Found something fascinating in my AM Bible reading in Malachi 3&4 today. 3:13 reads,
“Your words against me are harsh,” says the Lord. Yet you ask, “What have we spoken against you?”
The words “harsh” & “spoken” jumped out at me because I’ve noted them over & over in Jude. ->
“Your words against me are harsh,” says the Lord. Yet you ask, “What have we spoken against you?”
The words “harsh” & “spoken” jumped out at me because I’ve noted them over & over in Jude. ->
Jude v14-15 say, “Behold, the Lord comes with 10,000s of his holy ones...to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness...& of all the HARSH things that ungodly sinners have SPOKEN against him.” (Jude uses “ungodly” a jillion times.) When I’ve noted it in Jude, I’ve
wondered what kinds of things God considers “harsh.” After all, there’s no end to the blasphemous words on human tongues. But what in particular does God flag as “harsh”? What might be an example? Well, Malachi supplies 1 in Ch.3. “Your words against me are harsh...You have said,
“It is useless to serve God.”
Whoa.
I don’t know if that’s what you expected but it was not what I expected. Servant of God, when you’re tempted to conclude that it makes utterly no difference to pour your energies into serving, take note. It makes a huge difference to God.->
Whoa.
I don’t know if that’s what you expected but it was not what I expected. Servant of God, when you’re tempted to conclude that it makes utterly no difference to pour your energies into serving, take note. It makes a huge difference to God.->
Here’s where this gets even more interesting. Read on in Malachi 3 to v.16. “At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another. The Lord took notice & listened. So a book of remembrance was written before him for those who fear the Lord & had high regard for his name.”
So intrigued about the way the Lord pays attention to what humans say about him and how slanderous & harsh he finds any mention that serving him is a waste of time. And the reverse is also true. He overhears us, literally records us, talking to one another about his faithfulness.
This is a God high & lifted up, enthroned between the cherubim who inclines his ear to every word spoken about him on earth. It matters to him what’s said about him. Give him something wonderful & worthy to record today. I bid you good day with these glorious words from Malachi:
“But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings & you will go out and playfully jump like calves from the stall.” 4:2
Serve on, faithful servant. Never think it’s no use. And 1 sweet day we’re gonna play. We’ll jump like happy calves.
Serve on, faithful servant. Never think it’s no use. And 1 sweet day we’re gonna play. We’ll jump like happy calves.
