ODJ: cheaters
November 21, 2011
Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated Me! But you ask, “What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?” You have cheated Me of the tithes and offerings due to Me (vv.8-9).
READ: Malachi 3:6-12
Business professor Richard Quinn was disgusted. By careful analysis, he discovered that many of his students had cheated on their midterm exam. So he did what professors do best—he gave the students a lecture . . . on ethics. His message? Confess that you have cheated, and then the remainder of your classwork will determine your grade. You’ll also need to take a 4-hour course in ethics. There will be no permanent record of your cheating. More than 200 students admitted they had cheated.
God called for the people of Judah to come clean. He condemned them for cheating Him (Malachi 3:8-9). The people, having returned from exile in Babylon, were apathetic in their worship of God and unfaithful in their relationship with Him. So He made it plain that their sinning would result in some serious refining (v.2).
The feeble tithes and offerings they were tossing God’s way reflected their hard hearts (vv.8-9). They knew that a tenth of the crops they cultivated were to be presented to God (Deuteronomy 12:6,11,17). But neither the quantity nor the quality of their tithes and offerings (material stuff like clothing, building materials, gold, silver, gems) was up to snuff. Instead of the cream of the crop, they were giving the bottom-of-the-barrel dregs.
You can almost hear the people of Judah respond out of self-pity, Yo, God, we’ve been through some tough times lately. Cut us some slack, huh? Perhaps you and I have responded the same way—allowing tough times to cause us to offer God second-rate worship and offerings.
God, in His grace, told His people that He would “open the windows of heaven” and richly bless them if they would “return” (repent and renew their true worship) to Him (Malachi 3:7,10). And He will do the same for you and me. No ethics class required. —Tom Felten
How have you been cheating God? What will you do to “return” to Him?
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