
Godchaser Podcast
Join Evan Evans on The God Chaser Podcast, a weekly exploration of faith, spirituality, and personal growth centered on Jesus Christ. Evan, a devoted believer and captivating host guides listeners through engaging conversations and thought-provoking discussions that deepen their understanding of Christ and His teachings.
We delve into topics such as Christ's teachings, the power of prayer, the role of the Holy Spirit, and the importance of community in spiritual growth. The God Chaser Podcast aims to inspire and challenge listeners, equipping them with the tools and insights needed to live a more fulfilling, Christ-centered life.
Whether you're a seasoned believer or just beginning your faith journey, The God Chaser Podcast with Evan Evans supports and nourishes your spiritual growth. Subscribe to Apple Podcasts and join us each week as we chase after the heart of Jesus, embracing the transformative power of His love and grace.
Godchaser Podcast
The Final Prophet's Warning: What Malachi Reveals About Heart Transformation
What happens when your once-vibrant relationship with God feels routine? When your worship becomes mechanical rather than meaningful? Malachi speaks directly to believers caught in the dangerous drift toward spiritual complacency.
As the final prophetic voice before 400 years of divine silence, Malachi confronts a returned-from-exile community whose passion for God had cooled to lukewarm. Their half-hearted worship revealed hearts that had forgotten God's faithful love. Sound familiar?
The most heartbreaking conversation opens this powerful book: God tenderly says, "I have loved you," only to hear His people respond with cynical indifference: "How have you loved us?" This exchange exposes the spiritual amnesia many of us experience – taking for granted God's extraordinary blessings while focusing on unmet expectations.
Malachi pulls no punches addressing religious leaders accepting defective sacrifices. God's challenge cuts deep: "Try offering them to your governor!" These people wouldn't dare give human authorities such substandard gifts, yet assumed God would accept their spiritual leftovers. The parallels to modern worship are striking – divided attention, leftover time, and half-hearted service.
Beyond worship issues, Malachi tackles broken marriages, corrupt leadership, and the perennial question of divine justice. His message builds toward the promise of a coming messenger who would prepare the way for the Lord Himself – prophecies fulfilled in John the Baptist and Jesus Christ. The 400-year silence following Malachi wasn't divine abandonment but careful preparation for the perfect arrival of the Messiah.
Whether you're experiencing spiritual dryness, questioning God's justice, or ready for renewed passion in your faith, Malachi offers both challenge and hope. Join us as we discover how to rekindle the flame of devotion and prepare our hearts for deeper communion with the God who never stops pursuing us. Subscribe now to continue finding Jesus in every story of the Bible!
Keep chasing after God
Welcome to the God Chaser podcast, where we pursue the heart of God and explore the depths of His wisdom. I'm your host, evan Evans. What do you do when your relationship with God feels routine, when worship becomes duty rather than delight, when you're going through the motions but your heart feels distant? If you've ever experienced spiritual complacency, today's episode speaks directly to your situation. We're concluding our journey through the minor prophets with Malachi, the final voice of the Old Testament and the last prophet before 400 years of divine silence. His message comes to a people who had grown comfortable with spiritual mediocrity, offering God their leftovers while keeping their best for themselves. But Malachi doesn't just diagnose the problem, he points to the solution. He promises that God will send a messenger to prepare the way, followed by the Lord himself coming to his temple. The New Testament reveals these as John the Baptist and Jesus Christ. In this powerful final episode of our Minor Prophets series, you'll discover why.
Speaker 1:How have you Loved Us? Reveals a heart grown cold toward God. What offering blind and lame animals teaches us about half-hearted worship. How broken marriages affect our relationship with God. The promise of a messenger who will prepare the way for the Lord. Why Malachi's call for heart transformation bridges perfectly to Jesus. Whether you're experiencing spiritual dryness, questioning God's justice, or ready for fresh passion in your faith, malachi's message offers both challenge and hope. His warnings about complacency and promises about the coming Messiah provide the perfect conclusion to our prophetic journey.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the God Chaser podcast, the ultimate destination for those yearning to cultivate a passionate, intimate relationship with God. Join your host, Evan Evans, as he explores the depths of scripture, shares inspiring testimonies and provides practical guidance to help you become a true God Chaser, Discover the transformative power of pursuing God's presence and be inspired to reignite your spiritual journey. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts and get ready to embark on an adventure that will change your life forever. Welcome to the God Chaser podcast. Let the chase begin. God Chaser podcast.
Speaker 1:Let the chase begin. Welcome back, god Chasers. I'm your host, evan Evans. Last week we explored Zechariah's incredible visions of the coming King and saw Jesus painted in stunning detail centuries before his birth. Today we're wrapping up our journey through the minor prophets with Malachi. And what a way to end journey through the minor prophets with Malachi, and what a way to end.
Speaker 1:Malachi is the last voice we hear in the Old Testament. After him, radio silence from heaven for 400 years. But his message hits home in ways that'll make you squirm a little. He's talking to people who've gotten comfortable with giving God their leftovers while keeping the good stuff for themselves. Sound familiar? Picture this. It's around 430 BC.
Speaker 1:The Jews have been back from exile for about 100 years. The temple's rebuilt, jerusalem's walls are up and life is well routine. Remember that initial excitement when they first came home. Gone, that passion for God cooled off like yesterday's coffee. The name Malukai literally means my messenger, which is perfect because he's bringing God's final message before the long silence. And man, does God have some things to get off his chest? These people remind me of couples I know who've been married for years. Remember when they first met they couldn't stop talking about each other. Now they barely look up from their phones at dinner. That's where Israel was with God. You know what's crazy. These weren't pagans who'd never known God. These were people whose grandparents had experienced miraculous deliverance from Babylon. They'd seen God's faithfulness firsthand, but somehow blessing had turned into entitlement. Gratitude had morphed into what have you done for me? Lately, I'll be honest, I see this in my own life. Sometimes God answers a prayer, provides for a need, opens a door, and I'm grateful for about a week. Then it becomes my new normal. Before I know it, I'm taking for granted what once left me speechless with wonder.
Speaker 1:The book opens with what might be the most heartbreaking conversation in the entire Bible. God says I have loved you. And the people's response how have you loved us? Malachi, chapter 1, verses 2 to 3. Can you imagine it's like a parent telling their child I love you and the kid rolling their eyes and saying yeah, right, prove it. That's basically what's happening here. God's response points back to his choice of Jacob over Esau, essentially saying are you kidding me? I chose you out of all the nations on earth, but they'd forgotten the Exodus, ancient history, the return from exile, old news, god's daily provision, expected. This hits me hard, because I catch myself doing the same thing.
Speaker 1:When prayers don't get answered the way I want or life doesn't go according to my plan, I start questioning God's love instead of remembering all the ways he's shown it. Think about it. We live in houses with running water, a luxury most of human history never had. We have access to food from around the world at our local grocery store and we can communicate instantly with people on the other side of the planet. But do we wake up thinking, wow, god's love is amazing. Usually not. We wake up thinking about what's not going right. Here's where Malachi really lets them have it.
Speaker 1:The priest, the guy supposed to lead worship, had turned it into a joke. They were accepting sick, blind and lame animals for sacrifice. Basically, people were bringing God their junk. God's response in chapter 1, verses 7 to 8, is brilliant. Try offering them to your governor. Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?
Speaker 1:I love this because it's so relatable. These people wouldn't dare give their political leaders such garbage gifts, but they thought God would be fine with their cast-offs. It's like showing up to your boss's dinner party with gas station flowers while bringing your friend a bouquet from the fancy florist. But here's the thing this isn't really about animal sacrifices, is it? How often do we give God our leftover time, our divided attention during worship, our spare change instead of generous giving? We'll spend hours researching the perfect gift for someone's birthday, but we'll throw together a quick prayer while scrolling through social media. I remember talking to a guy who told me he always falls asleep during prayer. I asked him do you fall asleep during conversations with your wife? He said are you crazy? She'd kill me. That's the point. We stay alert for what we value. The priests had turned worship into a duty instead of a delight. They were going through the motions while their hearts were somewhere else. Jesus later called this honoring God with our lips while our hearts are far from him.
Speaker 1:Matthew, chapter 15, verse 8. Chapter 2 talks about how the priests had completely blown their calling. They were supposed to preserve knowledge and turn people from sin, but instead they were causing people to stumble. This breaks my heart because I see it happening today. When pastors fall into scandal, when Christian leaders compromise their integrity, when parents model hypocrisy instead of faith, the damage spreads like ripples in a pond. I know people who walked away from faith because of a pastor who preached about holiness on Sunday but was caught in adultery on Monday. I know kids who want nothing to do with God because their Christian parents were more concerned about their reputation at church than their relationship at home. But here's what gives me hope Jesus never failed in his role as our ultimate high priest. Where the Levitical priests messed up, jesus succeeded perfectly. He preserved truth, turned people from sin and never violated his covenant with the Father.
Speaker 1:One of the issues Malachi addresses hits close to home for a lot of people. The men in Jerusalem were divorcing their wives to marry foreign women. But this wasn't just about mixed marriages, it was about breaking faith. God's response in chapter 2, verse 14, gets right to the point. You ask why. It is because the Lord is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the one to whom you are united by covenant. Then comes that famous line in verse 16, god hates divorce. But let me be clear God doesn't hate divorced people. He hates what divorce represents the breaking of covenant, the betrayal of trust, the damage to families. God's heart breaks when marriages fall apart, not because he wants to punish people, but because he knows the pain it brings. The deeper principle here is about faithfulness in all our relationships. The deeper principle here is about faithfulness in all our relationships. God values keeping our word, whether in marriage, friendship, business or our relationship with Him.
Speaker 1:Here's another question that sounds painfully modern when is the God of justice? Chapter 2, verse 17. The people were tired of seeing evil people prosper while good people struggled. Ever felt this way I have? When corrupt politicians get rich while honest people struggle to pay rent, when businesses that exploit workers thrive, while ethical companies struggle, when bullies seem to win while kind people get trampled? The psalmist wrestled with this same frustration in Psalm 73. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They have no struggles, their bodies are healthy and strong.
Speaker 1:God's answer is to promise that he's sending a messenger to prepare the way followed by the Lord himself coming to his temple. Chapter 3, verse 1. We know now that this pointed to John the Baptist and Jesus. But God also warns that his coming will be more intense than they expect. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap, verse 2. Jesus came to establish justice, but he did it through suffering and sacrifice rather than immediate judgment, and he's coming back to complete that work.
Speaker 1:I love this image of Jesus as a refiner's fire. If you've ever watched a metal worker, you know that fire doesn't destroy silver. It purifies it. The heat melts away the impurities so the true metal can shine. That's what Jesus does in our lives. He doesn't come to destroy us, but to purify us. He exposes our sin not to shame us but to free us from it. Sometimes that process is uncomfortable, just like silver has to be heated to be purified, but the goal is always restoration. I think about times in my life when God used difficult circumstances to burn away pride, selfishness or fear. It wasn't fun at the time, but looking back I can see how he was refining my character.
Speaker 1:Jesus demonstrated this throughout his ministry. He cleansed the temple not to destroy it but to restore its purpose. He confronted people's sin not to condemn them, but to set them free. Now we get to one of the most misunderstood passages in the Bible, chapter 3, verses 8 to 10, will a man rob God? Yet you rob me, but you ask how are we robbing you In tithes and offerings. Let me be straight with you about what this actually means.
Speaker 1:The tithe was part of the Old Testament law, given specifically to Israel. It was basically a tax system to support the priests and take care of the poor. This was never commanded to Gentiles. It was part of God's covenant with Israel at Mount Sinai. He was talking to Jewish people who were under the Mosaic law. The storehouse was the temple in Jerusalem and the priests depended on these tithes to survive, since they didn't own land. Here's the key as Gentile believers, we're not under the Old Testament law.
Speaker 1:Paul makes this crystal clear in Romans, chapter 6, verse 14. You are not under the law, but under grace. So does this mean Christians shouldn't give? Absolutely not. The principle behind Malachi's message is huge. How we handle money shows what's really in our hearts. Those people were keeping their best stuff and giving God their leftovers, which revealed hearts that had grown cold toward Him.
Speaker 1:The New Testament calls us to give generously and cheerfully, but from love, not law. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 9, verse 7, each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Notice Paul doesn't mention a percentage. He talks about hard attitude. When we give with resentment or because we feel pressured. We've missed the point entirely. God wants our giving to flow from gratitude and love, not from feeling guilty or obligated. I've seen people stress about giving exactly 10%, while ignoring their neighbor's need for help with groceries. I've seen others give way more than 10% with joy, because they're so grateful for God's blessings. The amount matters less than the heart behind it.
Speaker 1:The people in Malachi's day were getting cynical. They were saying things like it's pointless to serve God because they saw wicked people prospering while they struggled. Chapter 3, verse 14. Ever been there, I have, when you're trying to do the right thing but it feels like everyone else is getting ahead. But here's what I love about God's response he doesn't lecture them about having more faith. Instead, he shows them that he's been keeping track all along. Verses 16 to 17 say that God has a scroll of remembrance for those who fear him, and they'll be his treasured possession. That image of God writing down our faithful acts in a book is incredibly encouraging. Even when nobody else notices your integrity, your kindness, your faithfulness, god sees it all and records it. Jesus said something similar. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones, who is my disciple. Truly, I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward. Matthew, chapter 10, verse 42.
Speaker 1:Malachi ends with one of the most intriguing prophecies in the Old Testament. He promises that God will send the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes chapter 4, verse 5. This got Jewish people excited for centuries. They expected Elijah to literally return from heaven. But Jesus explained that John the Baptist fulfilled this prophecy, not by being Elijah reincarnated, but by coming in the spirit and power of Elijah. Luke, chapter 1, verse 17. Spirit and power of Elijah Luke, chapter 1, verse 17. John's job was to prepare people's hearts for Jesus, which is exactly what Malachi predicted. The prophecy says Elijah would turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers verse 6. This isn't just about family relationships, though that's part of it. It's about healing the divisions that separate us from each other and from God. Jesus came to do exactly that to reconcile us to God and to each other.
Speaker 1:After Malachi's final words, god went silent for 400 years. No prophets, no visions, no new revelations, just silence. Can you imagine Generation after generation, waiting for God to speak again. Some probably gave up hope. Others kept watching and waiting. But God wasn't sleeping during those centuries. He was setting the stage for Jesus. The Greeks spread their language across the known world, making communication easier. The Romans built roads and established peace, making travel safer. The Jewish synagogue system spread, creating communities hungry for God's word. When Paul later wrote that Jesus came when the set time had fully come Galatians, chapter 4, verse 4, he was talking about this perfect timing. Everything was ready for the gospel to spread rapidly across the world.
Speaker 1:Malachi's prophecies connect to Jesus in amazing ways the messenger who would prepare the way. John the Baptist baptizing in the Jordan River and crying Prepare the way for the Lord. The Lord coming to his temple. Jesus walking into the temple courts, teaching there, cleansing it and declaring it should be a house of prayer for all nations. The refiner's fire, jesus, purifying hearts and exposing religious hypocrisy wherever he found it. The promise of healing for those who fear God's name. Jesus, the son of righteousness, bringing healing to everyone who trusted in him. Where the priests in Malachi's day failed, jesus succeeded perfectly. Where they offered defective sacrifices, he offered himself as the perfect sacrifice. Where they broke faith, he remained faithful even unto death.
Speaker 1:So how does this ancient message apply to our lives today? First, we need to watch out for spiritual complacency. It's easy to let familiarity breed indifference in our relationship with God. The solution Regular gratitude check-ins. What has God done for you lately that you've started taking for granted? So how does this ancient message apply to our lives today? First, we need to watch out for spiritual complacency. It's easy to let familiarity breed indifference in our relationship with God. The solution Regular gratitude check-ins. What has God done for you lately that you've started taking for granted? Are you giving generously, from gratitude, or grudgingly from guilt? God wants the first, not the second. Third, remember that faithfulness matters even when nobody's watching. God has that scroll of remembrance and he sees every act of love, every moment of integrity, every sacrifice you make for others. Fourth, don't give up when serving God feels pointless. The people in Malachi's day couldn't see the big picture, but God was working out an incredible plan that would culminate in Jesus. He's still working out his plans today. Finally, treasure healthy relationships.
Speaker 1:Malachi's promise about turning hearts between generations reminds us that strong families and communities matter to God. Whatever broken relationships you have, remember that Jesus came to heal divisions and bring reconciliation. Malachi serves as an incredible bridge between the Old and New Testaments. His warnings about spiritual complacency and broken relationships are exactly the issues Jesus came to fix. His promises about the coming messenger point directly to John the Baptist and Jesus. Most importantly, malachi shows us that even when it feels like God is silent, he's working. Those 400 years between Malachi and Jesus weren't empty. They were pregnant with promise. Today we live in another kind of between time between Jesus' first coming and His promised return. Sometimes it feels like God is taking too long to set things right, but just like he kept His promises to send the messenger and the Lord to His temple, he'll keep His promise to return and establish perfect justice.
Speaker 1:Friends, as we wrap up our journey through the minor prophets, I'm amazed at how these ancient voices still speak to our modern hearts. Every prophet pointed toward the coming Messiah who would fulfill all their promises. Malachi's final words weren't really final. They were a setup for the greatest story ever told. After 400 years of silence, an angel would appear to a young woman named Mary. John the Baptist would cry out in the wilderness and Jesus would enter his temple bringing the glory and healing that Malachi promised.
Speaker 1:Whether you're struggling with spiritual dryness, questioning God's justice or wondering if your faithfulness makes any difference, remember Malachi's message God sees, god remembers, and God rewards those who honor His name. The Son of Righteousness has risen, with healing in His wings. His name is Jesus, and he's both the messenger who prepared our hearts and the Lord who came to His temple, which is now us. Thanks for joining me on this incredible journey through the Minor Prophets. We've discovered that every single one of them points to Jesus in ways that should blow our minds and strengthen our faith Until we meet again.
Speaker 1:This is Evan Evans, reminding you to keep chasing God's heart In a world that sometimes feels like it's experiencing divine silence. Remember that God has spoken his final word in Jesus Christ, and that word is love. This has been the God Chaser podcast. Thank you for joining me on this amazing journey through the minor prophets, where we've discovered that every story, every prophecy and every warning points to the one who came to save us all. This has been the God Chaser podcast. Join us next week as we continue finding Jesus in every story of the Bible. This episode of the God Chaser podcast is proudly sponsored by God Chaser Apparel, the clothing line designed to empower and inspire your spiritual journey.
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Speaker 1:May you not just chase God but find him in the blessings, big and small, that he has in store for you. And there we have it, folks, another episode of God Chaser wrapped up. We hope you've been blessed by today's discussion and we look forward to diving into more life transforming topics with you in the future. Stay blessed and keep chasing after God.