24-0623p Transcript

(0:15) Those that are blind, or fractured, or maimed, or having a running sore, or eczema, or scabs, (0:22) you shall not offer to the Lord, nor make of them an offering by fire on the altar of the Lord. (0:28) In respect to an ox or lamb which has an overgrown or stunted member, (0:34) you may present it for a freewill offering, but for a vow it will not be accepted. (0:41) Also, anything with its testicles bruised or crushed or torn or cut, (0:46) you shall not offer to the Lord or sacrifice in your land. (0:50)

Preacher: Mike Mathis

(0:54) Thank you, Tom, for that reading. (0:57) Once again, it is my privilege to stand before you, (1:02) those that are here and for those that are on the phone. (1:07) The title of my lesson is, In What Way? (1:12) And it’s going to be part one.

(1:15) I don’t know. I’m going to have part one tonight. (1:20) The next time I speak, I will have part two.

(1:25) Possibly the way I am thinking of this, I might have it in a third part. (1:33) And I’m going to be in the book of Malachi. (1:37) And this lesson is from the Gospel Journal, a Brotherhood periodical.

(1:45) The writer of the article from which I am developing this lesson, (1:51) entitled his article, The Seven Where-Ins of Malachi. (1:58) And he used the King James Version, (2:05) and possibly the American Standard Version, where they use where-in. (2:14) I am using the New King James Version, where-in place of where-in, (2:21) it says, in what way.

(2:26) Now he says seven where-ins of Malachi. (2:36) And I’ve tried to count how many times where-in appeared in the King James Version, (2:51) but I didn’t count seven. (2:55) The best I could do was count five.

(2:59) And I do have five in what ways in the New King James Version. (3:13) And so I’m using in what way. (3:18) So first of all, beginning with the first verse, (3:30) it says the burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.

(3:40) I have loved you, says the Lord. (3:46) And here is the first in what way. (3:50) The Israelite said, or yet you say, in what way have you loved us? (4:01) So they asked that question.

(4:06) And, you know, they’re not especially talking back to God, (4:15) but they’re talking back to the prophet. (4:19) You know, that is what people do today when gospel preachers present the truth. (4:29) They answer back.

(4:32) And what they’re doing when it is made plain that the scripture says such and such, (4:43) they oppose it. (4:46) And they answer back to the one presenting the lesson. (4:55) But here, these prophets that were aboard, including Malachi, (5:03) was prophesying to these Israelites about the things that they were doing wrong.

(5:17) And trying to get them to repent. (5:23) Well, here Malachi is, or God is talking through Malachi. (5:34) I have loved you, but they ask, in what way have you loved us? (5:51) They were full of doubts, no doubt, because when we find out why, (5:58) when we proceed, they were facing difficulties and seeing problems, you know, around them.

(6:15) And so then they were becoming full of doubts. (6:22) That is the way people seem to be when these adverse things befall them. (6:34) They’re full of doubts and just don’t know that God really loves them (6:44) because they’re facing all kinds of difficulties.

(6:49) And to them, how could God love me when I’m having all these problems? (7:01) Do we have doubts of God’s love? (7:06) We need to stop and look about us and see what we have and what we’re blessed with (7:22) and then know that it comes from God and it comes from Him because He loves us. (7:35) And so now He is going to explain His love to them. (7:49) He said, Was not Esau Jacob’s brother, says the Lord? (7:55) Yet Jacob have I loved.

(8:00) Now, I want to say here that when Esau and Jacob were born as babies, (8:13) God loved both of them, but through misunderstanding God’s plan (8:23) because God already chose the future of these two boys. (8:34) God loved both of them. (8:37) So when He said, Was not Esau Jacob’s brother, says the Lord? (8:46) Yet Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.

(8:54) Here He’s talking about the nation of the Israelites (9:01) and the nation of Esau, these descendants that came from Jacob and that came from Esau. (9:16) That is the Israelites and the Edomites, the Edom. (9:25) He said, Esau I have hated and laid waste his mountains and his heritage for the jackals of the wilderness.

(9:39) That is in verse 3. (9:41) And verse 4, Even though Edom has sinned, we have been impoverished, (9:56) but we will return and build the desolate places. (10:05) God said, Thus says the Lord of hosts, (10:12) They may build, but I will throw down. (10:20) So they’re saying that they will build, yet God said, I will throw down.

(10:34) Now why is God having such a disposition with Edom? (10:45) In Obadiah, Obadiah is speaking and Obadiah has just one chapter. (11:00) It’s really not, it’s a chapter and it’s short. (11:05) But it’s concerning Edom, the vision of Obadiah.

(11:11) Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom. (11:16) And what God says in Obadiah is what concerns Edom. (11:31) In verse 8 of Obadiah, (11:36) Well, I’m not in that day, says the Lord, (11:41) even destroy the wise men from Edom and understanding from the mountains of Esau.

(11:54) So he’s going to destroy the wise men. (12:03) And here is the reason. (12:07) Beginning with verse 12 and reading through verse 14.

(12:15) Says, But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother and the day of his captivity, (12:25) nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction, (12:39) nor should you have spoken proudly in the day of distress. (12:47) You should not have entered the gate of my people in the day of their calamity. (12:57) Indeed, you should not have gazed on their affliction in the day of their calamity, (13:07) nor laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity.

(13:15) You should not have stood at the crossroads to cut off those among them who escaped, (13:26) nor should you have delivered up those among them who remained in the day of distress. (13:39) That is what God is having against Edom. (13:48) Now, he showed the Israelites, (13:51) and these Israelites should have looked around and saw how God did love them.

(14:03) The difficulties and the doubts that they had of God’s love is because they departed from God. (14:14) And then Edom is going to be destroyed and thrown down because of what they did at the time Judah went into captivity. (14:36) They rejoiced.

(14:38) They entered the gates to pillage what was left behind. (14:46) They even cut off those that escaped and even turned them in. (14:59) And God said you should not have done that.

(15:04) Yes, God was taking a place in judgment upon Judah for Judah’s sins. (15:15) But he’s going to do that to Edom for their sins. (15:23) The second, in what way, comes from the sixth verse of Malachi 1. (15:35) He says, (15:51) Still in verse 6, here’s what God said before right here at the end.

(16:09) He said, (16:28) You know, the children in the Ten Commandments were told to honor thy father and thy mother. (16:45) The honor that father and mother was supposed to be shown. (16:56) And this is when the children grow up and they make up their own minds which way to go.

(17:07) They dishonor their father and mother. (17:13) Well, when they do that, they curse their father and mother. (17:20) They won’t listen to what they say to them.

(17:27) The Lord had the death penalty placed upon them. (17:34) But then there were those that did keep that commandment. (17:44) They honored their father.

(17:45) But when it came to God, they didn’t give God the honor that he deserved as father. (18:05) If I am a master, where is my reverence, says the Lord of hosts. (18:19) In Luke 6 and 46, Jesus says, (18:25) Why do you call me Lord, Lord? (18:30) Which can be interpreted as master, master.

(18:39) He says, (18:47) We’ll honor him when we do what he wants. (18:53) And we’re going to see that God is highly displeased with these priests (19:04) for not giving him the honor that is due him. (19:12) The third in what way? (19:16) It comes from verse 7. (19:25) God through Malachi is telling them, (19:40) Now down in verse 11 and 12, (19:52) God is saying, (20:31) Now they wanted to know in what way did they defile.

(20:39) Well, he said, (21:03) And then in verse 12, it says the same thing. (21:14) The table of the Lord is defiled and its food is contemptible. (21:26) And you also say, (21:28) And you sneer at it, says the Lord of hosts.

(21:36) And you bring the stolen, the lame and the sick. (21:41) Thus you bring an offering. (21:44) Should I accept this from your hand, says the Lord.

(21:55) The reading in Leviticus 22, 22 through 24, (22:05) God is telling the people through Moses what not to offer. (22:13) He wanted an offering without blemish. (22:16) It cannot be blind, lame, sick, having some blemish on it.

(22:31) He laid down the rules for what he would accept as the offering that they would bring. (22:45) But here the people are disobeying that commandment. (22:52) They’re bringing the lame and the sick.

(22:55) They are bringing the blind as a sacrifice. (23:00) They’re bringing the stolen, the lame and the sick. (23:08) You know, God told them in the first age of Malachi, (23:17) when he was telling them what they were bringing, (23:26) and when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? (23:32) He said, (23:33) Offer it then to your governor.

(23:39) Would he be pleased with you? (23:41) Would he accept you favorably, says the Lord of hosts? (23:45) Well, do you think that the governor will accept such a gift? (23:52) They’ll see a lame animal as a gift? (23:59) Do you think that they would accept it? (24:09) In verse 9, (24:13) But now entreat God’s favor, that he may be gracious to us. (24:23) Yes, entreat God’s favor. (24:27) And how were they to do that? (24:30) By doing what God wants.

(24:33) Turning around and start offering acceptable sacrifices, (24:41) and honor God in doing that. (24:47) You know, some people think that worshiping God in any way is okay. (24:58) But God, we ought to learn, wants worship according to his way, (25:09) and what he wants offered.

(25:12) And he wants us to, and he said, (25:17) Entreat God’s favor, that he may be gracious to us. (25:29) In Matthew 11, 28-30, we have this, (25:44) Come unto me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (25:52) Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, (26:00) and you will find rest for your souls.

(26:05) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (26:11) The way we can entreat God’s favor is to come to his Son. (26:20) Jesus invites all that are heavy laden, that labor and are heavy laden.

(26:29) For whatever reason, God wants us to have the goodness, the good things. (26:41) And Jesus is saying, when you come to me, I will give you rest. (26:51) You know, his commandments are not burdensome.

(26:55) He says, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (27:04) I do not understand why these people do not really want to hear God’s word, (27:16) when God, in his word, is seeking the goodness of mankind. (27:29) And we can entreat God’s favor, and we can please him, if we will.

(27:42) Christ gave the invitation to those that, you know, are heavy laden and labor. (27:52) And these problems that I mentioned that these Israelites face, (28:02) they face these problems because they turned themselves away from God. (28:10) Many today do that.

They turn themselves away from God. (28:16) Many are trying to say that they have God’s favor, but just like the Israelites, (28:26) they just can’t see where they are displeasing God. (28:33) But Jesus gives the invitation to come to me, all you that labor and are heavy laden.

(28:44) Let us come to Jesus. (28:47) And this is the way that we can entreat God’s favor. (28:57) In coming to Jesus, for those that have not, they need to believe what Jesus says.

(29:07) This ought to be good news to people that hear this, (29:12) that they will have rest, that the burdens will be lifted, (29:18) and what they are dealing with, they have help. (29:26) God doesn’t say, and he doesn’t say that they won’t still have these burdens, (29:34) but they have him to help them along, help anyone along. (29:42) So the invitation then is going to be given to anyone.

(29:49) Do we really want to please God? (29:54) Are we going to give him the best? (30:00) God doesn’t want scraps. (30:05) And just as he said, you offer these to your governor, (30:10) and the governor will not accept it, (30:16) why would we expect God to accept it? (30:22) And so the invitation is to those that need to obey the gospel, (30:33) to do so before it is too late, (30:35) by believing Jesus and being baptized for the remission of sins, (30:44) and those who have, if there is anything that is on your mind that you need to take care of, (30:56) why not respond now while we stand and while we sing.