Malachi, Psalm 2, Revelation 9
Humility, according to John Townsend, is accepting the reality of who God is and who you are. That seems easy but, time and time again, we fail. In fact, we fail more than we realize. We see a blatant representation of this failure today in Malachi and it has me counting how many times I talk back to God.
Starting at the beginning, God reminds the priests, “I have loved you.” Their reply is striking, “how have you loved us?” They question. It’s as if they do not feel God’s love. They certainly are not experiencing it. While he patiently provides an answer of his deep love, the next statement is prepared. “You have not honored me, and you do not fear me.” The priest’s response, laced with indignation, comes “how have we despised your name?” They pretty much ask God to prove it. I think they were so buried in their own worlds and their own success that they really didn’t know. They actually thought they are doing good. So, Malachi explains the priests disregard for God. Then, he adds yet another offense, maybe the worst yet. “You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from you hand. But you say “Why does he not?” The priests have no idea why God won’t answer them. That’s when Malachi hits them with the truth.
The questions that we ask of God reflect the condition of our heart. Throughout the book of Malachi, the priests have it backwards. They have denied the reality of who God is and who they are. So do we. Today, we get another chance. The promises of God are only one decision away. It starts with accepting the reality of who God is and who you are.