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Don’t Let Your Heart Be Hardened - Malachi - Sunday, September 25, 2016Pastor Rod Enos

I.A Hardened Heart A.Like a Rebellious Teenager B.A Loss of Reverence for God

Malachi 1:6-11 (NIV) “A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the LORD Almighty. “It is you priests who show contempt for my name. “But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?' 7 “By offering defiled food on my altar. “But you ask, ‘How have we defiled you?’

Malachi 1:6-11 (NIV) By saying that the LORD's table is contemptible. 8 When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the LORD Almighty.

Malachi 1:6-11 (NIV) 9 “Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the LORD Almighty. 10 “Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the LORD Almighty, “and I will accept no offering from your hands.

Malachi 1:6-11 (NIV) 11 My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD Almighty.

1 Chronicles 29:10-12 (NIV) David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, LORD, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. 11 Yours, LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.

1 Chronicles 29:10-12 (NIV) 12 Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.

I.A Hardened Heart A.Like a Rebellious Teenager B.A Loss of Reverence for God C.Symptoms We Lack the Fear of the Lord 1)We See Serving The Lord As A Burden 2)We Rationalize Away The Holy Spirit’s Conviction 3)We Lose Our Sense Of Gratitude For His Goodness 4)We Complain About Serving And Giving

II.The Heart of God is to Bless

Malachi 3:7-10 (NIV) Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?' 8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?' “In tithes and offerings.

Malachi 3:7-10 (NIV) 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 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.

II.The Heart of God is to Bless A.God Wants to Bring Abundance

Psalms 73:21-22 (NIV) When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.

Psalms 73:1-3 (NIV) Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Psalms 73:13-17 (NIV) Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. 14 All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments. 15 If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children. 16 When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.

Don't Let Your Heart be Hardened Don't let your heart be hardened - don't let your love grow cold May it always stay so childlike - may it never grow too old Don't let your heart be hardened - may you always know the cure Keep it broken before Jesus, keep it thankful, meek, and pure

Don't Let Your Heart be Hardened May it always feel compassion - may it beat as one with God's May it never be contrary - may it never be at odds May it always be forgiving - may it never know conceit May it always be encouraged - may it never know defeat

Don't Let Your Heart be Hardened May your heart be always open - never satisfied with right May your heat be filled with courage and strengthened with all might Let His love rain down upon you Breaking up your fallow ground Let it loosen all the binding Till only tenderness is found

Something To Remember If you can’t see that God is the God of blessing and abundance, you have been blinded by the enemy. Yielding fully to Him with all that you are and all that you have is the key to releasing His abundance.

Malachi 3:16-18 (NIV) Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name. 17 “On the day when I act,” says the LORD Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession.

Malachi 3:16-18 (NIV) I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. 18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.

Thank you for coming today! May you leave with a renewed sense of God’s love and presence in your life and renewed surrender to Him!