Based on Malachi 1 (New King James Version)
“The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. ‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord. ‘Yet you say, ‘In what way have You loved us?’ Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?’ says the Lord. ‘Yet Jacob I have loved; but Esau I have hated, and laid waste his mountains and his heritage for the jackals of the wilderness.’ Even though Edom has said, ‘We have been impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places,’ Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘They may build, but I will throw down; they shall be called the Territory of Wickedness, and the people against whom the Lord will have indignation forever. Your eyes shall see, and you shall say, ‘The Lord is magnified beyond the border of Israel.’ ‘A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence?’ says the Lord of hosts to you priests who despise My name. Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your name?’ ‘You offer defiled food on My altar, but say, ‘In what way have we defiled You?’ by saying, ‘The table of the Lord is contemptible.’ And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it then to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably?’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘But now entreat God’s favor, that He may be gracious to us. While this is being done by your hands, will He accept you favorably?’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘Who is there even among you who would shut the doors, so that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain? I have no pleasure in you,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘Nor will I accept an offering from your hands. For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down, my name shall be great among the Gentiles; in every place incense shall be offered to My name, and a pure offering; for My name shall be great among the nations,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘But you profane it, in that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is defiled; and its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’ You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ and you sneer at it,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; thus you bring an offering! Should I accept this from your hand?’ says the Lord. ‘But cursed be the deceiver who has in his flock a male, and takes a vow, but sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished—for I am a great King,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and My name is to be feared among the nations.’”
I believe that many will not like what will be said today, but my hope, or rather, God’s desire is that it can understood, but not for His good (because if we decide to follow Him or not, that does not make God more or less God), but rather, for the good of each one of us. Because in the end, there will always be those that want to understand; and others, no matter what is said, will not want to accept the truth, as it is written: “Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.” Daniel 12:10. Each one of us will choose how to react to God’s Word.
For starters, I believe we can all agree that this world is not perfect. Many times, especially those of us that say that are believers or followers of the Lord, think that people that do wrong things here come out winning. And yes, it is possible for it seem that way now. And many times, doing what is right may seem like a burden. And if we are sincere, I believe that all of us have felt that at one moment or another, right? The issue is that this world has severe problems, not because God wanted it that way, but rather, sin has corrupted it; and let us be more exact, the sin that entered at the beginning, the sin of those that preceded us, the sin of those that surround us, and our own personal sin. The issue of sin is a team effort, and each one of us has a part in it. This is part of what is difficult to accept as truth because we always want to think that someone else broke all of this, and that we are victims. And this is the first problem of the issue, of not doing what pleases the Lord, not because we do something good for Him, but rather, to be able to do good for ourselves and for others. That is the issue with sin. Sin does not damage God. Sin damages us. This universal truth always applies: “For the wages of sin is death…” Romans 6:23. So then, do you want to know who your true enemy is? It is sin. And this enemy is very close, within your own being, and even though you may have come to the Lord, it is still living within your members, and it will try to make you fall until the day that this body is transformed before the Lord. God is not your enemy, so you should not treat Him like that.
Now then, will things get better in this world? And here is the other thing that is difficult to accept. What is here and now will not get better, but rather, worse. I wish I had better news on that end, but that is what the Bible teaches. The Lord Himself told us this: “Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:32-33. We were warned that we would have affliction, but we were also told that we would have peace in the middle of the affliction, and also, because there are better things prepared for those that love the Lord and await for His return, because He has overcome the world. And on this is what we should focus on. Meanwhile, we do need to accept what is here now and know how to deal with this issue, for it is also written: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. My counsel would be for you to live looking for God’s purpose within whatever time you are living, and that you do not try to avoid the reality of this world, trying to bury your head in the sand like the ostrich, per se, and of course, clinging on to the things that this world offers to avoid reality like pills, alcohol, and so many other things; the distractions of Satan. Because despite how difficult this world can be, God is so powerful that He can and desires to bring about good out of evil, triumph from defeat, life from death, freedom from what is imprisoned, and peace out of the midst of affliction, for it is also written: For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Mark 8:36.
And so, maybe things here may not be fine, even if you are doing what is right (although, let’s be sincere, we many times have created our own problems). But, always remember what is to come. Do not focus on the here and now, and fulfill what is necessary with the Lord so that you can do good to yourself and to others while here because the Lord’s rewards are for those that overcome the world with Christ in this life, by valuing God’s great love. So, are you valuing God’s love, that He has given you a way out towards incredible and eternal things through the sacrifice of His Son? Lord bless! John