Week of August 16th, 2026
Encouragement from God's Word
Malachi 3:8–12
“Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’
“In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the Lord Almighty. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.
As a forgiven child of God, we are always eager to please and serve the Lord. In these Malachi verses, God confronted the people of Malachi’s day with the sin they were permitting in their lives that kept them from faithful service.
What was the sin?
Offerings that did not reflect faith and a desire to honor the Lord. God was so bothered by their poor offerings that he viewed it as robbing him. He graciously gave many gifts to his people; their response was to give little or nothing to the Lord. This was a sin that offended God.
The truth of Malachi’s day remains true today.
But then God encouraged his people with a wonderful promise. God would not let his people out give him! He would “throw open the floodgates of heaven” in response to offerings that honored him.
This truth of Malachi’s day also remains true today!
Faith in Jesus motivates us to give proper offerings to our Lord. These are not given out of obligation, but in the joy of an eternal relationship with God. We don’t give gifts as some sort of investment deal with God – expecting him to give more to us in return – and yet his promise of goodness lingers in our hearts.
As you grow in faith in Christ, give thought to how you can express that faith in your offerings. The results will look very different in different Christians, but all of us will seek to honor the Lord.
