Cheryl Schatz

Ben, You wrote: CHERYL: “According to this passage, what is the LORD of hosts paying attention to? (verse 16) Why is a “book of remembrance” written before God? (vs 16) What promise does the LORD of hosts make following the attention he paid to them and because He heard what was said by these people? (vs 17) What is the “possession” that is prepared by the LORD of hosts and who are spared by the LORD of hosts? (vs 17) Again, with all of the other passages you cited, you fail to discuss just why anyone fears the Lord at all. Your questions are perfectly solid in looking at Malachi 3 (esp. vv. 16-18), but do not specify how the people came to “listen” to God, “feared the Lord and esteemed His name.” Do you believe that man has the ability in him or herself to fear the Lord, without having a new heart beforehand? Do you believe that God gives the grace to fear God to everyone, and then leaves the decision to listen and respond to every person? This is why I believe we need to stick to the immediate context of John 6, especially in regards to the blunt statement Jesus made regarding the unbelief of the crowd who could see and hear Jesus perfectly well, but were not able to come to Jesus because they had not been drawn by the Father…. You are looking for why anyone fears the Lord, but in the Malachi 3 passage, the fear of the Lord follows many reasons why people chose to respond in the fear of the LORD. In Malachi 3:1 God gives a prophecy of the coming of the Messiah. He is called the “messenger of the covenant” and he will “suddenly” come to His temple. Next God talks about the need for fear “But who can endure the day of His coming?…He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver… Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,” says the LORD of hosts. God gives warnings as well as promises to those who will listen. The LORD of hosts says to “test” Him “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out a blessings until it overflows”. God always, always gives reason to fear Him. The fear of the Lord is not conquered up in the heart of a man. It is a response to the warning of God and the promises for those who will heed the warning. It is God-centered. It is always conditional. Malachi verse 16 says Then those who fear the LORD spoke to one another… The first action belongs to God. The response is conditional upon hearing and fearing. Ben, you wrote: Do you believe that man has the ability in him or herself to fear the Lord, without having a new heart beforehand? A new heart is given for one to serve God and for one to walk in His ways. But the bible never says that one must have a new heart in order to fear God. If you have found a verse like this, please let me know where it is. You wrote: Do you believe that God gives the grace to fear God to everyone, and then leaves the decision to listen and respond to every person? I am not sure which verse you are referring to, because I have not seen a reference to God needing to give people “grace” in order for them to fear Him. I do believe that God MUST reveal Himself and reveal truth in order for a person to fear Him. You wrote: This is why I believe we need to stick to the immediate context of John 6, especially in regards to the blunt statement Jesus made regarding the unbelief of the crowd who could see and hear Jesus perfectly well, but were not able to come to Jesus because they had not been drawn by the Father…. Malachi 3 is very relevant to John 6 and there are passages that are fulfilled in John 6. The New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old. Yet the context of John 6 and the book of John will buttress the meaning of the sayings of Jesus. You are quite right that the context is key. And it is true that no one could come to Jesus unless the Father draws him. The drawing comes first, not the coming. But the giving comes before the coming as well. More in next comment.