Malachi 1:6-14: a reflection

6“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If I am a father, then where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the LORD of Armies to you priests who despise my name. “You say, ‘How have we despised your name?’ 7You offer polluted bread on my altar. You say, ‘How have we polluted you?’ In that you say, ‘The LORD’s table is contemptible.’ 8When you offer the blind for sacrifice, isn’t that evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, isn’t that evil? Present it now to your governor! Will he be pleased with you? Or will he accept your person?” says the LORD of Armies. 9“Now, please entreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. With this, will he accept any of you?” says the LORD of Armies. 10“Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you,” says the LORD of Armies, “neither will I accept an offering at your hand. 11For from the rising of the sun even to its going down, my name is great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering; for my name is great among the nations,” says the LORD of Armies. 12“But you profane it when you say, ‘The LORD’s table is polluted, and its fruit, even its food, is contemptible.’ 13You say also, ‘Behold, what a weariness it is!’ And you have sniffed at it”, says the LORD of Armies; “and you have brought that which was taken by violence, the lame, and the sick; thus you bring the offering. Should I accept this at your hand?” says the LORD. 14“But the deceiver is cursed who has in his flock a male, and vows and sacrifices to the Lord a defective thing; for I am a great King,” says the LORD of Armies, “and my name is awesome among the nations.”

Through Malachi, God rebukes the priests for the offerings they bring him. They were offering blind, lame, and sick animals on his altar, the worthless creatures they did not want, keeping the good ones for themselves. And God exposes the insult in it: Present that to your governor! Will he be pleased with you? They would not dare offer such worthless things to a human official, yet they offered them to God, showing that they despised him. For, God says, I am a great King, and my name is to be feared among the nations.

Notice what the people's offerings revealed. They gave God the blind, the lame, the sick, what cost them nothing, what they would not miss, while keeping the best for themselves. And this revealed their hearts: they did not honor God as they should, but treated him as unworthy of their best, giving him their leftovers and their worst. What we give to God, and the quality of it, reveals how much we truly honor him.

That is a searching challenge to us. We can give God our leftovers, the scraps of our time and energy and resources, what costs us little, while giving our best to ourselves and our own pursuits. But God is a great King, worthy of our best, not our leftovers. Consider what you give to God, and its quality: your best time, or the tired remnants of your day? Your first and best resources, or what is left over? Your full attention, or your distraction? Do not give God the blind and lame, the leftovers that cost you nothing; honor him with your best, the first and finest of your time, energy, and resources. He is a great King, worthy of far more than our leftovers; give him your best, not what you would not miss.

Lord, through Malachi you rebuked the priests for offering you the blind, lame, and sick animals they did not want, while keeping the good ones for themselves, revealing that they despised you; and you reminded them that you are a great King, worthy of far more. Search me by that challenge. I can give you my leftovers, the scraps of my time, energy, and resources, what costs me little, while giving my best to myself and my own pursuits. But you are a great King, worthy of my best, not my leftovers. Show me what I give you, and its quality: my best time, or the tired remnants of my day? My first and finest resources, or what is left over? My full attention, or my distraction? Keep me from giving you the blind and lame, the leftovers that cost me nothing. Help me honor you with my best, the first and finest of my time, energy, and resources. You are worthy of far more than my leftovers; help me give you my best.