No respect for God
1) READ Mal. 1:6-14
2) These verses give us a pretty good idea of what life was like in the time of Malachi.
i) Fathers were honored by their sons and masters were honored by their servants.
ii) Honor and respect was shown in different relationships, but God was not getting much respect.
3) As Malachi spoke against the priests who refused to honor God the priests questioned their guilt.
4) The end of verse 6 has them asking, “How have we failed to honor God”?
5) Verse 7 offers some specifics; God said “polluted bread” was being used for His altar.
6) Verse 8 says the priests were willing to accept blind, sick and lame animals for sacrifice.
7) Animals which no one else wanted or were basically useless were offered to God.
8) The “governor” would not accept such sacrifices; God said people would not try pawn their junk off on him.
9) Mal. 2:3 – READ
10) “Dung” is “animal waste.” In our area we refer to it as “cow patties.”
11) A paraphrase of Mal. 2:3:
12) “splatter your faces with the manure from your festival sacrifices, and I will throw you on the manure pile.”
DISRESPECT IS A VERY SERIOUS MATTER
The people of our society believe respect is important; respect matters; disrespect is very, very bad.
However, when it comes to disrespecting God, well, this seems to be “no big deal.”
The book of Malachi says failing to show proper respect for God is a big deal.
1) In Mt. 7:21-23 Jesus spoke these words: – READ
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3) When we begin to replace some part of God’s will with our own, we are an enemy of God (verse 23).
4) Based on what we see in Mt. 7:21-23, let’s see if we can identify some ways to disrespect God.
i) “faith alone.”
ii) Jas. 2:24 says we are not saved by “faith only.”
iii) If God says we are not saved by “faith only,” and some man, woman or groups says otherwise, guess what?
5) Anyone who teaches something contrary to the gospel is guilty of disrespecting God.
i) God says infants are “safe” (free from sin) and thus part of the kingdom (Mt. 19:14).
ii) There are religious groups which claim children are tainted by sin and must be baptized.
6) When it comes to salvation, there is a need to repent (turn from sin); Jesus Himself taught this, Lk. 13:3.
7) The manure pile is the right place for many individuals, even some who claim to teach baptism.
8) If a person ever instructs someone to be sprinkled with water, he deserves the manure pile.
9) The Bible describes “baptism” as a “burial” (Rom. 6:4); pouring or sprinkling will not do.
10) When God says “bury” (immerse someone in water), sprinkling and pouring water disrespect Him.
11) After becoming a Christian God says we can “fall from grace” (Gal. 5:4, ASV) but some groups say “no.”
12) The disrespect for God involves salvation as well as other matters, one of which is the church.
i) The Lord promised to build a “church” (just one, Mt. 16:18), but men say He created several.
ii) The Lord said religious division is bad but many praise God for denominationalism and thus division.
iii) God says worship in “spirit and truth” (Jn. 4:24) but the world says “spirit and error is ok.”
iv) God says “sing” for the music in Christ’s church; the religious world says, “sing and play.”
13) In the last book of the Old Testament God says: Do not disrespect Me.
14) Will we listen and heed this message?
