Christmas Grace

Yesterday was the first Sunday of the Advent season. We will be focusing on the idea of Christmas Grace and The Reason for Christmas. The birth of Jesus was prophesied hundreds of years before he was born. 

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) “Advent” simply means coming as in Christ is coming. This is referring to His birth in history and in humanity. It meant the welcoming or the arrival of a special king and for us; it is our King of kings. This is what the Old Testament prophecies foretold concerning Jesus’ Incarnation, the Word made flesh for our hope and Atonement that brought us our deliverance. Advent represents our expectation, anticipation, and preparation for who Christ is and what He has done for us. He arrived into the world as a human being, being fully God and fully man. He came to identify as one of us, as the Son of Man, as a baby born in a manger. He came for us, He came for you and He comes into our lives and into our hearts. He is coming again in great power and glory to bring His Kingdom into fruition. Remember what Christmas is about as you experience the sights, sounds, and smells of the season. 

The whole earth is at rest and quiet;

They break forth into singing.

The cypresses rejoice at you,

And the cedars of Lebanon. (Is. 14:7,8)

The glory of Lebanon shall come to you:

The cypress, the plane, and the pine;

To beautify the place of my sanctuary;

And I will make the place of my feet glorious! (Is 60:13,14) 

Welcome Jesus in to your heart and let Him shine in your life this Christmas season.

Finances

We've been discussing the last few days about tithing and honoring God. The Lord challenges us to "test" Him in this act of faithfulness. Don't miss this blessing! We trust God with our eternity - doesn't it make sense that we should trust Him with our finances?

 Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty. Malachi 3:10-12

 The blessings are out of this world - the floodgates of heaven are opened! You can’t out-give God, and when we rob from God we are actually robbing from ourselves. Don’t rob from yourself the spiritual blessings of God’s provision in His church.

Sounds like God's way is the best way with our finances (and everything else).

Amen?

Consequences

Yesterday we looked at God telling His people that they were robbing Him! They were not tithing in the manner that He instructed them. There are consequences to their disobedience. You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse,that there may be food in my house. Malachi 3:9-10

The curse came from disobedience, so it was self inflicted. There are consequences to our disobedience. We shouldn't tithe because we are afraid, but we are to give willingly in response to God’s Great Grace.

The storehouse represents the financing for God's work that is being done. It was a real place in the temple for storage. It always has been God’s way of financing His church, A tithe supports God’s work, but more importantly it puts God first in our lives. Remember the line from the movie, "Show me the money"? If you show me where you invest your money I’ll show you where your heart is.

Tithing

In Malachi 3:6-8 God reveals Judah's biggest offense against Him. “I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’  “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings. 

The tithe is the minimum - it is what is expected from God's people.  In Hebrew tithe means 10%. The Bible talks of not one but 3 tithes. One for the priests, one for the Temple, and one every three years for the poor. That works out to 23+% annually if you're counting. You see God's tithe (that's what it is) is the floor not the ceiling of giving to the Lord's work. God’s tithe not "my tithe" is in recognition that everything belongs to Him. Anything less than 10% is not to be called a tithe but rather a donation or offering.  It all starts from the heart. 
Who do you trust in?

Thankfulness

Happy Thanksgiving! Today focus on giving thanks. Share with God and the world your gratitude. One of my favorite passages of Scripture is Psalm 100, and I'd like to share it with you.

A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

1 

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

2 

    Worship the Lord with gladness;

    come before him with joyful songs.

3 

Know that the Lord is God.

    It is he who made us, and we are his;

    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

4 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

    and his courts with praise;

    give thanks to him and praise his name.

5 

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Remember we're told "to give thanks in all circumstances", so regardless... Be thankful.

“‘“May the Lord bless you

    and keep you;

 the Lord make his face shine on you

    and be gracious to you;

 the Lord turn his face toward you

    and give you peace.”’

A Heart Issue

The worst offense of how people treated God as reported by Malachi was that they were robbing God (3:6-12). How? By withholding their tithes, by giving the worst instead of the best, by giving the least and not the most. Their attitude was, "How little can I give and still keep God happy?"

6 “I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. 7 Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’ 8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’

“In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.

Prepare your heart and engage in an honest conversation with God today about your giving.

Results of the Unfaithful

After 70 years in exile you would have thought that people would have come to their senses and be faithful to the Lord. The last book of the Old Testament tells us a different story. The people in Malachi's day treated God badly by robbing from him. They had become bored with God. Their worship had turned from relational to ritual. As a result:

They offered blemished sacrifices (1:6-14) They offered God their contempt, defiled food, blind, cripples, and diseased animals. They gave their "leftovers" instead of their best.

The priests had become unfaithful (2:1-9) They did not listen and dishonored God with  false teachings.

Divorce was commonplace and easy (2:10-17) They had broken faith and commitment with God and in their marriages.

Their words wearied God (2:17 read) They desired their own justice, and missed they always had a Just God!

Businessmen were cheating their workers, customers, widows, orphans and aliens (3:1-5).  Defrauded and oppressed those around them. There was no justice.

Before we pass judgment on this group let's look at what the New Testament has to say to us. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror  and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. James 1:22-25 

Application?