(Re)-Building Programs 101

Scripture Ezra 1:1-4

C.I.: Rebuilding Your Worship to God

Malachi is the final prophet of God in the O.T. (title) – He is writing to two groups; priests & the people. Today God's people are His priests ( I Pt. 2:9 ), thus it completely applies to us. – Malachi follows a consistent pattern: God points out their problem, the people's denial, and God's refutation of their denial. – Let us all be challenged today by God's ancient prophet!!!

I. Five Problems that Hinder Worship, (Book of Malachi)

•  Problem #1: You Deny My Love, (1:2-5)

1. ( 1:2 ), “‘I have loved you,' says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have You loved us?' ‘Was not Esau Jacob's brother?' declares the
Lord. – ‘Yet I have loved Jacob and have hated Esau, and I have made his mountains a desolation….'”
a. Jacob & Esau were the sons of Isaac & Rebekah.
1) Jacob founded the nation of God's people, Israel. – Esau left him to found his own nation, Edom.
2) Thus, God destroyed Esau's land and refused to allow it to be rebuilt. – ( v. 4 ), “Though Edom says, ‘We
have been beaten down, but we will return and build up the ruins'; thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘They may build,
but I will tear it down.'”
3) On the other hand, God's people returned & rebuilt w/His help, ( quote Neh. 6:15-16; Haggai 2:9 ).
b. Loving acceptance of what God has done & true worship go together, ( quote Jn. 4:24; I Jn. 4:8 ).

•  Problem #2: You Despise My Name

1. ( 1:6 ), “A son honors his father and a servant his master. – Then if I am a Father, where is My honor? – And if I am a master,
where is my respect?' says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests who despise My name. – But you say, ‘How have we despised…?'”
a. God gives three ways the people (priests) demonstrate disrespect for the holiness of God…

b. #1 – Giving less than their best, ( v. 8 ), “When you present the blind for a sacrifice, is it not evil? – And when you present
he lame and the sick, is it not evil? – Why not offer it to your governor? – Would he be pleased with you?”
1) When people offer to God less than our best (time, effort, money, etc.) – they should be ashamed!
2) Jesus and the widow's mite, ( Mk. 12:42-44 ), “A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which
amount to a cent. – And calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, ‘Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in
more than all the contributors to the treasury; for they all put in out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty....'”

c. #2 – No one was willing to stand up for God, ( v. 10 ), “O that there were one among you who would shut the gates that
you might not uselessly kindle fire on My altar.” – Altar was where the sacrifice for sins was made.
1) Even though the people offered sacrifices – they meant nothing to them!! (i.e., worthless sacrifices)
2) ( Isa. 30:10 ), “People say to the prophets, ‘You must not say to us what is right, speak to us pleasant words.”
3) God's people, like God's preachers, must only tell people the truth – ( Ezk. 22:30 ), “I searched for a man
among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me to the land, that I should not destroy it;
but I found no one.”
4) When someone talks down Jesus/Christianity – what do you do???!

d. #3 – They were “just going through the motions” of worship, ( v. 13 ), “You also say, ‘My, how tiresome it is!'”
1) God's regulations & ordinances of worship – had become boring to the people – give us excitement
2) Jesus dealt with this same thing, ( Matt. 15:9 ), “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is….”

2. When people: give less than their best, refuse to stand up for God, and just go through the motions of worship – their
worship is hindered before the Lord!

C. Problem #3: You Disregard the Sanctity of Marriage

1. ( 2:13-16 ), “And this is another thing you do: you cover the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping and with groaning, because
He no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. – Yet you say, ‘For what reason?' / Because the Lord
has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your
companion and wife by covenant. / … ‘For I hate divorce,' says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘and him who covers his garment
with wrong,' says the Lord of hosts. – ‘So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.'”
a. We cannot worship God right – when we are treating others (especially our spouse, Matt. 19:6 ) wrong!
1) ( I Pt. 3:7 ), “Husbands, live w/your wives in an understanding way, as with a weaker vessel, since she is a
woman; and grant her honor as a fellow-heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered .” b. Yet this is more a “treat your wife right” statement! – This is an “I hate divorce” statement from God!
1) Sadly, we don't get many “don't divorce” sermons! – But if God hates it – why not?!!
2) Thus, if we want to rebuild our worship – we may need to start close to home!!!

D. Problem #4: You Disrespect God's Offering

1. ( 3:8-10 ), “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! / But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?' in tithes and offerings. –
You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you! / ‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so
that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, ‘If I will not open for you the windows of
heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.'”
a. A “tithe” = 1/10 th . – Under the Old Testament laws – God had commanded a 1/10 of all their produce.
1) We've already seen they brought in the poorest (blind, lame, etc.) of what they owned.
2) Now we see they are even bringing to God less than what His law required!
3) Giving in their day was “an act of obedience” – But today we are called to make it “an act of faith”!!!
b. Today God no longer demands a fixed amount.
1) ( I Cor. 16:2 ), “On the 1 st day of each week, let each one put aside and save, as he may prosper , that no….”
2) ( II Cor. 9:7 ), “Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart ; not grudgingly or under compulsion ….”
c. As is often the case, the “heart of the problem is the problem of the heart.” – May today do not see giving as a heart thing!
1) Some think giving is something we do for man (keep lights on, pay the preacher, provide benevolence, etc.).
2) Yet giving is a “God thing!” – It demonstrates our level of faith, our amount of gratitude, our desire to bless others.
3) Therefore, dismissing the importance of our giving – hinders our worship to God!

E. Problem #5: You Dispute Obedience

•  ( 3:13-14 ), “‘Your words have been arrogant against Me,' says the Lord. – Yet you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?' – You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God; and what profit is it that we have keep His charge. – So now we call the arrogant blessed; not only are the doers of wickedness built up but they also test God and escape.'”
a. The point looked at their obedience and didn't see benefit – and the disobedience of others and saw no loss!!!
1) David also wondered about this, ( Psa. 73:3-5 ), “ I was ?? envious of the ?? arrogant as I saw the ??prosperity of the
wicked. - They are ??not ??in trouble as other ??men, nor are they ??plagued ??like mankind.” - Things are not as they seem!
2) ( Psa. 73:27 ), “Those who are far from You will perish.” – Who here would want to trade places with them??!!!
3) ( Rev. 14:11 ), “And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; and they have no rest day & night.”

b. Yet our obedience to God is part of our worship, ( quote Rom. 12:1 ), “I urge you, therefore, by the mercies of,….”
1) If God did nothing for us – He would be worthy of our profoundest worship! – But He has done all…!
2) ( Rev. 7:14-17 ), “…these are the ones who have washed their robes & made them white in the blood of the
Lamb… – They shall hunger no more, nor thirst … and God shall wipe every tear from their eyes.”

CONCLUSION:

•  FAMILY: Review God's five problems with His people. – We need to ask ourselves, “Could God accuse me of any of these??!”

•  GUESTS: If today you desire to become one of His people – and enjoy all of the blessings of this life & the next… Mk. 16:16!