Fresh Promise
Malachi 2:10-16
God loves his covenant with his people, and believers are called to reflect this in the covenant of marriage.
Introduction
• Today as we continue with our series from the book of Malachi, Fresh Faith.
• God is trying to reach His people who have lost hope, become apathetic, and are going through the motions of their “faith.”
• The religious leaders are leading the charge as the nation was falling apart spiritually.
• When a nation falls apart spiritually, eventually, the very fabric of society will begin to rip apart.
• The people of Israel struggled to survive in their homeland after returning from exile in Babylon.
• As a result, families in general and marriages, in particular, began to feel the tension.
• In the midst of this situation, many men began marrying foreign women and adopting their practices of worship, forsaking the God of Israel.
• God makes clear that marriage is a holy and binding covenant that reflects his nature and glory, not a temporal arrangement for personal convenience (George A. Buttrick, “Malachi,” in The Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, vol. 6, ed. Nolan B. Harmon [Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1956], 1135).
• Marriage is a covenant that is instituted by God as a picture of his promise to love, protect, and provide for his people—his bride.
• However, in the time of Malachi, God’s people were casually entering into marriages that did not honor or reflect the purity God intended.
• In addition, many were abandoning their marriages in pursuit of personal gain or convenience (v. 14).
• Malachi sharply points out their faithlessness to their spouse, which was ultimately a reflection of their faithlessness to God.
• One way we show our love for God is by faithfully loving our spouse in the same way that God loves his people.
• Biblical marriage is not merely a contract between two people, but a covenant between a husband, a wife, and God.
• The message from Malachi may not be one of the most comfortable for us to hear today for a couple of reasons.
• One, society has developed such a casual view of marriage and family.
• Second, many of us here today have been hit with this issue, many times of no fault of your own.
• The message God gave to the nation of Israel is still applicable to us today. I can give you tons of data to show this is true.
• The family unit is under attack, and when the family is destroyed, it hurts all of society.
• The Pew Research Center gives us a glimpse of how bad things are getting.
• In 1960, just 5% of all births occurred outside of marriage. By 1970, this share had doubled to 11%, and by 2000 fully one-third of births occurred to unmarried women.
• Non-marital births continued to rise until the mid-2000s when the share of births to unmarried women stabilized at around 40%. The family structure has been altered as a result.
• In 1960, the height of the post-World War II baby boom, there was one dominant family form.
• At that time, 73% of all children were living in a family with two married parents in their first marriage.
• By 1980, 61% of children were living in this type of family, and today less than half (46%) are.
• These changes have been driven in part by the fact that Americans today are exiting marriage at higher rates than in the past.
• Now, about two-thirds (67%) of people younger than 50 who had ever married are still in their first marriage. In comparison, that share was 83% in 1960. https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2015/12/17/1-the-american-family-today/
• Our BIG IDEA for today is simple. God loves his covenant with his people, and believers are called to reflect this in the covenant of marriage.
• Let’s begin by turning to Malachi 1:10-12.
SLIDE#2
Bible Verse
Malachi 2:10-12 (CSB)
10Don’t all of us have one Father? Didn’t one God create us? Why then do we act treacherously against one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers?
11Judah has acted treacherously, and a detestable act has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the Lord ’s sanctuary, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god.
12May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, whoever he may be, even if he presents an offering to the Lord of Armies.
SLIDE #3
LEAD IN
Enjoying a fresh promise requires one to…
1. I. Build a fresh foundation.
Explanation
• Verse 10 begins with three questions; the first two are rhetorical. Don’t all of us have one Father? Didn’t one God create us?
• Of course, the expected answer is YES to both of the questions.
• The questions were set up for the third. Why then do we act treacherously against one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers?
• What was happening was that Jewish men were abandoning their Jewish wives to marry women who were not Jewish.
• Both Ezra and Nehemiah condemned these marriages.
• God did not want these marriages because they would be the cause of people leaving God to worship false gods and idols. This was not a racial issue; it was religious.
• A great mixed multitude went up out of Egypt, but they were circumcised, and adopted into Judaism by keeping the Passover, etc. (Exo. 12:48, and Num. 9:14).
• Ruth was married to Boaz, but that took place after she had rejected the Moabite gods (Ruth 1:16); [James Burton Coffman (2017). (p. 21). Commentary on the Minor Prophets, Volume 4. ACU Press. Retrieved from https://app.wordsearchbible.com]
• God asked the two questions in verse 10 to point out that the people had forgotten that God was their Father as well as the creator.
• The nation had a covenant with God, a covenant to be faithful to Him.
• Remember, marriage is a covenant that is instituted by God as a picture of his promise to love, protect, and provide for his people—his bride.
• In the New Testament, we see this same type of thought concerning Christ and the Church; the Church is the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5).
• People forgot that God was the one who established marriage and that marriage was not to be taken lightly.
• The foundation that people needed to build upon (God is the Father and creator) had been forsaken, and because of this, men were dumping their wives for women they were not supposed to marry.
• In those days, men were the ones who could call for divorce; the women were in a pretty helpless situation.
• Imagine being in a marriage where you lived in fear of your spouse leaving you if you did not do everything they wanted you to do!
• Imagine the level of control a spouse could have over you. Women could only ask that their husbands divorce them. It was up to the husband to do it or not do it.
• God did not intend for the mechanism of divorce to be used capriciously, but during the time of Malichi, men were leaving their wives for women they were not supposed to marry.
• The breaking of the marriage covenant is symbolic of the breaking of the covenant with God. God was not happy with what was happening.
• The people were doing what they were doing because their spiritual foundation was destroyed. They lost sight of who God was and who they were.
• God called the act detestable.
• This word designates horrible acts certain to result in God’s wrath upon the perpetrator.
• These acts include immoralities practiced among the Canaanites, such as homosexuality, prostitution, child sacrifice, witchcraft (Lev 18:22; Deut 18:9–12), and idolatry (Deut 7:25–26). This is how serious God took this issue.
• I am sure there are those here today that was put in the position of the marriage ending when you did not want it to happen. You wanted to work through it, yet your former spouse did not want to do so.
• In the New Testament, Jesus allowed divorce in the case of adultery (Matthew 5:27-32). Paul opens the door for a situation when an unbelieving spouse leaves a believer. (1 Corinthians 7).
• The careless manner in which divorce was used (and in the days of Jesus), it seemed that divorce was becoming more accessible than God intended for it to be.
• In verse 12, Malachi states that God will not bless those who are doing such things.
• IF we are going to enjoy the fresh promise that comes from being committed to our spouse as well as to God, we have to build a fresh foundation.
• If you are having marriage issues, let your faith help you rebuild.
• In a study published in 2008, The Barna Group found that the rate of divorce among those who claim to be Christian is virtually the same as those who do not: 32% of Christian marriages still end in divorce, as compared with 33% of marriages among non-Christians (“New Marriage and Divorce Statistics Released,” The Barna Group, March 31, 2008.
• If you are in a troubled marriage, please get help. You may think it cannot be fixed, but it can be. I have seen God heal marriages even when infidelity has happened.
• Rebuild a fresh foundation on God.
• Let’s turn to verses 13-14
SLIDE #4
Bible Verse
Malachi 2:13-14 (CSB)
13This is another thing you do. You are covering the Lord ’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning, because he no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.
14And you ask, “Why?” Because even though the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partner and your wife by covenant.
SLIDE #5
LEAD IN
Enjoying a fresh promise requires one to…
2. II. Deal with fresh frustrations.
Explanation
• As a result of what the people were doing concerning marriage, God was not blessing them.
• The people were frustrated; they were doing their religious duty by giving offerings to God, yet, where were the blessings?
• Do you see the problem?
• This goes back to the priests, these men were failures, and because they shirked their responsibility to lead the people, the people no longer had a heart for God.
• When we lose our heart for God, we may go through the motions of worship, and our faith, then when we wonder why things are not going well and why we feel that we are distant from God.
• Then we experience and self-fulfilling prophecy that God is not blessing us, so it justifies my disobedience or my half-hearted attempts at faith.
• This principle also plays out in marriages.
• I get unhappy with my spouse for whatever reason, sometimes for good reasons and others not so good.
• Then I pull my investment out of my spouse, then eventually my spouse responds in kind, THEN I can justify in my heart that I was right to withdraw my commitment, love, and affection from my spouse.
• In verse 14, God knew the people would ask what they are doing wrong. God spells it out for them.
• And you ask, “Why?” Because even though the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partner and your wife by covenant.
• God states that when they married, HE WAS A WITNESS to the marriage. When you get married, you are doing so before witnesses AND GOD!
• He reminds them that marriage is a COVENANT, not a contract.
• Here are some fundamental differences: While a contract is legally binding, a covenant is a spiritual agreement.
• A contract is an agreement between parties, while a covenant is a pledge.
• A contract exchanges one good for another, while a covenant is giving oneself to the other.
• Remember, a CONTRACT is an agreement between parties who are all trying to get as much out of the other parties as possible; whereas, a covenant is designed to look out for the best interests of the other party.
• God is calling his people to return to him by returning to “the wife of [their] youth” (v. 14).
• Their bride is a gift from God to enjoy and love as a reminder of the unending fidelity and mercy that God shows toward them.
• Those who claim to be followers of Jesus should take seriously their calling together with the whole church to live married to the glory of God.
• The way you love your spouse is one of the most significant testimonies to your love for God.
• God revealed to the people why they were not being blessed; they needed to get back on track.
• The people needed to get past feeling like God was not with them and get back to doing the right thing, then the rest would take care of itself.
• If you are struggling in your marriage, place your focus on loving your spouse, investing your heart into them, and always do right by them.
• Let’s look at verses 15-16.
SLIDE #6
Bible Verse
Malachi 2:15-16 (CSB)
15Didn’t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit? What is the one seeking? Godly offspring. So watch yourselves carefully, so that no one acts treacherously against the wife of his youth.
16“If he hates and divorces his wife,” says the Lord God of Israel, “he covers his garment with injustice,” says the Lord of Armies. Therefore, watch yourselves carefully, and do not act treacherously.
SLIDE #7
LEAD IN
Enjoying a fresh promise requires one to…
3. III. Embark on a fresh return.
Explanation
• In verse 15, Malachi points out that marriage is more than a piece of paper; the two shall become one flesh!
• The other part of verse 15 says that if one is looking to have a Godly offspring, in the context, leaving one’s wife of their youth to marry a foreign wife who was a pagan would not have achieved such a purpose.
• God sternly forbade dealing “treacherously with the wife of thy youth. [James Burton Coffman (2017). (p. 21). Commentary on the Minor Prophets, Volume 4. ACU Press. Retrieved from https://app.wordsearchbible.com]
• God warns his people to be “on guard” regarding their faithfulness in marriage (v. 16).
• Marriage isn’t magic.
• Nobody accidentally remains faithful to their spouse.
• It requires the daily vigilance of both parties to make their marriage a pure reflection of the great reality of God’s faithful provision for his people.
• Being a faithful, loving spouse does not happen by chance, or by accident, it takes effort and a great deal of diligence.
• Achieving these virtues takes the ability to love someone more than oneself, the capacity to forgive a wrong suffered, the choice to not hold a grudge.
• It takes a willingness to put the other person first and to see and seek the best of them.
• The best thing to ever happen in my life was Robyn. It was because of her that I was introduced to Jesus.
• It was because of her that I have two wonderful daughters and three awesome Grandchildren.
• I live each day to be a blessing to her.
• I pray each of you can have that kind of relationship for your spouse.
• Verse 16 ends with a warning to watch ourselves carefully, lest we treat our spouse treacherously.
• Put all you have in your marriage, and if both of you do, you will have a great one!
Conclusion
• The marriage relationship is a lot like our relationship with God. We will only get out of it what we put into it.
• If I cannot love my wife, whom I can see, how can I love God, who I do not see?
• We need this message in the church today.
• I know some of you have had a marriage end because a spouse left you, cheated on you, or abused you.
• All I can say is I would not want to stand before God after cheating, beating, or abandoning my wife.
SLIDE #8
Bible Verse
Ephesians 5:22-25 (CSB)
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord,
23because the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of the body.
24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives are to submit to their husbands in everything.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her
Application
• We must remain faithful to our marriage covenants as a testimony to the truth about our great God.
