Are We Honoring God With Our Best?
June 30, 2024 · 2:20:18 · Watch on YouTube ↗
Summary
Guest preacher Brother Thomas opened the book of Malachi, where God confronts His people with a piercing question: a son honors his father and a servant his master, so where is the honor due to God? Israel kept bringing blind and lame animals to the altar - the leftovers they no longer wanted - while saving their best for themselves. The preacher asked whether we treat God the way we treat the people we respect every day, or whether we hand Him only the scraps of our time, money, and devotion.
Drawing on the kingdom of God, he reminded us that no one can serve two masters and that following Christ means putting our hand to the plow without looking back. Like David, who refused to offer a sacrifice that cost him nothing, we are called to give the Lord what is truly costly. He warned against a casual age that calls evil normal, noting that where the fear of God fades, His Word soon disappears from our lips and our lives.
Finally, from Malachi 3, he addressed robbing God in tithes and offerings, explaining that our time, our resources, and our very lives already belong to Him. God keeps a book of remembrance for those who fear Him and records even the smallest act of faithfulness, and one day He will welcome His faithful servants home.
Key Points
- A son honors his father and a servant his master - God asks where the honor due to Him is.
- Offering God our leftovers dishonors Him; He is worthy of our very best.
- No one can serve two masters; following Christ means not looking back.
- True devotion costs us something, as David refused to give what cost him nothing.
- Where the fear of God fades, His Word disappears from our speech and our living.
- Calling what God hates normal is a danger of our age; sin must be repented of.
- Our time, money, and life already belong to God, so withholding them robs Him.
Devotional
Pause and ask honestly: am I giving God my best, or only what is left over once everyone else has had my time and attention? The Lord who gave His own Son on the cross is worthy of far more than a spare hour squeezed in around busier priorities. Today lay your plans, your resources, and your heart on His altar without holding back the parts you would rather keep. Remember that nothing offered to Him in reverence is ever forgotten, for He writes every small act of faithfulness in His book.
“A son honors his father and a servant his master - so where is the honor due to God?”
“David would not offer the Lord a sacrifice that cost him nothing.”
“Where there is no fear of God, His Word soon vanishes from our lips and our lives.”
