blemish free

6 “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?’

“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.

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. 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.

12 “But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord’s table is defiled,’ and, ‘Its food is contemptible.’ 13 And you say, ‘What a burden!’ and you sniff at it contemptuously,” says the LORD Almighty.

“When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hands?” says the LORD. 14 “Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord. For I am a great king,” says the LORD Almighty, “and my name is to be feared among the nations.

Malachi 1:6-14


This passage is soooo overlooked. In this interaction between God and the priests of Israel through Malachi, the priests are being put on the spot for bringing unacceptable sacrifices to God's altar. Like Eli's two sons in 1 Samuel, these priests bring crappy animals as their offerings to God, and taking the fatty and good meats for themselves. God basically asks them, where is the respect due to Him?

In this day and age, we don't exactly give barn animals to God as offerings, but we adore Him with praises and prayers. This actually had me thinking..how often do I actually keep the best for myself and give the leftovers to God? When I serve, am I serving with all intents and motives to make sure God receives all glory? Or..is there pride + ego mixed into the equation as well? What about my own personal problems..my struggles with anger & frustrations, those things that are constantly in battle with my spiritual nature?

I know what i want to do and need to do. Even yesterday on our way back from Indy, my road rage almost reached its peak just because of random this-and-that. My inabilities to keep all these things in check while I'm serving God and His people are surely being recorded somewhere in heaven. I don't wanna give anything hideous dressed in perfection to God. The distance between me and Him is eternity- incomprehensible and frankly unattainable. To a God of that high nature, I don't wanna give Him crap. I don't want to spit on the offerings that I hypocritically place at His feet.

Teach me to be fearful and become blemish-free like Your SON.