God Declares His Love
Minister: |
Rev. Ronald Van Overloop |
Date: |
7/1/2012 PM
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Text:
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Malachi 1:1-5
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Psalters: |
320, 312, 52, 236 |
- The fact.
- This prophecy shows that Judah as a whole was ungrateful and thus were unfaithful with cold formalism (1:6-8,13,14; 3:8,14,15; 2:1-8,10,11,14-16,17).
- Malachi, like Isaiah, knows the burden (load, utterance) when God?s Word is put on one.
- ?I have loved you? is the (should be) heavy message ? simple and powerful.
- The knowledge of God?s love is the answer to formal religiosity and ungodly behavior!!!
- The Hebrew word refers to the action of love of strongly desiring: breathing after or longing for.
- Judah challenged whether God loved them by cynically asking ?Wherein hast Thou loved us??
- They were looking for the proof of God?s love in things and they only saw trouble and sorrow.
- But God?s attitude of love is NOT found in things (cf. Ps. 73).
- The right evidence of God?s love: it is eternal, electing, particular, and contrasted to His hatred.
- Note well that the proof of God?s love is found in God Himself.
- Nothing proves God?s love as well as God?s eternal and unchangeable election.
- The proof of God?s love is found also in the fact that God?s election is particular: Esau.
- This shows that God?s love is ...
- Free.
- Personal, i.e., for individual persons.
- Unto eternal salvation, not to earthly prosperity.
- The result of the knowledge of God?s love should be praise of God (5) and tremendous gratitude evidenced in godliness.
- God?s love is to be believed and confessed because the Bible tells us so; it is not to be questioned and doubted.
- Let us magnify (cause to grow) Jehovah together.