Malachi 1

“My, how tiresome it is!” (1:13). This was Israel’s attitude toward the ritual of sacrifice. While God declared “I have loved you” (v2), His people were bored and careless in their worship. They had been brought back to Jerusalem from their exile in Babylon, and they had the privilege of worshipping at the rebuilt Temple. But their hearts had not yet been transformed. Malachi pointed out that offering sick, blind, and lame animals (v8-9) was a mockery of sacrifice.

Nothing we offer God means anything if it is not rooted in love. We love and obey because He first loved us.