“And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts” (Malachi 1:8).
TEXT —Isaiah 1:6-10
Message
The late Dr. Peter Marshall once selected for use in a church service the familiar hymn of consecration, “Take My Life and Let It Be.” He requested the congregation to give particular thought to the words: “Take my silver and my gold, Not a mite would I withhold.” Exacting the practical sense of the words “not a mite would I withhold,” he asked that all who could not sing this line with literal sincerity, refrain from singing it at all. That experience dramatically brought to the fore the glib, thoughtless manner in which, all too often, we sing our hymns. Hundreds of voices, with organ accompaniment, sang vigorously up to the designated point. Then, suddenly, there was only the sound of the organ music. Not a single voice ventured to so challenging a height!
In this time of Malachi, God had to rebuke the Israelites for despising Him by offering deformed and sickly animals as sacrifices which they would dare not do to their civic leaders. God also rebuked the priests whose job it was to inspect the sacrificial animals before declaring them fit for offering to the Lord.
The passage strikes at the very root of our human selfishness and audacity to disregard and dishonour our God in what we call worship. Often, we dishonour God by the shoddy service and unacceptable offerings we present to Him. The flippant and lukewarm approach to God, the defective and reluctant offerings, heartless worship, and giving the leftovers of our talent, time, and treasure are a few examples of how we despise God today. Perhaps a significant cause of this attitude is our lack of gratitude and low estimation of what God has done for us through Christ. Examine the quality of your service and offerings to God today. Weigh your consecration and commitment on the balance of heaven. Are you found wanting?
Thought for the day
What we give to or give up for God reflects our estimation of Him.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
