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Love Grown Cold: Study Of Malachi
"Because
lawlessness is
increased,
most people's
love will grow
cold." Matthew
24:12
Open It
1. What unique relationship do you treasure?
2. When you are displeased about something, how do you express yourself?
3. When have you felt taken for granted or treated with disrespect?
Overview/Commentary
Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament is a discouraging document. The days of Ezra and Nehemiah were past, and no imprint seemed to be left on the people of Judah. Again we find them sliding down toward sin and spiritual apathy, trapped in the old patterns, but now completely indifferent to Malachi's call for another fresh start.
We as people must be reconciled not only to God but to one another, "or else I will come and strike the land with a curse" (Malachi 4:6). Reading this book, the last testimony to the men and women of the return, a peculiar realization grows. God's people have lost their vision of God, and of their own future.
This is important for us to grasp, because the principle applies to us as well as to Israel. We too are forced to live with imperfection—our own imperfection as well as that of those around us! It is so easy to become discouraged when we try and try again, and still seem to fail.
When we lose sight of our destiny, and when we fail to grasp the reality of growth, our motivation to live for God begins to die. This is what happened to the people of Judah in Malachi's day. They had looked inward, lost sight of the destiny ahead, and abandoned hope for personal growth and change.
Malachi's book is organized around a series of seven sarcastic questions posed by the people of God in response to God's words to them. These questions show a definite rejection of the divine viewpoint; they show how far Judah's loss of a sense of destiny had caused them to drift spiritually.
In looking at these questions, it is easy to see some of our own attitudes reflected. In God's response we can hear His call, inviting us to turn our steps again toward our destiny.
I. Prepare
Jot down where you personally want to be in 10 years.Have each of your group members jot down, and then share, where each wants to be in 10 years. See the "Link to Life 1" explanation.
● Link to Life 1:
Prepare your group for a study of Malachi by "dreaming." Ask each member to jot down where he or she wants to be in 10 years. Explain that "where you want to be" should include all one's goals—personal, financial, and especially spiritual—the kind of person you want to be.
After each has jotted down his or her dream, share these in groups of four or five.
Then explain that what we find in Malachi is a definition of what can keep an individual or a people from realizing its dreams of growth and change.II. Explore
Love lost (Malachi 1:1-5)
4. What did God claim for Israel? (1:2)
5. What was the judgment of Edom? (1:3-5)
The Book of Malachi begins with an affirmation: " 'I have loved you,' says the Lord" (Malachi 1:2). What a starting point in our relationship with God! It is not that we loved God. He loved us and, acting in love, He delivered His people.Yet the people of Malachi's day replied with a plaintive whine: "How have You loved us?" It is as though a child, used to plenty, complains because he's been denied some new toy. With all the evidence of history and with all their present prosperity, Judah could still claim to be uncertain of God's love!
God's answer is to point to the fact that He chose their ancestor Jacob over his twin Esau (who was the ancestor of the people who even then surrounded Judah). God's love was demonstrated primarily in that He chose to establish a relationship with His people; love draws us to Himself.
The phrase, "Esau I have hated" (Malachi 1:3), bothers many. It seems best to understand this expression not as a statement of feeling or attitude but as a legal term. In that day a father used this terminology in legally designating one son to inherit his possessions while decisively rejecting the claim of another. By custom such a rejected son really was loved. And he was given resources to make his own way. But the legally "loved" son inherited.
God has shown His love for us in that He has chosen us to inherit all that He has and is, for we are His people, and He is our God.
Honor denied (Malachi 1:6-9)
6. What was God’s complaint against Israel? (1:6-14)
7. How were the priests implicated in contemptible worship practices? (1:8-10)
God's complaint against Judah is that, though He has called this people into a relationship with Himself, the people have refused to honor Him. This goes beyond disrespect; they have despised God's name (Malachi 1:6). As the prophet pointed out, a son honors his father—and God had been a Father to Judah. A servant shows respect to his master; and God was rightly called "Lord" and "Master" by His people. Why then was God treated in Judah as unimportant?
The people of Judah react to this charge with another caustic reply. You can almost hear the tone of outraged innocence. "How have we despised Your name?"
In answer God simply pointed to the mildewed bread on His temple's altar; to the ill and injured animals offered as sacrifices. Why, these people were offering to God what they would never dare to present to a human governor!IV. Get It
8. Israel was guilty of giving God leftovers. In what way do we sometimes give God leftovers in our worship? in our finances? in our time?
9. How does God deal with you when you give Him less than your best?
V. Apply It
Do the chart study suggested in "Link to Life 2". Working as a group,
define the issue involved; look at how the underlying attitude of the people was
expressed in their acts, and suggest ways this attitude might be expressed in
our day.
This chart study will provide a mastery
of the material in Malachi, and serve as a solid foundation for application.Link to Life 2: Youth / Adult
To reach personal spiritual goals—and other healthy goals that can be achieved only through God's blessing—we need to avoid the attitudes and actions that we see revealed in Malachi.
Lead your group in a chart study of this book, looking together at each section of the book as discussed in the commentary.
As you look at each section, first identify the issue that Malachi dealt with. Then look at the patterns of thought and behavior that revealed the attitude of the people of his day toward this issue.
Finally, in the third column of the chart, jot down modern parallels. What contemporary attitudes and acts would show that we have become lukewarm, as did the Jews of Malachi's day?
Chart: Malachi Study Chart
-
Issue Judah's pattern Modern patterns
10. What attitudes or actions can you change to show honor to the Lord?
That is, suggest how a person can grow in commitment to the Lord. For instance, the people of Malachi's day ignored God's love as expressed in His choice of their nation. We can remember God's love, expressed in Jesus, who has loved and saved us. Or note that the people of Malachi's day withheld their best from God. We can give Him our best.
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