From the rising of the sun

Good morning. My name is Bo. I'm one of the elders of the church.

I'd like to thank the other two elders who tried to help me with my microphone just now.

Thank you.

Holy, holy, holy.

As we hear what you heard, Simon reading the verses from the Bible today,

I hope that we can sense the holiness of God.

But you see, what was happening in the nation of Israel with their priests

was that they somehow lost contact with God,

and God became something routine, something common,

something that is in competition with the world.

But if they realize that there's no competition,

their attention would not be so diverted.

And what God has said in Malachi would not need to be said.

Today, the sermon, the title, From the Rising of the Sun,

I'm taking it from chapter 1.

We're talking more on chapter 2 of Malachi,

because in chapter 1, God said,

For from the rising of the sun, this was 11,

to its setting, my name will be great among the nations.

Let us pray before we start.

Almighty God, we know that we are so much like those people

whom you have spoken to in Malachi,

that we are so quick to forget your greatness and your goodness.

May you have mercy on us and bring us back to you,

bring us back to the cross as we consider your words,

as we want to lay your word in our hearts today.

Thank you, Lord.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

So, in thinking about greatness,

I've been trying to find out

what is considered great in the world in our day and age.

In the world where God is not considered great,

what is?

What is actually great?

We have, during the children's talk,

we look at the young children.

As Catherine asked them about

whether their fathers were great.

They were a bit hesitant, weren't they?

But even as Catherine asked them how they would respond to their father's greatness,

again, they had some problem answering that.

It's, yeah, you know that children, young children,

they would consider their parents great,

but if you ask teenagers,

then I suppose it's very hard to get anyone who raised their hand.

It's just that we are so self-focused, self-centered.

Even from young, as we get older, as we are more realized about ourselves,

what we can do,

then we are,

we are considered,

it's hard to consider anybody else great.

So,

who is a great person to us?

So,

it's someone who influences our decisions and directions in life,

a person that we look up to,

and in a world without God,

who would that person be?

I think usually it's our own self.

I don't think I'm the greatest,

but I want to be great in any case.

Many things that we do each day can show us that.

Think of a time when we argue with someone.

In an argument,

we usually want to win.

Otherwise, we wouldn't argue.

I mean,

if we don't want to win,

we won't argue.

The fact that we argue,

we want to win the argument.

And why do we want to win the argument?

Because we want to be great.

And if we do,

we lose the argument,

then we will replay that in our mind,

until we win the argument inside us.

That's how we are.

That's what we are making up of.

And we are looking at Malachi,

and these people,

they were trying to argue with God.

The fact that they,

to try to argue with God,

is just that they are putting themselves

at the same level as God,

sort of,

at least they are not giving the respect

that they should have towards God.

So the book of Malachi

deals with the nation of Israel

about 500 years ago,

before Christ.

So it's about 200,

2,500 years ago now.

And Malachi was a prophet,

sent by God to speak to the Israelites.

Israel,

Israel was a unique nation.

So it was a nation that was chosen

by God to make his name known among the nations.

And to help Israel to fulfill that mission,

God made a covenant with them,

with the people of Israel.

Israel.

And Israel became the only nation

that governs itself,

solely based on God's law.

You see,

what are the nations

govern themselves with?

Usually based on,

if there's a king,

the king's law.

In a democracy like Australia,

it's mostly to do with

economic,

what would give people the most wealth

that make decisions.

But Israel was different

to any other country.

They need to base

what they do on God's laws.

So by the time Malachi

conveyed God's message

to the Israelites

was about 1,500 years

when they first make the covenant

with God.

So it's quite a long time already.

And we know that

God's name,

so over the 1,500 years,

God's name did not actually

become great

among the nations

over those times.

It wasn't even great

among the nation of Israel.

And what,

by the time,

I mean,

maybe during David,

King David's time,

God's name was considered great

for 50 years.

Among that,

that's over the 1,500 years,

there's only that short period

of time after that.

people just forgot about it.

And they consider God

as the helper,

mostly.

And so they would give God

some sacrifice

and return

to God's help

to fulfill their wishes.

So usually,

people just like us

will pray to God

to pass our exams

or find a job.

God.

And if we don't get it,

like in chapter 2,

verse 13,

it says that

those people

cover God's altar

with tears.

They were disappointed

that their prayer

didn't turn up.

And we can be the same

as well.

So they would follow

God's ways

if it was convenient

to do so.

But they would follow

the ways of the world

when such ways

offer more comfort

and pleasure.

So,

what happened

to the covenant

their ancestors

had made with God?

In chapter 2,

as we read it,

the breaking

of this covenant

is represented

by the breaking

of their marriage covenant

with the wife

of their youth.

The wife of their youth

also can mean that

during the earlier days

with God

and now they have

forgotten

their first love.

also we can see

that they were

marrying

daughters

of foreign gods.

I mean,

they start

having relationship

with other gods.

So in chapter 2,

while it happened

in the society,

in the families,

but it also

implies

or represents

a bigger picture

of the whole nation,

what they are doing

as we read that.

And as we are reading

Malachi,

bear in mind

that we are reading

God's heart,

the heart of God,

the heart of the Creator,

the heart of the Father

is

with

some

sadness

in that

this thing

will happen.

So

why did Israel

renege

on their covenant?

in your bulletin

there may be

renegade,

but

there should be

a noun

and this is

a verb.

Thanks for

Catherine Gibbons

telling me that.

I've never used

this word before,

so renege

is

the

covenant

with God.

Israel.

So over

those

1,500 years

there have been

a lot of

changes

to the

nation

of Israel.

So they

had civil

wars,

the country

broken into

two parts,

and then they

were conquered

by pagans

and taken

into exile.

They were

exposed to

foreign

governments,

religions,

and cultures.

So by the time

of Malachi,

they had

been

permitted

by the

conqueror

to resettle

back to

their homeland.

It was

difficult for

them to

build their

cities,

which had

been destroyed

by wars,

and consider

their living

condition.

It wouldn't

be very

impressive.

And they

are all

wanting to

make a

living.

There were

some who

remained

faithful to

God and

led them

to rebuild

the nation

starting from

the temple,

and that's

where the

temple we're

talking about.

And those

people like

Ezra,

Nehemiah,

they really

wanted a

place to

worship God.

But there

are not

many of

them,

unfortunately.

Most people,

the temple

to them

is a

place,

yes,

they could

exchange

favour with

God,

but also

temple and

the city

of Jerusalem

become an

identity for

them.

We are the

Jews.

So that's

mostly what

people do,

just like

us.

In the

Western

society,

many years

ago,

the church

become an

identity

issue.

I'm a

Christian,

I identify

with this

culture,

and it's

not much

to do

with their

allegiance

or worship

of God.

And the

people who

were supposed

to help

people to

worship,

the priests,

and they

are from

the trial

of Levi.

Levi.

As you

know,

the tribe

of Levi

are not

allowed to

own land,

unlike other

tribes.

I'm not

sure during

the Malachi

time whether

they had

any land.

They might

have,

because the

society

has been

changed.

But in

any case,

their livelihood

is mostly

dependent on

other people

who give

offerings.

under these

circumstances,

we were

surprised that

these priests

offer animals

if Brahmishes

buy animals

or animals

that nobody

wants.

Because

economically,

it makes

sense.

You sacrifice

the cheapest

animals,

because those

animals were

going to be

burned anyway.

I mean,

why you

sacrifice a

perfect one

while you

can sell

them for

higher

prices?

price.

And in

doing that,

the priests

are making

it easier

for people

to give

offerings.

And they

then can

make sure

that they

have enough

for themselves.

They need

to do

what the

people

want to

do or

what people

are seeking

for.

So they

will only

teach people

what they

want to

hear and

not what

God

wanted them

to teach

or people

to hear.

And that's

why all

these things

gradually

change.

I mean,

it doesn't

happen overnight.

As you

know,

when we

do something

or going

to sinning

or doing

something,

committing a

crime,

it doesn't

change,

happen only

overnight.

It happens

over a

lifetime,

gradually,

with one

step at a

time,

and then we

get to

this state

of Malachi

when people

just somehow

forgot about

the holiness

of God

and the

relationship

with God.

And so

when the

priests

started to

compromise

with the

ways of

the world,

the people

followed them.

And how

did God

point out to

the Israelites

that they

had broken

faith with

him?

He told

them to

look at

their marriages.

They disobeyed

God by

marrying

daughters

of those

who

worship

foreign

gods and

they

divorce

their wives

of their

youth.

So we

need to

think about

marriage first

to understand

this.

Soon after

God created

men and

women,

men and

women,

he decreed

that there

would be

marriage

between a

man and

a woman,

and this

union was

meant to

be binding

for as

long as

they were

alive.

In

Malachi 2.15

it says

that did

he not

make them

one with

a portion

of the

spirit in

the union.

So the

marital union

was meant

to be a

strong covenant

where the

two parties

became one

body and

God was

in the

union.

So anyone

who broke

this covenant

also revealed

his dishonor

towards God.

So a

nation's

being unfaithful

to their

covenant with

God is

reflected in

their being

unfaithful

to their

marital

covenant.

In the

past,

most culture

would expect

wives to

be faithful

to their

husbands,

but not

the other

way around.

So Israel

saw that

the other

races could

divorce

their wives

easily,

and they

thought this

would be

the way.

In their

thinking,

their careers,

their marriages,

their choices

of friends,

whatever,

were for

their own

personal

happiness,

and God

had no

part in

their

day-to-day

decisions.

They just

did what

was right

in their

own eyes.

So each

man would

want to

find a

wife who

make him

happy,

and as

the head

of the

family,

he should

be entitled

to replace

the wife

who did

not satisfy

him.

In

Matthew

19,

3-10,

there was

an interesting

reading.

Pharisees

came up

to Jesus

and tested

him by

asking,

Is it

lawful to

divorce

one's

wife for

any

cost?

He

answered,

Have

you not

read that

he who

created

them from

the beginning

made them

male and

female,

and said,

Therefore,

a man

shall leave

his father

and his

mother and

hold fast

to his

wife,

and the

two shall

become one

flesh?

So they

are no

longer

two but

one

flesh.

What

therefore

God

has

joined

together

and

let

not

man

separate?

They

said to

him,

Why

then did

Moses

command

one to

give a

certificate

of

divorce

and

to

send

her

away?

He

said to

them,

Because

of your

hardness

of heart,

Moses

allowed

you to

divorce

your

wife,

but

from

the

beginning

it

was

not

so.

And

I

say to

you,

whoever

divorces

his

wife,

except

for

sexual

immorality,

and

marriage

and

another

commits

adultery,

the

disciples

said to

him,

If

such

is the

case

of a

man

before

his

wife,

it

is

better

not

to

marry.

Do

you

notice

how

the

disciples

responded

to

Jesus'

view

on the

permanency

of

marriage?

They

said,

It

is

better

not

to

marry.

What

do you

think

they

said

when

they

said

it

is

better?

What

is

better?

Better

for

what?

Who

is

better?

What

was

in

their

mind?

It's

the

same

in

our

minds.

When

we

say

something

is

better,

it

usually

means

that

it

gives

me

more

comfort,

gives

me

more

pleasure.

It's

better for

my life

if I'm

not

married,

than

if I

got

married

to

a

wife

who

turned

out

to

be

a

major

annoyance,

I

could

not

divorce

her.

That

is

the

idea

about

better.

It

just

betrays

the

person's

heart.

When

we

say

it

is

better,

this

job is

better,

that

is

better,

we

should

ask

ourselves,

what do

we

mean

when

we

say

it's

better,

what

is

better?

God's

way

seems

to

make

it

so

narrow

in

one's

choice

of

a

spouse

and

so

difficult

to

renege

on

one's

marriage

while

we

can

understand

why

the

Israelites

found

it

wearisome

to

follow

God's

laws.

Because

they

want

to

enjoy

themselves,

they

want

to

follow

the

world,

and

God's

law

just

was

in

the

way,

and

they

couldn't

get rid

of it

fully,

so

they

would

try

to

compromise

and do

a bit

of it.

So

we

look at

Israelites,

we look

at ourselves,

we know

that when

we make

decisions,

unless we

know God

and love

God,

we would

make them

according to

our own

pleasure,

what we

think would

give us

the most

comfort or

pleasure.

It's like

choosing to

eat excessively

delicious

takeaway

food,

McDonald's

or Kentucky

fried

chickens.

We may

not know

what long-term

consequences

are in

doing that,

but even

if we

know,

we don't

seem to

care.

When I

was young

50 years

ago,

most of

the

television

programs

were

sponsored

by

cigarette

companies,

smoking

and so

promulgdor

to smoke

cigarettes

is such

a man

eating,

such a

socially

respected

thing,

and people

pick up

cigarette

smoking,

this is

a world,

we just

do

things that

we are

promulgdor,

and we

think that

it's good,

it's better

for us to

do that.

We didn't

even know

the effects

of cigarette

smoking,

but even

so,

in this

age,

even if

you know

that the

base of

cigarette

smoking,

there are

still so

many people

still smoking.

It's just

how we

are.

So the

consequence

of

reggeting

God's

way,

not just

following

our own

way,

we have

to look

at the

nation of

Israel,

so that

the priest

who choose

to not

to honour

God,

but follow

the ways

of the

world,

will

become

weak

in their

characters.

The

weakness

in their

characters

will in

turn

establish

a

nation

that

will

put

individual

pleasure

as

a

goal

in

their

life.

No one

will be

willing

to

sacrifice

their

comfort

or their

life

for their

country.

So when

an enemy

came to

invite them,

they were

defeated

quite easily.

A nation

which does

not fear

God

will fear

the

enemies.

The

priest

who

choose

to follow

the

ways

of the

world

will also

be

enslaved

by the

world.

The

world

does

not

know

kindness.

It

is a

place

where

the

powerful

would

consume

the

weak.

So one

day,

as God

said,

this

priest

would

be

led

away

by

the

conquerors

with

the

dunks

of

their

blemished

offerings

on

their

heads.

The

dunks

of

animals

in the

Old

Testament

were

the

unclean

things that

were

burned

outside

the

camp

or

outside

the

city

or

outside

the

temple.

So dunks

on the

heads of

the

priests

imply that

they were

no longer

fit to

serve in

God's

temple.

Because they

disregarded

God's laws

and choose

to marry

anyone they

like,

and to

divorce

anyone they

like,

their

community

would

break

apart.

By

marrying

those

who

worship

idols,

they

introduced

idol

worshiping

in

their

families.

By

divorces,

they

created

many

broken

and

unstable

families.

God

was

seeking

the

family

to

bring

up

godly

offspring,

but

they

were

producing

offspring

who

worship

idols

and

who

live

for

their

own

comfort.

So,

what's

wrong

with

idol

worshiping?

We

will

become

what

we

worship.

If

there

are

many

idol

worshipers

in

the

community,

then

we

will

live

in

a

community

with

people

like

the

idols

that

they

worship.

So,

would

you

like

to

live

in

a

community

that

people

would

like

their

idols?

Or

would

you

like

to

live

in

a

community

that

everyone

lives

like

the

holy

God

if

they

worship

that

God.

And so,

you can

imagine

how the

society

or the

community

gradually

degrades

and becomes

difficult

to live

but

people

don't

have

choice.

We

just

live

like

that

because

their

parents

live

like

that.

The

children

are

doing

the

same

and

it

seems

there's

no

way

to

get

out

of

it.

So,

when

a

nation

does

not

honor

God,

men

will

not

honor

their

roles

as

heads

of

the

family

and

they

have

nothing

bigger

than

themselves

to

live

for.

They

use

their

head

to

satisfy

their

little

pleasures

and

they

will

not

sacrifice

themselves

for the

nation

or their

families

and

they

want

others

to

sacrifice

for

them

instead.

So,

we

can

see

why

God

insisted

on

Israelites

keeping

their

covenant.

There are

two reasons.

In

verse 10

of Malachi

Malachi 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2,

it says that

God is

their father

and their

creator.

So,

one reason

is who

God is.

Who

God is

to

Israelites

even more

special

than

non-Israelites

because

God

rescued

them from

Egypt

and

called

them to

be

God's

children.

And so,

God

is their

father.

Not only

that,

God is

their

creator,

so God

created

them.

So,

on these

two

counts

alone,

the

Israelites

were supposed

to obey

God,

because of

what God

has done

for them

and who

God is

to them.

In

verse 2,

we actually

say that

we have

one father

and one

creator,

and the

one is

there to

emphasize the

fact that

Israelites

are like

one family,

and they

should be

faithful to

one another

besides being

faithful to

God.

So,

but it's

not only

who God

was to

them or

what God

did to

them,

but keeping

a covenant

is good

for their

characters and

for their

societies,

for their

communities,

and when

they did

not keep

it,

then the

community

broke

apart.

sometimes

we may

not

understand

the

purpose

of

God's

ways.

In the

covenant,

why do we

have to

sacrifice the

perfect

animals?

Couldn't

we just

do something

with

premises?

We think

deeper,

we look

back,

we know

the perfect

animals

represents

the

perfect

son of

God

who was

to come,

but the

time

Israelites

may not

understand

that.

It's just

like a

child may

not

understand

why the

parents

forced

him to

eat

broccoli

or

broccoli,

but

keeping

covenant

with God

was the

way to

know God

and eventually

to enjoy

God,

and it

was the

way to

build up

a person's

character

and wisdom.

Character

cannot be

given,

we have to

understand

that.

We can

be forgiven

in Christ

and have

the status

of righteousness,

but the

character

of righteousness

cannot be

given to

us like

magic and

change,

because that

means it's

not us

anymore or

not me

anymore.

The character

can only be

learned.

Even Christ

learned

obedience as

a son.

And the

process of

learning,

we grow,

we change,

we get

to know

God,

we get

to know

ourselves

better,

and that

is all

part of

life.

A person

may not

want to

do things

God's way

at first,

but because

he fears

God,

he would

do it

God's

way.

And as

he looks

back,

such a

person will

always be

thankful that

he was

able to

live by

God's

way and

not

his own

way.

A person

who is

not

willing to

do hard

things,

it's

hard to

build a

character.

If you

ask God

to make

your

patience,

God will,

and a

lot of

things will

happen to

try your

patience,

and it's

hard to

go through

that.

But if

we do

not want

to try

hard

things,

we will

never

enjoy the

fruit of

hard work.

If our

fallen

nature,

we choose

to follow

the easy

way of the

world rather

than follow

God's

ways.

in one,

I mean,

actually the

people who

do hard

things in

our midst

as well,

not only

can't say

that nobody

wants to

do hard

things,

there are

people who

finish HSC

this year,

and there's

a hard

thing,

and there

are people

here who

finish

uni this

year,

and it's

hard.

People

finish

the

fellowship

exam,

like Sarah,

passed that,

there are

so many

people here

who would

do hard

things.

As Paul

said in

1 Corinthians

9.25,

he said

that athletes

would try

very hard

to discipline

themselves,

everything,

to get

a crown

that is

temporary,

but he

said for

spiritual

discipline

it's an

eternal

crown,

and to

have that

spiritual

discipline

is even

harder,

and I

hope that

we would

take heart

and be

willing to

sacrifice

the small

comfort that

we enjoy

every day

when we

can spend

our time

to know

God in

a deeper

way.

So what

do we

think God

means when

he said

his name

would be

great among

the nations?

We may

think that

God wants

people to

fear him.

This is

half correct.

The other