The Consequences: When We Rob God & The Blessings: When We Don’t
[the LORD’S WORDS—]
(Malachi 1: 14 NASB)
“But cursed be the swindler who has a male in his flock and vows it, but sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord, for I am a great King,” says the LORD of armies, “and my name is feared among the nations.”
Is it typical to promise God our best & then give Him less?
[the LORD’S WORDS—]
(Malachi 3: 8-10 NASB)
“Would anyone rob God?
Yet you are robbing Me!
But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’
In tithes and offerings.
You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the entire nation of you!
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put Me to the test now in this,” says the LORD of armies, “if I do not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.”
When we make an offering to God, He sees our heart.
- A Tithe of our Earnings.
- An Offering of Ourselves.
- A Bowing in Prayer to Hear from Our Lord.
- A Worship-Filled Heart, Soul, Mind, & Self.
These are not about us but to draw us closer to God!
Our worship is not to show God anything; it is for us to recognize God!
These are The consequences: When We Rob God—
- No shelter from the storm.
- No drink from the stream when we are extremely dry.
- No shade in an exhausted land.
- Blinded eyes.
- Unhearing ears.
- Rash minds, undiscerning of the truth.
- Tongues that stammer foolishness in haste, rather than the truth.
However, Praise God, these are The Blessings—When We Offer Our Lives, Our Whole Selves, Our All to God—
“Behold, a king will
(Isaiah 32: 1-4 NASB)
reign righteously,
And officials will rule justly.
Each will be like a refuge
from the wind
And a shelter from the storm,
Like streams of water in
a dry country,
Like the shade of a huge rock
in an exhausted land.
Then the eyes of those who
see will not be blinded,
And the ears of those who
hear will listen.
The mind of the rash will
discern the truth,
And the tongue of the stammerers
will hurry to speak clearly.”
In a land where the truth of God needs to be clearly spoken to those who remain lost, to those who do not yet know Jesus as their Savior.
So, we ask ourselves some questions:
- Have we each submitted our lives to the KING of Kings?
- Are we seeing a difference in how we live (as we submit to our LORD)?
- Are we committed to those God has entrusted to our care?
- Do others see us as a shelter, as a refuge, as a shade, as a stream of refreshment—as we speak to God over them through our prayers?
- Do others see Jesus in our every move?
- Are we pointing others we love, others we know, others we encounter—to the hiding place found in Almighty God?
- May we Become More Serious in Our Daily Walk with the LORD!
- May we Not Endure the Consequences but May We Receive the Blessings a Life Lived Unto Our LORD Provides!
May we Not Rob God—EVER!