God's Love

The love of God as well as His might and power is vividly portrayed in the prophecy of Malachi.

Malachi leaves us with feeling that the story is not yet finished. God still has promises to fulfill on

behalf of His people.

The Book of Malachi is the transition link between the Old Testament and the New Testament. It has been called, “the skirt and boundary of Christianity.” The prophet Malachi is the last inspired messenger of the Old Testament. He announced the advent of the Great Messenger of the New Testament. He supported the labors of Ezra, the priest, and Nehemiah, the governor of Judah. He addressed the profane and corrupt character of the priests, the people’s marriages with foreigners, the non-payment of tithes, and a lack of sympathy towards the poor.

Although the priests and people were violating God’s Law, negligent in their worship and delinquent in their tithing they could not understand why God was dissatisfied with them. They were claiming God no longer loved them. The purpose of Malachi’s ministry was not only to reveal to the priests and people why God was displeased with them, but remind them of the love God has bestowed upon them, as well as His might and power.

The debate between the Lord, the priests and the people opens with the Lord’s response to the doubting of the compassion of the Lord and a demonstration of His compassion.

God’s Love Doubted

Verse two - “I have loved you, says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have you loved us?’ Was notEsau Jacob’s brother? declares the Lord. Yet I have loved Jacob;”

This verse reveals the extent of the ingratitude of those who doubt the love God. Through Malachi, the Lord, told the doubters He has loved the descendants of Jacob and still loves them, above all other people, even the other descendants of Abraham and Isaac. In this one word, “love,” all the Lord’s gracious dealings with the sons of Jacob are summed up. But they have not loved Him or made any suitable returns for the love the He has extended to them. Instead they

question His love. They challenge Him to produce proof He loves them.

As is always the case the foundation of the ingratitude of the lack of an emotional response to the Lord’s love. These people believed the taking away their prosperity was all the evidence they needed to doubt the love of the Lord. Rather than consider what has been given to them, mainly their freedom from captivity, they were looking at what was taken away. But they were blinded by their determination to accumulate the temporal comforts of life. They didn’t see the freedom to return to the land they loved was evidence of the love of the Lord. Today, there are people in the church who have lost sight of the great freedom that has been given to them through God’s love.

It is a known fact, God’s love is often doubted when it is most manifested.

When we are going through a troublesome situation and it appears we are alone and have no one we can turn to for comfort we must not let our situation and feelings to be used by the enemy to get us to doubt the love of the Lord. Even when the Lord is correcting us for what we have done, are doing or are not doing, that is contrary to His will, we must not think the correction is a sign the Lord no longer loves us. We must never lose sight of the fact, God’s love is not like man’s love. His love is unchanging. Instead of blaming the Lord for the problems and troubles we encounter in this life we need to recognize the proper source of the problems and troubles, our disobedience or the disobedience of others that often has negative effects upon the lives of the children of the Lord.

Both Jacob and Esau were objects of God’s love. The word “hated” is generally taken out of the context. Jacob and Esau were gifts from God. They were an answer to prayer. Isaac had prayed many years, the Lord would bless him with a son. When Rebecca realized she would give birth to two children she was greatly concerned because, “The children struggled together within her”(Genesis 25:22). She wanted to know why was this struggle taking place if this was the will of the

Lord.

Like Rebecca, we often experience problems and troubles we weren’t expecting when we are in the center of God’s will. This can cause us to be discontent and uneasy and ask questions.

In this world the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent have been engaged in a battle from the time enmity was put between the two in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:15). Christ said He came to earth “to cast fire upon the earth” (Luke 12:49). He didn’t come to bring peace on earth, “but rather division” (Luke 12:51). No sooner is Christ formed in the soul than immediately there begins a conflict between the flesh and spirit, (Galatians 5:17). We should not let this