The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Malachi 3:5,
"'So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,' says the Lord Almighty."
After God the Father sends his Son to planet earth, a judgment comes. Both advents of Jesus Christ are in view here in the prophecy we read in Malachi 3:1-5. The prophecy is given of John the Baptist who will "prepare the way", Malachi 3:1a. The remainder of that first verse speaks of the Son of God's first coming, "the messenger of the covenant, who you desire, will come..." Following this, we read of the second coming of Jesus Christ when the Lord will put sinners on trial, as we see in verse 5.
Thinking of these two advents of Jesus Christ reminds me of Hebrews 9:27-28, "Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." In this verse the focus is on the salvation Jesus Christ brings with him when this age comes to an end, at the time of his second coming. The Scriptures are also loud and clear about the judgment that accompanies Jesus Christ's second coming as well.
Oh, on a side note, for those who fancy the notion of "reincarnation" as a series of lifetimes we return to here on earth, following our deaths, did you notice how Hebrews 9:27 begins? "Just as people are destined to die once..." The concept of "reincarnation" is merely an invention of the imagination of those who don't know the one true God. It is a fiction, a fantasy.
I note in Malachi 3:5 that the sinful that are listed are those who do not "fear me [the Lord Almighty]." Woe to those who fail to fear the Lord in this life! It has personal implications for all eternity! "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
"'So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,' says the Lord Almighty."
After God the Father sends his Son to planet earth, a judgment comes. Both advents of Jesus Christ are in view here in the prophecy we read in Malachi 3:1-5. The prophecy is given of John the Baptist who will "prepare the way", Malachi 3:1a. The remainder of that first verse speaks of the Son of God's first coming, "the messenger of the covenant, who you desire, will come..." Following this, we read of the second coming of Jesus Christ when the Lord will put sinners on trial, as we see in verse 5.
Thinking of these two advents of Jesus Christ reminds me of Hebrews 9:27-28, "Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." In this verse the focus is on the salvation Jesus Christ brings with him when this age comes to an end, at the time of his second coming. The Scriptures are also loud and clear about the judgment that accompanies Jesus Christ's second coming as well.
Oh, on a side note, for those who fancy the notion of "reincarnation" as a series of lifetimes we return to here on earth, following our deaths, did you notice how Hebrews 9:27 begins? "Just as people are destined to die once..." The concept of "reincarnation" is merely an invention of the imagination of those who don't know the one true God. It is a fiction, a fantasy.
I note in Malachi 3:5 that the sinful that are listed are those who do not "fear me [the Lord Almighty]." Woe to those who fail to fear the Lord in this life! It has personal implications for all eternity! "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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