An Unusual Robbery

AN UNUSUAL ROBBERY

Mal. 3:8-12

INTRODUCTION

A. HUMOR

1. A pastor of a country church was talking to one of his church members about tithing. He asked him, “Jim, if you had 100 horses, would you give 10 of them to the Lord?” The farmer answered, “Yes Pastor, I’d give 10 of them to the Lord.”

2. “Well, Jim,” said the Pastor, “If you had 100 cows would you give 10 of them to the Lord?” The farmer answered, “Yes Pastor, I’d give 10 of them to the Lord.”

3. Then the Pastor said, “Jim, if you had 10 pigs would you give 1 of them to the Lord?” The farmer said, “Now cut that out, Pastor, you know that I have 10 pigs!”

B. TEXT

8 “Would anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the entire nation of you! 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put Me to the test now in this,” says the Lord of armies, “if I do not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. 11 Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruit of your ground; nor will the vine in the field prove fruitless to you,” says the Lord of armies. 12 “All the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of armies.” Mal. 3:8-12 NASB

C. THESIS

1. This morning we’re looking at a very crucial issue in the life of believers: their willingness to give of their money to the Lord.

2. The title of this message is, “An Unusual Robbery.”

I. GIVING: KEY TO REVIVAL!

A. LONGSTANDING DISOBEDIENCE

1. Leonard Ravenhill wrote a book entitled, “Why Revival Tarries” about what is holding back revival in America. God says in Malachi 3 that the Israelites NOT paying tithes was roadblock to their revival.

2. In verse 7 God indicates their unfaithfulness was a longstanding problem, “From the days of your fathers you have gone away from my ordinances.”

3. No place does the position of our hearts speak louder than in our giving. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” Mt. 6:21.

4. I heard how, when Roman Emperor Constantine commanded his soldiers to become Christians and be baptized, that many of them held their right hands out of the water so they could continue to fight with that hand. Likewise many Christians, when being baptized, in their hearts hold their wallets out of the water!

5. I maintain that if you REALLY get saved, your money will get saved with you! Someone has said that the most sensitive nerve in the body is the nerve connected to the pocket book.

B. BACKGROUND OF THE TIMES OF MALACHI

1. The Jewish people had just returned from captivity in Babylon, where they’d been prisoners for 70 years.

2. Their land was in ruins; the Temple destroyed; Jerusalem was a wasteland of broken stones; work was scarce; money was in short supply; all of them were in poverty. On top of this there was a drought and the crops were not growing.

3. Into this situation came God’s word through Malachi, saying, “You are robbing Me!” I can imagine the Israelites saying, “Can’t God see that we don’t have anything? We’re scrounging for food! We can’t pay our rent, we can’t buy new sandals for our kid’s, nor do we have enough grain to make a decent loaf of bread!” I’m sure they said, “I can’t afford to give anything!”

4. Have you ever heard that claim? Have you ever made that claim? The truth is, whatever our level of income or wealth, God expects us to give back to Him a tenth of whatever’s coming in.

5. ILLUS. We’re like a little boy named Billy. His mother gave him 2 quarters – one to put in the church offering and one for an ice cream cone. On the way to church Billy was flipping one quarter in the air and catching it. All of a sudden Billy missed the quarter and it rolled down a storm drain. Billy looked skyward and said, “Sorry God, I lost Your quarter!”

II. THE CHARGE: ROBBING GOD

A. HOW CAN “NOT GIVING” BE ROBBERY?

1. What is the tithe? One-tenth of all your income of whatever source. Lev. 27:30,32, “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord.... the tenth shall be HOLY to the Lord.”