You Know They Will Be Stubble

“For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble” (Malachi 4:1).

Have you ever been confronted by a text from the Bible that calls you a liar? How about a hypocrite? Or better yet, one that shows you that you call God a liar?

Sadly, this is just such a text for me. I walk around school day after day, witnessing to a few but mostly not. And that Day is still coming; it will not miss its appointment. Yet the devil whispers sweetly in my ear, “No hurry, you have plenty of time. God won’t seriously judge men who don’t believe. That’s just exaggerated talk to motivate you to be holy and recruit people.” And I buy it. Hook, line, and sinker. And by doing so my life calls God a liar.

Many of my friends will be stubble someday. If you don’t realize, stubble is not short scratchy hair on your granddad’s chin. It is the skinny sticks that go on the fire to really get it going. Kindling is basically the same thing. The part of the fire that makes it blaze. Here is where you don’t want to believe the Bible anymore. God says your friends will be stubble if they don’t repent. Scary? I agree.

What do you do to help them? Do you tell them? Some of you that read this email hardly ever say a word for Christ. Do you say you believe it? Or is it true that just like me, you are calling God a liar?

Some of you speak the truth in a way that sounds like you were never on that same path that they are on; you didn’t deserve hell but they do. “Come join us,” you say; “it’s better here.” Forgetting your beggarly beginnings you bring glory to yourself and shame to your own Lord.

Some of you know that you are in my category—you do both wrong.

But, lest we forget grace, many of us have some victory and are not completely graceless. Some do witness. Some do love. All do very much need to grow, but there is Hope.

And in the next verse God says “But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings” (Malachi 4:2). Jesus came to free us from our sins (which we will see in the gospel accounts). He can see to it that we are broken, and He can see to it that we are healed.

Would you go to Him for breaking? Would you stay with Him for healing? And would you trust Him and believe what He says? God help us to do the right and trust and fear Him only.