God Is Bigger Than You Think: A Study in Malachi

The book of Malachi is all about what happens when we lose our awe of God.

Written sometime after they had returned from exile, ancient Israel had become rather disenchanted with God. The temple was rebuilt, and worship had recommenced. But many of the promises of the messianic new age that the prophets had spoken of had not yet become a reality. The new temple was rather pathetic compared to the old one. They were still oppressed by foreigners. And there was still no king on the throne. From their view, God had either let them down, or he was never that big a deal to begin with. A sentiment that’s frighteningly easy to resonate with today, as we consider the hardships and disappointments that so many of us have experienced over the last year.

So what happens when God’s people have a shallow and superficial view of God? When we lose sight of his holiness and majesty, and become unimpressed with our relationship with him? When we measure his greatness based on our personal satisfaction?

What happens is that we end up living unholy lives that profane God’s name and pollute all of life—our relationship with God, our worship, our ministries, our marriages, how we approach justice, how we handle our money, and how we approach obedience.

Malachi gives us a much needed wakeup call, reminding us that God is bigger than we think. He is worthy of our honor, his name will be great among the nations, and he will be faithful to renew his people through the purifying work of Christ.

So join us this winter at Stonebridge Church as we consider the prophet’s words and behold our truly awesome God.

• Feb 7: “A God-Sized View of Love” (Mal. 1:1-5)
• Feb 14: “A God-Sized View of Ministry” (Mal. 1:6–2:9)
• Feb 21:  “A God-Sized View of Marriage” (Mal. 2:10-16)
• Feb 28: “A God-Sized View of Justice” (Mal. 2:17–3:5)
• Mar 14: “A God-Sized View of Money” (Mal. 3:6-12)
• Mar 21: “A God-Sized View of Obedience” (Mal. 3:13–4:6)