In Malachi 1:6-14, God is addressing the corruption of the priests of the day. He had been blatantly disrespected in His own house with what He calls 'unclean food' sacrificed by 'useless fires'. There was a lack of respect for who God really was and their defiance only spurred on more anger by Him.
One thing that I love about the book of Malachi is how throughout the whole book, God is referred to as 'The Lord All-Powerful' (NCV). In a way, I believe that God is placing His power in front of them because of their flippant attitude toward the things of Him.
Then I really started thinking....
What have my offerings for worship been to God lately? Am I offering lame and blind offerings and disguising it as true, honored worship to my Creator? How many times have I stepped on the stage as a worship pastor and given a half hearted portion of myself and called it true 'worship'? How many times have I allowed my title to come before my position in God's sight? How many times have I offered a useless fire as an offering and walk away shocked when nothing changes?
In this new year, let this be a challenge to you to....obedience will always precede success in God's sight. Offer your best and you will have all you can handle from the The Lord All-Powerful.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
The Day God listened to a human
Joshua 10 (New Century Version via www.youversion.com)
The Israelites were defending Gibeon (a people whose lives they had recently spared and made their servants) against armies from 5 different kings. God had big plans for them to continue their domination to claim dominion over the promised land. So, here is Joshua leading an army into battle and not only does God show them favor, but He actually steps in by chucking hail from the heavens (He actually took out more than all of the Israelites combined).
Joshua was kicking butt and taking names and knew that darkness was quickly approaching, so he stood before the people and said to the Lord: "Sun, stand still over Gibeon. Moon, stand still over the Valley of Aijalon." It worked. The bible actually says that the sun stayed up and the moon waited until the fight was over. It has never happened again.
What struck me about the passage wasn't the fact that time basically stood still until all of the work was done, but it's what was said after the fact in verse 14....."That was the day that the Lord listened to a human being." Both God and Joshua's focuses were aligned and Joshua was doing EXACTLY what God wanted Him to do and was well on the road to fulfilling the destiny given to him by His Creator. Joshua had to have known that his God was fighting with him and that there would be few things off limits. When we live like there are no limits in our lives, God will begin to speak and we will be both willing and eager to listen. What are your limits?
The Israelites were defending Gibeon (a people whose lives they had recently spared and made their servants) against armies from 5 different kings. God had big plans for them to continue their domination to claim dominion over the promised land. So, here is Joshua leading an army into battle and not only does God show them favor, but He actually steps in by chucking hail from the heavens (He actually took out more than all of the Israelites combined).
Joshua was kicking butt and taking names and knew that darkness was quickly approaching, so he stood before the people and said to the Lord: "Sun, stand still over Gibeon. Moon, stand still over the Valley of Aijalon." It worked. The bible actually says that the sun stayed up and the moon waited until the fight was over. It has never happened again.
What struck me about the passage wasn't the fact that time basically stood still until all of the work was done, but it's what was said after the fact in verse 14....."That was the day that the Lord listened to a human being." Both God and Joshua's focuses were aligned and Joshua was doing EXACTLY what God wanted Him to do and was well on the road to fulfilling the destiny given to him by His Creator. Joshua had to have known that his God was fighting with him and that there would be few things off limits. When we live like there are no limits in our lives, God will begin to speak and we will be both willing and eager to listen. What are your limits?
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