Withholding Our Best

4 Types of Gifts to the LORD

1. Obligatory Exchange – Some attempt to give a thoughtless gift to God once they feel guilty about something He gave them.
2. Frantic Purchase – Some throw a gift together for God because they are so busy with other priorities.
3. Shiny Packaging – Some give the appearance of an expensive gift so that others can see it, but there is actually nothing of substance on the inside.
4. Sincere Offering – Some offer God their best out of the overflow of what God has given them.

God’s Rebuke

• Our religious problems all stem from the fact that God isn’t as important to us as He ought to be (1:6).
• When we give others our best and God our leftovers, we prove what our priorities really are (1:7-8).
• It is audacious to withhold our best from God and then attempt to brownnose Him into compliance (1:9).
• God would rather shut the doors to worship instead of allowing mediocre devotion to Him (1:10).
• The greatness of God will be proclaimed in the nations, but we are not guaranteed to be the megaphone (1:11).
• God is more frustrated with your apathetic worship than you are bored with it (1:12-14).

Our Response

• Stop giving your best to every other pursuit and offering your leftovers to God.
• You have nothing with which to bribe God, so stop trying to make a deal with Him.
• Allow God’s great gift for you to motivate your great offerings for Him.