J7-2: What Does It Mean To Rob God?

We’ve been talking about the little known but oh-so-important Law of Herem otherwise known as “the Ban”.

Yesterday, I showed how this principle was central to Yeshua’s famous saying...”Render unto Caesar’s what is Caesar’s and render what is God’s unto God”.

Today, I want to show you another familiar set of Bible verses where the Law of Herem plays a central role.

Again, most believers because of lack of Torah knowledge have no idea that…

…what’s being referred to here is the principle of HEREM.

You should recognize these verses instantly.

“‘But because I, ADONAI, do not change, you sons of Ya’akov will not be destroyed.  Since the days of your forefathers you have turned from my laws and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says ADONAI-Tzva’ot. “But you ask, ‘In respect to what are we supposed to return?’  Can a person rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In tenths and voluntary contributions.  A curse is on you, on your whole nation, because you rob me.  Bring the whole tenth into the storehouse, so that there will be food in my house, and put me to the test,” says ADONAI-Tzva’ot. ‘See if I won’t open for you the floodgates of heaven and pour out for you a blessing far beyond your needs.'”-Malachi 3:6-10

So in light of what you should no know about HEREM, what does it mean to “rob God”?

It means to trespass on His holy property by taking what already belongs to Him.

Remember, anything devoted to God is under the ban.

You cannot use it and you cannot hold it back.

If you violate the Law of HEREM, what are the consequences?

Well, just read the above verses.

We’re told that…

…” a curse is on you and your whole nation“.

There are some things we owe Hashem because He has decided in advance that we owe Him such things.

In our study of Joshua, a perfect example would be the people and possessions of Jericho and AI.

Concerning the remaining things that have not been put under the ban, God leaves it up to us whether or not we want to devote those things to Him.

But here’s the kicker.

If you have a personal possession and you decide you want to give it to God, ownership is instantly transferred over from you to Him.

It has now become God’s holy property.

If you ever consider changing your mind about taking back what you’ve devoted to God, perish that thought.

It might not seem like a big deal to you but it IS a big deal to the Lord.

Because from God’s perspective, what you agreed to give to Him has now become His holy property and we all know what happens when you tamper with God’s holy property.

Destruction is what happens…

…which is exactly what happened to Ananias and Sapphira in the Book of Acts when they devoted the money they had earned from selling their home to Adonai but then decided to keep back some of the proceeds.

Again, they didn’t have to devote the money they made from selling the home to God.

Peter pointed this out to Ananias.

“Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”-Acts 5:3-4

They could have kept the money all for themselves, but once they decided to devote it to God, BOOM, at that instant, it was too late.

The money from the home had transformed into holy property and thus they ended up robbing God.

Again, going back to our verses in Malachi, the tithe is something God says already belongs to Him.

This is different than so-called “voluntary contributions”.

But again once you voluntarily decide to give something to God, there ain’t no turning back…

…because it is now His holy property.

Sorry to keep belaboring this point, but I really want you to get this because I know that once you do, you’re Scriptural understanding will EXPLODE to the point where it will far exceed any average Bible teacher, pastor or preacher alive in the world today…guaranteed.

And that’s just super cool man.

To close, we shouldn’t be bothered by the Law of Herem.

Why?

Because the Scriptures make it clear that when we do give to God those things that belong to Him, we will be abundantly blessed.

However, when we don’t, well, as we shall see in the story of Achan, the consequences can be most severe indeed.