1 / 22

0112/2

0112/2. Malachi. God’s Messenger. … and Ours !. Where is God? What Kind of God is He? What Will He Do?. SUMMER SERIES — 2012. Review. A. 1:1 Title: What, who and how. B. 1:2-5 Introduction: God’s covenant love for Israel affirmed.

africa
Download Presentation

0112/2

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. 0112/2

  2. Malachi God’s Messenger … and Ours! Where is God? What Kind of God is He? What Will He Do? SUMMER SERIES — 2012

  3. Review A. 1:1 Title: What, who and how B. 1:2-5 Introduction: God’s covenant love for Israel affirmed C. 1:6-2:16 Leaders and Followers — Some Straight Talking: •1:6-2:9 — The failures of the priests — the leaders •2:10-16 — The failures of the people — the followers D. 2:17- 4:6 The Lord will Come: • 2:17 — God’s ways had been misunderstood • 3:1-5 — The promised Messiah would come • 3:6-18 — God’s covenant demands remained unchanged • 4:1-6 — The Day of the Lord

  4. Summary of 1:1-5 — Title and Introduction • This was a message for people who had been through tough times … when many had lost their faith • God spoke again to his people … this time through Malachi • God still loved his people … even when their faith failed • God still remembered his covenants … being faithful to his word, both in blessings and in curses • God still reigned in the world … despite the failures of his people

  5. The Passage for Today A. 1:1 Title: What, who and how B. 1:2-5 Introduction: God’s covenant love for Israel affirmed C. 1:6-2:16 Leaders and Followers — Some Straight Talking: •1:6-2:9 — The failures of the priests — the leaders •2:10-16 — The failures of the people — the followers D. 2:17- 4:6 The Lord will Come: • 2:17 — God’s ways had been misunderstood • 3:1-5 — The promised Messiah would come • 3:6-18 — God’s covenant demands remained unchanged • 4:1-6 — The Day of the Lord

  6. 1. The Failures of the Priests — the Leaders (1:6 to 2:9) • A son honoured his father • A servant respected his master 1:6 “It is you, O priests, who show contempt for my name.” • The priests (God’s sons and servants) showed contempt for their Father and Master (nohonour or respect)

  7. 1. The Failures of the Priests — the Leaders Their response to the statement came as a question … 1:6 — “It is you, O priests, who show contempt for my name.” But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt …?’” Answer … • 1:7 — “You place defiled food on my altar” • 2:8 — “… you have caused many to stumble”

  8. 1. The Failures of the Priests — the Leaders (a) 1:7 “You place defiled food on my altar” Lev. 22:20 “Do not bring anything with a defect, because it will not be accepted.” . . . but they failed • v. 8 — They wouldn’t offer blemished animals to the Persian governor, yet they offered them to God. • v. 10 — Better to close the temple than offer unacceptable sacrifices. Perfect animals pointed to the coming perfect sacrifice — Jesus. • Compare vv. 6 & 14: God was their Father — to be honoured, their Master (Lord) to be respected, their King — to be obeyed.

  9. 1. The Failures of the Priests — the Leaders • 2:1 — “if you do not …”, “if you do not …” disobedience resulted in curses. • v. 3 — Life would be like the garbage tip … blessings turned to curses. • v. 4 — Yet for Levi the way had been … curses turned to blessings. Jacob said, “Simeon and Levi … have killed men in their anger … Cursed be their anger, so fierce, and their fury, so cruel.” Gen. 49:5-7 Moses said, “[Levi] teaches your precepts and your law … He offers … whole burnt offerings on your altar. Bless all his skills, O Lord”Deut. 33:10-11 God is unchangeably God He is to be honoured, respected and obeyed, and his laws cannot be disregarded.

  10. 1. The Failures of the Priests — the Leaders (b) 2:8 “… you have caused many to stumble” • 2:7 — “A priest ought to preserve knowledge… because he is the messenger of the Lord Almighty.” Scripture is God’s word to humankind, and must not be neglected. • 2:8 — “But you have turned from the way and by your teaching have caused many to stumble; you have violated the covenant with Levi” says the Lord Almighty.

  11. 2. The Failures of the People — the Followers (2:10-16) • God was Father to his people … their status as the family of God • God was Creator of his people … their origin in the purpose of God • This unique relationship was formalized in covenants But … 2:10 “Why do we profane the covenant of our fathers by breaking faith with one another?” (profane = misuse, defile, treat with contempt)

  12. 2. The Failures of the People — the Followers How did they “profane the covenant”? 2:11 “Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves, by marrying the daughter of a foreign god.” • They broke covenants with God by distorting the use of their God-given sexuality 2:14 “You have broken faith with … the wife of your marriage covenant.” • They broke covenants with each other by distorting God’s requirements to suit their own ends

  13. 2. The Failures of the People — the Followers They broke covenants with God by distorting the use of their God-given sexuality 2:11 “Judah has broken faith. A detestable thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves, by marrying the daughter of a foreign god.” Marriage does not only involve two people… it matters to God as well • Detestable = revolting or vile. Desecrated = violated or profaned. • Such behaviour desecrated God’s temple and so disgraced God. • God did not condemn marriage, but marriage to someone who served a foreign god (idol). • The practice seems to have become widespread.

  14. 2. The Failures of the People — the Followers They broke covenants with each other by distorting God’s requirements to suit their own ends 2:13 “You weep and wail because [the Lord] no longer pays attention to your offerings …” 2:14 “You have broken faith with … the wife of your marriage covenant.” 2:15-16 “Guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith …” • Some had divorced their Jewish wives to marry foreign women. • Marriage was a significant covenant between people, with God as a witness — but that covenant had been broken in those cases. • Covenants depended upon exclusive, loyal and consistent love. • These people tried to adapt God’s laws to suit their own ends.

  15. SUMMARY — of this Section The ineffective Leaders — • failed to obey covenant requirements about sacrifices … they had a low view of God • failed to teach the law … they neglected God’s word But that was in 450 BC … What does it mean today? The disobedient People — • failed to understand their sexuality … and tangled up their marriages • failed to follow God’s ways … and slipped into ugly self-centredness

  16. SUMMARY — of this Section What About Today? • Under the New Covenant … “Love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and with all your strength.” “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Mk. 12:30-31 • God seeks our exclusive, loyal and consistent love • What we believe and how we behave … depends on our worldview, and marks us out from others

  17. WORLDVIEWS — One With God, One Without God GOD A BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW THE WORLD PEOPLE GOD OR A HUMANISTIC WORLDVIEW THE WORLD PEOPLE

  18. SUMMARY — Challenges for Us (a) Regarding our Leaders • Pray for them as those responsible to God for us. • Assess their work in the light of the bible. • Gladly follow them.

  19. SUMMARY — Challenges for Us (b) Regarding us as Followers • Understand and express our God-given sexuality in the context of God’s creative purpose for us as his people who bear his image. • Commit ourselves to wholeheartedly love God and each other, particularly with respect to our marriages, our families, and God’s family. • Resolutely resist the insidious pressures of humanistic worldviews to twist God’s purposes to suit our own desires. • God loves (and so disciplines) his people, but hates the tactics they use to try and get their own ways.

  20. MalachiGod’s Messenger … and Ours! Part 3: THE LORD WILL COME 2:17 – 4:6 NEXT WEEK

  21. Personal reflection and prayer . . . Our leaders … Ourselves … Our marriages … Our families … Our church family ...

More Related