Leftover Religion

Thanksgiving dinner this Thursday means different things to different people. Some think about it from the standpoint of all the preparation leading into it. Others look forward to their favorite dishes or desserts or the visiting that goes on during the meal. Still others anticipate the football game or nap that comes after it's over. But there is one thing that just about every Thanksgiving meal has in common: leftovers.

While leftover turkey sandwiches or pumpkin pie are just as good the second time around, there is a kind of leftover we should avoid at all costs: leftover religion. This is an attitude of giving to God that which is less than our very best. That's exactly what the Lord's people were doing in the days of the prophet Malachi.

The Israelites had returned from captivity and restored the city walls and the temple and the proper reverence for the Law. But as was their history, they grew weary of giving their very best to the Lord. That same danger is present in our pilgrimage. You either give God what's right or you give Him what's leftover.

Leftover religion starts with second-hand faith. The Lord asked His people through His prophet, “Where is My honor...Where is My respect” (Mal. 1:6)? “Respect” literally means “fear.” The first generation of Israelites certainly had no trouble fearing the Lord when He gave the Law at Mt. Sinai. They “trembled and stood at a distance” (Ex. 20:18). They said to Moses, “let not God speak to us, lest we die” (20:19). But in Malachi's generation, when God spoke to them, they spoke back and asked, “How have you loved us” (Mal. 1:2)? “How have we despised your name” (Mal. 1:6)? They offered excuses and tried to justify their behavior. What happened? They had not made their faith their own.

Even faith from our fathers must be a sincere faith. That's what Paul recognized about the faith of Timothy. It may have first dwelt in his grandmother Lois and then his mother Eunice, but it was a “sincere faith within you” (2 Tim. 1:5). Those who have parents and grandparents who are Christians still have to have their own faith. Every individual must make his own stand and say, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15). Those who are “first generation” Christians are a source of great encouragement in the body of Christ. They remind their fellow laborers of the importance and the joy of giving God what is right.

Leftover religion offers second-rate sacrifices. “When you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and the sick, is it not evil” (Mal. 1:8)? The Israelites were presenting animals that they had no use for otherwise. They couldn't sell them in the marketplace, so they gave them to God. To give such things to their governor would have been shameful. To offer such to God was sinful.

Our Father gave a perfect sacrifice for each one of us. We have been redeemed with “precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Pet. 1:19). God had myriads and myriads of angels, but He had one Son. He gave Him. Do you think He will be pleased with second-rate sacrifices? As King David said, “I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God which cost me nothing” (2 Sam. 24:24). Anything less is leftovers.

Leftover religion gives second-best effort. The attitude of the Israelites in giving these “sacrifices” was, “‘How tiresome it is!' And you disdainfully sniff at it” (Mal. 1:13). That literally reads, “Behold, it is weariness” or “What hardship!” We might say it this way: “Again?!” It should be our pleasure to serve a God who has blessed us so richly. But we sometimes act like it is a burden.

We don't have any trouble giving our best effort to everything else we do. It's good to be industrious and productive at our jobs, but remember we are to present ourselves “approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed” (2 Tim. 2:15). It's enjoyable to have hobbies, but remember we are to “seek first” the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33). That requires first-rate service.

Thanksgiving leftovers might be inevitable. But leftover religion produces second-class Christians. And where does it go from there? If it gets to the point that we are not bothered about giving Him the leftovers, it won't be long before we're not giving Him anything at all.

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