In Malachi 1, God rebukes the people of Israel because of their sacrifices to Him.
They had been sacrificing blemished animals--animals that weren’t fit for the Lord. God said that the animals they were offering--some blind--wouldn’t even be considered acceptable to give to their governor (Malachi 1:8). Yet the Israelites thought it was okay to give them to God.
God is the King of kings and Lord of lords. His name is meant to be feared and honored.
Sadly, that isn’t what was happening in Israel.
As I think over this story, though, I can imagine the Israelites feeling good about themselves. “Look at me, I’m offering sacrifices to the Lord,” they might have thought. “Maybe they’re not the best sacrifices, but it’s the thought that counts. I’m doing better than my neighbors, at least.”
They weren’t giving their best, but might have thought that they were giving enough. Ignoring the fact that God deserves more than we could ever imagine. The only sacrifice that was ever enough to satisfy God's just nature was Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
Can’t we fall into the same trap as the Israelites today?
It’s easy to let sin come into our life and think, “It’s okay because the rest of my life is about God. It’s just this one part of my old self that I’m keeping so I can have some fun. That’s okay, right?”
It’s also easy to feel stuck in our sin--so stuck that we’ve given up trying our hardest to follow Jesus. Although, a pastor named Kyle Idleman once said something along the lines of, “following Jesus isn’t about trying every day, it’s about dying every day.”
Dying every day is what God wants us to do for Him. It’s what He deserves. It’s what will pay off the most in the end.
Only part of our lives isn’t enough for God. God gave us His everything even though we don’t deserve it when He sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins. Jesus ransomed us. His blood bought our lives.
We need to live like it.
The sacrifices the Israelites were making to God in Malachi weren’t really sacrifices. The nature of a sacrifice is that you’re giving up something for someone. If the Israelites were giving up animals that were blemished and probably unwanted, that wasn’t true sacrifice. Does giving someone the things you don’t want show love to them?
If we’re only giving up the parts of our lives that we want to give to God, that isn’t true sacrifice.
That being said, it’s hard to give all of our lives to God. There are times when it can be grueling--mentally, emotionally, or physically--to keep following God.
I have fallen short so many times. You will fall short so many times.
But we have to keep trying. Keep giving God everything we have.
Though it’s hard to give everything to God, He’s given us everything we need to do so.
Are you giving all of your life to God?
Are you willingly sacrificing the parts of your life that you value when God asks for them?
We should value God more than anything else. Just like a blemished animal was not worthy to give to God, sectioned-off parts of our lives are not worthy to give to God.
Author's note
Giving everything to God is hard, and it's easy to become disappointed in ourselves when we fall short. I have been wrestling with sin in the same area over and over again lately, and it can make it feel like parts of my life are still sectioned-off from God even though I'm trying to give everything to God. Deciding to give your entire life to Christ is a decision that you can make in a short time. I, and many of you, have already made that decision. But actually giving your whole life to Christ takes much longer. Living for Him isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. We will struggle with sin until Jesus comes back and completes the work He has begun about us. Living for Jesus isn't about being perfect. It's about being willing, loving, and joyful... and dying every day.
Praying for you! (Please pray for me, too?)