This Day in History: 0000-03-01

March 1 – Malachi 3:1-7 

“Look, I am sending My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to His temple. The Messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“But who will be able to endure it when He comes? Who will be able to stand and face Him when He appears? For He will be like a blazing fire that refines metal, or like a strong soap that bleaches clothes. He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord. Then once more the Lord will accept the offering brought to Him by the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as He did in the past.
At that time I will put you on trial. I am eager to witness against all sorcerers and adulterers and liars. I will speak against those who cheat employees of their wages, who oppress widows and orphans, or who deprive the foreigners living among you of justice, for these people do not fear me,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed. Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 

Do we live our lives like the Lord is going to come back?  Do we live like it could happen today?  The Bible is very clear. He is coming again.  It is for sure!  And when He does, who will be able to endure it?  Who will be able to stand and face Him when He appears?   

This warning in Malachi spoke of the first coming of Jesus. Malachi was the last book of the Old Testament.  The last word from the Lord before He went silent for quite a while.  Not until John the Baptist appeared to prepare the way for Jesus Christ, just as this passage foretold, did God speak to His people through the prophets again.  What do you think happened during that time?  Do you think the people took the warning seriously and prepared for the coming Messiah?  Do you think they accepted the invitation at the end and returned to Him?  Sadly, no.  They did not.  Instead, in His silence they became complacent.  They began to doubt that Messiah would indeed come.  They trusted the experiences of their temporal world rather than the eternal promises of Scripture.  How short-sighted we humans are prone to be! Have we allowed the same to be true of us? 

Dear sisters, Jesus Christ, the Messiah, DID come!  Just as He said He would.  He did come like a blazing fire, or a strong soap, rebuking the religious elite who had so greatly misrepresented their God.  He fashioned whips and turned tables as He purified His temple, ultimately choosing to make His home in the hearts of the people He came to save.   Let us never be like these shortsighted Israelites! 

When He left this world, Jesus promised to come again. Just as He did the first time, He will certainly fulfill this promise.  There is no surer bet we could ever make.  So, let’s not become complacent as we wait.  Let’s be ready every day.  Let’s live a life surrendered to Him so that when He does come we WILL be able to endure.  Let’s live in line with His Spirit so that when He comes we WILL be able to stand in His presence with confidence, knowing that we have been made right in His sight through the precious blood of Jesus Christ!  Let’s be ready!