In the movie Ant-Man, Scott Lang (who becomes the title character) takes some time to explain that his illegal behavior (which is burglary and theft) is not the same as robbery. Some have even undertaken to compare his arguments against the details of California law, to break down the specific differences between these three crimes. (Although this is not an endorsement of the movie nor others’ specific legal opinions, I found some of their findings to make for an entertaining read, if you wanted to search for them online.)
While the California legal system had not yet been written when the book of Malachi was recorded, there was definitely some inappropriate behavior going on, even back then.
“Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me.
“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’
“In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole nation—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 there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.
Malachi 3:8-12 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/mal.3.8-12.NIV
Let’s consider what it means to rob someone (as well as its variants, since the distinction between things life robbery, burglary, and theft was not necessarily differentiated in the time of Malachi).
- One type of robbery is a mugging, where the robber looks his victim in the eye and takes something by force.
- Today, we have other kinds of theft, where a criminal can steal money electronically, without ever meeting the victim in person.
- And, when an employer doesn’t pay promised wages or a debtor doesn’t pay back what is owed (when either has the ability to do so), this is yet another form of leaving victims without the compensation that they rightly deserve.
On the other hand, we might say that God owns everything, so there’s either, 1) no way that we can rob Him (since it’s all His, anyway), or 2) anything that we claim as our own is robbery. Those viewpoints both seem a little extreme, but there may be some kernels of truth in each.
In this case, though, God had made it clear what the Jewish people were expected to bring to the temple. God does own everything (including having redeemed His people when He delivered them from slavery in Egypt; and having redeemed His people today, who He bought back from the consequences of our sin), and while God still let His people enjoy many blessings for themselves, He had provided specific instructions for how those blessings to His people were to be used.
Think about it: What if we deposited our money with a mutual fund, and asked that it be placed in low-risk bonds? We might expect a small amount to be taken out for the investor, as part of normal fees, but hopefully much less than we were earning in profits. What if that money manager just took our cash, though, and split it between his own luxury lifestyle and placing bets in Las Vegas? I think that we would not only be unhappy with the results, but we would consider ourselves to have been robbed (in the general sense).
When the Jewish people didn’t invest or allocate their blessings from God according to God’s will, it was the same as if they had taken money from God for themselves.
So, regardless of the current legal definition of the language translated here in Malachi, are you and I thieves, burglars, or robbers when it comes to God? Are we taking what is His, and investing it where He doesn’t want it to go? Are we taking the best of what is God’s (even if He lets us manage some of His creation), and returning only a few “leftovers” to Him, whether directly to ministry, or just using it for the good of others who He loves? Does God get a little bit of our stuff, but not our heart?
If you and God are already good on this topic, that’s great! However, I know that I am personally tempted a lot about this. I want to trust God to not worry about giving to the church, but once in a while I still think about the things I could be buying with what I give. I want to trust God to provide for my next job (since I have a job change coming up next year), knowing that He has provided for all of my needs so far, but still wonder if I will have enough to get by until then.
Hopefully, by teaching and writing on this topic, though, I can remind myself that He’s got this, and when I trust Him with my heart, He’s good for the rest. And, I welcome suggestions (in the comments below) from others about how they have managed to overcome this challenge. Or, if you’re in the same situation as me, let’s all work together to get back to the life that God wants for us, which is going to be better than using what God has given us in any other way.
Let’s ponder this today, though, and consider the “flip side” in the next lesson: the amazing things that God does with blessings that are used according to His direction.
From Sunday School lesson prepared for August 18, 2024
References:
- The Lookout, August, 2024, © 2024 Christian Standard Media.
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – Minor Prophets Vol. 2 Nahum-Malachi, by Mark Allen Hahlen and Clay Alan Ham. © 2006 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 