It is easy for faith to meet the criteria for core value consideration.
After all, the Bible instructs us to “live by faith” (2 Corinthians
5:7), and that “without faith it is impossible to please God”
(Hebrews 11:6). The great love chapter of 1 Corinthians tells us that “Now
abide these three: faith, hope, and love, and the greatest of these is love”
(1 Corinthians 13:10). I’ve always wanted to add, “but not by
much!” Faith and hope are at the very core of the Christian community.
Where faith fits into Malachi’s prophecy is interesting.
The people have been crying out, “Where is the God of justice?”
(2:17). The text indicates their question was less than sincere. Faith can
move mountains, but it cannot camouflage sin. Once again the application from
this writing is that when these core values are not adhered to the result
is judgment: “So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick
to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, and perjurers, against those who
defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless,
and deprive aliens of justice” (3:5).
Two things are going on here, two things that cause one to ask, “Where is God?” The first is sin, which we’ve already discussed, and the second is circumstances. F. B. Meyer stated, “Unbelief puts our circumstances between us and God. Faith puts God between us and our circumstances.” A sermon on the necessity of faith is not only relevant to our people today, it is a prescription for the stressed-out to find rest. George Mueller said, “The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of faith is the end of anxiety.”
This passage continues the frustrated dialogue between God and
His people: “You have wearied the Lord with your words” (2:17).
It is similar to other discussions in the Bible. The inconsistency of the
children of Israel as they left Egypt, and the subsequent conversations between
God and Moses come to mind, as well as Jesus speaking to His unbelieving disciples,
“You of little faith” (Matthew 8:26).
The message of faith is about believing in something that is
not necessarily apparent. Faith is seeing the invisible, hearing the inaudible,
touching the intangible, and accomplishing the impossible. Our responsibility
is to seek God, to look for Him, to listen for His voice. Yet, the greatest
faith may be that which is able to believe even when the heavens are silent.
A victim of the German Holocaust scratched these words into the wall before
his death: “I believe in the sun—even when it does not shine;
I believe in love—even when it is not shown; I believe in God—even
when He does not speak.”
As guilty as the priests and the people were in Malachi’s
prophecy, they are seemingly commended for their faith that God will eventually
appear: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before
me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger
of the covenant, whom you desire, will come” (3:1).
The message of this text is still a call to repentance. You
can mask faith and spirituality by talking the right talk, but watch out what
you are asking for. Ultimately the Lord will appear, “But who can endure
the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears?” (3:2). In today’s
vernacular the message is clear, “You want me? Here I am. Your faith
is about to become sight!”
When we are confronted with a holy God sin will not be tolerated:
“For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.
He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites
and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will
bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem
will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years”
(3:2-4).
True faith can stand the test even in the worst of circumstances.
However, a counterfeit faith will be exposed. The closing verse of this lesson
is interesting: “I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of
Jacob, are not destroyed” (3:6). The faithfulness of God is contrasted
with the deceitfulness of Jacob (trickster), and God’s character wins.
(For the full manuscript
of this sermon go to www.preachersmagazine.org and click on “Sermons”)
This passage is proof that people have always turned to God
in times of crisis. You can realistically state to your congregation, “If
you haven’t had a crisis lately, hold on; one will be coming.”
As uncomfortable as a crisis is, it can also prove to be a great faith builder:
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you
pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through
the fire, you will not be burned” (Isaiah 43:2). The common theme is
a faith that enables you to go “through” the crisis.
In preaching this text you are essentially answering the question posed by the people to God, “What have you done for us lately?” It begins with a prayer of faith that is somewhat less than sincere. It then reveals that God will arrive in judgment and cleanse His people. It ends with a celebration of God’s character. Through it all faith is the victory.
