Much of what follows was preached by Dr. Allen Griffith at Grace Baptist Church, Pelzer, SC on February 12, 2012.
We must understand the book of Malachi is God's last prophetic word for the nation of Israel for some four hundred years. This will be the last message from God until John the Baptist arrives on the scene to prepare the way for the Lord Jesus Christ. It behooves us to wake up and take notice of the things of which Malachi speaks. One topic he zeroes in on is marriage (Malachi 2:10-16).
"Has not one God created us (Malachi 2:10)?" "Why then are we faithless to one another (Malachi 2:10)?" This faithlessness resulted in "profaning the covenant of our fathers." "Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem (Malachi 2:11)." "For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which He loves and has married the daughter of a foreign god."
Faithless to one another, profaning the covenant, abomination in Israel, profaned the sanctuary. What in the world is going on here? The people of Judah had returned from Babylonian captivity to their homeland. Wonder if they had to deal with TSA? Ha! Everything was supposed to be good. They were taken captive because of faithlessness towards God and now God has allowed them to return, so all is well. Right? WRONG!! Even after years of judgment and hundreds of years of history in which God demonstrated His character to them, they continue to do the same things.
As the people of Judah returned to their land, they realized that it had been inhabited by the ungodly and idolaters in their absence. Upon their return, "they married the daughter of a foreign god (Malachi 2:11)." Let's put this in New Testament terms. Upon their return, the believers were intermarrying with unbelievers. The result? "May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob any descendant of the man who does this..."
The "tents of Jacob" were the place of God's most precious blessings. As they chose to marry those who were opposed to God, they immediately lost God's most precious blessing. It is so imperative to "marry in the Lord." And not just "marry in the Lord," but marry so that the two become one and serve the Lord together. The temptation may be to say, "well there are plenty of people who are not walking with the Lord who have decent marriages." You may even say, "there are believers married to unbelievers who have decent marriages." To begin to think in those terms is to completely miss the point of what Malachi is saying. God has placed a premium on marriage. He ordained it. Marriage is God's plan, not man's. From the moment He made Eve from Adam's side, God has intended marriage to be the foundation upon which godly societies are built. Why should we be surprised that there is such an attack on the institution of marriage and such an effort to redefine it? Turn on the TV, talk to co-workers, surf the internet. Everywhere we turn, marriage is presented in a false manner. "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do (Psalm 11:3)?" We are witnessing the destruction of the foundation and it has been going on for a number of years.
It is far too easy to get out of marriage. Sadly, this is true for the churched and the unchurched alike. We have lost sight of, or never really understood, that marriage is a covenant not a a contract. Although covenant and contract are similar, they are not the same. A contract is entered into by two parties. The integrity of the contract is dependent on the actions, behavior, etc... of the parties involved. If either party does not live up to the obligations of the contract, the contract is broken.
However, marriage is a covenant. A covenant does not depend on what the other party does. Most marriage ceremonies include phrases like the following:
"For better or for worse."
"For richer or poorer."
"In sickness and in health."
When we enter marriage, we have no idea what the future holds. Because of this, we set up extremes. We promise that no matter what happens somewhere between the extremes we will remain faithful to our spouse. So what do we do when we find ourselves in the worse instead of the better? The poorer instead of the richer? The sickness instead of the health? What will keep the marriage together in these circumstances?
The answer is found in Malachi 2:14, "... Because the Lord was witness between you and the wife of your youth..." Every wedding always has a number of witnesses, families, friends, etc... While it is great that those close to the bride and groom rejoice with them, the One and Only witness that really matters is often never taken seriously. Wife of your youth... I was twenty-two when I was married and desired then to be a godly husband. My wife can attest that I am far from perfect. Although, there are many young people who marry and say they want God-honoring wedding ceremonies and marriages, do they really grasp that as they stand at the altar and say their vows, that God Himself, the Creator of the universe is witness to those words? He is witness to those vows for all eternity! I have been married for twenty-three years and don't believe I have yet truly grasped this. Although I understand it more today than I ever have. Comprehending that God is and was the witness, will keep the marriage strong when times are tough.
To refer back to the marriage ceremony. We know that most of the vows end with, "Till death to us part" or "As long as we both shall live." This is what God intended. This was His plan. All through history people have always sought a way to get out of marriage. Today we have annulments and "no fault" divorces. Even today many vows now include the words, "As long as we love each other." What? We're looking for a way out before we even get in. Do we really understand that when we say these vows to another person, with God as the Witness, He intended this covenant relationship to remain in tact until one passes away?
What were the people of Judah doing? "... you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant." Companion is a reference to how the Lord makes the two, one flesh. "Did He not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union (Malachi 2:15)." They were being faithless where the marriage covenant was concerned.
What was the result of this? "... You cover the Lord's altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because He no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand (Malachi 2:13)." They had taken marriage so lightly that the believers married unbelievers and then they were divorcing. While not the topic here, divorce, even then, had become very easy. The covenant was taken lightly. Again, to begin to think of all the reasons for divorce is to completely miss the point that God places the highest premium on the marriage.
Because of the light regard for marriage, "faithlessness" and "putting away (divorce)," God no longer regarded their offerings or accepted their offerings with favor. The people of Judah knew this. Once they realized God's favor had been lost, they "covered the Lord's altar with tears, with weeping and groaning..." Are we moved like this when we know we have lost God's favor in our lives? There are many things that could cause that loss, but here it is the lack of regard for marriage that does it.
It is amazing to me that we see the breakdown and destruction of the family in our churches, yet pretend that it is alright. We come to the house of God singing, while we are faithless to the wife of our youth. How is this right?? Yes, we have a zeal for God, but not according to this specific piece of knowledge given to us by Malachi.
Finally, we see that, "... the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that He hateth putting away (Malachi 2:16)." "For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in spirit and do not be faithless (Malachi 2:16)." It could not be more clear. God hates divorce. With divorce comes all kind of trouble, heartache and sometimes violence. Therefore take heed!! Marry the person God intended for you and understand that God is witness and His plan is for the two to be together until one passes away!
He must increase, I must decrease!
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