Day #136: Malachi 2:1-9

BACKGROUND:

Malachi gave the priests a command: they were to honor God. How they were to honor Him is clear from the ways they had failed Him (1:6-14) and from the portrayal of a true priest (2:7). Failure to honor Him would result in their experiencing a curse (hardships). The Mosaic Covenant had included curses for those who disobeyed the Law (Deut. 27:15-26; 28:15-68). These curses were concerned with the people’s physical, mental, and material welfare.

The curse Malachi referred to would affect the priests’ blessings, either their own blessings (as income from people’s tithes and offerings) or blessings they pronounced on the people (Num. 6:22-27). Because of their hearts’ condition, the curse was already in effect.

The priests were then warned of a rebuke that would fall against their offspring if they failes to honor the Lord has commanded. The Lord said He would spread on their faces the waste matter from the temple sacrifices, which ironically were described as festive. The priests would be made as unclean as the offal. Much as it was discarded, so they would be disposed of as well. In other words they would be cast out of service. Then they would realize that the Lord was speaking to them. His purpose in admonishing them was to purify the priesthood so that His covenant with Levi could continue.

The tribal name Levi is used for the descendants of Levi who made up the priestly class. As teachers of the law (God's Word), each priest was to be a messenger. However, since they were not giving true instruction, they were rebuked by the prophet whose very name, ironically, means “My messenger (Malachi).” Their teaching caused many to stumble because they themselves had turned from the one true way. The priests were despised and humiliated before all the people. This actually was a light sentence, for their penalty should have been death (Numbers 18:32).


SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

Malachi is such a foundational portion of Scripture. It lays out once again the priority of purity a=in leadership and the priority of God in our finances. Today, I want to remind all of us from God's word of what God requires of those in the ministry.

In 1 Timothy 3, we have God’s checklist for ministers. Ten character qualities of a minister. Ten character qualities of a servant. Ten character qualities of a lay leader.

1. 1 Timothy 3:8, says, “A deacon or a servant of the church must be worthy of respect.” In the New English Bible it says “men of high principle.” That means a committed Christian. The first quality of someone who serves is you must be A COMMITTED CHRISTIAN.

The opposite of “worthy of respect” or “of high principle” means shallow or silly or frivolous or superficial. This means a commitment to the Lord, a commitment to serving the Lord. A stability and dignity of someone who understands the importance of what we’re doing.

2. The second qualification for being a minister is NOT A GOSSIP. Why? Because as you serve in the church you’re going to hear all kinds of things as you talk with people. So you can either create problems, you can put out fires or you can fan fires. The Bible says “not double tongued”. That means you say one thing to one person and something else to somebody else. Not a gossip, not a talebearer, not a revealer of secrets, “sincere, not indulging in double talk” If you’re going to be effective in ministry, you’ve got to learn how to keep a secret. You’ve got to learn how to keep a confidence. I could blackmail hundreds of people from what I know. But that’s not my purpose in life. My purpose in life is to minister to people, help people, not tear them down, not destroy them.

3. “Not indulging in much wine, neither given to excessive drinking, they should be temperate…” The word there literally in Greek means “not addicted”. It’s the word for addiction. So the third qualification to be a minister is NOT ADDICTED to anything. I’m working in what God wants in freedom. In a society like ours, in a position of leadership, the Bible says we’re to live above reproach. The Bible says strong drink is definitely out. On a personal conviction, none of the pastors at COV drink. Why? Because we want to live above reproach. If you want a good passage on this, read Romans 14. That says “each person must come to a decision in their own life that says it’s better to not eat meat or drink or do anything that causes somebody else to stumble.” So from a position of leadership you must always look and say, “What am I saying to the world?” The Bible says, “not indulging in much wine, neither given to excessive drinking.” That means not addicted to anything.

4. In order to serve in the service of the Lord, I need to be HONEST WITH MY MONEY. It says here “… not pursuing dishonest gain…” The Good News version says “…not greedy for money…” Part of this I think involves not getting involved in get-rich-quick schemes. If you’re going to serve the Lord effectively, we discourage people being involved in some direct marketing thing to people in the church. Because then people never know why you’re being nice to them. Are you being nice to me to minister to me or to get me on your down line. He’s saying here, nobody should ever question your motives why you’re being a friend to them. Nobody should ever question, Do they want my money or do they want to get to know me and be friends? I’m to be honest with my money and not greedy.

5. The fifth qualification of a deacon or a servant or a minister is THEY MUST LOVE GOD’S WORD. It says “they must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience.” Notice “deep truths… with a clear conscience.” A clean life is the key to being well grounded in the word. I’ve found that when there’s an area of my life that I feel guilty about, I tend to overlook those passages. Have you noticed that? We tend to read the scripture with blinders on. “I don’t want to see that because it makes me feel guilty.” So it says if I have a clear conscience, I can let the Bible speak to me and I don’t tend to overlook anything. We need to love God’s word. The way we love God’s word is by maintaining this personal purity.

6. The sixth qualification for being a servant or minister or a deacon in the church it says “First, they must be tested and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve.” Phillips translation says, “Let there be a period of probation.” What he’s talking about is that people should be around for a while as they begin to serve.

I’ve noticed, having pastored now for a number of years, that people are not always what they appear to be. Have you discovered that? I can’t tell you how many people who have walked through the doors of this church enthusiastic, motivated, excited … and immature as all get-out. They’re excited and give you a great resume and all but then six months later they’re flaking out. What it’s talking about here is WILLING TO BE ACCOUNTABLE.

The Greek here means “tested for the purpose of approval”. It’s not to find fault with somebody but to approve them. You’re willing to be accountable to others. People who say, “I want to serve but I don’t want to be accountable to anybody,” – that’s a loose cannon. We all need to be accountable to each other. The Bible uses that 58 times. We’re to love one another, care for one another, encourage one another, and so on.

7. In 1 Timothy 3 Paul goes back and repeats a couple of them specifically for women. So numbers 7 and 8, he just goes back over what he said before. “Likewise, you women, must be worthy of respect.” Some translations, by the way, say “wives”. That the wives of deacons should be this. But that’s a cop-out because the word in Greek is the word gunaikeios. That’s the word we get “gynecology” from. It means “woman”. It doesn’t mean “wife”. It’s not the word for wife. When you see a translation that says “Likewise the wives of deacons should be…” that’s a cop-out of somebody who wanted it to mean that.

It’s just the word for “woman”. If you look in the New International Version it says “wives” and then at the bottom it says “or women”. They recognized that they were just putting in a bias. The point here is that women who serve in ministry are to be WORTHY OF RESPECT just like the men. It’s just talking about being beyond reproach in your current spiritual life.

It’s not talking about all your past. When it talks about “beyond reproach,” it’s not talking about all your past. If you had to be perfect through all your past, none of us would get to serve. None of us. It’s talking about “beyond reproach” in your current lifestyle, living right now. Paul talks about it in Corinthians. He says, “A bunch of you were murderers, thieves and fornicators, and on and on and now you’re going to heaven. That’s the grace of God. The grace of God is that God uses ordinary people.

I’ve written here five or six reasons why I support the ministry of women in our church. By the way, I see not one example in the New Testament or the Old Testament of a woman elder. Not one. But there are many, many incidences of women ministering in the scriptures. I believe that as long as they’re serving in the church body, just like men serving in the church body, and we’re accountable to each other, then the sky’s the limit.


8. Also talking to women, it repeats “women are NOT TO BE GOSSIPS.” He’s repeating what he’s already said to me. “Not gossips, but self controlled, faithful in all things.” Phillips translation says, “must be women of discretion and self controlled, women who can be trusted.” Paul is just repeating these for emphasis.
Then the last two qualifications.

9. “The husband of one wife” “should be a faithful husband,” Literally in Greek it means a one woman man. The application to that is if you’re married be loyal. It means being faithful to your marriage. What about singles? It’s not saying if you’re single you can’t serve in the ministry. There are many examples in the scripture of single people ministering. One of the principles of Bible interpretation is that you always interpret an unclear passage in light of a clear one. So when there are many, many clear passages that say, for instance, that singles can serve and minister (and that’s all through 1 Corinthians 7 and many other passages) then you know here that it’s not saying you have to be married to minister. It’s just saying that if you are married you’d better be a one-woman man or a one-man woman, that you’re not a skirt chaser, a flirt, immoral, lascivious. It means you’re faithful to your marriage.

10. You need a strong family life. “… must manage his children and his household well…” The Living Bible says they should have “happy, obedient families.” There are two interesting things here. First, happy and obedient… you say you’ve got half of that! God holds you responsible to your children but you are not responsible for all the decisions of your children. I can do all I can to raise my children in godly ways. But the moment they started school, I lost control of them and so did you. I can’t control the friends they choose at school. I can’t control what they hear. There are many things out of your control. You’re responsible to your children, to raise them in a godly way, to do what you can. But every child makes their own choices. Just like your parents don’t get blamed for every choice you’ve made.

There’s no perfect family. But he’s just basically saying that if your family life is a mess you don’t need to be adding responsibilities of ministry at this time. Some people use ministry to escape from family problems. So they’re always at the church and they’re running from a bad marriage, a bad family situation. God says, get that priority fixed first. Work on that and get that going. As ministers, as deacons and deaconesses, we need to be role models of solid marriages.

Look at the results of working on these requirements. 1 Timothy 3:13 says, “Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.” . If you have served well in your ministry, it says they “gain an excellent standing.” That means you’re respected by other people. One of the benefits of serving Jesus is that other people respect you. They see the good you’re trying to do. You gain an excellent standing and great assurance in your faith in Christ Jesus.

Bottom Line: The Bible sets the bar high for those who would be in leadership. Ponder these things today. I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.