Malachi 4 This Bible Study is written by Roger
Christopherson, and made available with written
permission by http://www.theseason.org Malachi 4:1 "For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave then neither root nor branch." This "fire" that will that will come at our Lord Jesus Christ's returning, will remove and destroy the roots and all wickedness that is against God's Word. Who is that "fire". The "fire" is the Holy Spirit of God. "For our God is a consuming Fire." Hebrews 12:29 There will be no room for the proud, the wicked, or any form of evil, after the Millennium and judgment day. They will all be turned to ashes, and even the memory of them will be no more. Revelations 20:11-15 gives the account of what will happen on that final day. God will not only take their beings from our presence, but the memory of them ever existing, will be removed also. It will be as if they never had never been created in the first place, by our heavenly Father. This alone should cause one to turn from his [her] wickedness. Malachi 4:2 "But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. Should any of God's children, those with their sins covered under the precious blood of Jesus Christ, worry on, or about that "day of the Lord"? Definitely not, for God is going to take very good care of His own, and hold them in high esteem. Your going to be free of all binding earthly shackles. It's going to be a time of pleasure and joy you simply cannot imagine in this earthly body. To those who revere God, it will be a time of remembrance and blessing. Our earthly bodies will be shed, with all it's aches and pains, as well as those ailments that this life has brought upon us. Malachi 4:3 "And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts." On that "day of the Lord", which is at the sounding of the seventh and last trumpet, "they shall be ashes". That's right, "ashes", and not slaves nor servants. "That I shall do this;" What shall He do? Well, this is talked about in Malachi 3:17, where God compared His children to His jewels. He said He would spare nothing to provide an inheritance to those that serve Him. The wicked shall be gone forever, blotted out of God's book, and out of the minds of all them that knew them. They will be without a soul or spirit, for the wicked are going to be only a vapor of dust. Jesus said in Matthew 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him Which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell [gehenna]." Malachi 4:4 "Remember ye the law of Moses My servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments." God's commandments were given to us to keep us out of trouble. God has told us in His Word, that if we break one of those commandments, then there is a price to pay. Many of the blood ordinances are done away with, because our Lord Jesus Christ became those sacrifices, and rituals. Jesus Christ's blood was shed for one and all times; yet part of those judgments are still in effect, for our civil laws of our land, are based upon the law given to Moses. The health laws are always in effect, and for the violation of them is not sin, but sickness, and poor health. Malachi 4:5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:" This is one of the last promises that God gave in the Old Testament. God promised that "Elijah the prophet" would return before the coming of the Lord. Why is this important? Because Elijah teaches the Word of the Lord, and not the traditions of men. When he does come to earth prior to the "day of the Lord", I don't think the world, including those calling themselves Christians, will be listening to him. For Elijah will be attacking their customs, traditions, and their way of life, and calling their sins, "sin". To most of the Church World, any attacks on their Satanic doctrines, which they have adopted, and been taught, brands one an outsider. When Elijah the prophet returns, he will be condemning. Elijah will prepare the way for the Messiah's return. We saw in Malachi 3:1, and Matthew 3:3, where John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah, to prepare the way for Jesus Christ at the first advent. Elijah will prepare the way for Jesus Christ's second return. Malachi 4:6 "And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." There are two fathers; one is our Heavenly Father, and the other is the fake father. You can call the fake father the Antichrist, Satan, Lucifer, the dragon, serpent; however, no matter what you call this fake father, he is the great deceiver. He will set up his kingdom on earth, with the authority [keys] given him by God Himself. [see Revelation 9:1] The reign of the first "father" [Satan] will last for five months [Revelation 9:5,10], and start at the sounding of the "fifth trumpet", when he is caste out of heaven to the earth by Michael. [Revelation 12:7-9]. It is during Satan's reign, the the entire world, including Christians, will believe this Antichrist to be the true Messiah. So why is Elijah so important to those few that will be sealed in the minds [foreheads] the Word of God? Elijah knows the law, and the prophecies concerning the end times. When He comes to preach to the world of the laws and judgments coming on the earth, there will be a polarization of all men on the earth. The far majority of mankind will flee to the false father [the Antichrist], because they will think Elijah is a crackpot, and trouble maker. The true "elect of God" know God's Word, and will be true and hold fast to the Lord. They will grow closer to the True Father. Why will this happen, and How could it come about? A simple understanding of what is being taught by these "one verse preachers", and you will see that most converts today are left in total ignorance of God's will, God's plan, and the second return of His Son Jesus Christ. The understanding of God's Word is required before you can communicate God's Word to anyone. That understanding requires study with the proper tools to seek out the spiritual truths of God's Word. Most pastors today find it easier to stick to their seminary sermons and quarterlies. Just before this great and dreaded day, God will send Elijah to warn His Elect. The message will be foolishness to the world, but the elect will understand precisely what Elijah will say. All twelve of these minor prophets had a message to alert us [God's elect] to the great deception coming over the earth. I hope this verses by verse, chapter by chapter study will help set a pattern for study for you to seek out the truth of God's Holy Word. Today you simply cannot rely on others to do your study and interpretation for you.
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