Will A Man Rob God?

Minister:
Date: PM
Text: Malachi 3:7-12
Psalters: 392, 252, 85, 57
  1. The serious sin.
    1. God’s “ordinances” concerning tithes were violated - willingly ignored.
      1. There were many prescribed duties concerning offerings (many) and three tithes.
      2. Their disobedience shows the insolence of their question, “Wherein shall we return?” (7b).
    2. These violations were through many generations (“your fathers”) and widespread .
    3. God identifies Himself as “Jehovah of hosts” (7).
      1. He is the Self-sufficient One Who is omnipotent over all of His creation and every creature.
      2. This name also hints that He is faithful in His relationship to His own, in spite all their sins against Him.
    4. The neglect of tithes and offerings is a serious sin.
      1. Giving is an important part of the service and worship of God (Rom. 12:8).
      2. Failure to give is ingratitude and unfaithfulness, not recognizing God as the Giver and Owner of all.
  2. God’s promises blessings upon repentance.
    1. The call to repentance consists is to “return to Me” promising to “return unto you.”
      1. This is to turn back to God from evil in order to restore and repair their relationship to Him.
      2. A great incentive to repent is the knowledge that God blesses those who repent.
    2. And God promises to be liberal to those who give liberally.
      1. It is in the way of our showing our gratitude to God in giving that we experience and enjoy His goodness to us.
      2. N.B. that the giving is for “Mine house,” i.e., primarily for the work of the church and the ministry of the gospel.
      3. To “prove” God is to put His mercy and goodness to the test by doing as He commands.
    3. God promises to remove the plagues which were on their crops (11).
      1. As a nation Israel would see God’s favor in the withdrawal of the plagues.
      2. This promise was never literally fulfilled, but spiritual blessings in Christ are described the grand materialistic terms.