Malachi 3:1
In Christ Jesus, the Savior promised throughout the Old Testament, dear Christian friends,
Before us this morning we have the words of Malachi, the last of the Old Testament prophets. His is the last book of the Old Testament Scriptures. He wrote these words about 100 years after the Jews had returned home from the Babylonian captivity. But even though they had been given back the land of their fathers, the faith of their fathers was lacking. The people were too earthly-minded, having no regard for the will of their God. So Malachi was called to preach a message of repentance to these people, to lead them to realize their spiritual deficiencies, so that they again would put their hope in the coming Messiah. And yet the majority of them still disregarded and even despised the message brought by Malachi.
There were some who did listen. A remnant of faithful people remained in Israel. They were willing to humble themselves under God’s mighty hand and to listen to his prophet. They repented and received the comforting words of the Lord as spoken through Malachi. Here were people who had grown discouraged waiting for the Lord’s Anointed One, the Savior. But now Malachi could assure them with the words of our text (v 1), “Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple.” It wouldn’t be long. Advent was at hand, and 400 years later it was fulfilled in glory. The Lord’s messenger would come to prepare the people for an even greater Messenger, the promised Messiah.
This evening let’s study this prophecy which proclaims:
“Advent at Hand”
I. The messenger shall suddenly come
II. The messenger shall establish the covenant
First of all, Malachi mentions a messenger who would be sent to prepare the way (v 1), “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me.” Who is this messenger? Malachi mentions him again in the last verses of his book (Mal 4:5,6), “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse.” As Elijah came before Elisha, so another “Elijah” would be sent to prepare the way of the Lord by turning hearts to repentance.
Who would this messenger be? None other than John the Baptist. The angel had said to his father Zechariah (Lk 1:15-17), “He will be great in the sight of the Lord…and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous–to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” When John was born, Zechariah sang in his song of praise (Lk 1:76), “And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him.” Three decades later, his father’s words were fulfilled (Jn 1:6-8), “There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.” And by the message he proclaimed we see that John was faithful to his calling: “Make straight the way for the Lord” (Jn 1:23); “Prepare the way for the Lord” (Mk 1:3); “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Mt 3:2).
And soon thereafter, the other part of Malachi’s prophecy was fulfilled (v 1), “‘Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,’ says the Lord Almighty.” As the Apostle John wrote (Jn 1:9), “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.” This Messenger came to his own people, being born of the house of David. He came as the Messenger of the covenant, the covenant of grace established after mankind had fallen into sin, the covenant established with Abraham, promising him that the Messiah would come from his line. This Messenger was the only Son of his Father, the One made flesh to live and die as one of us. This Messenger was sent to set up a new covenant between God and man, a covenant that would never be broken because it would be based on God’s never-failing love. This Messenger is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Mediator between God and man.
Advent is at hand. We are preparing to celebrate our Savior’s first advent. This helps to make us ready for his second coming. He came as promised the first time, and he will come as promised again. His second advent also will be sudden. Don’t let it catch you unprepared.
The numbers glare out at us — only 6 more shopping days left! Christmas seems to sneak up on us so quickly. We feel like we’re not ready for it. The cards may get sent out late; Christmas gifts may not all be found or purchased in time; the decorations may not all get put up–but such lack of preparation won’t be fatal. We can get over these faults. But being found unprepared for our Savior when he comes will be eternally fatal. So it makes sense to put him at the top of your list. Find room for him in your schedule and in your heart today, because the Messenger is coming again. And he will come suddenly.
When that Messenger comes, he will come to establish the covenant. Let’s take a closer look at that covenant.
At man’s creation God set up his first covenant. Adam and Eve were able to enjoy the Lord as their God, and they were to be his people. They were to honor and praise him, and in return they would live in happiness and joy for all eternity. But man broke this covenant with God by falling into sin. He became the object of God’s wrath, and a separation developed between God and his creation. Man became God’s enemy and, as a result, deserved to be cast away from his presence forever.
But God had another plan, another covenant. In the midst of his curse upon the devil he gave a wonderful promise to mankind (Ge 3:15), “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” The Woman’s Seed, the promised Messiah, would slay the enemy separating God and man. This covenant promise was passed on to Noah, to Abraham, to David, and to all believers throughout the Old Testament. All nations would be blessed through the offspring of the people of Israel.
In the meantime, Israel was to live as God’s chosen people, showing with their lives that they were special, for God had made them his own. But from history we know how often they stumbled. Time after time they broke his covenant, living as anything but children of the Lord. They failed to live up to their side of the agreement.
But God in his grace nevertheless promised to establish another new covenant with Israel, the covenant to which Malachi refers in our text (v 1), “‘Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,’ says the Lord Almighty.” This is the covenant established by Christ the Lord! This is the reason for this holiday season! Here was a Savior sent by God to perfectly fulfill all the requirements of the old covenant (Gal 4:4,5), “When the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.” This is the Messenger of God who took upon himself all our transgressions, atoning for everyone of them, making us at one with God again (Isa 53:4-6), “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows….But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed….and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Jesus Christ became “a covenant for the people” (Isa 42:6). He made peace between us and God. He broke down the barrier standing between us (Eph 2:14-16), “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” Christ Jesus abolished the law’s hold on us by fulfilling it for us (Ro 10:4), “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”
The new covenant remains — we have salvation by faith through Jesus Christ. Those who believe in him are children of this covenant (Ro 5:1), “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” And this is an eternal covenant. The promise, given through Isaiah, has become a fact (Isa 54:10), “‘Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.”
So which covenant do you want to live under? There’s the covenant of the law established at the time of creation, or there’s the covenant of grace established by the Savior. If you reject what your Lord has done for you, you’re choosing to live by the law, and you shatter that covenant every day with your sins. So, consequently, you have to die eternally. But if you put your trust and hope in Jesus, then you’re living by the covenant he established. You’re recognizing your own inability to save yourself, and you’re turning to the only One who can save you. So make the wise choice, and let the Holy Spirit make room in your heart for your Savior, the One who has established the only covenant by which you can be saved–the covenant of grace.
Advent is at hand. “‘Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,’ says the Lord Almighty” (v 1). Praise be to God, for he has come! As we just sang this evening (CW 28:2):
What the fathers most desired,
What the prophets’ heart inspired,
What they longed for many a year
Stands fulfilled in glory here.
Hosanna to the Messenger of the covenant! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!
Amen
–Rev Jonathan Rockhoff