. Yet we have certain responsibilities there. We’re expected, at minimum, to pick up after ourselves and be respectful to the rest of the family. Sometimes we have more responsibility than that. And shouldn’t we after all?

We work at a job. In order to get a paycheck, there are certain expectation of duties and behaviors.

If we are part of a club or team, we need to carry our weight.

Why with God is it different?

My goodness, he is our creator!! It seems only natural that if we aren’t following the path of how are creator designed us, there would be consequences in our relationship with that creator.

Does that mean we have to follow a strict set of rules in order to win his favor or the proverbial gavel of heaven will strike us? Does that mean our style must be cramped in order to appease the God of heaven?

When I study how God operates, I don’t see that. I see things like:

“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. ‘They will be mine,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘in the day when I make up my treasured possession I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him…”

He loves us. He calls us his treasured possession! He created us to have a relationship with him.

My human nature doesn’t want to be told what to do. Yet on my own I don’t have peace. I was created to have God as my Father, Friend, Provider, Guide.

Who am I to be stingy with God? He owns everything I have. If he chooses for me to have little, I am blessed. If he chooses to give me much, I am blessed. Bottom line, it is all his!. What’s wrong with him asking me to return a portion of it back to him? It reminds me of many things:

1. It’s all his.
2. I can trust him to provide for my needs. If I give when I don’t think I can , I have to trust him to meet my need as I willingly do what he has asked me to do.
3. He is alive and well and worthy of my joyful giving.
4. It’s the least I can do with what I’ve been entrusted with.

Lord, heavy heart or joyful heart, it’s yours! You are perfect. You ‘own’ it all. I long for your blessing. You are faithful. Your beauty is too wonderful for me.

How fickle we are as humans. Yet you call us your ‘treasured’ possession, the apple of your eye. You tenderly care for us and draw us to you.

You do everything to keep us from the natural consequences (curses) of not following you. You want to bless.

Thank you for loving me! Today, with a skip in my step, I serve you and anxiously await your move in the hearts and lives of those around me! I see your beauty and am in awe. I see your patience and am grateful. I see that NOTHING can separate me from your love. I am overwhelmed with you. Thank you, Papa, for being my Papa!

Next weeks assignment:
Malachi 4

He Who Promised Is Faithful

Several things run through my mind as I read this section of Malachi.

Why do these people see God as, at minimum, an absent player when it comes to justice, or worse, loving injustice?

Who are they to question Almighty God??

Why doesn’t God squish them like a bug?

Then I look at my own life and am VERY grateful he didn’t squish them and wonder how often God becomes weary with me as I doubt his character!

The response of God here reminds me of his response to Job when he doubted God’s character. Here I’m including Job 38:4-41. Yet it goes on in chapter 39.

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?

“Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?

“Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place, that it might take the earth by the edges and shake the wicked out of it? The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like those of a garment. The wicked are denied their light, and their upraised arm is broken.

“Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the shadow of death? Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.

“What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years!

“Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth? Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, to water a land where no man lives, a desert with no one in it, to satisfy a desolate wasteland and make it sprout with grass? Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew? From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen?

“Can you bind the beautiful Pleiades? Can you loose the cords of Orion? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God’s dominion over the earth?

“Can you raise your voice to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’? Who endowed the heart with wisdom or gave understanding to the mind? Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens when the dust becomes hard and the clods of earth stick together?

“Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?

Who am I to argue with God’s timing?

Also, I can’t base my judgement of God’s character on just my personal experiences. I need a much broader view of God’s actions. His timing isn’t based on quelling my personal frustrations. As I look at the Bible as a whole, I see how he operates over time. Because he is just and loving and wise and all knowing and gracious, he is looking at the facts from a broader perspective than I do.

Hebrews 10:23 encourages me to hold on even when life doesn’t make sense and even seems way off.

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

The New Living Translation words that verse very simply:

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

Bottom Line…It’s a Heart Issue

Malachi 2:12  As for the man who does this, whoever he may be, may the LORD cut him off from the tents of Jacob — even though he brings offerings to the LORD Almighty.

God wants our heart.  It is clear that he did not have the hearts of his people.  We can go to church.  Give money to the church.  Help the poor.  Even serve in church.  But if God doesn’t have our hearts, all of that seems to be a waste of time.

These people also didn’t fear God.  On Sunday, Pastor Terry mentioned the account of Cain and Able.  In the book of Genesis we are told they each offered God an offering.  They both seemed to be wonderful offerings.  But God accepted Able’s offering and not Cain’s.  Again we see a heart issue.  Rather than accepting what God decided, Cain copped an attitude…to the point of taking Able’s life.

II Chronicles 30:18-20 records an account that also reflects a heart issue.  However in this story the outcome is different.  Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the LORD, who is good, pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God–the LORD, the God of his fathers–even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary.”  And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people.

Not missing a step in God’s laws isn’t what gets us favor with God.  It is our heart.

Did I mention that what God really wants is a heart that is open to God?  🙂

I found a couple other verses that make this point clear:

Psalm 24

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;  for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.  

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?  Who may stand in his holy place?  The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.  

They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior.  Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, God of Jacob.

Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.  Who is this King of glory?  The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.  Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.  Who is he, this King of glory?  The Lord Almighty—he is the King of glory.

Psalm 51:16-17

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

Luke 11:42

“Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.”

What do you think?  Is it harder to have a right heart or do “good” things?

Why do we struggle with a “right heart”?

Do we harbor resentment in our hearts toward God?

Lord, as David prayed to you, I pray to you!  Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  I want my service to you to be pure.  Help me to defeat my divided heart.  Thank you for wisdom and grace.  I can’t serve 2 masters…though at times I try!!  Help me see and root out any attitude I have, any love I have that is more than love for you!  Thank you for not expecting me to be perfect…just willing.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Next weeks assignment:

Malachi 2:17-3:5

A Covenant That Calls For Reverence

The priests were disrespecting God and so were the people with the second class offerings they were making.

God originally called Levi to be a priest because if his true devotion to God. He started out respecting, fearing and loving God. Somewhere along the way his descendants, who were also priests, lost their way. Reverence for God wasn’t even on their mind. It seems they got caught up in the ritual.

God was over their lack of respect and tried to shock them back to the proper respect of the covenant he made with them. He did it so hid covenant with Levi could continue.

David Guzik distiller down what the priests’ responsibilities were:

Reverence
Knowing God’s word
Having godly character
Preserving and promoting God’s word

How does this apply to you and I? We aren’t priests!!…or are we?

1 Peter 2:5. You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:9. em>;;But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.<;;

And how are we to live?

1 Peter 2:11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you if doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

2 Peter 3:11b …what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives…

And Paul wrote to Timothy truths that I think apply to us also,

2 Timothy 2:14-16 keep reminding then if these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.

I think the key to all of this is in 2 Peter 2:5 where it says we are to offer spiritual sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ.

I can only imagine that Levi’s reverence start because he recognized God’s grace.

Our position as priests is only because of God’s graciousness through Jesus Christ. As with the priests of old, we have entered into the greatest of covenants with God Almighty! A covenant deserving holy reverence!

Holiest God. Gracious God. God if Justice, you deserve my best and nothing less. In this moment I offer you what I have. It is only because of Jesus that I have what I have and can honor you. You alone are worthy of praise! Your covenant is greater than silver and gold! We are rich in you! May we ALWAYS remember that our value is only because of you!

next week’s assignment:
Malachi 2:10-16

Isn’t God Worth More Than Second Best

I have felt like a roller coaster with this passage. Why would the Jews give God second best…at best? That’s awful!!!

Then I look at my own life. How often do I give God second best? Why do I do that?

Before I try to answer that questions, let me share with you some commentaries I found and their take on these verses.

Keillor-Delitzsch’s Commentary on the Old Testament Minor Prophets, page 428 notes, “The outward or grosser kind of idolatry had been rendered thoroughly distasteful to the people by the sufferings of exile; and in its place was taken by the more refined idolatry of dead work righteousness, and trust in the outward fulfillment of the letter of the divine commands, without any deeper confession of sin or penitential humiliation under the word and will of God. Because the fullness of salvation which the earlier prophets had set before the people when restored to favour and redeemed from captivity, had not immediately come to pass, they began to murmur against God, to cherish doubts as to the righteousness of the divine administration…”

That was a mouthful! Bottom line, it seems obligation, fear that God might be real drive them to sacrifice. But doubts that he really would do what he said he would do allowed them to hold back in their giving. At least when I look at how I function in my little pea brain, sometimes I do that. Offer out of compulsion. But not truly trusting God. What a quandary in my mind!

And then in…Notes on the Minor Prophets, by H. A. Ironsides, page 440, “Nothing but a spirit of prayerfulness, coupled with careful watchfulness, will keep any from being carried away by the unholy current.”

That watchfulness comes from studying God’s word and prayer. When I’m anxious, with a thankful heart, tell God what’s on my mind. That’s what he implores me to do.

In Psalm 42, the Psalmist is lamenting to God. God doesn’t see to be moving fast enough and people in his life are mocking his faith in God. They were saying things like, “Where is your God, now? He obviously isn’t coming through for you. See we told you you were stupid for believing in this God you can’t even see.”

So easy to get distracted and pull away from God’s best in our life, tripped up by the circumstances in our life that don’t seem to line up the way we think they should. God is good. God is righteous. God is in control! God loves us. God knows everything, is everywhere and does not change. We can trust him. He delights when we recognize him for who he is!

Lord, please forgive me for doubting you. Your word is full of your promises and fulfillment of them. In my shortsighted human mind I lose track. Give me your mind.

Please release in me the strength to endure. To praise you in the midst of the storms of life, in the midst of circumstances that seem to contradict your promises. Help me to trust you completely.

Show me where in my heart and mind I’m trusting in something or someone over you. You deserve nothing less than my best! You have never failed me in the past. Your word is true and right. You are Redeemer. You are loving Father. You’ve set into place consequences for sin. You are Holy. You deserve more than I have to give. I give you what i have. Amen

Next weeks assignment:

Malachi 2:1-9

I Have Always Loved You

This week we looked at the first five verses of Malachi. In the 1st verse we see that this book is an oracle…advice or prophecy given through someone, usually a priest, on God’s behalf. However, this word, oracle, seems stronger than this definition. It carries with it an urgency, it holds a message with great weight and importance. It should be repeated often. This message is too heavy to bear without repentance.

To begin this message, God wanted to frame it with how much he loved the Jews. This emphasis of God’s love shows up several times in the Old Testament.

Jeremiah 31:3
Deuteronomy 7:7&8
Hosea 11:1
Isaiah 62:4

Yet the Jews first response was to question God’s love. Seriously? I was hurt for God that this was their first response.

Then I looked at my own life. How often do I question God’s love in my own life. When I am walking closely with him, this isn’t an issue. But when I go my own way, and I lose perspective in my life, it’s easy to wonder about God’s love.

In the situation with the Jews, they had walked very far from a right relationship with God. They remind me of some teenagers when they get mad at their parents because the parents won’t let them do something that they want to do.

Their parent knows it would be bad for them, even though on the surface it looks like a lot of fun. The child doesn’t understand that their parent is making tough choices on their behalf. God sees the big picture of life and knows what is best for us. And by his grace he never lets go, even when we don’t ‘feel’ his love.

Lord, life is hard. Following you is hard. I even wrestled with that today. But you are a good God. You have always loved us and that love doesn’t change. Please forgive me for not trusting you with my life.

So I ask, not accusingly, but in a way that shows i need to be reminded so I get my focus off my shortsightedness and back on you. How have you loved me?

You formed me in my mother’s womb. With great care you created me just the way you wanted me. You numbered my days. Knowing I would be far from perfect, you sent your son to redeem me. You created the universe with such beauty and complexity. You promise to care for my daily needs. Calling to you, seeking you, brings you joy. Giving us your word…a love letter full of wisdom and grace. These are a few of the ways you show me your love.

Only you are worthy of the highest praise…ALWAYS. I love you, Lord. Change my heart. Transform me a little more this week. Take my worry and turn it into trust. In Jesus name, Amen.

Oh, how he loves us, girlfriends!

Next weeks assignment:

Malachi 1:6-14

Nehemiah

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:31-33

As I read Nehemiah, these verses from Matthew were screaming at me. During the time when the walls of Jerusalem were being rebuilt the Jewish people were revisiting the words of God.

I’ve been a part of seasons where God was visibly doing some incredible things. After the excitement of those experiences, I am hungry to learn more about God. It’s as if I can’t get enough of him to satisfy my hungry soul. Then I come face to face with my own short comings. I then have the choice to lean in closer to God or to run.

When I lean in close, there is healing and grace. It isn’t easy, but worth it.

When I run, it reduces my stress for a short time. Then I realize I have needs and begin the process of looking for solutions to my needs. I have forgotten that God knows EXACTLY what I need.

God gives…
His law
Rest
Righteous decrees and regulations
Bread
Water
Clothing
Land
His Spirit
His love
So much more

We forget, we rebel, we doubt.

We end up slaves to our desires.

This is the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Malachi.

Thank God he forgives and redeems.

He is slow to anger.
Abounding in love.
Doesn’t abandon.
Rescues.

We receive from God.
We get comfortable.
We forget.
We cry out.
God hears.
We follow.

And the cycle continues. I don’t want want to forget. I want to always follow. His ways are perfect. They are ultimately best for me. My ways, without God’s direction, just complicate my life…even when they seem right to me. But whereever I am and wherever I have been, today I can choose God.

Lord, today I choose you. Please help me see your direction. I pray for our country. There are many followers of Christ who are crying out to you. I know you hear our prayers. Please, forgive us for our sins and heal our land. Amen.

Next weeks reading:

Malachi 1:1-5

Blessings to you, my friends, this week!

Ezra

Do you remember the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace? Or Daniel in the lion’s den? During that time, the Jewish people had been captured by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
The book of Ezra is set after they had been in Babylon for quite a while.

God gave them favor with Cyrus, king of Persia. He not only ordered a temple be built in Jerusalem, he encouraged the Jews to go back to their homeland and he also sent the items that King Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple when he besieged Jerusalem.

Life was looking up for them. Yet there were challenges along the way. Isn’t that just how is life is. Ups and downs. Sometimes caused from our own doing. Sometimes life just happens.

In the midst of it all, when they laid the foundation of the temple, they remembered that “He is good; his love to Israel endures forever.” All through the Old Testament are recorded times when the Israelites were reminded that God is good and his love endures forever.

I need to remember that God is good and his love endures forever. Even when we walk away from God, he loves us so much that he continues to pursue us.

John 3:16&17 are very familiar passages. They say, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

It’s shown over and over again. I need to look at my life as God sees it, not from my view. Author Henry Blackaby offers prayers asking to see the truth of his circumstances. That’s what I long for!

Life from my perspective can be scary, hopeless and overwhelming. But from God’s perspective it is doable, hopeful, and he is in control…because he loves us.

Thank you for loving us. Help me to see the truth of my circumstances. With your view I have peace and joy. You are worthy…so worthy, Lord, of everything I have.
Please continue to give us your wisdom as we are seeking to follow you and know you. Amen.

Next week’s assignment:
Read Nehemiah