Read Malachi Chapter 3
Your Encounter With Jesus Should Be Life Changing!
400 years before Jesus came to earth, it was foretold in this chapter that John the Baptist would prepare people for the coming Savior of the world, the Messiah. We see this fulfillment in Matthew 11:7-14. Malachi makes the prophecy and John the Baptist and Jesus are its fulfillment. It says the Messiah, Jesus, will refine and purify his people. Righteousness will be restored, not because they become “good” people, but because they have an encounter with Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. Have you had an encounter with Jesus? Are you filled with the Holy Spirit and Power, making you a changed and new person? Has your life become a testimony of God’s changing power which makes us holy and righteous? Are you struggling? Surrender Your Life to Jesus and let him change you. Repent! Get help from a fellow believer.
One of the sins God confronts is Robbery. Some of us are guilty of such a thing. And maybe you’ll do exactly what was done in this chapter: you’ll ask, how are we robbing God? Malachi answers by saying, “You have withheld your tithes and offerings for yourselves.”
I heard a preacher once say, how many things have we purchased for ourselves using the tithe money we should have given the church for its purpose and use? Are you saving up money so you can give it to the Lord or are you saving up money so you can buy yourself a whole bunch of neat stuff?
Have you had a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ that changes everything about how you live your life – Including how you handle your finances?
Ponder these thoughts!
