Will A Man Rob God?
Minister: |
Rev. Ronald Van Overloop |
Date: |
11/18/2012 PM
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Text:
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Malachi 3:7-12
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Psalters: |
392, 252, 85, 57 |
- The serious sin.
- God’s “ordinances” concerning tithes were violated - willingly ignored.
- There were many prescribed duties concerning offerings (many) and three tithes.
- Their disobedience shows the insolence of their question, “Wherein shall we return?” (7b).
- These violations were through many generations (“your fathers”) and widespread .
- God identifies Himself as “Jehovah of hosts” (7).
- He is the Self-sufficient One Who is omnipotent over all of His creation and every creature.
- This name also hints that He is faithful in His relationship to His own, in spite all their sins against Him.
- The neglect of tithes and offerings is a serious sin.
- Giving is an important part of the service and worship of God (Rom. 12:8).
- Failure to give is ingratitude and unfaithfulness, not recognizing God as the Giver and Owner of all.
- God’s promises blessings upon repentance.
- The call to repentance consists is to “return to Me” promising to “return unto you.”
- This is to turn back to God from evil in order to restore and repair their relationship to Him.
- A great incentive to repent is the knowledge that God blesses those who repent.
- And God promises to be liberal to those who give liberally.
- It is in the way of our showing our gratitude to God in giving that we experience and enjoy His goodness to us.
- N.B. that the giving is for “Mine house,” i.e., primarily for the work of the church and the ministry of the gospel.
- To “prove” God is to put His mercy and goodness to the test by doing as He commands.
- God promises to remove the plagues which were on their crops (11).
- As a nation Israel would see God’s favor in the withdrawal of the plagues.
- This promise was never literally fulfilled, but spiritual blessings in Christ are described the grand materialistic terms.