“The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests: “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve? You have shown contempt for my name! “But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’ “You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar. “Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?’ “You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings. But my name is honored by people of other nations from morning till night. All around the world they offer sweet incense and pure offerings in honor of my name. For my name is great among the nations,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “But you dishonor my name with your actions. By bringing contemptible food, you are saying it’s all right to defile the Lord’s table. You say, ‘It’s too hard to serve the Lord,’ and you turn up your noses at my commands,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Think of it! Animals that are stolen and crippled and sick are being presented as offerings! Should I accept from you such offerings as these?” asks the Lord. “Cursed is the cheat who promises to give a fine ram from his flock but then sacrifices a defective one to the Lord. For I am a great king,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and my name is feared among the nations!”
Malachi 1:6-14 NLT
Ever since time began, man has been trying to take from God what doesn’t belong to man and only give God the scraps of what does. It is a time honored tradition amongst the fools to bring God an offering he doesn’t want. It is our tradition. We can date this practice back to Cain. God punished him, not because of the lack luster offering, but because, when it was rejected, he refused to accept it. This led him to hate his brother’s accepted offering and eventually his brother. Murder naturally followed. Here, God warns the Israelites and rebukes them. It is a beautiful and vulnerable treatise upon God’s character. Here we see that the heart matters a great deal to him. He is not a genie or a machine. His standards demand a deep relationship that produces these sacrifices. He is offended at trying to trick him. This is a prescient description and prescription for us. Our God is this same person. In our own sacrifices, we should take heed of his character and if our gifts are from love. God clearly cares about it.
JOSH McGARY. COM 