Theme: Fill My House
Text: Malachi 3:1-10
Greetings: The Lord is good and His love endures forever!
Introduction:
What does it mean the house of God:
It was a Tent of meeting during the wilderness journey, a place where the ark of the Lord was placed during David, Jerusalem Temple during monarchs, then it referred to the synagogues during exilic periods.
Whereas in the early Christianity it changed from perpetual to temporary places of meetings. The gathering of believers is called the House of God. Jesus told that people can worship God in any place in the world. (John 4:23).
During the days of David to the time of Jesus, it was the temple at Jerusalem was called as the House of God, House of Prayer, House of Instruction, House of Worship, House of Healing, and House of Praises. Jesus was the first person to name the temple as “My Father’s House.” (Luke 2:49).
Today, I would like to meditate with you on the Topic: “Fill My House.” This is the desire of the LORD. How can we fill the house of the LORD? We can fill the house of the Lord in three ways: I was led by the Holy Spirit to leave with you these practical ways to fill the House of the LORD.
One, fill my house with prayers and praises;
Two, Fill my house with all nations and people; and
Third, fill my house with Tithe and offerings
1. FILL MY HOUSE WITH YOUR PRAYERS AND PRAISES
Isaiah 6:1 says ‘The robe of God filled the temple.’ The glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord (2 Chronicles 7:1-3). Three times it is mentioned in these three verses that the Glory of the
Lord filled the house of the Lord.
Psalm 69:9: “For zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.”
“For thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. And I will shake all the nations, so that the treasure of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts.” Then we read that ‘the latter splendour shall be greater than the former.’ (Haggai 2:6,7,9).
During the early church, we read that where disciples gathered to pray, tarry on, “And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.” (Acts 2:2 NASB).
So the house of God is a house of prayer, house of healing, and house of prayer but the Pharisees, Sadducees, and priests made it as den of robbers (Matthew 21:13).
The temple is supposed to be a house of Prayer (Matthew 21:13). Prayers must be offered, daily prayers and fasting prayers,. Prayer for the nations, kings, and people groups be made from here. Prayer for the saved and the unsaved. Prayer for the needy and rich be offered. Prayer for the not reached and outreaches., Prayer for the missions and visions of God must raise from the church.
The temple is the place of healing. Place of soothing. People must experience healing physically, mentally, psychologically, and emotionally, etc., Pray for the sick and the Lost. Church has the healing oil. God is the Healer (Matthew 8:3, 20:34, Mark 1:31, 5:29, 7:35, John 4:53). He heals all the sicknesses. Once again, the Church must take up this great work of healing as done by the apostles (Acts 3:6-10, 4:16, 4:21).
Jesus used the place as the place of praise. Many children, young, and adults started to praise Him (Psalm 8:2, Matthew 21:15-16). The temple is a place to express and sing the wonders of God. Sing with real love for the Lord. Worship shouldn’t became a program. It’s not a time-bound event but spirit controlled. Praises lifts our hearts to God.
2. FILL MY HOUSE WITH PEOPLE
“And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.” (Luke 14:23 NASB).
This is a direct reference to the missionary works, mission activities. We can do this with personal contacts, hospital visitation, public ministry, tracts distribution, through WhatsApp messages, YouTube preachings, Facebook, Twitter, blog writing, and all the availability digital resources.
Missions strays with our desire for a person. Kindly make a list of names, pray for them regularly until you are convinced to talk about Christ, make contact with them, and invite them to get together, look for opportunities to open the Bible, and talk about Jesus.
We can invite some folks to come to church and if they may turn us down for the first or the second or even the third time, but some will eventually come. This is not a one-shot deal. Of course, we must first invite friends that we know well, and also strangers on the highways and hedges. We should build relationships with them that will give us opportunities over time to speak with them on more than one occasion.
God told Abraham that ‘The whole world, the families on the earth shall be blessed in you’ (Genesis 12:3). That promise being fulfilled through all of us. We must fulfil it.
Jesus commissioned his disciples “Go and preach the Gospel to all the nations, to all people” (Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:18-20). All of us are missionaries in our own context. The result of it, is very solid to understand through the scriptures. Our words, deeds and actions, reactions are opportunities for people to accept or reject Jesus Christ.
The book of Revelation confirms that people from every tribe, every nation, and every language are going to fill the heaven (Revelation 7:9, 19:1).
3. FILL MY HOUSE WITH PRESENTS AND OFFERINGS
The word ‘tithe’ means ‘one-tenth’ as per the Hebrew Language. In the Old Testament agricultural economy, tithes were paid to Yahweh as an expression of thanks and dedication. The Old Testament tithes occurred two times each year and three times every third year. It was celebrated as the Thanksgiving Festival.
TITHE was a practice of the forefathers: Tithe is recorded in Genesis 14:20 as Abram gave a tenth of everything. Then we find Jacob made a vow to pay tithe to the Lord in Genesis 28:20-22.
Jacob: “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD will be my God, and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
Tithe was compulsory during Moses: Moses speaks out on Tithe as per the command of God given in Mount Sinai found in Leviticus 27:30-34: ‘A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD. Whoever would redeem any of their tithes must add a fifth of the value to it. Every tithe of the herd and flock—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—will be holy to the LORD.” These are the commands the LORD gave Moses at Mount Sinai for the Israelites.
Tithe was an exclusive inheritance of the Levites (Numbers 18:26): The Levites were working in Tabernacle.
Deuteronomy 12:6 says that there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give, and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. God instructed on how Israel should sanctify the tithe before they can ask for a blessing (Deuteronomy 26:12-15).
The children of Israel brought Tithe to the designated place during the reign of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 31:5-12).
Tithe is the sign of obedience to God: The Postexilic community brought the Tithe to the storehouse as a sign of obedience (Nehemiah 10:37-38). Prophet Amos pronounced that holding the Tithe is a curse (Amos 4:4). Prophet Malachi challenged the congregation to test the faithfulness of God by paying the Tithe (Malachi 3:8-10). The tithe belongs to God and enjoys grace. Give your Tithe to the Church and more to the Missions and social concerns.
Tithe was a concern of the New Testament: What did Jesus say about the tithe? What does the New Testament say about tithe? However, NT never holds Tithe as a mandatory or a requirement. There is no bondage. In Romans 8:1, Paul makes it very clear there is no condemnation for those who believe in Christ. God owns everything, and we are “managers and not owners of our wealth and money.” (Psalm 24;1, 1 Corinthians 10:26).
Jesus condemned the Pharisees and emphasized that they should Tithe in addition to practicing justice, mercy, and faithfulness. (Matthew 23:23, Luke 11:42).
Paul makes it clear that generosity should be cheerful and voluntary, and the reward comes accordingly. “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7).
ME AND MY TITHE: Some people look for the NT attestation for paying Tithe. Some say we need not follow the commandments of the OT because we are freed from the Laws of the OT. But they would like to claim all the OT promises for their healing, safety, and blessings. Do you believe that Old Testament promises belong to you? Then the commandments too!
Conclusion:
Come and fill HIS HOUSE with people, presents, and praises.
