Malachi. Malachi chapter 1 and
we're going to look at some general thoughts concerning this book
and then we're going to look at verse 1 and some thoughts
that are there. God's last message to the people of Israel is directed
to the remnant that returned from Babylonian captivity many
generations earlier. So it's kind of interesting to
me that we're studying the book of Ezra and they're going back
and we're studying the book of Malachi and they've been there
for some time. In fact, this is going to be
the last book or letter that's written to the people until we
get to the New Testament. So there's about 400 years in
between there. This remnant, that returned and
their children and their grandchildren and their great-grandchildren
for the generations that have been there have failed, totally
failed during the years after return in their testimony for
God. Now we find in the scriptures
that there have been several times that it would be quite
easy if natural man, if mankind could actually change himself. There are several times in scripture
where the opportunity was given to man to change, but they didn't
because they couldn't. Noah's flood, we call it Noah's
flood, Noah and the flood. After that, there's eight people
and they're all related either by descent or marriage. and it
would just look like that they would have utopia. But the problem
is the people that came through the flood were just like the
people before the flood, and the people that are going to
be after the flood, they didn't have their nature changed during
the flood. They have the same nature. So
they're going to bring forth children just like they were,
though Noah, at least, was a born-again believer in Christ Jesus and
a preacher of righteousness. All he could do was produce children
just like he was. There is no way that we can have
children that are in the kingdom. They, too, must be born again. So, leaving Egypt, they've been
down there for 400 years in bondage, and we think after they got free
from that, things would go better, they'd change, whatever, and
then we notice it isn't very long, they're complaining about
what God is doing for them. And entering into Palestine,
40 years of wandering in the wilderness, and they get in there
and God takes care of all their enemy, here's another opportunity
that God grants to them, to have, if it's possible, to have a change,
and we find it's not. And then, after 70 years of Babylonian
captivity, a remnant goes back that's really interested in going
back. There's a whole bunch of folks that are not interested
in going back, but this remnant, 42,000, and then their generations
after them, had an interest in going back, and we think, my
goodness, maybe it will change now. Well, it just can't happen. Children are born. And when children
are born, we pass on the same genes that we had and we're passing
on the genes of sin. Always the best intentions fail. As Jeremiah chapter 17 and verse
9 says, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately
wicked who can know it. So we've got that nature that
just continues in every generation. We can see it today. You can
see it yesterday and you'll see it tomorrow if the Lord doesn't
come. We'll just be dealing with that
all the way around us. Now, while I was gone, I mentioned
that the folks down there in rescue, that people that are
made alive in Christ are looking for people who are alive. That's
why we enjoy getting together. We have to deal with lost people,
dead people in the world all the time. So it is a respite
to come aside with people that are alive and they have a relationship
with the Lord Jesus Christ. So it's great to get together. That's our goal in this life
is to have some time together when we're around live people
that understand the gospel, that understand the blood, that understand
righteousness, that understand the things that God continues
to reveal to his people. The Jews that returned no longer
served idols. That was one thing that they
did not ever do again. They never went back to the idols
that they had, but their moral condition was marked by indifference,
despising God, and unbelief. So we're not going to have idols
as the issue anymore, but we have their natural tendencies.
In this book, Jehovah manifests his unchanging love for his people,
and we'll get to that in verse two and three. It is as if God
wanted to underline his last message of the Old Testament,
and in this book alone, four chapters long, usually short
chapters, 25 times in those brief chapters, we have the words,
saith the Lord, saith Jehovah. It's as if a father is instructing
his children and saying, I want you to hear my instructions.
I want you to hear my instructions. 25 times God does that for Israel
through the prophet Malachi. To share with them, I want you
to hear me. This is what God is saying. And
we'll look at those as we go along. There are 25 different
times. One, two verses have it twice
and the rest of them are single. And then in this book, we've
noticed that the children of Israel, those that were dwelling
in the land, bring up eight questions to God. Now, I don't know about
you, but have you ever been told by someone you've just instructed
on what to do? The first thing out of their
mouth, they say, why? Why? Well, that's an essence, is what
the children of Israel are saying to God when He makes them instructions,
and they come back to Him saying, why? Well, if we really understand
anything about God, we don't ask God why, because He is absolute
King, and when He speaks, He's telling us the truth. Fall in
with Him. He is telling us the truth. He's telling us the truth about
God. He's telling us the truth about this world. He's telling
us the truth about our hearts. He's telling us the truth about
salvation. He's telling us the truth about
how we're saved. Truth about the blood of Christ.
Truth about righteousness. He does not pull our leg. He doesn't come up with untruths
and try to fool us or take us in or make saps out of us. Everything God has to say is
the absolute truth. So it is incumbent upon us as
the children of God to pay attention to God. To pay attention to His
word. And that's what this message
that he brings to Malachi in this book for four chapters,
he's just mentioning to them again and again and again. Here's
the problem, I have the solution. And they say, why? Well, in chapter
one and verse two, God says, I've loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, why? Wherein hath thou loved us? Well,
we're going to deal with that in time. In verse 6, it says,
the son honors his father and a servant his master. If then
I be a father, where is my honor? And if I be a master, where is
my fear? Saith the Lord of hosts unto
you, O priest that despise my name. And ye say, wherein have
we despised thy name? In chapter 1 and verse 7, ye
offer polluted bread. upon my altar, and ye say, wherein
have we polluted thee? So the requirement that God had
is perfection, and they're satisfied with imperfection. The church
is demanded perfection, and God is satisfied with perfection
and allows us children of men to see God in His perfection,
in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Perfection. Righteousness. In
chapter 2 and verse 14, ye, yet say ye, wherefore, because the
Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth
against whom thou hast dealt treacherously, yet she is thy
companion and the wife of thy covenant. Verse 14, that word
wherefore, when did we do that? And then in chapter 2 and verse
17, Ye have wearied the Lord with your words, yet ye say,
wherein have we wearied him? We'll be dealing with these questions
as we go through. In chapter three and verse seven,
even from the days of your fathers, ye are gone away from my ordinances
and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return
unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, wherein shall we
return? And chapter 3, verse 8, will
a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye
say, wherein have we robbed thee? And then chapter 3, verse 13,
we have the final question of Israel. Your words have been
stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, what have we spoken
so much against thee? So these comebacks that these
folks have are indicating that their heart is not right with
God. They are called God's people in the flesh, but their heart
is so far away from him. Now let's go back to Malachi
chapter one. And as we read this verse of
scripture, we run right into a word burden. The burden of
the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. Now God has imposed
this burden upon Malachi. He's been called out. He's been
called out from whatever he's been doing, wherever he's been.
And his call is to bring this message to Israel. Now, he's
not going to be popular in bringing it. Nobody is popular in telling
other people, this is the problem between you and God. That doesn't
create popularity. But God has never asked us to
create popularity. God has only asked us to be faithful.
Faithful to his word, faithful to God, faithful to the spirit,
faithful to ourselves, and just give God's word. Let folks blame
him. I'll never forget teaching one
time and the students, they came and says, Mr. So-and-so doesn't
do it that way, Mr. So-and-so doesn't do it that
way. And I says, right here in his notes, it says, this is the
way we're going to do it. And I said, here's a piece of
paper. Write out your complaint. We'll leave it on the desk, and
tomorrow he can deal with it. So everybody wrote out their
complaints. It reminded me so much of just
reading this. Here's my complaint against God. Here's my complaint against the
teacher. So here we are. This burden has been given to
a man that has probably been a lumberman, a sheep herder,
a farmer. He has been doing, as Brother
John Reeves, he drives FedEx truck. Maybe he did that. I don't
know. But here he is just a regular
guy that God has brought his spirit to after hearing the precious
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. God, the Holy Spirit, has regenerated
him. He's going on with life. He gets
together with whoever he can that knows the same gospel and
they rejoice in it. And lo and behold, God puts a
burden on him. Now that means, that word burden
means to lift up a burden or a load or carry it. So Malachi
now has something to carry around. He has a burden placed on him
by God. And this burden is to deliver
the word of the Lord, the word of God, to a bunch of people
that keep saying, why? What have we done? We haven't
done anything bad. And if they do say it, they just
say, my bad. My bad. Okay, let's go on. Well,
here we have Malachi carrying this burden. Having a true burden
from the Lord imposed on Malachi, or any other prophet, or any
other preacher, or any other missionary. Having a true burden
given to them by the Lord, they're able to answer a question, and
only they can answer this question. Now the question is brought up
in Ezekiel 37. Would you join me in Ezekiel
37 for just a moment? In Ezekiel 37, there's a question
brought up, and only a person that has been given a burden
by the Lord can answer it correctly. People who have never been given
a burden by the Lord cannot answer this correctly. If they've never
seen God with their eye of faith, they cannot answer this correctly.
They'll always get their works in the way. They'll always work,
work into it. They'll always have work in their
prayer. They'll have work in their life. They'll have work in their salvation.
They'll have work, work, work. Well, in Ezekiel chapter 37,
beginning with verse one, we have that wonderful account of
the Lord taking Ezekiel out into a valley. Now, this valley is
full of dry bones, and we all know the account of this, but
there's a question asked, and if it had been anybody else,
someone who didn't know God, they couldn't answer the question
like this. But Ezekiel knew God. Malachi
could have answered the question exactly the same, and anybody
born again would answer the question exactly the same. The question,
the hand of the Lord was upon me. I had a burden. and carried
me out into the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the
midst of a valley which was full of bones, and caused me to pass
them round about, and behold, there were very many in the open
valley, and lo, they were very dry. Now here's the question.
He said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? Now if
you don't have any spirituality, you don't have anything from
God, you can't answer that question correctly. Ezekiel had the answer. You know what his answer was?
It says right there in verse 3, O Lord, thou knowest. That
is the answer of someone who has really had the burden given
to them by God. Thou knowest. Blind Bartimaeus,
if thou will. The woman, Syrophoenician woman. Dogs get the scraps from the
floor. If you will, Lord, you could
heal me if you want to. And that's the way we come to
Christ. Lord, if you will. So Ezekiel, taken out into a
place that looks like it is an impossible situation. Can these
bones live? And he didn't say, well, if we
do enough, he just said, Lord, thou knowest. Now if you want
them to live, they'll live. And if you don't want them to
live, they won't live. That's the answer. So he truly has been
given a burden by the Lord. And he can answer the question.
And it doesn't make any sense to everybody else, but it made
sense to him, and it was the correct answer. Thou knowest. Well, let me get it right. Oh
Lord, oh Lord God, thou knowest. All right, as we go back over
here, to the book of Malachi. Go back before Ezekiel into the
Psalms for just a moment before we get back over there. Psalm
139. Psalm 139. This burden that Malachi
has. Now Malachi means a messenger
of God. And that should be a title that
could be given to every gospel preacher. Paul had that title,
messenger of God. Matthew, Mark, Luke, messenger
of God, Isaiah, messenger of God, Jeremiah, messenger of God,
Abel, messenger of God. Speaking for God God's give me
this message. God's give me this time that
I have to go out and Slay this lamb and put it on an altar.
I'm trusting in God. Here's the picture of it. Well
here in Psalm 139 there's two verses in Psalm 139 that share
so much about this very thing about having a burden from God
Psalm 139 in verse 2 Thou knowest my down-sitting and my up-rising. Let's back up to verse 1. O Lord,
thou hast searched me and know me. Thou knowest my down-sitting
and my up-rising. Thou understandest my thoughts
afar off. Thou compassest my path and my
lying down, art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not
a word in my tongue, but lo, O Lord, thou knowest it all together. So David, as he writes, he writes
with some understanding about what it is, what God is to him. You know all about it, Lord.
He could say, If he was standing in a valley of dry bones, just
as Ezekiel, and asked the question, can these bones live? David could
have said, oh Lord God, thou knowest. Paul could say the same thing.
Oh Lord God, thou knowest. He went into certain cities,
he's down in the dumps, and the Lord comes to him and he says,
don't be afraid. Paul, I have much people in this city. What
he's saying, I know all about it, Lord. I know all about it,
Paul. And don't get depressed. Alright, as we look at this.
In the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 9. 1 Corinthians chapter
9. We have these words that were
written The Apostle Paul is a secretary for God. His only mission was
to write down what he's been given. And here in 1 Corinthians
9 and verse 16, the Apostle Paul was led to write to the Corinthians,
for though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of. I don't have anything to glory
of. I can't create faith. I can't
create life. I can't create any of these things. O Lord God, thou knowest. I have
nothing to glory of, for necessity is laid upon me." It's important
and it's a need that God has given me to preach this glorious
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So it is of God. And then he
goes on to say, woe is me if I preach not the gospel, or woe
is unto me if I preach not the gospel. So Paul had been imposed
upon, much like Malachi or Ezekiel. And if Paul had been asked that
question, can these dead bones live? He could have answered
the question rightly. Thou knowest, Lord, because he's
dealing with it every day. Will this one be saved? Thou
knowest, Lord. Will that one be saved? Thou knowest, Lord.
Will my wife, will my children, will my aunt, my uncle, my friends? Thou knowest, Lord. Continue
on, be faithful, thou knowest, Lord. All right, in the book
of Jeremiah, going back to the book of Jeremiah, as we think
about this burden, and that's this letter that's gonna be given,
and there's gonna be a whole lot of unhappy folks when the
message gets to them. I'll never forget when I finally
heard that message of the gospel of grace. the comment I made
about the messenger. I can just imagine those that
heard this message and their comment they made about the messenger.
I hate that man. I wish he'd leave. He knows something. He knows something way beyond
his years or supposedly ability. He knows something. Can these
dead bones live? Thou knowest, Lord. Jeremiah
chapter one. Jeremiah chapter one. Prophet
Jeremiah, early on in this great and glorious book of Jeremiah,
in verse 17, has this to say. Jeremiah chapter one, verse 17. Thou therefore gird up thy loins
and arise and speak unto them all that I command thee. Be not
dismayed at their faces. lest I confound thee before them."
Don't worry about how they look when they hear the message. Can they live? Thou knowest,
Lord. Will anybody hear me? Well, God
could say, is anybody going to hear you? Thou knowest, Lord.
You know, you know whether they're going to hear or not. And in
the same book, Jeremiah chapter 29 and verse 9, the burden the
Lord gave to Malachi. And he's going to go on here,
bring up 25 times. God said, this is what I have
to say. Eight questions they're going
to bring up and God's going to give the answer. Well, here in
the book of Jeremiah chapter 29 and verse 9, The prophet again, the preacher,
verse 9, for they prophesy falsely unto you in my name. I have not
sent them, saith the Lord. So they're saying, oh, anybody
can live. Anybody's got a chance. It's
all free will. It's up to you. And God comes
along through his prophet Jeremiah and says, can these dead bones
live? and Jeremiah could answer the
question like Ezekiel answered the question, thou knowest. You
have them marked out all through Israel. You have them all marked
out throughout the world. But you and you alone know. So
when I preach the word, can they live? It's up to you, Lord. That's
the answer to the question. There was another prophet, small
book. It's the book of Amos. Would
you turn with me to the book of Amos? Amos chapter 3. Amos chapter 3. As we think about
the burden of Malachi, the burden that the apostle Paul had, or
any of the apostles had, or any of the preachers or prophets
of the Old Testament. Much the same burden. How many
times do we read in the book of Leviticus that the Lord spoke
to Moses and said, thus saith the Lord. And most of those people
said, you know, I'm getting bored of this. I'm just bored of this. I'm bored of God's always talking. When's my turn? Amos chapter
3, there in verse 8. The lion hath roared. Who will
not fear? The Lord God hath spoken. Who can but prophesy? The Lord God hath spoken. Who can but prophesy? So it's
the Lord that gives the prophet the prophecy. There are scads
and scads and we've read about them in other minor prophets
and in the major prophets that were giving Israel information
that was not from God. It was only out of their own
thoughts and most of them were in it for economics. And yet
God said, my prophets speak my word and they can answer this
question. Can these bones live? And the answer is, thou knowest. It's not up to me. I'm only doing
what you asked me to do, and that's to preach, to prophesy.
And in that same book of Amos, chapter 15, excuse me, chapter
7, verse 15, Amos shares with us where he
came from. He's a sheep herder. He's employed. He's got a business, whether
it's his own or someone else's. The Lord took me as I followed
the flock. And the Lord said unto me, go
prophesy unto my people Israel. You know, the disciples were
accused of not knowing letters. Jesus was accused of not knowing
letters or being unlearned, just being unlearned. And yet, every
one of them, except one, had been given an affectious call,
an efficacious call from the Lord to preach my word. Come,
I'll make you fishers of men. Come. Now, how many fish are
we going to catch? Thou knowest, Lord. When we do
it ourself, there's nothing in the nets. When we go in the hand
of the word of the Lord, Lord told Peter and his shipmates,
his fellowship, same fellows in the boat, go out, launch on
the other side, put your net down on the other side. Can you
imagine the difference between this distance on a boat This side, we've done
it all night and caught nothing. This side, we got a great amount
of fish and it starts to break our nets. And that's, can we
catch any fish? Thou knowest. It's up to you. Well, over in
the book of Acts, chapter 4, Acts chapter 4. In Acts chapter
4. We have this wonderful statement
made. Acts chapter 4 verse 13. Acts chapter 4 verse
13. Now when they saw the boldness
of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and
ignorant men, they marveled. And they took knowledge of them
that they had been with Jesus. And beholding the man which was
healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. But when they had commanded them
to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,
saying, What shall we do to these men? For that indeed a notable
miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all them that
dwell in Jerusalem, and who can deny it? But that is spread no
further among the people. Let us straightly threaten them
that they speak henceforth to no man in his name. And they called him and commanded
them not to speak at all, nor teach in the name of Jesus. But
Peter and John answered and said unto them, whether it be right
in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God you
judge. Judge E. For we cannot but speak
the things which we have seen and heard. So when they had further
threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they
might punish them because of the people. For all men glorify
God for that which was done. For the man was above 40 years
old, of whom this miracle of healing was shown. One more time,
verse 20, it says, and this is the wonderful statement, for
we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. What we know, we gotta tell.
They had been called to the Lord, they had a burden placed on them,
much as we're gonna read about Malachi. Malachi had a burden
on him. Four chapters, short chapters,
not many verses. He's going to be writing to these
people, but he's also, I believe, going to be like Noah. These are just texts for preaching
messages. I'm going to be visiting among
the folks. We've got a problem here. You've come out of Babylonian
captivity. You were there 70 years. Yes,
you don't worship those idols that you once did, but you have
an attitude towards God that reveals what's in your heart.
that you are far from God. And so God sends his message.
He sends his messenger. So in closing, let's go back
to the book of Malachi. Malachi chapter one. And God
begins here, the burden of the word of the Lord to Israel. It
wasn't Malachi's, it was Malachi's burden given to him, but it wasn't
Malachi's words. That's the wonderful thing about
being here. about knowing the gospel is we
don't have to create the words. We don't have to bring up any
of the subject. It's all here in the book. We have it. The
Burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. Specific
God calling a specific man to go on to a specific people with
a specific message. Now it's not going to be received
by many, but those that receive it They have the ability now
of saying, when asked, can these bones live? They now can answer,
thou knowest. Thou knowest. I thought all along,
no life here, but God gave me life. And then we're going to
get into the, right off here, the Lord explains to these hearers,
I have always loved Israel. Now it's far beyond just physical
attraction towards Israel, national Israel. God is speaking here
about His eternal love, His everlasting love towards all the Jacobs. And His indignation towards all
the Esau's. When we get to the New Testament,
there's a verse of scripture that tells us where the Jacob's
and the Esau's are all lined up. Those on the right hand, welcome
to the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Those on the left hand side, depart from me ye workers of
iniquity. Here's all the Jacob's. I've loved you with an everlasting
love. Here's all the Esau's. I've hated you. Now, people have
changed the word in the New Testament to say it means love less. You look this word up and it
means just what it says. I don't want to get into that,
but God can hate anything he wants, and God can love anything
he wants. He is God. He is the absolute
monarch, the king, the sovereign, the king. So we'll stop there
for tonight.