Malachi 03: Test Me

What if God invited you to test His promises? We open Malachi 3 and walk through a raw season of scarcity, a people tempted to hold back, and a God who arrives like refining fire to restore worship and justice. The challenge is direct and deeply hopeful: bring your first and best, return to the covenant path, and watch the windows of heaven open. We don’t flatten this into a transaction; we trace the story from exile to expectation, from the storehouse to the streets where wages, widows, and foreigners reveal the true shape of our worship.

I share why the “test me” of Malachi is an act of compassion to a tired community. We read the passage, unpack the context, and connect the dots to everyday decisions—tithing as training for trust, integrity at work as an altar, and honoring God with your body as a countercultural witness. We also give voice to the skeptic’s question—why do the arrogant seem to win—and hold it up next to the remnant who fear the Lord. Their names are written in a scroll of remembrance, a beautiful picture of being seen when faith feels costly.

By the end, you’ll have a clearer vision of covenant logic—obedience first, blessing follows—and practical steps to live it: commit to a trustworthy local church, give with intention, align your habits with Scripture, and expect God’s presence to refine what you offer. If you’ve felt stuck between thin margins and big faith, this conversation offers a grounded way forward rooted in Scripture, hope, and the God who does not change. Listen, share with a friend who needs courage today, and leave a review so others can find the Bible Breakdown Podcast.

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Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT).
Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Transcript

“Test Me” Setup And Personal Story

Context: Returning Exiles And Scarcity

Tithing, Priorities, And Drought

Reading Malachi 3:1–6

Reading Malachi 3:7–12 “Test Me”

Reading Malachi 3:13–18 Remnant And Reward

Covenant Logic And Deuteronomy 28

Obedience First, Blessing Follows

Applying Tithing With Trust

Wider Obedience And God’s Goodness

Call To Obedience And Prayer

SPEAKER_00 0:09

Well everybody, welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast with your host, Pastor Brandon. Today, Malachi chapter three, and today's title is Test Me. Test Me. I don't know if you've ever done this before, but I have been in a situation before where when I was a teenager, um, I my stepmom would tell me to do something, and I didn't really want to do it. And she had already told me that there were gonna be consequences, and in my mind I'm going, I don't know, I don't know. And then she would say the phrase, she would say, test me, test me and see if I won't follow through. And that was the moment when I realized, no, no, I don't, whatever it is, I don't want it that bad because um, yeah, she can she can follow through. That's what she needs to do. God is gonna say that today. He is going to look at his people and he is going to say, test me, but in the very best of ways. And honestly, it is an amazing thing when we think about the fact that God says, I am trustworthy, try me and see. I think that's powerful. I think that's amazing. We're gonna get into all it all of it today. So if you got your Bibles, open it with me to Malachi chapter three. While you're doing that, make sure you take just a moment, like, share, and subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast. Make sure you leave us a five-star review on the podcast. It really does help. And make sure you're going to the Bible breakdown discussion on Facebook. There's an amazing team doing a wonderful job helping us dig more so we can find more. And as always, you can get all that information by looking at thebiblebreakdown.com. Well, hopefully you found Malachi chapter three. If not, keep turning. We'll get there. But the overall idea of Malachi, or as some say, the Italian prophet Malachi, is that it is the refined for God's glory. And as we've been saying, is this is a time when the nation of Israel, many of the exiles, are returning, and it's been a few years since they've returned, but they returned to a mess. There's there's just everything's grown up and everything's bad, and these people live from one harvest to the next, and so they can't mess around. And so they're trying their best to just make ends meet. And at the same time, God is saying, make sure you put me first. And how many times have we thought through that? Like, let's think through this just for a moment. How many times have we thought, well, God, I would love to put you first, but I need to work an extra shift on Sunday just so I can pay the bills. So I mean, I love you. But come on now. Or how about this one? God says that we should honor him with a tithe. 10% of all that we have, we bring to him as an act of worship. And this is not something some preacher came up with a couple years ago. This goes all the way back to the book of Genesis that we are honoring God. God gave us 100% of everything we have, and we honor him back, we worship him by giving him the first 10% as an act of thankfulness and as an act of obedience. But how many times have we heard people say, maybe we've said ourselves, God, I would love to, but I need that 10%. I'm trying to pay off my debt, I'm trying to do this, I'm trying to do that. So I mean, like you understand it all. So no. And that's what these people were going through. They were saying, How in the world can I give God my best sacrifice? I need those best, best sacrifices right now. So surely God understands, well, what has happened now is now they're in a literal physical drought, which could mean death. Like you meet, you miss a harvest season, you don't eat for a a year, you know, or until the next harvest. So it's not a full year, but until the next produce comes through. And so you're starving. And so they're they're in a lot of trouble. And God is saying this is not like this is not just a physical thing. This has also been brought on because my blessing is not in your life because of your spiritual neglect. So do I understand? Of course I do. At the same time, this is what I've called you to do. So you can't expect me to bless you if you're not doing what I've called you to do. And that that is the crux of what's going on in Malachi chapter 3. So let's read this and let's see what God's Word will say to us today. So if you're ready, Malachi chapter 3, verse 1 says this. Look, I am sending my messenger. He will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant whom you look to so eagerly is surely coming, says the Lord of heaven's armies. But who will be able to endure it when he comes? Who will be able to stand and face him when he appears? For he will be like a blazing fire that refines metal, or like a strong soap that bleaches clothes. He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord. Then once more the Lord will accept the offerings brought to him by the people of Judah and Jerusalem. He did as he did in the past. At that time I will put you on trial. I am eager to witness against all sorcerers and adulterers and liars. I will speak against those who cheat employees of their wages, who oppress widows and orphans, and who deprive the foreigners living among you for of justice. For these people do not fear me, says the Lord of Heaven's armies. I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why your descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed. Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. So now return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Heaven's Armies. But you ask, How can we return? We've never gone away. Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me. But you ask, What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you? Well you have cheated me of tithes and offerings due to me. You are under a curse, for the whole nation has been cheating me. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so that there will be enough food in my temple. If you do, says the Lord of Heaven's armies, I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you will not have room enough to take it in. Try me, put me to the test. Your crops will be abundant, for I will guard them from insects and disease. Your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe, says the Lord of Heaven's armies. Then all the nations will call you blessed, for your land will be such a delight, says the Lord of Heaven's armies. You have said terrible things about me, says the Lord. But you say, What do you mean? What have we said against you? You have said, What use is there of serving God? What have we gained by obeying his commands, or trying to show the Lord of Heaven's armies that we are sorry for our sins? From now on we will call the arrogant blessed. For those who do evil get rich, and for those who dare God to punish them, suffer no harm. Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him, and always thought about the honor of his name. They will be my people, says the Lord of Heaven's armies. On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares his own obedient children. Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, when those who serve God, uh between those who serve God and between those who do not. Wow. So as we saw in this, God reveals to them why all this is going on. You are under a curse. Like in other words, my blessing is not here because you are not doing the things I've told you to do. And what he's doing is he's actually going all the way back to the covenant that he promised these ancestors, the ancestors of these people, back in Deuteronomy 28. In Deuteronomy 28, he said, if you will obey the law in the land that I am giving you. Because remember, back then they were getting ready to go over the Jordan River into Canaan, and they were going to be surrounded with whoever was left after the conquest, they were going to be surrounded with hostile nations. And he said that if you will obey me, I will bless you. And he told Abraham even before that, all of the world you will be blessed because of you. In other words, through the family of Abraham, the Israelites, God was going to show his goodness so that all could see him clearly. That was God's plan. Now it happens through Christians and all that good stuff. But all the way back in Deuteronomy 28, he said, If you will follow my laws, I am going to bless you immensely. But what's happened now by the time of Malachi is they're wanting the bless you immensely without following God. And God is saying it doesn't work like that. It for a long time I have told you the opposite. So he says, Test me. Test me and see just how true my promises are. That if you will follow me, I will once again bless you. And he says, I will, remember, they're under drought. The very thing they need is rain. And so he's saying, I will make the rains come again. I will bless you, and all the world will see there is a God in Israel. And so God is not saying test me as in like, like, don't test me or I'll destroy you. He's saying you have been suffering. Put me to the test and see what I will do. And it's amazing to see what happens. And that's the that's the question for us today. When is the last time that you trusted God? Now, there's a difference between when someone says, I'm gonna walk out in front of a bunch of traffic and I trust that God won't kill me. That's not what this text is saying, okay? That is that is doing damage to the text to say that is what say. What they're saying is, what this is saying is that God is saying, you obey my word, you do what my word says to do, and then watch how I will come through. That that's what God is saying. And so my question for you is is have you been doing that? Let's talk about when it comes to to what it literally says today about tithings. Bring all the tithe in the storehouse that there may be, that my house may be taken care of, and watch what I will do in your life. Well, I know a lot of people who say that we shouldn't tithe. We we shouldn't give to God our finances. Here's a question. Why? Why why shouldn't we? Like, okay, can can you make a solid case in the New Testament that there's no New Testament rule that says you must tithe, you're gonna go to hell? Yeah, you can do that. Why wouldn't you want to give to God? Why wouldn't you want to honor Him with your finances? God gave you all of it, and He's saying right here, he's saying there's a blessing attached when we give. So here's my question. Are you giving faithfully to the local church you attend? If you're not locally attending a church, there's step one. And then step two is are you faithfully giving? Well, I I don't I don't know if I trust them. Well then find a place, for heaven's sake, find a place where you can trust those people. But even then, here's the thing if you don't know, your responsibility is not what happens after you give the money, your responsibility is faithfulness, and then those people got to answer to God for what they did with it. And that I would not want to be in the hands of God to be judged for that. Your job is to honor the Lord and give faithfully, and he says, Watch and see if all my promises will not come true in your life. But there's other things such as that. When you honor God and you say to you to this person you're dating, God's word says that I should be faithful with my body. So I am not going to have sex with you until after we get married. I'm gonna honor God with my body, I'm gonna honor you and watch what happens. When you do, God will honor you for that. You can do this in so many different ways, so many different ways when you have an opportunity to not honor God, when you choose to honor God instead, watch what happens. That's why God says He says, Test me. Test me and see if I will not keep my word. Instead of thinking about it as in God saying, test me and see if I won't judge you, what if we took a moment to realize that the Bible says that he is a good father? He's not looking for reasons to get on to you, he's looking for reasons to do good for you. Therefore, test God and see. If he will not open up the windows of heaven, if he will not pour out his goodness on you in a way that you can't even imagine, God wants to do that if we will be obedient. Where do you need to take a step of obedience today? Let's pray together right now. God, thank you so much for today. Thank you, God, that you see us and you know us and you walk with us one step at a time. I'm so thankful, Lord, that in all things you are with us. I pray you will give us the courage, the boldness to take every next step you called us to take. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. God's word says in Malachi 3, verse 3, it says, the Lord will sit as a refiner and will have men to bring offerings in righteousness. That's what God wants from us, is He wants us to bring to Him our righteousness. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow for Malachi chapter 4.