Thoughts from Malachi

1:6    “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence? Says the Lord of hosts. To you priests who despise My name, yet you say, “In what way have we despised Your name?

1:8  And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, Is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it then to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably? Says the Lord of hosts.

I do believe God gives us types and shadows (I learned this idea from a book entitled “My Father, My Father”). Many young people have the idea that honor belongs to parents only until a certain age or maturity level is reached. But when does your father or parent become not your father or parent anymore? My mother is in her 80’s and she is still my mother, my parent, and yes I actually believe she deserves my honor or obedience. My father passed away 7 years ago. I believe he still deserves my honor. For instance, my words toward him to others will always need to reflect honor. My father is not completely dead and gone. He is part of the spirit world now just as God my heavenly father is. If I cannot figure out how to honor my parents whom I have had in the flesh, how can I understand how to honor my heavenly father who is Spirit. How do we look at that in the reverse? Look at verse 8. In this instance we might think of it as: When you offer anything but honor to your parent, is it not evil? Learn from your parent what is and is not honoring to them so that you can better understand how to please your heavenly father. He is the one who gave you your parents to learn how to honor Him. He makes no mistakes. He gave you the parents you needed to help work out your sanctification.

My question to that generation younger than I, from whom I am so often hearing they “don’t do it that way now, they do it their way” is: Are you dishonoring God, even unknowingly, in this that you are doing? You do not want the Lord of hosts to say (vs 10) I have no pleasure in you, nor will I accept an offering from your hands.

Verse 13 just rings a bell of words and attitudes I have heard from several young ladies in their late twenties and early thirties these past few months. “You also say, Oh, what a weariness! And you sneer at it, Says the Lord of hosts. And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; Thus you bring an offering! Should I accept this from your hand? Says the Lord?

The end of the chapter sums it up: For I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, “And my name is to be feared among the nations”.

Are you connecting with me here? How can you honor God if you are not honoring your parents? If you think you are honoring your parents but they are trying to tell you how you are not, does this scripture not tell you that you had better listen up and get it straight? Your excuse to God cannot be that you did not know.