Thursday, April 26,
2012, 7:01 a.m. – The Lord woke me this morning with the song, “Full Release,” playing in my mind.
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read Malachi 2:17-3:5:
The Day of Judgment
You have wearied the LORD with your words.
“How have we wearied him?” you ask.
By saying, “All who do evil are good in the
eyes of the LORD, and he is pleased with them” or “Where is the God of
justice?”
“See, I will send my
messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are
seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you
desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.
But who can endure the day of his coming? Who
can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a
launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will
purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will
have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah
and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former
years.
“So I will come near to you for judgment. I
will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against
those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the
fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me,” says the LORD
Almighty.
My Understanding: The
people of God had wearied the Lord with their words. They said that all who do
evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased with them. Isaiah said
something similar to this when he said: “Woe
to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light
for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter” (Is. 5:20).
God is Pleased?
God’s people, the church, say the same things today, maybe
not so directly, but it is implied by their words and actions. The first thing
that comes to mind is a modern-day teaching in the evangelical church that
states that repentance and obedience to Christ are not necessary for salvation,
and that God is pleased with you no matter what you do. If God is pleased with
us no matter what we do, and we don’t have to turn from our sins or obey
Christ, then that means he is pleased with us when we do evil. May that never
be!
“Those controlled by the
sinful nature cannot please God” (Ro. 8:8). “The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will
reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will
reap eternal life” (Gal. 6:8). “For
you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of
light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and
truth) and find out what pleases the Lord” (Eph. 5:8-10). “And we pray this in order that you may live
a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in
every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10).
Confusing Good and
Evil
The other thing that comes to mind is how people will honor
those who do evil, and dishonor those who do right. They (many believers in
Christ) will admire those who say all the right things (by man’s standards), who
make people feel good all the time, and who don’t ever confront sin or call for
repentance, but say the things that make people feel happy (in the flesh). They
will honor those who make them feel good about themselves even in their sinful
patterns of behavior, but will dishonor those who speak the truth in love, and
who care enough to tell people the truth about sin, so that the people can come
to repentance, and so that they can be in a right relationship with Jesus
Christ (God).
They confuse love with tolerance, on one end, and yet they
confuse love with bitterness of spirit on the other end. In other words, they think
love equals tolerance and saying things people like to hear, whereas they
regard true acts of unselfish love in caring enough about people to see them
set free of bondage to sin as intolerance, bitterness of spirit, and someone
who just likes to complain; a troublemaker, etc.
“Have I now become
your enemy by telling you the truth?” (Gal. 4:16). “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth” (1 Co.
13:6). “For we cannot do anything against
the truth, but only for the truth” (2 Co. 13:8). “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up
into him who is the Head, that is, Christ” (Eph. 4:15). “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth
buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place…”
(Eph. 6:14). “For the time will come when
men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires,
they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their
itching ears want to hear. “They will turn their ears away from the truth and
turn aside to myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4).
“My brothers, if one
of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember
this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death
and cover over a multitude of sins” (Jms. 5:19-20). “Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth
into disrepute” (2 Pe. 2:2). “If we
claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not
live by the truth” (1 John 1:16). “The
man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the
truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4).
The God of Justice
The second thing the people said that wearied the Lord was “Where
is the God of justice?” The people of God did not believe in the justice of
Almighty God. The people evidently had rejected God’s control and sovereignty
over their lives. They didn’t believe God would really judge them, which was
evidenced by their sinful lifestyles. They seemed to have a “Don’t worry, be
happy” mental stance that allowed them to continue in sin. So, God was tired of
their hypocrisy, their immorality, their spiritual blindness, their
stubbornness and their hard-heartedness.
This type of attitude is still true in the church today.
Many have rejected the belief that God is still a God of justice and that he
will judge even those who are his by faith in Jesus Christ when they refuse to
repent of their sins and they choose not to obey Christ. Yet, in Malachi 3:6,
God said, “I the LORD do not change.” And, the beginning part of Malachi 3 is a
prophecy concerning that judgment, which will come at the hand of Jesus Christ
in the last days.
The messenger that was sent before Jesus Christ was John the
Baptist, yet there will also be witnesses in these last days who will prepare
the way and the hearts of the people for Christ’s coming in judgment and
purification, and for his return to receive his bride to himself. These witnesses
will confront the people of God with their sins, and they will call for
repentance, just as John the Baptist did in preparation for Jesus Christ’s
first coming.
When Jesus Christ comes in judgment in the time of tribulation
on the earth, no one will be able to stand on his own accord, but only on true
faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus will come not just to judge, but to purify lives
for himself, including the “Levites,” which I believe are us, because we are
the priests of the Lord who serve him in his temple (our hearts) today. Those who
are supposed to be his servants and messengers, but are not, will be purified
of their sins of spiritual adultery, unfaithfulness and idolatry. The people
will repent of their sins through this refining process, and then they will
offer spiritual sacrifices to the Lord of broken and contrite hearts, and of
lives given over to Jesus Christ, fully surrendered.
“As you come to him,
the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— you
also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy
priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ… But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you
out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Pet. 2:4-5, 9).
Jesus spoke these things to the church. These letters to the
churches precede the prophecies concerning the time of judgment to come:
“Yet I hold this
against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which
you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not
repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place” (Rev.
2:4-5). “Nevertheless, I have a few
things against you… Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and
will fight against them with the sword of my mouth” (Rev. 2:14-16). “Nevertheless, I have this against you… I
have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. So I
will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery
with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways” (Rev. 2:20-22).
“Wake up! Strengthen
what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in
the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard;
obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and
you will not know at what time I will come to you” (Rev. 3:2-3). “… because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor
cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth… I counsel you to buy from me gold
refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you
can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can
see” (Rev. 3:16-18).
The Messenger of the
Covenant
Jesus Christ is the messenger of the New Covenant
relationship between God and his people. Jesus Christ, God the Son, came to earth,
was born as a baby, took on human flesh, suffered as we suffer, was tempted as
we are tempted, yet without sin; was rejected, despised, forsaken, abandoned,
denied, betrayed, beaten and hung on a cross to die. He willingly went to the
cross, though, because he loved us so much that he was willing to die for our
sins, taking upon himself the sins of the entire world. He crucified our sins
with him. He buried them with him. Yet, when he arose from the dead, he
conquered death, hell, Satan and sin so that we could be free from both the
penalty (eternity in hell) of sin, and the power and control of sin over our
daily lives. We receive his forgiveness when we come to him in faith by his
grace via repentance (turning from sin) and obedience to Christ.
So I tell you this,
and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do,
in the futility of their thinking… Having lost all sensitivity, they have given
themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with
a continual lust for more.
You, however, did not come to know Christ
that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the
truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of
life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful
desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new
self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Eph.
4:17-24).
If you have never made this decision to receive Jesus Christ
by turning from your sin, being transformed in heart and mind of the Holy
Spirit of God, and being made new in Christ in his true righteousness and holiness,
then I pray you will make that decision today to make him Savior and Lord of
your life. If you have bought into a false gospel that told you that you did
not have to repent and that God is pleased with you no matter what you do, then
I pray you will read through these scriptures carefully and prayerfully, and
that you will allow Jesus Christ to reveal his truth to you, and that you will
repent of your sins today and make Jesus your Lord and Savior. And, if you
truly received Christ as Savior and Lord but have since wandered away from your
pure devotion to him and have fallen back into sin, then my prayer is that you
will turn from your sins today, and that you will be renewed in your fellowship
with God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Believe God! Obey him today!
Full Release / An
Original Work / April 15, 2012
Walking daily with my
Savior brings me joy.
Loving Father;
precious Jesus;
He’s my Savior and my
Lord.
Gently leads me;
follow Him.
I’ve invited Him
within.
Now abiding in His
presence, oh, what peace.
From my self-life He
has brought me,
By His mercy, full
release.
Hope and comfort,
peace and safety Jesus brings
When I daily bow
before Him;
Obey freely; do His
will.
Follow Him where’er He
leads.
Listen to Him; His
words heed.
Now obeying his words
fully, oh, what love
That He gives me
through salvation,
By His Spirit, from
above.
Loving Father;
precious Jesus, He’s my friend.
With my Savior, by His
Spirit,
I will endure to the
end.
Share the gospel, tell
what’s true.
Witness daily; His
will do.
Tell the world of how
their Savior bled and died.
On a cruel cross He
suffered
So that we might be
alive.
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