Good morning.
Old Testament Israel is a type of the church. Israel is Abraham’s physical children and the church is his spiritual children, Israel’s enemies were the nations around them as well as those in Canaan they were supposed to destroy and did not, and the church’s enemies are the evil spirits. Israel was meant to prosper physically when they were obedient and the church is promised eternal spiritual prosperity. Israel’s inheritance was their country with Jerusalem as the capital, whereas the church will inherit eternal life in heaven and the New Jerusalem. Whatever Israel had physically, we have spiritually.
However, many of the churches of today, especially in the financially affluent communities, have turned the focus very much on material blessings. Much emphasis are placed on money and material prosperity, whilst Jesus was an example of the contrary and very outspoken against earthly comfort and wealth. We can list endless quotations of Jesus’ words to this effect: You cannot serve both God and money, do not worry about earthly possessions, but be concerned about God’s Kingdom and righteousness, do not store up treasures on earth but in heaven (Matthew 6), sell everything you have and then follow me (Matthew 19), the foolish rich man building more barns (Luke 12), etc. If we read the New Testament with an open mind we will see that all is about heaven and souls to be saved and prepared for heaven. Life on earth is temporary and an opportunity to prepare for a glorious eternity.
In the light of this the Lord has given me an interesting revelation. We might step on some toes in our next series though, but those who choose to accept this revelation will move on to a next level in their ‘rehearsal for heaven’. If you disagree with this you are welcome to correspond about it at discipleliving@gmail.com, but before you do this you may find value in seeking the Lord’s face about it in prayer. He will give you clarity about His revelations.
Israel had to take what was written for their attention in the Old Testament literally. When they e.g. were prescribed how to go about bringing a sacrifice, they had to comply physically. However, when we read the Old Testament today, the Lord uses it to speak to us regarding our spiritual relationship with Him through rhema revelation. There are many Old Testament passages we apply in that way, e.g. when Israel needed encouragement during the exodus from Egypt, Moses told them “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still,” (Exodus 14:14). We, however, use this passage as encouragement in our spiritual battles and it still has power – the Lord still abides by His promises. When David wrote Psalm 23 it was a private prayer for help against physical danger because he was scared at the time, but it has impacted many Christians through the ages when they were in danger, physically or spiritually.
Therefore in the next few messages we are going to look at Malachi 3 from a spiritual viewpoint, since whatever we do has an impact on the spiritual realm, the spiritual Kingdom of God and our eternal spiritual destiny in heaven. Malachi was the very last prophet before the four hundred years of silence between the Old Testament and the New Testament and chapter three the second last chapter of the Old Testament.
It consists of three sections. Verses one to five speaks of the messenger of the covenant who will be a refiner, verses six to twelve is the well-known piece about robbing God of tithes and offerings, and verses thirteen to eighteen relates to attitude towards the Lord in terms of understanding His purposes. In preparation you may read it at http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Malachi%203&version=NIV1984.
Lord, please prepare my heart to receive your message.
Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.
Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.
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