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Malachi Musings
The book of Malachi is the last book in the Old Testament and from the time of the writing of this book until the opening of Matthew the first book in the New Testament, there is a long pause of not hearing the Lord for over four hundred years. Malachi was a prophet who confronted the priest for their neglect of the Temple and for their lack of heart worship. In this last book of the Old Testament, you can hear the hope that is coming for us, the hope that is coming to us. It is buried in the language of the Old Testament, but now reading it with the Holy Spirit, I hear the hope that has become mine. Malachi’s message points to the great and glorious coming of Jesus. In this last book of the Old Testament, the Lord speaks through Malachi a true message of love. The coming of Jesus brings a true fathering spirit on the earth, this fathering spirit will “turn the hearts of the fathers to the sons and the hearts of the sons to the fathers”. Without sons there can be no fathers in the church. Sons have to be willing to submit to the fathers’ wisdom and to the Holy Spirit’s work through the father. Malachi confronts our pride and hard hearts that come to the Lord and worship him, but never expect the Lord to act. Pride says, “I am the only one in control here. We bring our one-eyed chickens to the alter, the sacrifices that cost us little to God, as we go through the motions of worship to Him. The Lord responds to our profane worship in Malachi 1:10, “I wish that someone among you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not at all pleased with you says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will not accept your offerings. But my name is great among the nations, says the Lord Almighty. But you dishonor my name with your actions.'” Even in this rebuke from the Lord, we hear our desperate need for a Savior, who will free us from our pride, who will free us from self.
Pride offers prophane worship, why you ask? Pride seeks only self. Pride is an evil foe. It comes and produces a heart that is hard. Pride blames God and other people when things go wrong. Pride excuses and justifies bitterness and resentment. Pride is the greatest hindrance to bringing down fleshly strongholds. This was what the people looked like in Malachi’s day, and the Lord in His loving us had a plan. He would give His Son to die on the cross for our sins so that this Fathering spirit would come and live on the inside of us and show us how we died with Jesus. The old man died with Jesus and this heart of concrete is resurrected to a heart that is soft and submitted to the Lord and to our Father’s. We become sons through the work of the Holy Spirit synchronizing our hearts to the Father’s heart.