People of the Promise: Exile & Return – Lesson 28

 

Malachi was a prophet and wrote to the remnant of Israelites who had returned after 70 years in Babylon captivity.  He was concerned that the people’s relationship to God was not as it should be.  They failed to do what God required of them.  The priests were derelict in their duties, the people had intermarried with foreign nations, they doubted God’s justice, and they neglected to pay their tithes.  Malachi assured them that the Lord God still loves them.  His purpose was to deliver sharp disapproval of their actions, to call them to repentance and to promise future blessing.

Malachi 1-4

God’s Love Revealed To Us – Malachi 1:1-5

What is taking place between God and Israel is God is accusing the people of being unfaithful and disobedient.  They are doubting His love, dishonoring Him with unacceptable sacrifices, breaking the marriage covenant through intermarriage with unbelievers, neglecting their tithes and offerings, and questioning His justice.

Malachi opens the book with the words of God, “I have loved you”.  Even though they have suffered hardships, they were still loved and blessed by God.  Yet they questioned His love.  God offered proof of His love.  He chose Jacob (Israel) over Esau (Edom).  It was not because of any merit of Jacob.  He points out the destruction of Edom as a contrast of His love for Israel.  They may have suffered, but still they were preserved.

God said, “I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated.”  Means that Jacob and his descendants, the Israelites was God’s choice over Esau and his descendants.  He didn’t actually hate Esau.  It’s a way of expressing God’s sovereign decision to bless one lineage while not blessing another.

God makes His love known to us in many ways, but the most important way was by sending Jesus to die on the cross for our sins.

Principle:  God made His love known to us by sending Jesus to die on the cross for our sins.

The Unfaithfulness of Israel – Malachi 1:6 – 2:16

God expected the priests to be faithful and offer unblemished sacrifices.  Instead they despised God by offering polluted and inadequate offerings, showing contempt for His altar and His name.  They displayed bad judgments and failed to uphold God’s law.

Because of what they were doing, God promised to curse the blessings they received.  God would rebuke their descendants.  God threatened to publicly shame them and would make them be despised and humiliated before all the people.

There are many ways people despise God today.  They turn away from Him by pursuing self-glory; they make worldly possessions and achievements a higher priority than God; they don’t turn to God through prayer and guidance; they lack interest in church, studying the Bible, praying and serving others.  They neglect spiritual life and reject biblical truths. 

Malachi 2:5-6 describe God’s covenant with the tribe of Levi.  It was a covenant of life, peace, and reverence.  He used Levi as an example of a true priest.  Levi gave true instruction and nothing false was to be found.  He walked with God in peace and uprightness and turned many from sin.

Malachi 2:10-16 God rebuked them for their treacherous dealings and pointed out specific sins.  They had broken faith, because of their unfaithfulness in marriage; they had desecrated the sanctuary by marrying daughters of a foreign god.  They also had little regard of marriage; they neglected and divorced their wives.  This tells us how God feels about marriage.  It is holy to Him and He loves marriage and hates divorce.  However, God gives permission for divorce in two circumstances – sexual immorality (Matt. 19:1-9) and desertion by an unbelieving spouse (1 Cor. 7:10-16).

Principle:  God is a witness to our actions and He will judge accordingly.

The Call to Return to the Lord – Malachi 2:17 – 3:18

God promised to send a messenger who would prepare the way.  This messenger was John the Baptist.

Malachi 3:6-14 – Israel committed further sins since the time of their forefathers.  They turned away from God’s laws, they robbed God by not giving tithes and offerings.  They are wicked and spoke against God.  God responded by calling for repentance, obedience, and faithfulness.  He promised judgment and also restoration.

Malachi 3:16-18 – God will honor those who fear Him and keep His commandments.  He will distinguish them from those who do not.  He separates the righteous and the wicked with a ‘book of remembrance’ where God records the names of those who honor Him.  The faithful will be rewarded.

Principle:  God loves His people, but expects faithfulness and obedience.

The Messiah Prophesied – Malachi 4

Malachi 1-4 refers to the coming Day of the Lord, the end of time – the day when God will judge sin and evil.  It will be a day of fiery judgment for the wicked.

In Malachi 4:5-6 God gives His final promise of the appearance of Elijah, in order to bring some of the people back to repentance.  This is the last time God’s voice will be heard until the arrival of John the Baptist four centuries later.

Principle:  For those who fear God, He promises healing, joy, and ultimately victory over evil.

Next week we will continue our study in Malachi. -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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People of the Promise: Exile & Return – Lesson 27

 

Nehemiah 11-13

Populating Jerusalem – Nehemiah 11:1-12:26

The leaders of the people settled in Jerusalem.  Nehemiah encouraged volunteers to by casting lots to live in the city.  They would choose 1 out 10 live in the Holy City.  The remaining 9 were to stay in their own towns.  The people commended all those who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.

It was important to populate Jerusalem.  There needed to be people to run it because the leaders couldn’t do it by themselves.  It was also the capital and center of the nation; it was the center of worship.  It was God’s city and called the Holy City.

We see several groups of peoples in these chapters.  Those who choose to stay outside the city and those who volunteered to live in the city.  There were the leaders, the priests, Levites, the  temple servants and people from Judah and Benjamin.

These verses show us about God and His desires for His people.  We see God’s hand in guiding the process.  A man could be chosen, but could decide against moving there.  It’s the same way as choosing to follow Jesus or not.  It’s each person’s choice.  God desires us to volunteer and sacrifice whether it’s sacrifice of our time, resources, or comfort for the sake of others – sacrifice is an essential part of our journey as followers of Christ.

Principle:  Every single person is important in the Kingdom of God.

Dedication of Jerusalem’s Wall – Nehemiah 12:27-47

Levites were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with songs of thanksgiving with music from cymbals, harps and lyres.  There were singers brought from the surrounding villages.  There were large choirs, priests with trumpets and others with musical instruments.  All was the way King David would have wanted it.  Ezra led the procession.  There was joy, thanksgiving, worship, and praise.

The dedication was important because it celebrated the rebuilding of the wall and the restoration of the city.

Principle:  It is important to celebrate with praise, joy and thanksgiving for the blessings of God in our lives.

Protecting God’s House – Nehemiah 13

When the Jews read from the Book of the Law of God, they were reminded that they were not to intermix with the idolatrous nations around them, specifically the Ammonites and Moabites.  So they separated themselves from the foreigners and their influence.

When Nehemiah was away in Persia, the priest, Eliashib, friend of Tobiah, allowed Tobiah to use a large storeroom in the temple that was used for the people’s tithes and offerings - remember Tobiah was an enemy of the Jews and tried to stop the building of the wall.  Nehemiah was furious and he threw all Tobiah’s property out of the room.  Since Tobiah was an Ammonite, the room was not holy anymore and the priest had to make it clean again.  Nehemiah also discovered the people had not given their tithes and gifts to the Levites as promised.  He blamed the officials/leaders because the people had promised to not neglect the house of God.

Nehemiah gave orders to purify the room and returned the space to its original use.  The people again started to bring their tithes into the storeroom.  Nehemiah was wise and appointed a team of good men to look after this work.

This passage shows us that sin is widespread.  We all were dead to our transgression and sins and followed the ways of the world and the ruler of the kingdom of the air, Satan.  We all lived in the cravings of our sinful nature at one time(Eph. 2:1-3).  We all can be influenced by sinful people just as Eliashib was influenced by Tobiah.

We learn from Nehemiah’s  leadership.  His actions demonstrate the need to actively address sin and compromise.  It is important to protect God’s house from outside influences and that there are consequences of disobedience to God’s commands.

Nehemiah saw men working and selling on the Sabbath which was what they promised not to do in the agreement made in Nehemiah 10. The Sabbath day was a sacred day and a day of rest.  Nehemiah had warned them of the potential of God’s anger if they didn’t honor the Sabbath. 

John 2:13-17 tell us of Jesus’ anger when selling was going on the temple.

They had married foreign women, which was another problem.  This was forbidden in the Law because of the corrupting influence of foreigners who didn’t respect God’s laws.

Principle:  Believers should remain detached from the world and its ways, and commit to the continuous study of God’s Word.

Next week we will continue our study in Malachi.  -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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People of the Promise: Exile & Return – Lesson 26

 

Nehemiah 9-10

The Confession – Nehemiah  9

The people gathered together for fasting and dressed in sackcloth and ashes.  This showed an outward sign of mourning.  Sackcloth was like burlap.  It was a sign showing their complete poverty of spirit before God.  They separated from all foreigners, demonstrating a commitment to follow God’s commands and to avoid the influence of other cultures.  It was also a direct command from God to not intermarry with those who worshiped other gods.

They confessed they were sinners and that they came from sinful ancestors.  They confessed the sins of their forefathers.  They worshiped and prayed out to God.  They praised Him as Creator of the heavens, the earth, and the seas.  They remembered the promise God made to Abraham and his descendants.  They remembered and praised God who delivered Israel from Egypt and provided for them in the wilderness.  Yet their forefathers were arrogant and stiff-necked and didn’t obey God’s commands.  They remembered that God was gracious and merciful.

We see the many attributes of God in this chapter: 

God is great and glorious.

He is righteous, merciful, and faithful. 

He keeps His promises.

He always provides.

He is compassionate.

He is slow to anger.

He is sovereign and controls all things.

He is just and good.

The people still felt like they were not free.  Even though they were living in the promised land, they felt a sense of bondage.  They were living under the king of Persia’s rule.  They felt like slaves in their own country because they had to give much of their harvest to the foreign king.  They were not experiencing the full blessings God had promised. (Neh. 9:36-37)

Principle: With confession and repentance we receive God’s forgiveness and realigns our lives with God’s will.

The Agreement – Nehemiah 10

The people made an agreement with God.  Nehemiah listed 84 men who signed the agreement.  In the agreement they promised to obey all the laws of God.  They promised to not allow their sons and daughters to marry the people who belonged to other nations.  They promised to not buy or sell any goods from foreign nations on the Sabbath or any holy day.  Every 7^th year they promised to not work the land and to cancel all debts.

If they broke their oath with God, they would face consequences, including curses, exile from the promised land, and destruction.

The people sealed their binding agreement with God by signing their name.  Today God’s people are sealed when we accept Jesus as our Savior.  We are marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. This guarantees our inheritance and our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. (Eph. 1:13-14 and Rev. 21:17)

It was essential for God’s people to separate themselves from surrounding peoples in marriage and in celebration of the Sabbath to prevent the influence of pagan practices.  God knew if they intermarried, they would turn away from the one true God and worship false gods.

We should maintain purity in our personal life.  We should honor God in our thoughts and actions and get rid of impure thoughts.  We should pray and study our Bible daily for strength to overcome temptations.  We should watch what we participate in including movies, TV shows, books, and anything that promotes impure thoughts.  We should lead by example for our children and build healthy relationships in our home and workplace.

The Israelites promised to maintain the service in God’s temple.   They were to bring meat and grain and their tithes and offerings to the temple.  They should not neglect the temple.

The practical purposes for this separation were to preserve the unique identity of the Jewish people and not dilute their faith and customs.  The spiritual purposes were to recognize God’s authority and to renew their commitment to His laws.  It was an act of repentance, the mourning over past sins, and seeking of His blessings.  They wanted to restore their relationship with God.

Principle:  By putting God first in our lives, we ensure our priorities are aligned with His will.

Next week we will continue our study in Nehemiah.  -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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