Word of Salvation – Vol. 37 No. 29 – August 1992
Doubting The Love Of God
Sermon by Rev. H. De Waard on Malachi 1:2,3
Reading: Malachi 1
Beloved congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ,
We must not say what we do not mean. Not at any time. And certainly not in our relationship with God. That’s difficult, isn’t it?
None of us is free from using the name of God flippantly or carelessly. Some of us talk about God so much that we don’t even hear what we are saying. We use pious religious words carelessly. ‘Love of God, salvation, redemption, eternal life. ‘Handle these words with care and when you do, mean and believe what you say.
It is not good enough to feel good when we sing a hymn: ‘Jesus I my cross have taken, all to leave and follow you!’ You have to mean it.
It is so easy to add some sentimental music to these words and to get carried away. Do we believe what we are singing? Or do we pretend to believe?
We are easily hypnotised by beautiful, inspiring words.
So often in the Old Testament the Lord had to say about His people: “This people draw near with their mouths and honour me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me…!” It was a problem then. It is a problem now.
What is the problem? It is nominalism. That is, knowing all about God, but not relating to Him in a personal way. Being attached to God not for who He is but what you can get from Him.
I would like to preach the Word of God about…
God’s Covenant Love revealed in History.
1. God’s love is doubted
2. God’s love is affirmed
Malachi had to deal with this problem of nominalism (superficial religion) and bring people to brokenness before God and renewed obedience to His covenant. He did so by calling to mind God’s saving activity on their behalf.
Times were hard – crops were poor, neighbours were pesky, God just didn’t seem to care. If He did, they would not be in this pickle. They became listless, cynical and careless in their worship of God. The priests carried out their duties in a mechanical way. But the soul had gone out of it.
As Malachi moved among the people, listened to their grumbling, observed their nominal worship, he sought to remind them of God’s unwavering love. He entered into dialogue with them – using the question and answer method. But the people shrugged their shoulders: So what? What do you mean?
In our text we see how God’s people doubted his love. The Lord says: I have loved you! Response: How so? We see no proof. The Lord said: Look at Esau and then at Jacob.
And in the same chapter: You despise my name! Response: How so? We do everything you ask for. The Lord: Would your earthly master be pleased with crippled and diseased sacrifices?
You see, when God’s love is doubted, we downgrade the importance of serving him. The priests were trapped in duties that were boring (vs.13). Their service became careless. God pronounced a curse on their blessings (2:2,3).
Chapter 2:17 – the Lord said: You have wearied me with your words. How so? Just because we wonder whether you exercise any moral government over the human scene?
The people of God cried out because of their lack of health, funds, friends, justice. Yet the wicked prospered. They wondered: Is God fair?
The Lord pointed to the last judgement. He could best prepare his people by withholding rather than granting material blessings.
It was through this question and answer method that the Lord sought to bring renewal to a people who possessed a form of godliness but had no vital experience of God in their hearts.
‘I have loved you’, says the Lord. This is a statement of unchanging, constant love. How gracious. How personal. How like God. How much we need that.
But the people shrugged their shoulders: How so? Prove it! We see no proof. We see our miserable circumstances. They admitted no failure on their part. They were amazed that a God who dealt so unfairly with them, could think so ill of them. They wanted to call God to account, to argue with Him. Inwardly they had detached themselves from God.
It is so sinfully human. The Jews after World War II questioned the love of God. Why did God allow them to suffer so much? The gas chambers made no sense. Many no longer believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Black people in South Africa question the love of God. Why must blacks suffer so much? Many turn to the old African gods. Particularly young people.
On a personal level, too, we question the love of God. In times of sickness, bitter experiences, when tensions increase… ‘Where is God in all this? Does He really love us? Is He fulfilling any purpose at all?’
When Job was in trouble, his friend said to him: ‘Submit to God and be at peace with him.’ (22:21). If that is an invitation to fatalism we must reject it. But if it is a call to look beyond our own wisdom and see the wisdom of God then by all means let us humbly submit to God. You can submit to God and be at peace or you can be hostile, angry, tense, irrational, out of agreement with God and have no peace.
Even though His people questioned His love, the Lord reasoned with them. God affirmed his love by pointing to their history. How have you loved us? Answer: Look at history.
What has happened to Esau and his descendants, the Edomites? Their boast of self-sufficiency, their hostile attitude toward God’s people led nowhere. In the end, Edom was utterly destroyed. Read verse 3. Today the stronghold of Edom is a ruin in the country of Jordon. Tourists go to see it. It is purely of historical interest.
But Jacob and his descendants, the Jews, I have loved. Read Romans 9:4,5. God led them through the wilderness and brought them to the Promised Land. He gave them the promise of a Messiah from their midst. This Messiah would be the hope of the world. He supervised their history so that one day Christ would be born.
Was Jacob so much better than Esau? No. We are faced here with the miracle of God’s grace. They were no better. Malachi had to call them back to obedience of the covenant. God declares His love before He makes His demands. The Gospel comes before the requirements of the law. That’s the mystery of God’s electing love in Jesus Christ. God set His love on a people and the whole plan of salvation was bound up with the Jews. So He cared for them and preserved them. That’s the proof of His love.
Today people ask: Lord give us proof that you love us! The answer lies in history. Look at God’s people throughout history (the church). The church is persecuted, apostate, worldly, faithless, wounded and battle-scarred – yet the church is preserved throughout history. Sometimes it appeared as if the church would not survive as a bearer of the Gospel. But God has a purpose for his church. Nothing can put the church out of business.
Or look at Jesus Christ. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (1John 4:10). The most wicked deed in history (the crucifixion of our Lord) has become the supreme demonstration of God’s love and a source of blessing to all mankind. The blessing of reconciliation, the blessing of living in a restored relationship with God. It is a blessing we may experience today.
Whenever we are attacked by doubt, I must go back to the solid ground of the death and resurrection of Christ. These events demonstrate that God’s word is true when He says to His people: I have loved you!
How can we be sure that God loves us? Not when all is going well and we feel blessed. Our most difficult circumstances do not disprove the love of God. They indicate that God is conforming us to His will even through painful discipline. God’s providence is often mysterious but Romans 8:28 assures us that God works for the good of those who love Him. He is working out His purposes for His church. He wants to make the church a blessing to the world.
When things look bad and seem to be at their worst; when all is going against the cause of Christ, it is time for us to repent and pray for submission to the will of God. He knows what He is doing. And whatever you do, don’t doubt His love!
AMEN