Does it Matter How I worship?

Intro

Romans 12:1–2 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

now, why would we start out a sermon in the Old testament with a verse in the new testament?

usually we read somehthing in the OT and then link it and interpret it in light of the NT. But I want to start out, as we go through this chapter I want us to keep Romans 12 fresh in our minds because it’s going to help us interpret not just chapter 1 of Malachi also the question thats the title of this series: Does it really matter how I worship?

Background

Malachi is generally regarded as one of the last, if not the last, prophetic words God spoke to Israel before going silent for more than 400 years. Which is one of the reasons our protestant bibles places it as the last book in the old testament.

timeline wise, Malachi is a contemporary of Ezra and Nehemiah.

so to refresh your memory: after several hundred years of rebellion, the northern kingdom of Israel is destroyed by the Assyrians. The southern Kingdom of Judah is destroyed by the babylonians.

they spend 70 years in captivity and then God allows them to return to Israel. Ezra helps rebuild the temple

Nehemiah helps rebuild the walls of jerusalem and then serves as a governor for a little while.

but even though these things are rebuilt, doesn't mean everything is right.

in fact, a LOT was wrong. hence the word of the Lord coming to Malachi.

Now, Malachi is written a little differently than the other prophets. there’s not visions of heaven or the throne, or strange displays in public.

in fact, we don’t even really know who Malachi was. He’s quoted a LOT by Jesus and Paul. especially when Paul wrote Romans but His name simply means messenger of the Lord.

and the message of the messenger is very intense.

The book Malachi is a call for the renewal of Israel’s covenant fidelity instead of living in hypocrisy and false holiness.

and Malachi writes the message in almost a mocking and satirical format.

There are six disputations, or disputes, That the Lord brings against Israel.

If you can imagine yourself in a courtroom, there is a point in the beginning of every trial where the charges against the defendant are read off.

In Malachi, God brings 6 charges against Israel and they all have to do with Worship.

with How the Israelites are worshiping.

in one sense, as far as the eyes can see, everything is right but as God reads off the charges He reveals their worship as nothing more than religious lip service.

and lip service and heart service are not the same thing.

which brings us to the title of this series: Does it matter how I worship God?

In Chapter one, we’ll be looking at the first two charges and we’ll see why it matters because of Who it is that we are worshipping. and how we are worshipping.

The main point for this sermon is: We are charged to give to God what is good, acceptable, and perfect.

Let’s go to the text

The first thing we see is:

God declares his love for Israel

Malachi 1:2–5 ESV

“I have loved you,” says the Lord. But you say, “How have you loved us?” “Is not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob but Esau I have hated. I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.” If Edom says, “We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of hosts says, “They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called ‘the wicked country,’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.’ ” Your own eyes shall see this, and you shall say, “Great is the Lord beyond the border of Israel!”

Right out of the gate the Lord declares and affirms his love for Israel. and he does so in three ways:

His word

“I have loved you”

the fact that he says it plainly is evidence enough but God’s character supports his statement to the point that there is no doubt whatsoever to his words.

He says he loves Israel and therefore it’s true.

Numbers 23:19 “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?”

so he declares his love with his word

2. He declares his love with his elective choice.

Is not Esau Jacob’s brother? essentially God is asking rhetorically: what is the difference between Jacob and Esau?

and the answer is nothing! Just a quick glance through Genesis show us that Issac’s Twins were terrible. both were liars, both were manipulative, both had messed up relationships with their parents and wives. both were sinners.

but the one difference between them was that Jacob had undeservedly recieved God’s sovereign mercy. and because of that, had a privileged role in God’s redemptive history. where as Esau experienced God’s rejection of the same role.

It didn’t have anything to do with the potential good that could be done by Jacob, and it wasn’t some arbitrary eemy meeny miney mo situation. Under God’s love and sovereignty, He elected Jacob.

Paul uses this as an illustration to describe the doctrine of election in Romans

Romans 9:16 “So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.”

Malachi says do you want evidence of my Love for you, Israel? I chose you. out of my mercy, my grace, I chose you.

and 3. He declares his love by his provision.

We see this as the comparison of the decedents of Israel and the decedents of Esau - the edomites.

Israel is given a land, a title, grace, and even after their rebellion and exile, God’s judgement is only temporary. His judgement of the sinful edomites he says is forever.

This looks a head to the coming judgement of Edom.

Despite this threefold assertion of the love of God towards Israel did you notice how they react to God’s love?

Malachi 1:2 ““I have loved you,” says the Lord. But you say, “How have you loved us?”

shockingly enough, Israel doubts God’s love for them and replies back How? how have you loved me?

and this is the start of a defensive attitude that Israel has with the Lord throughout this book. Every time a charge is read against them, they respond defensively. They are attempting deniability. blame shifting and taking the responsibility off themselves. Which is is not surprising and it shows us exactly where their hearts are.

They look at their history. Israel being destroyed and interbred, Judah being destryoed and stolen away in captivity, and the edomites at this time still in their kingdom and they incorrectly determine that God must not distinguish between Good and Evil.

To think this today, The Lord is constantly working on our hearts. and when he exposes things in our worship, it’s because we’re not following or thinking rightly.

and that leads us to the next session. because this is Israel’s thinking we see:

Israel’s response to God’s love

Malachi 1:6 ESV

“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. But you say, ‘How have we despised your name?’

God declares basic feelings towards him, honor, respect.

a father and honor references a relationship. you honor your father

and if God isn’t your father he’s absolutely your master. and the rule and sovereignty of God command fear and respect. but that is longer the case for the priests. which is almost worse.

to not honor God as your father is one thing. but to assume your standing approach the omnipotent God of the universe without reverence is another thing entirely.

but you say how have we despised your name? There’s that deniability again

The main sin of the priests which God covers in this, the second charge and later again in the 5th is that because God isn’t blessing them, that he doesn't care. and if he doesn't care about me, then its not too important how we worship him.

Thats when they start shirking their responsibilities as priests by letting sick, blind, lame, polluted food offerings be sacrificed on the alter. directly violating the law of God in Leviticus 22 an in Deuteronomy

it was the priest’s job to inspect the offerings of the people to make sure they were pure. but now they’re just letting anything be sacrificed.

God tells them their governor wouldn’t even accept an offering this terrible but then they expect God to accept it? and then bless them for it?

Malachi 1:10 “Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand.”

vs. 11 is beautiful it refers to a time in the future when All of God’s people from the nations will be grafted in and given priestly duties and offer acceptable offerings

but he returns to the present to condemn the priests and says “you guys aren't even doing this correctly now”

Malachi 1:14 ESV

Cursed be the cheat who has a male in his flock, and vows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished. For I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name will be feared among the nations.

a question that pops up from hearing God’s word is the same question the priests ask; is why is this such a big deal?

why are pure sacrifices such a big deal to God?

Mark Dever says in his thoughts on this chapter

it’s a violation of God’s law. simple enough and any violation of God’s law is sin. the priests are actively sinning in the temple by allowing these polluted sacrificed

its a reminder of what the requirements are for forgiveness. every time a priest inspected a lamb or bull or dove for blemishes and deemed it to be worthy, it would be a glaring representation of what he was not. this lamb was perfect. he was not. and in order for me to experience forgiveness for my sin instead of death, something perfect was going to have to die in my place. that’s what it takes. so without a pure sacrifice in the temple, there is no forgiveness of sins.

and this should then point us to why we need Jesus. who was our perfect high priest. who offered up the perfect sacrifice for our forgiveness. himself.

Israel saw what happened to northern kingdom, they just got back from captivity, the see their enemies around them seem to be doing well. No doubt they are living in a time of political, economic, and spiritual weakness. Their conclusion is that God must not really love us. and it affects their hearts in such a way that they provide lip service, and all the functions of their religion. but their hearts are far from an attitude of worship.

What I am afraid of is: How often do we commit the same sin as the priests and never realize it?

we look at our finances

at the trouble in our marriage,

at the wrong that was done to us

and we say to ourselves, if God really loved me I wouldn’t be going through this.

but out of obligation we roll into this room on Sunday, we sing the songs, and even fellowship with one another

How often do we let our circumstances control our worship?

I like to keep a prayer journal. It helps me to keep my thoughts together and I also like to look back and see how God has been faithful to me. Recently I found a prayer I wrote that describes a similar situation. I was working a job that was not enjoyable. the nature of the work took an extreme toll on my mind and my emotions that I started to struggle with anxiety attacks. And this was a job that I had prayed for. and I remember at the time i wrote this prayer I thought that I was just bearing my soul but in reality I was just questioning God. Do you really love me?

I am guilty of letting my circumstances control my worship

friends, respectfully, How is this different than the begrudging lip service of the priests?

Of course it matters how you worship God because God isn’t concerned with your sincerity, He’s not after a list of rule to be followed, HE wants you. He created us to be beings of worship and even in the middle of our issues, He wants our heart. not our hipocracy.

so how do we avoid this?

Reflect on God’s mercy toward you

if you are here today and are in Christ God has declared his love for you in an even greater way than Israel.

before the foundation of the world He knew you. He chose you, declared his love and affection for you. and then provided a way for you to not just escape his justice but to be justified and then brought into his family and given a role: as a priest for him offering acceptable sacrifices.

2. Respond with true worship

What is an acceptable sacrifice?

That brings us back to Romans 12. You. Your life. your body, your heart presented voluntarily to God in obedience.

Worship is the submission of all our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness; the nourishment of mind with His truth; the purifying of imagination by His beauty; the opening of the heart to His love; the surrender of will to His purpose -- and all of this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless emotion of which our nature is capable and therefore the chief remedy for that self-centeredness which is our original sin and the source of all actual sin.

- Warren Wiersbe

not just your work. but your heart in your work

not just your name. but your name as a member of the body of christ

not just your singing. but a heart that bursts into song from an overflow of the mercy of God

true worship comes from a heart where God is treasured above all human property and praise,

and it aims to inspire the same God-centered passion in the hearts of the congregation.

This is your spiritual worship.

in light of God’s mercy towards your life, this is how you can fulfill the charge to offer what is good, acceptable, and perfect.