The Extent of Worship

In Malachi 2:17, the Lord has become weary with how His people worshipped Him. “You have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet you say, "How have we wearied Him?" In that you say, "Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and He delights in them," or, "Where is the God of justice?"

For seventy years, the Hebrews had lived in exile in Babylon, surrounded by enemies who would have loved to see them wiped out. Pagans, idol worshipers, those involved in every perverse sin imaginable, those immersed in the occult—they were their enemies. Interestingly, while the Israelites suffered and feared for their security, their enemies seemed to prosper.

The people of Malachi’s days looked at their enemies and felt that God wasn’t doing anything. They asked, “Why doesn’t God judge these people? Why doesn’t God wipe them out?” Looking at their own lives, they wondered, “Maybe God doesn’t care. If He isn’t going to judge these pagans, then maybe this God of justice doesn’t care how we live our lives.” The profound tragedy is that they knew what was right from wrong yet they tried to attack God to excuse their wrong behavior. They wanted God to be patient with them when they sinned but they were impatient with Him when they saw that God wasn’t doing anything to those people who did them wrong. Worship involves patience, worship involves waiting on God. We become impatient when we perceive God differently from who He really is. Are we not like them? Do we question and attack God because we
want to have an excuse for our sinful lifestyle not realizing that our suffering may be due to our wrong choices and sin?

In the book of Malachi, God established Himself as a Father. This was radical because in the whole Old Testament, God was referred to as Father only seven times. As our Father, God wants to have a relationship with us He wants us to talk to Him and pour out our deepest sentiments to Him. For some people, however, the word father conjures up all kinds of painful memories. Rather than being associated with happiness, it brings feelings of sadness and anger. The truth is, human fathers can make life miserable for their children on earth. They can be selfish, demanding, inconsistent, self-centered, or even abusive. Consequently, our concept of our earthly fathers sometimes extends to the way we picture God. As the Israelites in the book of Malachi, we might think that God is unreasonable, giving us tough rules, regulations, and restrictions and expecting us to serve Him even when we feel we are suffering beyond what we can bear.
We could also view God as a cosmic kill joy who takes away all our fun, pleasures and happiness in life. Or it might seem that God is unreliable, not doing anything about our problems. So, we question if we can trust Him or rely on Him. Maybe we feel that He is unconcerned about the things we need such as house payment, tuition fees, school supplies, food because He’s too busy managing the whole world. And lastly, we could perceive God as being unpleasable, one who is so hard to please.

These are all misconceptions. God is not unreasonable, unreliable, unconcerned or unpleasable. In Malachi 3:1-6, God, our Father, truly cares for us. He shows that He has a specific plan for you and His plan is wonderful because He is a caring father. One of the characteristics of God is that He is compassionate. Psalm 103:13 says, “Just as a father has compassion on his children. So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.” In other words, God wants you to live a full life in Him. He does not want you to live with divided minds or with anxiety and stress. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” He invites you to cast all your anxieties upon Him. Not some, not only those problems that are related to spiritual matters, but all! God wants you to cast all your concerns on Him! Once you cast them on Him, you can be confident that He will carry them for you and solve them for you in His time.

God is also a competent God. This was what He was trying to tell His people in the book of Malachi. Luke 1:37 says, “For nothing will be impossible with God” and Ephesians 3:20, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us.” Sometimes you might ask, “Lord, can you really do this for me?
God’s answer is, “Nothing, as in nothing, is impossible with me! I’m a competent Father.”

od is also consistent. He says in Malachi 3:6, “For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.” He does not change like a shifting shadow and He has no mood swings. He will do what He promises to do. God, our Father is a covenant-keeping God. You may not always understand God’s ways. But be ready. Why? He will give you wonderful surprises because He loves you so much. Are you
ready? He will give you’re the best!

But the question is: Are you sure that God is your Father and that you are going to heaven to be with Him? John 1:12 says, “But as many as received Him (Jesus) to them He gave the right to become Children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” Turn to the back of this Chronicle to learn how to become a child of God through receiving Jesus Christ and how to be sure your sins are forgiven and you have His free His gift of eternal life.

Thank you and God bless!