Malachi 2:13-14 Loyalty to a wife or a friend

Here is another thing you do.  You cover the Lord's altar with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and he doesn't accept them with pleasure.  You cry, "Why has the Lord abandoned us?  I'll tell you why!  Because the Lord witnessed the vows you and your wife made to each other on your wedding day when you were young.  But you have been disloyal to her, though she remained your faithful companion, the wife of your marriage vows.

This is the book written by the prophet Malachi to the people of that time, but it can also be interpreted as a message to all of us so let's not be pointing fingers except to ourselves.  We, as people in general come to God and ask him, "What is the matter with you?  Why does it look like you have abandoned us?

We sometimes even blame God for our hardships and here he gives us the answer in the book of Malachi, one of the smallest book of the Bible but with a punch.  The book of Malachi is a great book in the Bible which shows that the Bible is very relevant today.  But let's get back to loyalty or rather disloyalty.

Of course, all of us think from this passage that it plainly means "adultery" but not necessarily.  It actually means just even doing our own thing.  I googled it for you:

This is an outline sermon from the Lighthouse Chapel in Nyankpala Campus in UDS by Chief Elder Johnson   First Love Church.

THE FOUR STAGES OF DISLOALTY:

1) Having  an independent spirit

2) Spirit of offence

3) Passive stage

4) Critical stage

These can lead to division in any relationships not just marriage.  I can see how breakups can happen by these stages.  Divorces are not caused by big dramatic events.  It's just an accumulation of small things.  Somewhere else the Bible calls them "Little foxes".

It's a gradual erosion of the relationship.  

In fact, in a few verses after these ones God says, "I hate divorce".  I am not judging divorcees but if you are honest with yourself you can say that divorces in some cases could have been avoided because there are warning signs ahead.  By the way, we talk to each others we can demonstrate our loyalty to each other.  Kindness goes a long way, my friend.

 

God sees everything and to demonstrate this here is a story about our beloved long-haired cat...My wife puts sticky tape in some of our plants in our home to discourage the cat from sticking her nose in there and digging in.  Unfortunately, she did go in the other day and had a tape stick to her coat which we easily removed but that's how we knew of her misfortune.  God wants to know too about you in order to help you.  He doesn't like your discomfort as much as you do.  Come to the Cross of Jesus and repent (Be truly sorry for your sins)...He knows.