Lessons From The Prophets: Quit Being Ugly, Stingy, & Ungrateful

In this next sermon from the “Lessons From The Prophets” series, Pastor Battle engages the prophet Malachi to explore why we must avoid being ugly, stingy, & ungrateful. When we are children of God, we must recognize that means we are in covenant with God. As a result, we should stop using profanity; we should avoid cursing that which God has blessed and giving God less than our best. Rather, we honor our relationship with God by engaging in practices (i.e good stewardship, treating others with kindness) that reflect the character of God (Mal. 1). We must also recognize the significance of fidelity (Mal. 2:10-16; 3:6-9). God is fulfilling God’s part of the relationship, but are we being faithful to God? Are we building God’s house and giving back to God a portion of what God has so graciously given us? In fact, our generosity is a response to God’s constant provision (Mal. 3:10-12). That is, our willingness to give is an expression of our faith and trust in God. Because we’ve seen God provide, it should increase our capacity to trust God enough to honor God with our time, talent, and treasure.