Thursday, June 4, 2026

Your Best

A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My fear? says the Lord of Hosts to you, O priests, who despise My name. But you say, “How have we despised Your name?” You offer defiled food on My altar, but say, “How have we defiled You?” By saying, “The table of the Lord is contemptible.” When you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? When you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it now to your governor! Would he be pleased with you, or accept you? says the Lord of Hosts.
- Malachi 1:6-8

By the time Malachi wrote these words, the sacrifices the Israelites brought God were nothing more than their castoffs. God commanded the people to give their best, and the priests were instructed to examine the offerings before they were made. But the people became greedy. They didn't want to give God their best. They had forgotten the law of sowing and reaping. They offered only the leftovers, the rejects, and the castoffs of what they had. They reaped destruction and ruin as a result.


Too often, we keep the best for ourselves and offer to the Lord that which costs us little. Five percent is not 10 percent. It may soothe your conscience, but it doesn't satisfy God's commands. He says, "Go ahead and offer your desecrated offering, but I won't be listening to your songs, and I won't be hearing your prayers." Give your best to God and walk in covenant blessing.


Remember that tithing touches your time and talents as well as your treasure. Are you spending the best part of your time with the Lord? Are you giving to the Lord the best of your talents?

Further Reading

• Malachi 1:6-8
• Genesis 45:18
• Joshua 2:12