The B-I-B-L-E

“Yes, I’m on my way to visit you with Judgment. I’ll present compelling evidence against sorcerers, adulterers, liars, those who exploit workers, those who take advantage of widows and orphans, those who are inhospitable to the homeless—anyone and everyone who doesn’t honor me.” A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies.”  Malachi 3:5 The Message
 
Are you married? Are you single? Are you a parent?  Are you a child? Are you an employer, boss, or company owner? Are you employed outside of the home? Are you a homemaker? Are you a pastor? Do you have breath?

Have you ever heard the saying, “I wish life came with an instruction manual? Or perhaps you have heard the acronym for Bible: Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. Regardless of the question or platitude, the Bible has been used by some as a weapon or by others as a flippant answer. But how many truly see the Word of God as the actual life-giving, instructional and correctional Word of the Living God?

The Book of Malachi just may be the premise for which the acronym just mentioned came to be. Now, anyone who knows me, knows that I love me some soft, cozy, fuzzy slippers! This book, however,  requires heavy, steel-toed boots for the reader as it is indeed admonishing everyone – beginning with pastors and ending with anyone drawing a breath.

If we are honest with ourselves, it will not take long for us to see that our world is a mess. Just take a look at any news story, newspaper headline, or a social media post as you scroll through your feed; there is not a shortage of “grab your attention” articles of disarray. BUT, if we want to really be honest with ourselves, we have a part in this demise.

Where did we go so terribly wrong?  When did it happen that our world slid so far off of its axis that we now find ourselves almost wobbling as we rotate around the sun? That’s it!  We are no longer keeping our path in line with the Son!

As a people, we have become so convinced that WE are the world’s axis. We have bought into the lie that our real names are Equator and WE are the center point by which all else rotates and keeps upright. We have believed that WE are the center of the universe and everything and everyone else should realize that it is indeed our world, and they are just allowed to exist within it.

Now, if that sounds absurd or a little extreme, I agree. BUT, let us, just for a moment, accept this as truth. What does YOUR world look like?  Now, remember, this is truth-telling time if only telling it to ourselves. Just for a moment, let’s swallow that truth serum and be really, brutally honest with ourselves. Let’s ask ourselves:

     1.What decisions have I made, thus far today, that were for the benefit, honor, or purpose of someone else completely without regard as to how it would affect, profit, or benefit me?
     2.How many conversations have I had today in which I never mentioned the words “I”, “My”, “Me”, or “Mine”?
       3.Have I spent time thanking God for the good, great, wonderful, and magnificent blessings in my life today?
     4.Have I spent time thanking God for the awful, miserable, heart-breaking, and difficult trials in my life today (as I know that refining takes heat, and testing creates opportunities to see God’s goodness and faithfulness)?
     5.Who have I honored today by celebrating them or by simply being silent while they shared their life with me?

These are but a few questions that can begin to set our focus on how WE have participated in the decline of our current state. We have walked ourselves into the state of oblivion, destruction, and misery as we have followed our own paths under our own leading and guidance. As Malachi puts it, we have not honored God.

I believe that the Word of God - the Bible, is indeed the inerrant, unchangeable, infallible, Holy Spirit inspired, Truth and Holy Word of the Living God. I believe it is full of instruction, correction, and unending love from the heart of our Holy Trinity and that God shows us Himself in the beautiful pages within.

I also believe that, if His Word IS Truth; if the letters we read within the cover of this magnificent Book are to be taken as His Word, then we MUST be willing to accept the correction and instruction as willingly as we accept His love, mercy, and grace. After all, God reminds us in Proverbs 3:11-12 and again in Hebrews 12:6-7 that He disciplines those He loves just as a parent corrects and instructs a child. It is for our protection, and we should embrace this, not as punishment, but as a part of His loving desire to see us NOT suffer.
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I commend the entire Book of Malachi to you. It is a short book, but FULL of wisdom. I encourage you to read each chapter, prayerfully and with a true desire to absorb its richness of instruction. Do not shrink away from its correction and do not bow up in pride or rebellion against its directives. These four chapters, if taken seriously, will certainly give the reader many months of contemplation. It will require commitment and submission to the One that knows us better than we know ourselves. It will require pastors, leaders, bosses, parents, children, and anyone else with breath in their lungs to be yielding to its convictions. BUT, it is in this pliability that we are abled to be molded back into that finest of craftsmanship you were designed to be from the start!

Yes, God's Word is sometimes direct, convicting, and corrective. It is also warm, soft, and comforting. SO - put on those steel-toed boots and dive into Malachi! And, once you have fully taken in all that God has to say through this reading, those fuzzy slippers are going to mean so much more to you!