GOD’S WORD FOR JANUARY 8

liveinthelightofourlord January 8, 2024 Leave a Comment

GOD’S WORD FOR JANUARY 8 ~ ~ Malachi 3:17 ~ ~ “’They shall be Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘On the day that I make them My jewels.’”

We are looking at the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, in the book, “How to Read The Bible (as if your life depended upon it) by Dr. Michael Youssef.

MALACHI: THE SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament. It opens with the words, “A prophesy: the word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.” In Hebrew, “Malachi” means “My messenger.” So we don’t know for certain if Malachi wrote it or if an unknown author identifies himself as God’s messenger.

Much of Malachi is in the form of questions and answers. God says to the people, “I have loved you.” The people respond, “How have you loved us?” And God goes back into the history of Jacob and Esau and explains His love for the Jews. The book contains warnings against breaking the sacrificial laws, defiling the Temple with false religious rites, sinning against one another, and breaking marriage vows.

The last two chapters are rich in prophetic content. In chapter 3, Malachi gives us a glimpse of the arrival of Jesus the Messiah, heralded by John the Baptist:

“I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to His temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:1)

Then, in Chapter 4, Malachi searches into the future, to the Day of judgment, the day of the Second Coming of the Lord:

“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.” (Malachi 4:1-2)

We still await the dawning of the Sun of Righteousness, who will return with healing in His rays. He will shed light on our darkness and restore our sight. That is the good news of Malachi.

FOUR CENTURIES OF SILENCE

Malachi was followed by four hundred years of silence – four centuries during which not a single word of Scripture was written. Those four hundred years form a gap between the Old and New Testaments. Theologians refer to this gap as “the intertestamental period.”

Even though no Scripture was recorded during those years, history marched on. During the Persian Era, 450 to 330 BC, the Persian Empire controlled Judah. Though the Jews had limited self-rule and religious freedom, they were ultimately subject to the Persian authorities. From 334 to 324 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the Achaemenid Persian Empire, and the Jews came under Greek control. Many Jews adopted the Greek Culture, which is why the New Testament was written in Greek.

In 63 BC, the Roman general Pompey conquered Palestine and captured Jerusalem, and Judea came under Roman rule, which is why Jesus was tried and crucified by the Roman provincial government.

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CHARLES SPURGEON:

1 Peter 1:25

“The Word of the Lord endures forever……”

All human teaching shall pass away; but we are assured that the Word of the Lord shall endure (live) forever.

We have a DIVINE GOSPEL; for what word can endure forever but that which is spoken by the eternal God?

We have an EVER-LIVING GOSPEL, as full of vitality as when it first came from the lips of Gd; as strong to convince and convert, console, sustain and sanctify, as ever it was in its first days.

We have an UNCHANGING GOSPEL, which is not today green grass and tomorrow dry hay, but always the abiding truth of God. Opinions alter, but truth certified by God can no more change than the God who uttered it.

Here, then, we have a GOSPEL TO REJOICE IN. Feed on the Word today, and all the days of your life.

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Ephesians 6:10

Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.

Psalm 36:6

“….Lord, You preserve man and beast.”

Psalm 138:8

The Lord will accomplish that which concerns me; Your unwavering lovingkingness, O Lord, endures forever. (You) do not abandon the works of Your hands.

Isaiah 41:13