HOW HAVE WE OFFENDED THE LORD?

A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the LordAlmighty

“It is you priests who show contempt for my name.“But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’7 “By offering defiled food on my altar.

“But you ask, ‘How have we defiled you?’“By saying that the Lord’s table is contemptible. 8 When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.

Good morning faithful believers in the Lord.

We thank our God for such a wonderful time and day like this.We thank him for keeping watch over us during the night and granting us life for us to live and worship him through Christ Jesus our Lord and saviour.May his name be praised now and forever more.

Many christians today are still living like the days of the Israelites, always rebelling against God.We do these things either intentionally or as a result of our ignorance.

This takes us to the question, how have we offended God?

Reading this passage from Malachi which is the last book in the old testament, one may be tempted to say this passage is not applicable to us in this generation, unless you read it in line of whom God is and what he requires of us.

In our generation we no longer sacrifice animals to God  because the greatest sacrifice has already been made through the precious blood of Christ.If that is the case one will continue to ask, how then have we offended God.

From this passage God list certain things that the people did which despised the name of God.

First of all God talks about priest offering polluted food upon his alter.

He went ahead to explain what he means by polluted by listing specific things which I want us to think of them deeply.

1) BLIND ANIMALS

2) LAME or SICK

These three description of the sacrifices offered by the priest is very applicable to us.We have been bought by the precious blood of Christ and as a result we no longer live in the passion of our former ignorance, the things we never knew were wrong or perhaps knew but because we were dead in sin went ahead to do them, now that we are in the light, God does not not expect us to continually live in such darkness.

We also see in this passage the Jealous nature of God and how He expect us to give our all to him not part of us but our all.Not just also our all but the best quality time and moment of us.God talks about sick or lame animals in those days, in our generation we are not offering lame animals but instead we give much and quality time to perishable things and give very little or no time for God.

If we continually live in sin and darkness, then it means we are blind and God does not delight in us been blind in our christian walk.He love to see the beauty of his holiness in us.

Also if we give more time to perishable things but cannot equally give quality time for God, then it means our christian walk is sick or lame.

God making a comprising between him and the rulers of the world should tell us how much he loves and cares for us, and how he want us to serve him in sincerity and obedience.

Take some time in the day, search yourself to see the various ways you have offended God,if there is or are any, run to him, confess your sins and believe in Christ, then you will see the light and your christian walk shall never be dark.

God bless you