Malachi 3: 16 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.17 And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.
One of three eternal books is revealed here. There is a book of remembrance. It can be surprising or even disturbing that God writes notes about us. Think it through. Would you want it any other way than for god to keep notes on us?
There are other books mentioned. The Book of Life is a registry of all who have looked to Jesus as Savior and accepted what he did on Calvary for sin. Everyone who has trusted him is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life and will inhabit the kingdom of God. There is also the book of God’s written Word. David said it is settled forever in heaven. Revelation speaks of the books being opened and the Word of God being heaven. We have the blessing of blessings to have the Word in our hands. It’s what we live by and is the record of God’s truth. Let God be true and every man a liar.
The book of remembrance is a notebook in the process of being written. It is finished for those who have died and gone on and awaits the day they will face the record contained there. We’re still alive and our life is being noted honestly and objectively. It details every moment of every day. It’s a record of our conduct and the words we speak. Every idle word that men speak will be accounted for in judgment. How we treat each other and how we feel toward each other is recorded. Is God this tight on what he records? Absolutely! We’ll forget what we say but God has a record. How we adhere to God’s Word is noted. How we handle the devil is noted. What we think is recorded. Romans 14:10, 12 states but why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. Second Corinthians 5:10 says for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Paul was speaking to Christians, and if we’re going to give account it means a record is somewhere.
What God writes down can’t be cheated on. We cannot hide from God in any way, shape, or form. It’s not God’s take; it’s an honest picture. It’s recorded for a purpose to be a record of our life and will be there for the accounting we have to give of what we’ve done since we’ve been saved. The book will rightly judge us because it rightly assures how we are with God. It helps God help us. I don’t trust the government to watch over me, but I do trust God to watch over me. Our parents saved our necks many times because they watched out for us. By this book God notes our needs and the dangers we are heading toward.
God is omniscient, so why does he keep a notebook? It’s for us. Throughout life he shows us what we’re doing and how we’re dealing with things. When we were little we didn’t realize how dirty we were until our parents made us look in the mirror or we saw our dirty bath water. Sometimes we have to see it for ourselves and the notebook reminds us.
Is a notebook fair? Shouldn’t we have privacy? We need privacy from others; we need personal time. When it comes to the Lord we have no privacy. How do you feel about that? Job is the oldest book in the Bible. It dawned on him and he wrote for now thou numberest my steps: dost thou not watch over my sin? That means God sees when we fail because he is watching our steps. Does a person need privacy from God to the point that he isn’t there? No! It keeps us in line and if God grants complete privacy from himself, the devil will step in. It cuts off the hand that protects us. Do you really trust yourself to be without God for just one day? The only one we can trust is God. How quickly we’d fall without the watching of God. Not even the sparrows fall without God knowing.
When we judge ourselves we don’t have time to judge others. We should invite God to watch us. Psalms 19:14 says let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer. This notebook is a book of God’s care for us.
Verse 16 says then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. Think about how these all tie in together for next week.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 