a malachi prophecy for today

Towards the end of October, the Lord gave me a revelation from the book of Malachi in regard to taking communion and living a holy lifestyle. It was called “The Malachi Offering.” I recently shared a word from the Lord comparing the sufferings of those who love and serve God to the sufferings of Job and Jesus. It was called “Why Do We Suffer?” 1 Peter 4:12-14 explains it by saying, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that at the revelation of His glory you may also rejoice and be overjoyed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, and of God, rests upon you.” This week, during prayer, the Lord took me deeper into these revelations and showed me in the book of Malachi His future plans for His church. He showed me that the coming fire of His Holy Spirit will burn away the impurities in the Church before He brings His judgement to the earth. It has already begun, and it is evident to anyone who has the eyes to see and the ears to hear. This is how the Lord revealed it to me.

Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament and falls between the old and new covenant. The old covenant was between God and Abraham and included his descendants, the Children of Israel. It was based on the laws God gave to Moses. Jesus came to fulfill the laws of the old covenant and paid the price for the new covenant with His suffering and death on the cross. Jesus brought salvation to the world that allowed our restoration to the Father for all those who would believe in Jesus as the Son of God and in His death and resurrection. While I was reading through Malachi, I began to see a remarkable similarity between the prophetic word being given to Israel through Malachi and the Church today. We are now in the moment where the old age with its worldly leaders is coming to an end and the new age with Jesus as our ruler in getting ready to emerge. The Lord is once again speaking through the book of Malachi as it falls between the old and new once again. I will share with you what the Lord told me about the Church today as it relates to the Levitical priesthood in Malachi and coming visitation of the fire of the Holy Spirit unto the earth.

Before we look at this comparison, we must understand that Jesus has made all of us who believe in Him and who have received Him as our Lord and Savior, priests unto our God, as it says in Revelations 1:6, “He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Father.” We also must understand that when God moves through the earth in judgement, He starts with His own people first. Continuing on in 1 Peter 4, it says, “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler… For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” If we remember that we as believers are all priests unto God and that His judgement first comes to His own household before it comes to the unrighteous in the earth, we will be able to see that the word given to Malachi for Israel and the Levitical priests has a potentially powerful message for all of us priests in the Church today.

I find it encouraging that the first thing the Lord says in Malachi 1:2 is “I have loved you.” He makes sure that they understand He loves them before He addresses their sin and delinquency. I believe He is doing the same thing today. He wants us to know that He has loved us before He brings the heat of His fire. When I got filled with the Holy Spirit just over a year ago, one of the first things the Lord shared with me was a love letter for His church. It is one of the first weekly messages I have posted on this site. I have been sharing of this purification that the Lord is bringing to His church for over a year now, but as in the book of Malachi, it started with a statement of His love for us.

In Malachi 1:6-8, the Lord says, “I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My respect?…You are presenting defiled food upon My altar…So offer it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you, or would he receive you kindly?” He is addressing the Levitical priesthood and is telling them that they were not giving their best when they offered their sacrifices. He told them their sacrifices were not even worthy of their earthy leaders much less that of a Holy and Righteous God. We no longer have to offer animal sacrifices as they did under the old covenant because we fall under the new covenant, and Jesus was the perfect blood sacrifice for us, once and for all. What kind of sacrifices does the Lord expect from us today? One of the most obvious and significant sacrifices is that of worship and praise and according to the apostle Paul, we should also offer ourselves as a living sacrifice. Romans 12:1 says, “Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” This is where our comparison begins. As modern-day priests unto God, are we offering our best when we present ourselves to our Holy and Righteous God?

Malachi 1:10 says, “If only there were one among you who would shut the gates, so that you would not kindle fire on My altar for nothing! I am not pleased with you,” says the LORD of armies, “nor will I accept an offering from your hand…You also say, ‘See, how tiresome it is!’ And you view it as trivial.” He would rather us not even bring Him our sacrifice if it is not going to be our best. Why waste His time? Why even “kindle fire” on His altar for nothing? When we stand or even sit as some do during worship and not even open our mouths to worship or refuse to lift our hands in surrender to our God, is that how we “present our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice?” When we come before the Lord with conceived sin within our hearts as it says in James 1:14-15, are we bringing Him a “holy sacrifice?” When there is complaining because Sunday morning service is too long and tiresome or getting to church on time for the prayer meeting and communion lacks importance because it is perceived to be too trivial, will the Lord even want us to present Him with our sacrifice? The Lord says in Malachi that He will not accept it. Did we make Jesus our Lord and King? Does our Lord and King deserve our best all the time or only what we feel like giving Him when we are up for it?

The Lord is very clear about what will happen if we do not listen to His warning. Malachi 2:1-2 says, “And now, this commandment is for you, the priests. If you do not listen, and if you do not take it to heart to give honor to My name,” says the LORD of armies, “then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings; and indeed, I have cursed them already, because you are not taking it to heart.” Malachi 2:3 speaks of that curse. “Behold, I am going to rebuke your descendants, and I will spread dung on your faces, the dung of your feasts; and you will be taken away with it.” God makes it clear that His discipline will not be enjoyable at all.

He says His covenant with Levi, the original priest of Israel, was one of life and peace in order for him to show reverence to God and walk with Him in peace and uprightness turning many away from iniquity. As priests unto God, we are to walk in the same manner and lead others away from sin preserving knowledge as messengers of the Lord of hosts. Does that sound familiar? It should. It is part of the great commission given to us by Jesus.

We are to lead others to Christ, so they might be turned back from sin and be restored to the Father by grace while living lives “far” from sin as it says in Romans 6:1-2. “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? Far from it! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” There are many churches today that are only seeking a high membership count to pad their coffers. It is about their financial status based on the economic prosperity of their congregation. They are not preaching about sin, the gospel of Jesus, and forgiveness. Instead, as it says in Malachi 2:8, “But as for you, you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by the instruction; you have ruined the covenant of Levi.” Grace through Jesus is the only way to the Father, but teaching others that they can continue in sin after receiving His grace is causing “many to stumble by the instruction” and is “ruining the covenant of Levi.” The Lord is not going to stand for it much longer. Verse 9 says, “So I also have made you despised and of low reputation in the view of all the people, since you are not keeping My ways but are showing partiality in the instruction.” We are going to begin seeing many churches who have been teaching false doctrines lose their reputation and influence in the Church. When the Lord exposes the hypocrisy and sin in the leadership of many churches, it will cause them to lose the honor and respect of their congregations because those leaders have not honored and respected God. They have shown partiality in their teachings, and as the hearts of those in the pews begin to be purified by the Holy Spirit the priesthood in Christ’s church will begin looking for leaders who live righteous, holy, and consecrated lives unto the Lord as it says in Romans 12:1. We are beginning to see this happen already, but it will soon begin to happen on a much larger scale.

Recent estimates indicate that there are over 380,000 Christian churches in America. Why so many, and how many of those were established by God and are operating according to His will? Malachi 2:10 says, ”Do we not all have one Father? Is it not one God who has created us? Why do we deal treacherously, each against his brother so as to profane the covenant of our fathers?” I have never liked being on social media, but since I have come back to it to publicize my new book, I have seen a level of brothers dealing “treacherously” with each other at a level I would never have thought possible. It is as if Christian denominations have assigned bullies to attack as many other denominations as possible. If Jesus had wanted us to have denominations, He would have established 12 of them from the very beginning. We have one Father, and the Church needs to begin to act like it. How do we know if a certain church is actually part of the family of God? Jesus said in Matthew 12:48-50, “Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?” And extending His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold: My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister, and mother.” The Lord is coming to make sure that His church is seeking and following His will. All churches that seek the will of the people will be dismantled and given to those who seek the will of the Father.

Malachi 2:10 says, “Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the LORD which He loves and has married the daughter of a foreign god. As for the man who does this, may the LORD eliminate from the tents of Jacob everyone who is awake and answers, or who presents an offering to the LORD of armies.” The name Judah in Hebrew means “praise.” Taking the modernization of theatrical lighting and stage productions in churches today aside for the moment, if churches are hiring secular musicians (musicians who have not made a decision to follow Christ) to play on their worship teams, or they are allowing promiscuous dancing or worship team members to live in open sin like fornication or drunkenness, would you consider that as possibly marrying the daughter of a foreign god? Jesus was clear in Matthew 6:24 when He said we cannot serve two masters “for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.” It doesn’t matter what I say though, the Lord is coming to remove this idolatry from His church, and He is coming very soon.

Malachi 2:13-16 says, “you cover the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping and sighing, because He no longer gives attention to the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand…Because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your marriage companion and your wife by covenant...But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit…Be careful then about your spirit, and see that none of you deals treacherously against the wife of your youth. ‘For I hate divorce,’ says the LORD.’” Recent estimates show that 25% of marriages in the Body of Christ end in divorce. I myself am divorced, but my divorce happened many years ago before I was following Christ. I am also not speaking to those believers who have been forced into divorce because your spouse left you. I am speaking about “believers” in Christ who both agree to end their relationship for anything other than infidelity. With divorce being as prevalent in the Church as it is, why do we wonder when “He no longer gives attention to the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand.” The Lord says it is because there is not a “remnant of the Spirit” in them. Again, it doesn’t matter what I say. Read the scripture. This word is for today, as much, if not more than it was back during Malachi’s day.

Maybe the next verse will appear to be more relevant to you in the context of today’s Church. Malachi 2:17 says, “You have wearied the LORD with your words…In that you say, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and He delights in them,” or, “Where is the God of justice?” I have heard so many Christian people complain about the injustices in the world. They cry, “When are you going to bring us justice Lord?!” But these very same people when they look sin in the face, will shy away from it for fear of upsetting the person they are speaking with. They say, “We are not supposed to be judging people, and besides, they are ‘good’ people after all.” Remember, as followers of Christ, we are all priests unto God. How are “priests” in the Body of Christ having abortions, participating in homosexuality, fornication, adultery, and even sex trafficking children. Yes, as shameful as it is to say, the Lord has shown me that there are certain churches in America that are involved in this practice as well. The enemy loves to live in many of the churches of America. God is weary of it all, and He is going to expose it on His terms when He “suddenly” sees fit. Why does evil exist? It exists in the Church because many “priests” have stopped being “messengers of the Lord.”

What is God’s plan for all of this sin and the defilement of His altar? Malachi 3:1 says, “Behold, I am sending My messenger, and he will clear a way before Me. And the Lord, whom you are seeking, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the LORD of armies.” There is a remnant within the Church who has been praying for the fire of God to come. They have been seeking His glory, and they have been preparing themself for His coming. Those who are prepared will not be taken by surprise, but the rest of the Church will have the curtains “suddenly” ripped away from before their eyes. The pain will be excruciating for those who have not prepared themself by carving away the sin from their life on their own. The Holy Spirit has given us the authority and power over the enemy in our lives, but if we choose to allow the enemy to invade our camp, we will have the painful procedure of having the Holy Spirit burn the enemy from our heart. Malachi 3:2-3 says, “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire, and like launderer’s soap. And He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness.”

After the Lord has visited His household and His priests are restored unto righteousness capable of presenting their “bodies as a living and holy sacrifice,” He will draw near for judgement. Malachi 3:5 says, “Then I will come near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, those who oppress the wage earner in his wages or the widow or the orphan, and those who turn away the stranger from justice and do not fear Me.” He is coming to purify His church first before He comes to judge it. Why? Because He is a merciful and loving God. He wants to give us one last chance to turn from sin before He comes as a judge. He will separate the sheep from the goats. Those who are unwilling to repent will either leave His glory or face His judgement as they did in the book of Acts. For those who believe that the God of the New Testament is not the same as the God of the Old Testament, look at Malachi 3:6. “For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, the sons of Jacob, have not come to an end. “From the days of your fathers you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD of armies. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’”

Remember, the Book of Malachi falls in between the old and new covenant. The Lord showed me how it has now also fallen in between the old and new age as well. Jesus became the perfect sacrifice for all sins, and He said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” You can read more about this point in the message I posted a few weeks ago titled “The Gateway to God’s Glory.” If we turn from sin and allow the fire of the Holy Spirit to purify us as gold and silver, we will be able to once again take the place as priests unto our God and Father. We will not face the judgement that is coming to His church. If we do not turn, we will be caught up like chaff when the fire rages through the earth.

The Lord is expecting His entire church to turn, not just one or two churches. Malachi 3:8-12 speaks of how He has been robbed of His tithe and offerings by the entire nation of Israel. “Yet you are robbing Me! …In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse…the entire nation of you! Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put Me to the test now in this…if I do not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows...Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruit of your ground; nor will the vine in the field prove fruitless to you…All the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land.” If the Church in this nation does not turn from its evil ways, the Lord will allow an economic calamity to befall this nation unlike any that we have ever seen before. God will not be mocked. His will is for His priesthood in this nation to take its rightful place and lead this nation in presenting our “bodies as a living and holy sacrifice” unto a Holy and Righteous Lord.

Malachi 3:13-15 says, “Your words have been arrogant against Me…You have said, ‘It is pointless to serve God; and what benefit is it for us that we have done what He required, and that we have walked in mourning before the LORD of armies? So now we call the arrogant blessed; not only are the doers of wickedness built up, but they also put God to the test and escape punishment.’” There are many believers in the Church in America, who have grown weary of doing good works and living holy and righteous lives before the Lord. Some in the Church have never even tried to “fight the good fight” as it says in Timothy 6:12 because they were brought into it under false pretenses. This weariness has grown to a level so extreme that many in the Church have chosen to simply believe the lie that it is impossible to please God by presenting ourselves “as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God.” I have had many conversations with people who believe it is impossible to be “perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” even though Jesus gave us that very commandment in Matthew 5:48. Hebrew 11:6 says, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him.” That scripture is followed by stories of men and women of action who walked out their faith in submission to the will of God. We are restored to the Father by the grace and blood of Jesus, but we walk in perfect love through the grace of faith from the Father. Those priests who grow weary of presenting their “bodies as a living and holy sacrifice” have also called “the arrogant blessed.” They question why the evil doers have everything while the righteous have nothing. They desire to have the wealth and prosperity of the evil doer, but their struggle is because their eyes are fixed on worldly riches and not heavenly glory. If we keep our eyes on Jesus, we will not grow weary in the fight. We will seek God’s grace and faith so we can be a part of the remnant that will be ready when the fire of the Holy Spirit comes and burns throughout the earth.

Malachi 3:16-18 speaks of those whom the Lord will remember as fearing Him and esteeming His name. The Lord says that “They will be mine…on the day that I prepare My own possession, and I will have compassion for them just as a man has compassion for his own son who serves him.” He will separate the ones who serve Him and the ones who do not. Malachi 4:1 sums it up by saying, “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze…so that it will leave them neither root nor branches. But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and frolic like calves from the stall.” The end is near, and He is coming to His household first to purify His priests before the great and terrible day of the Lord when the separation of the righteous and the evil will occur. Malachi is relevant today because it is a word from the Lord for the end of the old and the beginning of the new. Jesus speaks of this period of history in Matthew 13:47-50. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; and when it was filled, they pulled it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. So it will be at the end of the age: the angels will come forth and remove the wicked from among the righteous, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The Lord shared with me some events to look forward to in the Church. Based on this word in Malachi, other revelations from the Lord, and scripture, I believe the first thing we can expect to see happen is for the Lord to visit His household and purify His priesthood. I believe this has already begun, but it will gain steam and traction very quickly and grow in strength by the fire of the Holy Spirit. When we, His priests, are able to present ourselves as “a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God,” we will see the judgement spoken of in Malachi as the Lord draws near to the Church. This judgement will purify His entire church of sin and idolatry removing those who did not allow the purification fires to refine them. It will be like the book of Acts again but on steroids. The world will witness this purification which will remove the stigma of sin and hypocrisy from the Church. There will be a wave of prodigals who will return to the Father when they have seen this purification as many of them left the Church having witnessed this hypocrisy. Don’t misunderstand me. They left because they desired self-will over the Father’s will, but many were motivated to leave because of the hypocrisy in the Church. They will meet the Holy Spirit in their homes, on their job sites, and on the streets. They will return to the Father first, and then they will return to the Church. They will be harvesters in the great end time harvest. This end time harvest will occur as the world will see the power of God and His forgiving grace in His own household, and they will want that forgiveness and healing in their lives as well. After the harvest there will be a persecution of the Church along with global events that will cause many to fall away. The white and spotless Bride of Christ will rise up at this time. When that happens, the Lord will come and take the remnant that is left up to be with Him while those who are left behind will have an opportunity to suffer for their faith if they choose to get back on the path. When the Lord of Hosts returns for the final battle, we will be with Him to enjoy His victory and rule with Him for a thousand years. Amen

You can read more about this and other truths by obtaining a copy of “Prodigal to Prince” by Beau Walsh at BarnesandNoble.com or Amazon.com.