[0:00] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfredo, Georgia. It is our prayer that you will be blessed by the preaching of God's Word.
[0:15] Take your Bibles, if you would, and turn with me to the book of Malachi, chapter 2, Malachi chapter 2 and verse 17. Well, every week I pray and ask the Lord to show me what to show you from the passage of Scripture that's before us and to ask Him for the message, the message that He would have for us.
[0:39] And as I prayed about and looked over this chapter, I really think you could sum it up in this, how you handle your money reveals your attitude towards God.
[0:49] How you handle your money reveals your attitude towards God. They're in an argument in the passage of Scripture. And Malachi is saying this is what God says, and whenever they say what God says, then they reply with, well, how'd that happen?
[1:03] Well, we don't think of that. That's how we say it. We don't agree with that assessment of the whole situation. And so, in chapter 3, basically God's like irritated, and He says, I'm coming down there.
[1:18] And you're going to see that. It's kind of funny the way He says that. When you can kind of see the story of how the back and forth is going on in there, you'll see that, and I hope it'll touch your heart.
[1:30] Look, if you would, with me in verse 17. You have wearied the Lord with your words. They've been arguing. You've wearied the Lord with your words.
[1:41] Yet you say, where have we wearied Him? They said, he goes, Malachi said, y'all made God tired of talking so much. And their answer is, well, now how'd that happen? We haven't.
[1:51] We haven't. We're the Lord. How did we wearied the Lord? And he said, well, when you say everyone that does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, that wearies Him. When you say God lets people get away with junk, and then you say He delights in them.
[2:06] He delights in people that are doing wrong. And then you say, or where is the God of judgment? Remember, they've been tiring the Lord with their complaints. They're accusing God of not being fair.
[2:19] They're accusing God of not judging wrong people. They're scolding God. And God wants, He's going to scold them back.
[2:31] So God says, in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 1, in Tennessee Hillbilly, God says this. Okay, don't make me come down there. You ever been on the highway? You kids, back when I was a kid, we'd ride down the road, back to see the car, windows all down, all the racket, all the kids would be cutting up, and Daddy would say, you're going to make me stop this car?
[2:52] And I'm like, no desire for you to stop the car. Just keep driving. Who asks you to stop the car? But if you don't do what He, if you want to keep being a smart like He just might, look at verse 1. See, they said, where have we wearied?
[3:04] You've got to put it in context. See, but where have we wearied you? He said, because you said this about me. So this is what He says. Behold, hey, wake up. I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me.
[3:19] So I'm sending the guy down. He's going to lay the tracks for me to get there. And the Lord, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to His temple. Even the messenger of the covenant, whom you delight in, behold, He shall come with the Lord of hosts.
[3:36] Back in verse 17, they said He delighted in bad people. And He said, so since you delight in the Lord, He's coming your way. This is a little pause here.
[3:47] Can we put a parenthesis in? I want to show you something just fantastic. It's kind of out of the story, but it's kind of hidden in here right on the surface. Anybody can see it. You know Jesus is God. If you know that, say amen.
[3:58] Watch this verse. Just look at your Bible, and you'll be able to see it so easy. This is like fun. They say Jesus is God. Read a verse for me, if you would.
[4:09] It says, behold, I, now who's talking? Talk to me. Behold, I, who's talking? God will send my messenger, that's John the Baptist, and he, John the Baptist, shall prepare the way before, you see that?
[4:28] Who's He going to prepare the way before? Tell me. Who's He going to prepare the way before? He said me. God said, I'm sending my messenger, He'll prepare the way before me. But I know who me was.
[4:40] Jesus. Could I get a little grunt out of that? How about this? The Lord, the Lord whom you seek shall suddenly come to His temple.
[4:55] Now, who's the Lord they're seeking? In Malachi chapter 2, they're really seeking Jehovah God. They're seeking the God of heaven. And he said, yo, He's coming to His temple. Now, who came to His temple?
[5:05] Jesus. No. Jesus. Jesus. Even the messenger of the covenant whom you delight in, the God you delight in, He shall come. You see that?
[5:16] How many of you think that's neat? Say amen. Yeah. You think Jesus isn't God? Well, I think Malachi thought He was. I just think that's interesting. Back to the message. That was a commercial break.
[5:27] A commercial break to find out that my Jesus is God. Just like we know He is. So it says here, behold, hey, got to get the little tit for tat here going on, you know?
[5:38] You got, God said, Malachi said, you guys have wearied God with the way you're running your mouths. How do we weary God? Come on. How do we weary God? I'll tell you how you wearied God.
[5:48] You wearied God when you said that He delighted in people that were doing wrong and He was good to people that were doing wrong. And when you said, when you said that He wasn't doing, He wasn't fixing things. And then Malachi said, and so let me just say what God said.
[6:01] He's coming. He's going to send a guy in front of Him. He's going to prepare the way before Him. And when He gets the way prepared before Him, He's coming to His holy temple and He's coming suddenly. Like this is going to shock you guys.
[6:14] He's going to shock you. He's coming. He's coming. So you got a promise here of the coming of John. Look at Malachi chapter 3.
[6:26] The Bible's the word of God. In Malachi, this is over 400 years before it's going to happen. And Malachi says, I will send my messenger and He shall prepare the way before me.
[6:38] That's a clear reference to John the Baptist who would come and prepare the way for Jesus. Now in the passage of Scripture, there's two messengers.
[6:48] There's one that's a messenger that goes before Him and the other one's a messenger of the covenant. And I can't really go on without showing you this, though. It's kind of off target again. But you see, God is a God of a covenant.
[7:01] God's got the old covenant called the Old Testament, new covenant called the New Testament. God's a God who gives His promise. A covenant's a contract. A covenant is a promise. And there was a covenant between Israel and between God.
[7:16] And God was keeping His end of it. Israel wasn't keeping her end of it. But He's the God of a covenant. In the Scriptures, there are two kinds of covenants. There's unconditional covenants.
[7:27] And there's conditional covenants. There's covenants where God says, if you do this, I'll do that. And then there's other covenants where God says, I'll just do this. God says, I'll just do this.
[7:38] And the covenant of salvation is the free gift He offers you. Here's the covenant He made. You sinned. You deserve hell. And you are a nobody who ought to go to hell for all eternity.
[7:51] But I love you so much, I will go to the cross of Calvary. And I will die on the cross of Calvary. And I will pay your sin debt. And you can be saved. And you'll simply trust me and accept the gift.
[8:01] For the wage of sin is death, but the gift of God's eternal life. And He says, in this covenant, guys, I'm the only one doing anything. I'm the only one doing anything. All you're doing is receiving a gift.
[8:12] Last time you got a gift, what did you do to receive it? Nothing. You just took it. I mean, somebody comes up and they pay for it. If they charge you a dollar for it, it's not a gift. Could you say amen right there?
[8:24] Okay. So there was no charge. And here's the covenant. And so you need to know this more. He's the messenger of the covenant. And here's the covenant. The covenant is the wage of the sin is death, but the gift of God's eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
[8:38] So if you're here this morning, you're not saved. I want you to know God loves you. And He wants you to go to heaven. He wants you to be saved. He doesn't want you to continue in your sin. He's done everything possible.
[8:51] In fact, it's the first coming we're about to look at in the scripture. He came to secure your salvation. He came to pay the penalty for sin so you could be saved. So if you're here this morning and you're in your sin, it's all your fault.
[9:07] And if you're going to die and go to hell, it's all your fault. Because you deserve it, but He loves you. And He paid the sin debt so you could be saved. And all you'd have to do is believe Him.
[9:20] If you simply believe Him today, you could be saved. For the wages of sin is death. What you earn is death and hell, but the gift of God is eternal. Would you get saved today? Please don't go home lost.
[9:33] Please don't go home thinking you've got a lot of time. Please don't go home thinking you could live forever. Because you need to understand something. You are playing with your eternity.
[9:44] The God of heaven loves you. And He has died for you and He's paid your sin debt. And in your rebellion, you're sitting there like a cranky old kook. And you won't get right with God.
[9:56] But you're going to wish you did. So trust Jesus today. He's the messenger of the covenant. In Malachi chapter 3 and verse 1 still.
[10:07] Behold, I will send my messenger and he shall prepare the way before me. That's John the Baptist getting things ready for Jesus. And the Lord whom you seek shall suddenly come to His temple. Even the messenger of the covenant, He's coming to His temple.
[10:21] You see what happened? Malachi said, God's going to come to earth. God's going to come to earth. See, there was a temple there. In Herod's day, there was a temple there that Jesus came to.
[10:34] And He came to the temple. And there's so much I could say here. But we've got a whole lot of chapter to cover here. But you do realize that in that temple, there was a barrier that you couldn't get all the way into God.
[10:45] But when Jesus came and went to the temple and cleansed the temple. And then later on, He rips that veil so that there's no hindrance for you to get through to God. Because Jesus is your way to get to God.
[10:59] You say, how could I ever get right? How could I ever get my sins forgiven? How could I ever have my life fixed? You couldn't. But He could. He can. And He will. He said in Malachi, in Matthew chapter 11, in verse 28, Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
[11:17] He came to church this morning. And you really wish there was a way you could get rid of all that load of guilt you carry. You really wish there was a way you could be forgiven. You really wish there was a way you could go back and change your past.
[11:29] You really wish there was a way you could have a different life. There is. Jesus is the way. And He paid the price that you could be saved. And come to Him, all you that are heavy laden in law and mission and religion and Christianity even, wants to tell you a bunch of stuff you've got to do.
[11:48] And they want to lay on you a whole bunch of rules you've got to do to get saved. You've got to turn over a new leaf. You've got to get baptized and christened and circumcised and all the other sizes they can give you. But it's all this.
[11:59] Come knowing you're a nothing and a nobody. And trust Jesus who died on a cross for you. And take His yoke upon you and learn of Him for He is meek and lowly in heart. And you shall find rest to your soul.
[12:12] In this same passage of Scripture, you need to understand, you need to understand, they had wearied the Lord. They had aggravated Him by arguing back and forth with Him.
[12:23] And in Malachi chapter 3, He said, I'm coming. I'm going to come down there. I'll send my messenger. He'll get things right and I'll be there. But in the same passage of Scripture, He goes on and tells us He's coming a second time.
[12:37] The first time He came in grace. The first time He came humbly. The first time He came on purpose to die. It wasn't an accident. It wasn't like He didn't expect it.
[12:49] He came knowing He was going to die. No one took His life from Him. He laid it down freely of Himself. John chapter 10, you can check that out later. But look if you would in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 2.
[13:01] He's going to come again. This isn't the same coming. Malachi doesn't see Him as no different because Malachi can't understand all the future. But God's telling Him in Malachi 3.1, I'm coming to my temple.
[13:12] But look what He's going to do that second time in Malachi 3.2. He said, when He comes, who can abide it? Look at it. You would have thought you would have wanted Him to come. You would have thought you would have wanted Him to come.
[13:24] But who may abide the day of His coming? That means who better take it? Do you have any idea what His coming is going to be like? He's coming in judgment.
[13:36] See, that first time He came in grace. That second time He's coming in judgment. I'll show you the second time in judgment. Even the second time He's got grace in it because He's a God of all grace. What a wonderful God He is.
[13:46] Amen. But anyway, look at it. He said, who shall abide the day of His coming? Who shall stand when He appears? Who in the world will be able to? Hey, this is God.
[13:56] This is the Creator God. This is the God that owns the universe. And He's coming. And He's like a refiner's fire of fuller's soap. He shall sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver.
[14:08] He shall purify the sons of Levi and purge them as gold and silver that they may offer unto the Lord an offering and righteousness. Here's what's happening. He said, y'all been messing up and you haven't kept the covenant.
[14:20] You've been doing your own thing. You've been living like I ain't for real. You've been living like the Bible ain't true. You've been doing a whole bunch of junk I don't like doing. And I'm coming down there. I'm coming the first time in grace. I'm coming the second time.
[14:30] I'm going to clean house. I'm going to purify. I'm going to purify. And so when He comes that second time, there'll be a great tribulation period.
[14:41] You'll learn about that as we keep going. There'll be a great tribulation period. And then notice this. It'll be so that they can make an offering. Look if you went in chapter 3, verse 3 and underline this.
[14:52] That they may offer unto the Lord. He's going to get Israel cleaned back up where Israel can go back to doing ministry. She's not doing good in Malachi. But she will do good.
[15:04] Israel's coming back. God's going to use her. She's going to make offerings. She's going to be used of God again. And it's going to be a revival of worship and offerings. Look at Malachi chapter 3 and verse 4.
[15:15] Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord as in the days of old, as in the former years. You see, Israel used to really please God.
[15:27] Israel used to really please God. But Israel quit pleasing God. And Israel started messing around with the offerings. And Israel started just playing with God.
[15:38] Israel started going through all the motions and the rituals. But they weren't in love with God. They were doing what you're supposed to do. But they weren't doing it with the right heart attitude. They even stopped doing a lot of it because they didn't like so much what God said.
[15:50] And God said, I want my offerings back. And I want to be pleased with them. You remember in these minor prophets, he's actually said, I won't smell your offerings. I won't receive your offerings. I don't need you.
[16:01] But now they're going to be purged. And he's going to say, I like it. It's like it used to be. Now you're doing stuff again. There's a day coming. And the nation of Israel will be restored.
[16:14] And when she's restored, they're going to offer sacrifices again. This time they'll be offering those sacrifices. It's like we take the Lord's Supper looking back and saying, this is to remember what Jesus did for us.
[16:27] Similar to what they did when they did the Passover celebration. You remember? And the Passover, that lamb died. So the angel of death would pass over. And then every time, every year they celebrated.
[16:38] They ate another lamb. And they thought through that again and said, we remember what God did for us. They're going to do that again. All there in the new temple that will be built.
[16:50] He's coming. There's no doubt that he's coming again. But here is when we need to see your response and how it compares to their attitude.
[17:04] How's your attitude this morning? Let's don't talk about Israel for a second. Let's talk about you. Let's talk about me. Are we wearying God with our complaining about how unfairly we're being treated?
[17:17] You know, some of us, we didn't come to worship this morning. We came to gripe and complain. Not to me, but to him. Do you ever think God's like, Oh, hush. Oh, hush.
[17:29] Just stop it. I don't delight in sin. I'm not for all this junk. You're the guys that messed up. You're the guys that did the sinning. I'm right. I've been right all along.
[17:40] I never did change. Amen. Have you allowed sin to creep into your life to the point it negates your service to God? He came the first time in grace to purchase your salvation.
[17:53] Have you accepted that gift? You should right now say in your heart, I know I'm saved or I know I'm not. And you should examine yourself. You shouldn't go home unless you know you're saved.
[18:06] I wouldn't risk it. You don't know when you're going to die. You don't know when things are going to come to an end. And you keep thinking you're going to get right with God. And you keep thinking you're going to do what you ought to do. He's coming again.
[18:16] I'd get ready. It's still an opportunity for you to be saved. Go with me to Malachi chapter 3 and verse 5. Are you mad yet? We didn't even get to the good stuff. We just warm it up.
[18:28] Malachi chapter 3 and verse 5. There were some specific sins that God said to Malachi that he didn't like. And in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 5, he says, I will come near to you to judgment.
[18:40] See, they said, why aren't you doing anything? He said, all right, I'm on my way. I'm on my way. And when I get there, I'm going to come to you in judgment. And I will be a swift witness.
[18:51] I know what's going on. And I'll be there. I'll be there against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against the false swearers and against those that oppress the hirelings and their wages and the widow and the fatherless that turn aside the stranger from the right and the ones that fear not and don't fear me, says the Lord.
[19:11] So I'm going to rush through this just a little bit. But sorcery is talking about demons. It's talking about dabbling with witchcraft. It's playing with stuff that you ought not do.
[19:24] And it was a problem in Malachi's day, and it's a problem today. God didn't like it, and he's coming as a witness. It's adultery, not being faithful to your spouse, not loving your spouse, not honoring your spouse, maybe messing around with pornography, maybe messing around with some other kind of junk, any kind of sexual deviancy.
[19:47] It's lying, breaking your trust. We can't trust each other. How are we going to live together? It's cheating. It's cheating. In the verse here, it's cheating your employees.
[20:01] It's mistreating your widows and orphans and taking advantage of the poor people. It's deceiving even the foreigners, the strangers, the aliens, and mistreating them. He doesn't like that.
[20:12] Or rebelling against him. And those sins were all happening, and they were happening in Israel, happening in Judah. God's people weren't living like they were supposed to.
[20:22] And then he's going to say something that's a beautiful verse we've got to remember and take home with us and remember this for the rest of your life about our good God. Look in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 6.
[20:35] He tells us something great about himself, and then he explains to us that's the only reason they're not dead. Look at Malachi 3, 6. I am the Lord. I change not.
[20:45] And that's the only reason you sons of Jacob ain't dead. The back and forth, it just got hot and heavy.
[20:58] He let them smart off to him, and he answered back. Did they smart off? And he answered back. And they smart off? And they answered back. But now he's done took the gloves off. Now he's just getting plumb rough. He said, I'm coming down there.
[21:10] When I come down there, I'll be a swift witness, and I'll make some judgment calls. And I know about your adultery, and I know about your sorcery, and I know about your cheating and lying, and I know about your deceiving people, and I know you don't really love me.
[21:21] I'm coming. In fact, just to be honest with you, you'd all be dead if I wasn't a God of my word. You'd all be dead if I wasn't a God of my word. You sons of Levi would all be dead.
[21:35] Isn't that a beautiful thing, though? Write this beside that verse. Immutable. Big word. I am him. You. Who knows? T-A-B-L-E. You've figured it out.
[21:46] You got Google. Google away. Immutable. He don't change. And that's a beautiful thing about God, because when he says it, he means it, and he means it forever. You might wonder to yourself, does God still the same God he was in the Bible days?
[22:01] What if he changed his plan of salvation? Oh, he doesn't. He doesn't change. Can I get an amen right there? You know, some of you, I don't ever know if I ought to smile or duck. I walk up to you.
[22:11] You come in the door. You're like happy one day and sad the next day, proud the next day. But when you see God, he's always God. He doesn't change. He's the same sweet, loving God who will judge sin, by the way.
[22:25] But he's the same God all the time, and he doesn't change. In fact, is he so mad at the sons of Levi right now? If he wasn't God, he'd just go ahead and kill him. But he said, hey, I don't change. I gave him a word. I don't change.
[22:36] Can I get a little grunt there? Say amen. So in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 7, he calls on his people to return to him. Look at him. He said, he said, he says in verse 7, even from the days of your fathers, you've gone away from my ordinances.
[22:53] You hadn't done right since your daddies and your granddaddies and your grandmamas. And you hadn't kept my word. You hadn't done what I said. So return to me.
[23:04] Come back to me, and I'll come back to you, said the Lord of the host. And here's their answer. Good night, these guys were Baptists. They're Baptist Jews, I promise you. He said, you know you'd be dead if I wasn't who I am.
[23:17] So come on back. Come back to me. Come back to me. And they go, well, we need to come back in. Well, he ain't done nothing wrong. I know we just heard about the sorcery and the lying and the cheating and the adultery.
[23:27] We heard that. But hey, this is us. Huh? Isn't that ridiculous? Isn't that how you're feeling right now? Isn't that kind of how you're acting this morning? You know you're lost, but your attitude is, hey, why would I need to come back?
[23:44] Hey, why would I need to get saved? Hey, why would I need to get anything right with you? Come on. That's what God says here in this story. Will you return to him today?
[23:55] You get your life right with him? So they go, here's the thing. See, this is the clincher now. We've been building all chapter long. And they said, well, how in the world would we need to come back to you?
[24:10] And he said, would you rob me? Now, see, maybe you can't admit to the adultery you've been committing, and maybe you won't admit to your sorcery, but we all know you're not tithing.
[24:22] And that's where he's headed. Hang on. Put on your seatbelt. I'm not going to say anything the Bible doesn't say, but watch what it says. In Malachi chapter 3 and verse 8, will a man rob God?
[24:34] Yet you have robbed me. But you say, hey, where have we robbed you? In tithes and offerings.
[24:46] That's where you robbed me. And you're cursed with a curse. You have robbed me. Even this whole nation. I want you to listen to me just a second.
[24:59] Number one, this is Israel. It's not the church. The principle still applies. Number two, it wasn't about the money.
[25:09] God is clearly established throughout the Old Testament. He doesn't need us. He said, all silver is mine, all the gold is mine, and all the souls are mine.
[25:23] I own everything. He said one time, he said, do you think if I was hungry I'd ask you for food when I own all the cattle on a thousand hills?
[25:33] Which was a poetical way of saying, do you not know I own everything? Do you not know I own everything? If I want to eat, I'll get me something to eat. He doesn't need to eat, but he wanted to.
[25:45] But you know, you rob God when you don't honor him with your money. How do you do that? The first way is it doesn't belong to you to begin with. See, if you want a Bible principle that this is what makes, God, this message is the kind you'll kill me.
[26:03] I'm headed to my office afterwards. But here's the truth. You don't own your money. Okay, now wait a minute, let me show you something. Biblically, it's his earth. He made it.
[26:17] Biblically, he made you. You don't own you. And biblically, he made all the gold and all the silver and everything else. It all belongs to him. So when they refused to give their tithe, they were robbing God.
[26:30] But he didn't need their gold and he didn't need their silver because in heaven, he's got his whole driveways made out of gold. I know you heard the joke that the rich guy was dying.
[26:43] The angel came to get him and he said, can I carry anything with me? He said, sure. If you want to take something, take it. So he ran and he got all these bars of gold. Stuck it in his carry-on.
[26:55] And he's on his way to Hepman. We got to Hepman, got the customs. This is not true for you dummies that can't figure that out. And when he got to Hepman, he opened up his carry-on and said, what'd you bring asphalt for? See, it's just gold.
[27:08] God's not worried about the gold. He's worried about the glory. He's worried about the honor. He's worried about being treated like who he is. I just want you to imagine. See, there's some big shots in this room.
[27:19] I know you're big shots. I just want you to, why don't you show up at your business tomorrow and talk to your CEO and say, hey, CEO, give me a thousand dollars out of my account. And the CEO looks at you and says, you ain't getting none of my money.
[27:31] You'd be like, oh, I pay your salary, big boy. I own this company. And the CEO would say, where in have I robbed you? And y'all be like, call the law.
[27:42] We're putting this boy in jail. But according to the scriptures, not your money, it's his. The Bible says in 1 Chronicles 29 and verse 13, Now therefore, our God, we thank thee and praise thy glorious name.
[27:59] And I'm about to read some beautiful scriptures. But you see, when you understand the truths I'm about to teach you, you would thank him and you would praise him unless you thought it was yours to begin with. Verse 14, 1 Chronicles 29, 14.
[28:12] But who am I and what is my people that we should be able to offer so willingly? We're given an offering so willingly from our heart. For all things, underlined in your Bible, what's it say?
[28:26] Come of thee. For all things, come of thee. You know what that means? Everything belongs to you. Of thine own have we given you.
[28:39] It's like you walking in the room, giving your kid ten candy bars and asking for one of your kids looking at you and saying, my candy bars. For we are strangers before thee.
[28:54] We're just strangers and sojourners. We're just pilgrims and travelers. As were our fathers. And our days on earth are just a shadow. I mean, I hate to tell you this.
[29:05] That piece of land you named after you was named after somebody before you. You ever think some Indian owned that land long before you did? He stuck his wigwam right there and said, they'll never forget this is my land.
[29:21] Say, man. And you got your wigwam sitting there now and you're like, oh, this is my land. Oh, dang bad. You're just a shadow. There's none abiding.
[29:32] None of y'all hanging around here. Verse 16, oh, Lord, our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee a house for thy holy name comes of thy hand and is all thine own.
[29:45] Everything we're going to give you in this offering is yours and you gave it to us and we're just giving it back to you. That's what the Bible says. First thing, it's not yours.
[29:57] You know why you could say you've robbed him? Because it's not yours. You're just a manager. You're just an administrator. So you pull that wallet out and pull that money out and say, this is my money.
[30:10] And he'd be like, excuse me? That's like you opening the petty cash drawer at the store and saying it belongs to you. No, it don't. The second is, who's first in your life?
[30:24] You see, you're robbing God because you seem to think you're the big stuff. Matthew 6 and verse 24, the Bible said, no man can serve two masters for you.
[30:34] He'll hate the one and love the other. He'll hold of the one and despise the other. You can't serve God in mammon. So you've got to choose whether it's God or money that's your boss, God or money that's important to you.
[30:45] And in Matthew 6, 33, he said, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. By the way, don't dare get the feeling that God doesn't want you taken care of.
[30:55] He does. He just wants you to figure out who does the taking care of. God wants to take care of you. He just don't want you thinking you take care of you. So it says in Matthew 6, in verse 32, for all things, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek.
[31:13] See, lost people are looking for all the things mentioned in Matthew 6, 32. And it says in the same verse, you should look this up and mark it, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things.
[31:29] See, lost people look for them. God knows you need them. And then he said, but if you seek me first in verse 33, I'll give you all these things. See, here's what God wants. He wants you to know who he is.
[31:40] He wants you to act like he's who he is. He wants you to treat him like he's God. You remember how the books start, these Old Testament prophets? You know how they start? You remember? You remember how these minor prophets have been starting?
[31:50] I'm your daddy and you don't know it. I'm your master and you don't respect me. When we don't give, we are not recognizing that what we have is God's.
[32:03] When we don't give, we're telling God we did it all. We own it and we don't need him. When we don't give, we're telling that we are able, so we're not grateful for what he's doing.
[32:15] When we do not give, we steal his glory. When we do not give, we make ourselves out to be God, our own provider, our own protector, our own Lord.
[32:27] Giving is an act of worship, so not giving is not worshiping. Are you robbing God? It doesn't have nothing to do with your money.
[32:40] It's your heart. You love him? It doesn't have to do with the church. It's loving God. Go with me to Malachi 3 and verse 10.
[32:52] I think you're going to go into overtime day. You don't have to pay extra. Malachi 3 and verse 10. Listen to me before I read Malachi 3.10. Listen to me just a second.
[33:04] You see, God said, you guys want to know how you're messing with me and how you're wearying me? I'll tell you how you're doing it. You don't handle my money right. You don't handle my money right.
[33:22] It's my money. You're mine. You work for me. I own you. And by the way, if you're a born-again believer, if you're born again, say amen. You're twice his. You need to understand that you're twice his.
[33:36] You're his because he made you, and you're his because he redeemed you. You're his because he made you, and you're his because he saved you. You're his because he made you, and you're his because you're his son. You're his because he made you, but he purchased you with his blood.
[33:51] You gave up ownership. You see, people who own themselves go to hell. Self-made men go to hell.
[34:07] Second thing that happens in that, he said, why are you stealing my glory? He said, that's why I've cursed you. That's why I'm not blessing you. See, the curse, you remember, is the opposite of the blessing. Malachi 3.10, he said, not only that, you're hindering my work.
[34:20] You're hindering my work. They weren't just robbing God of his glory. They were hindering the work and worship of God. Malachi 3.10 says, bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be meat in my house.
[34:36] This is Old Testament. It's the temple. But the needs of the men of God were met via these tithes. Their giving was their worship, so if they didn't give, there could be no worship.
[34:47] Their whole worship system was based on bring a lamb, we'll kill the lamb. Bring some grain, we'll offer some grain. The work for God in the temple was based on their giving.
[34:58] And he said, guys, you've stopped giving. There's no meat in the house. There's nothing to sacrifice. There's nothing to honor God with. That's what it says there. So when we don't give, we hinder the work of God too.
[35:13] Not only that, they were robbing themselves. Because when you're not a giver, you rob yourself. You believe this passage. You see in Malachi 3, verse 10, I skipped it, but I'm a little late here.
[35:27] Two minutes over already. He said, bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse and prove me if I won't bless you. That's what he told them Jews. He told those Jews in the Old Testament, you'll find out you can't, I'm not beholden to nobody.
[35:41] That's old-fashioned talk for I don't owe you. You give to God, God will bless you and take care of you. And he said, won't you prove me? Won't you prove me? When I was a missionary in Peru, living in the biggest poverty-stricken place I could imagine at that time in my life, they were making $25 a month and I arrived in the town and the first thing I taught them was how to give and how to tithe.
[36:04] And even other missionaries said to me, what are you doing? They don't have anything to give. I said, that's why they've got to learn to give. They need to prove God. You need to prove God. You're here this morning, you're broke.
[36:15] You start honoring God a little bit. But he said, you're robbing yourself because guess what I would do if you'd tithe? Malachi 3.11. Look at it.
[36:25] He's talking to these Jewish people. He said, I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes. You see what he said? He said, I'll rebuke the devourer. And he, the devourer, this whatever it is that destroys what you got, I'll stop it.
[36:40] So there's animals won't eat your food and there's storms that want to destroy your crops and there's rust that wants to eat your stuff up. And he said, I'll stop all that for you if you'll honor me.
[36:52] Look at it. I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes and he shall not cast the fruit of the ground, of your ground. You won't destroy the fruit of your ground. Neither shall that your vine cast your fruit before the time. I'll just bless you.
[37:03] I'll just bless you. I'll just bless you. And then in chapter 3 and verse 12, he said, in all nations will realize, man, oh man, what a country.
[37:16] Because Israel honors God and they are delightful. They are beautiful. Because God's blessing is there. First off, you might not be saved here this morning.
[37:33] If you're not saved, this isn't a game. I hate it when you... I wish you realized, man, we're talking about eternity. We're literally talking about heaven or hell.
[37:44] No time to go to the bathroom. No time to go stretch your legs. This is not the seventh inning stretch. This is the last play of the ball game. Pay attention. Are you saved?
[37:56] Do you know you'd go to heaven if you died? He came in grace. He's coming in judgment. Second, Christians, you know, your checkbook really shows what you think of God.
[38:17] It shows what you think of everything. I like Apple stuff. My checkbook can show that. I mean, I've got an iPad here, an iPhone here.
[38:32] Oh, that's an Apple Watch. I watch. I've got to get one of them, I guess. See, you can find out what a guy likes. Come on. I think you check my checkbook, you'll find out I'm a church guy, too.
[38:44] And a giving guy. And a loving God guy. You understand how you handle your money reveals your attitude towards God. Because the way you're handling your money might be saying, I don't need you.
[38:57] Just check out of my life. I'm not giving to you. I'm not honoring you today. I don't need you. I'm a self-made man. I don't need you. I'm strong on my own account.
[39:08] I don't need you. I own my own stuff. I don't need you. I own this store you gave me. That's an attitude. That's robbing God of his glory. How do you handle your money?
[39:24] If you think of yourself as not needing God, that says a lot about you. Are you guilty of robbing God of his money? Blunt truth.
[39:39] If you was a millionaire and dropped a million dollars in the plate, God is not that interested in your money. I might be. I'm not saying I wouldn't be. You won't do that.
[39:50] We'll pay the building off and start another one. Say amen. But Jesus was down at the temple back when they were giving the money, and he's leaned up against the wall watching them put their offering in. I think that's funny. Can you imagine Jesus walking through the crowd going, as the offering plate goes by?
[40:05] Mm-mm. Mm-mm. Mm-mm. Mm-mm. And the widow cast in two mites, and he noticed. I think he noticed his two mites. Must have had his binoculars on.
[40:17] He was looking. He was more impressed with the widow with the two mites than he was all the rich guys throwing in the big money. It's not the money. It's not the money. It's being in love with Jesus.
[40:28] Are you in love with Jesus this morning? Are you humbly worshiping God in gratefulness because you know it's all him and all of what he's done?
[40:43] How do you feel about God? Does it show in how you manage your money? Your house shows.
[40:56] Your car shows. Your Apple products show. Here's the deal. Does my love for Jesus show?
[41:08] Hey, God's not against you having a nice house. He loves it. He gives you richly all things to enjoy. First, Timothy, chapter 6. He's all about you having nice stuff. In fact, as he gave you the nice stuff, he just wished you'd act like he gave it to you.
[41:23] Say amen. You know, let a rich guy give you a hundred bucks. He wants a thank you card. Amen. And God gives you life. And you say, fooio on you.
[41:40] It's over. But I think God's spoken. And I think you can't deny it's what the text says. Now, what are you going to do about it?
[41:50] I'm serious. I don't stand up here because I think I'm funny. I know I'm not good looking. I do believe God's speaking.
[42:05] You need to get on your face and say, God, I will give. And I haven't been, but I'm going to start honoring you. You get on your face and say, I will stop stealing your glory.
[42:17] I will stop stealing your honor. I will start treating you like who you are. Quit being chintzy with God. I personally think you ought to treat waiters good.
[42:29] I hate those people that ride on there. I only give God 10%. Well, I don't give God 10%, so I can tip good. I am. That's not what we're going to do. If you're here this morning, you're not saved.
[42:42] He loves you. He died for you. And you can be saved today. This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfred, Georgia.
[42:56] For more information, log on to www.visionbaptist.com where you can find our service times, location, contact information, and more audio and video recordings.