If we mix God’s word with faith, we will have the spirit, power and faith of the prophets. The word in Malachi is therefore so alive to us today. Hebrews 4 speaks of those who have not entered into God’s rest because they have not mixed the word of God with faith. If we do not have the spirit and power of Malachi and are not those messengers, then Malachi is only a teaching for us. But we are the prophets of this age. John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah – so who was he? John said, “I am not Elijah” (cf. Jn. 1:21), but Jesus said, “…He is the Elijah…” (Mt. 11:14), so who is right? When we pray with the word of Ezekiel or prophesy with it prayerfully, we are the Ezekiel of the modern age. Today the condition is the same as it was in Ezekiel’s time: we are in the middle of this valley plain full of dead bones (cf. Ezek. 37:1). The Word of God is very current. Today we are Ezekiel, and tomorrow we may be Jeremiah. All the prophets have the same spirit of faith (2 Corinthians 4:13) – the Holy Spirit. We also have the holy anointing that dwells within us. Let us put all our trust in God!
“Faith therefore is the realization of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). When we have faith, we have reality and substance. When the disciples saw that the fig tree withered, and the Lord asked them why they wondered about it, He did not say, “Believe in God” (but which is often translated that way), but rather, “Have the faith of God” (Mk. 11:22). We have the precious faith of God in our spirit! Peter says that we have all received the same precious faith (cf. 2 Pet. 1:1). Do not be afraid, but put your trust in the living God. The worse the situation is, the stronger our faith must become. The situation in which we find ourselves today is such that our faith may increase and grow, for our faith is tried by fire, as Peter describes (cf. 1 Pet. 1:7). After faith is purified by fire, it becomes even purer – no longer so mixed with many other things. For us, this is a wonderful way to exercise our faith in the living God. May the Lord work in us through the Spirit, through His purifying and sanctifying work, and through the fire we are experiencing today, to truly transform our being. Otherwise, we will have to go through the fire instead at the time when the Lord returns. Today we fear God and give Him glory in our hearts, knowing that one day we will have to give an account. If we have no fear, we will continue to do many things that are not pleasing to God, even if we know we will be judged for them. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” and “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10). May we not do foolish things, not speak and act lightly, but be wise.