So we approach the end of the year with a sober warning from Malachi and the glorious presentation of the Bride of Christ in Revelation.
God's words through Malachi in chapters 1 and 2 blast the post-exile priests, who, within just a hundred years of the initial returning wave of exiles, have once again begun profaning the name of God and desecrating His house of worship ~ they're allowing imperfect animals to be offered as sacrifices. And we're not talking small, hidden imperfections either. They're allowing blind, crippled, and diseased animals!! God's Law clearly stated PERFECT, UNBLEMISHED animals were the only acceptable sacrifice, and the priests are teaching the nation by example that it doesn't matter what they give to God.
Not only that, but they're seeing worship and their duty as a burden. They're complaining about God's requirements and design for their lives. Because they broke the covenant that, centuries earlier, God had made with Levi, God essentially made the priests a laughingstock among the people. Everyone knew of their corruption and they were no longer revered or sought out when wisdom or advice was needed. Because they were responsible for leading God's people, they were held to a higher standard and God curses them.
Interestingly, roughly 450 years later, when the veil of the Holy of Holies was torn in half at Christ's death on the cross, that was the end of the line for the priests. The position of human intermediary between God and man was terminated as Jesus became our Great High Priest.
God then addresses the entire nation and accuses them similarly ~ of breaking their covenant relationship with Him. Notice though, that even though God voices His displeasure, there is no curse. He parallels what has happened in Israel as a nation spiritually, with what has been happening among them in reality: divorce. Because our relationship with God is what's to be mirrored in a marriage relationship, the fact that inter-marriage with pagans was again being regularly practiced and divorce was rampant, this was clear evidence that their hearts had turned from God, their deliverer, their first Love.
I find both of these warnings so applicable to us today. Pastors and other spiritual leaders are still leading church-goers astray. Christians ~ at least, particularly those in the Western world ~ are continually plagued with the feeling that church and serving in the Body of Christ is a chore, an obligation. We tend to grumble about not being able to sleep in on Sundays, about having to teach Sunday school or lead singing week in, week out, month after month, year after year... Not many of us see it as a privilege, a high honour.
But when we see the picture of Christ's Bride appearing, the Holy City, made pure and clothed in dazzling robes, covered with every imaginable precious stone, doesn't that give us incentive to change our hearts and our attitudes, to continue seeking to know Him better, and to remember why we love serving God? I think it does. We have an incredible reward awaiting us, and because it's there despite our failings and our sin, we should desire to live our lives as a sacrifice of gratitude to Him ~ faithfully, JOYFULLY serving Him each and every moment until He returns to perfect the work He began in us.
Tomorrow's readings: Malachi 3-4; Revelation 22
2 comments:
Great post Tammi and a wonderful tie in between the two passages. It's pretty obvious that our human tendencies haven't changed from what they were thousands of years from now. Picturing that Holy City's appearing should inspire us to renew our passion for our First Love!
Great post, Tammi. I particularly am feeling what you had to say about serving in the church being a chore or an obligation. Our church lately has had some people complaining that the service should be NO MORE than one hour. They have started shortening and cutting out things like prayer request time and the children's story in order to ensure that the services aren't too long. I don't know about anyone else, but church is only one time a week and it is a PRIVILEGE to be able to attend church and worship freely and openly. Whenever they start rushing through things to get done "on time" it makes me feel like we're just trying to quickly get it out of the way so we can get on with other stuff. I don't like it.
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