• The core of a person’s conduct is a person’s attitude.

  • Coaches know this and key on it.

  • Motivational speakers are all about attitude.

  • Our attitudes are important to God – and should be important to us.

    • They drive our actions.
      • Our attitude is the engine that drives us.
    • Change attitude to change action.

• Attitude is not the only thing – Christianity is not all attitude.

  • Does God want our hearts or our obedience?

    • He wants our hearts first and the obedience that follows!

  • How about under the Mosaic Law? Circumcision of the heart:

    • Obedience: Leviticus 26:1-2, 14-16; Deuteronomy 27:9-10; 28:58-63

    • Attitude (hearts): Jeremiah 9:24; Leviticus 26:40-43; Numbers 15:38-40; Deuteronomy 4:7-9, 29-31, 39-40

      • God wants hearts that are devoted to Him.

    • Poetry: Proverbs 21:3; Psalms 119:2, 7, 10-11, 32, 34, 36, 58, 69, 80, 111-112, 145

      • It is better to live righteously than to sacrifice!

    • Prophecy: Isaiah 1:13-20; Joel 2:12-13; Deuteronomy 13:1; Jeremiah 3:7-10

    • Law: Deuteronomy 10:14-22; 13:1-4; 30:6-14

    • New Testament: Romans 10:13; Mark 12:28-34

• What happened to the heart?

  • Levitical jurisprudence – Deuteronomy 16:18-20; 17:8-13

    • God gave the Levites leeway.

    • The Pharisees ran with it!

    • Leviticus 19:18 – Case in point.

      • Matthew 5:43

Put on the New Self

• Ephesians 4:17-24 – “lay aside the old self … put on the new self”

  • Being a Christian means more than going to church on Sundays! It is a total transformation to serving God.

  • I Peter 1:15-16 – Be holy!

  • We must lay aside bad habits and start good ones.

• Romans 6:3-13 – “walk in newness of life … our old self was crucified with Him”

  • Baptism is the start of a new life in Christ. It is not an end in itself.

• Colossians 3:1-11 – “laid aside the old self … put on the new self”

  • We must put aside our old ways. We can’t make excuses and say, “This is just who I am.”

  • We must continually change for the better.

• Galatians 2:11-14 – This is a good example of the change Jesus demands in our lives.

What happens if I don’t put on the new self?

My soul is doomed

• II Peter 2:20-22

It’s hypocrisy and it ruins my credibility

• Romans 2:1-3, 21-24
• Hypocrisy among Christians causes onlookers to blaspheme. There may be no quicker way to ruin our influence with others!

Good leadership includes humility.

• Exodus 4:14-16; 6:13; 7:1, 8-13, 19; 8:6, 17 – Aaron was in an active leadership role. The first three plagues were done directly through him.
• Aaron was the first high priest. Exodus 28:1
• Numbers 12:1-9 – Even as a leader, you can’t do anything you want.
• Leviticus 10:1-3 – Aaron’s sons were killed by God because of their sin.
• There is always someone above you!
• I Peter 5:1-4 – Elders can’t lord it over the flock! They must lead with humility.
• Ephesians 6:5-9
• Ephesians 5:22-25 – Husbands and wives.
• Ephesians 6:1-4 – Parents and children.

Don’t compromise on the important stuff.

• Exodus 32:1-6 – The golden calf. Aaron may have been trying to pretend that in worshiping the golden calf, they were worshiping the one true God, but he should have never compromised on this point.
• Don’t try to be the cool parent that compromises on what is important for your children!

I can serve God despite past sin.

• Numbers 16:20-22 – Good leadership from Moses and Aaron!
• Numbers 20:23-29 – The death of Aaron.
• Aaron did a lot of wrong, but also served God in many good ways.
• Psalms 106:16
• Hebrews 5:1-4
• We can move past our sins just as Aaron did.
• Galatians 6:1

Malachi

Introduction to the book

• Malachi’s name means “my messenger.”
• The book was most likely written around 435-432 BC.
• The general message of the book was for the people to clean up their lives and worship!
• The style of writing is more like a debate between the people and God.

Notes on the text

• Malachi 1:1-5 – God declares His love for Israel.

• Malachi 1:6-10 – The people offered unacceptable sacrifices. They people questioned the charge, but God listed their offenses in Malachi 1:7-8. They had worshiped according to their own desires.

• Malachi 1:11-14 – Israel had profaned God’s name (Malachi 1:12), but it would be great among the Gentiles (Malachi 1:14). This prophecy was fulfilled in Christ.

• Malachi 2:1-4 – Priests would not repent, and they were hopelessly cursed by God. See Exodus 29:14

• Malachi 2:5-9 – The priesthood as God ordained it is compared to the actual state of the priesthood at that time. They had turned out of the way and caused people to stumble (Malachi 2:8).

• Malachi 2:10-17 – The people had not respected God’s marriage law.

  • Matthew 19 – God’s marriage law. God hates divorce!

  • Galatians 5:24-25

• Malachi 3:1-7 – God’s messenger (John the Baptist) would come before Christ.

• Malachi 3:8-15 – They had robbed God with their tithes.

• Malachi 3:16-18 – God’s book of remembrance (looking forward to Christ). Compare Nehemiah 5:19.

• Malachi 4:1-6 – The ultimate destruction of the wicked and triumph of the righteous.

  • Malachi 4:5 – Elijah here is referring to John the Baptist (Matthew 17).

Lessons for us

• Honor God as a good son honors his father (Malachi 1:6).
• God will not accept an offering of scraps.
• We must be regulated by what God likes.
• God hates divorce.
• God writes the faithful in His book of remembrance.
• Those who walk not with God will be destroyed, but the righteous will enter the joy of their Lord.
• All acceptable preaching must have a “thus sayeth the Lord.”

• Do I shut off the kingdom of heaven from people?

  • Matthew 23:13

  • John 7:45-53 – Nicodemus was a Pharisee, but honestly sought truth.

  • The Pharisees assumed they were right and others were wrong without honestly seeking truth.

• Am I selfish?

  • Matthew 23:14

  • Do I look like a Christian, but avoid the work a Christian should be doing?

• Do I bind tradition instead of truth?

  • Matthew 23:15

  • The Pharisees converted people to their own traditions – not to God’s law.

  • II Corinthians 4:5

  • Acts 8:35; 17:2; 18:28

  • There is no such thing as “church of Christ doctrine.” There is Christ’s doctrine and that’s all!

• Am I dishonest?

  • Matthew 23:16-22; 5:33

• Do I neglect what’s important?

  • Matthew 23:23

  • Details are important, but don’t forget the big things!

• Do I pretend to be what I’m not?

  • Matthew 23:25-28

  • Titus 1:15-16

  • James 2:15-17; I John 2:4

• Do I think I would have been a better child of God in some other time or place?

  • Matthew 23:29-36

  • Amos 7:14-15

  • We can’t make excuses. We have to serve God the best we can in our present circumstances.