Sermon #37 Through The Bible Series
Title: Haggai
“The
desire of all nations shall come.”
Text: Haggai
2:6-9
Subject: Encouragement
in the Work God Gives
Date: Tuesday Evening—January 6, 2004
Tape # X-98b
Readings: Bobbie
Estes & Larry Brown
Introduction:
As we look at the Book of
Haggai tonight, I will be working my way to the heart of his message, found in
chapter 2 (vv. 6-9). So let’s begin there.
(Hag
2:6-9) "For thus saith the LORD of
hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and
the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; {7} And I will shake all
nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house
with glory, saith the LORD of hosts. {8} The silver is mine, and
the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts. {9} The glory of this
latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and
in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts."
The
Prophet
Haggai was an exemplary
prophet. His name means, “festive” or “festival of the Lord.” He was sent of
God, along with Zechariah and Malachi, to minister to his people after they
returned from the 70 years of Babylonian captivity.
As I said, Haggai was
exemplary as a prophet of God. He spent no time at all talking about himself.
He came as God’s messenger to his people. His singular authority was, “Thus
saith the Lord.” His singular
desire was the glory of God. The objects of his care were the people of God. He
had to rebuke; but his rebuke was full of encouragement. He had to correct; but
his correction was full of comfort. He was distinctively sent of God to stir up
his people, to rouse their hearts, to inspire in them devotion and consecration
to their God, his glory, and his worship.
The
Background
The Jews had been captives in
Babylon for 70 years, just as Jeremiah had prophesied. What a sad time those
seventy years of exile and bondage were for those among the Jews who truly
worshipped God.
After the 70 years were
fulfilled, Daniel, who prophesied in Babylon, tells us that God graciously
delivered his people from Babylon and began bringing them back into their land.
They came first under
Zerubbabel, who is mentioned in the opening verse of Haggai. Zerubbabel, was
the captain of the remnant that came back from Babylon. He was appointed
Governor of Judah. When they came to Jerusalem, they found the city in ruins.
The walls were broken down and the temple was utterly destroyed.
The Lord had sent them back
specifically to rebuild the temple, to rebuild the city, and to re-establish
true worship, the worship of God in the land. They began the work immediately.
The first order of business was to rebuild the temple, the house of God, in
Jerusalem.
At this time, they were still
under Babylonian rule. But God had given them favor with the king and they were
granted permission to do the work. So the started working. I can imagine the
enthusiasm with which they commenced. Soon, the foundation of the temple was
laid. It was much smaller than the original temple Solomon had built; but the
work went rapidly. In a short time, they had a row or two of stones laid on the
foundation.
But something happened. They
quit the work. These Jews who had returned with Ezra, some 50,000 of them,
specifically to build the house of God, just quit. They did nothing for more
than fifteen years.
This is where Haggai comes in.
He was sent of God, along with Zechariah and Malachi, to speak for God to his
people (Ezra 5:1-2).
(Ezra
5:1-2) "Then the prophets, Haggai
the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were
in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto
them. {2} Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the
son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at
Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them."
Four
Messages
Haggai
delivered four messages to Judah. These four messages are specifically dated by
him. They cover a period of about eighteen months. But everything Haggai says
in these four messages is written for our learning and admonition today (Rom.
15:4). His messages call for us to “consider” some things. He uses that
word, “consider,” four times.
·
In Haggai 1:5, he says, “Consider
your ways,” telling Judah and us to give serious thought to the way we
live.
·
In verse 7, he repeats that
admonition, “Consider your ways.” But here, he is calling for us to
seriously think about our present circumstances in the providence of God,
showing clearly that there is a connection between the way we live, in
reference to God, and the things we experience in the providence of God.
·
Then, in chapter 2 (v. 15), the
prophet calls for us to consider the house of God (the worship of God), in
connection with the great barrenness we have experienced.
·
In verse 18 of chapter 2, he again
calls for us to consider the house of God (the worship of God), and the
blessedness he promises in connection with it.
Tonight,
I want us to look at Haggai’s messages to us, as they are given in these two
chapters, praying that God the Holy Spirit will inscribe upon our hearts the
lessons he here teaches us.
Indifference
Haggai’s first message (1:1-15) is a stern word of rebuke regarding indifference to the things of God. The house of God had laid in ruins for 15 years.
Of course, the people had a very good, theologically sound reason for doing nothing. The 70 years Jeremiah had spoken of were not quite finished. The predestined date of deliverance and restoration had not yet come, and some of the Jews were still in Babylon. These fine men did not want to interfere with the sovereign purpose of God. I’m not stretching this a bit. Read verse 2.
(Hag
1:2) "Thus speaketh the LORD of
hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S
house should be built."
But being the faithful prophet he was,
Haggai was not about to let them off the hook. Instead of saying, “Oh, I
understand that. I had not thought of that. I see what you’re saying; and we
certainly don’t want anyone to think we’re a bunch of Arminians.” No. Haggai
sticks his finger right on the sore spot and pushes hard (v. 4).
(Hag
1:4) "Is it time for you, O
ye, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste?"
In other words, the prophet says, “The
real problem here is not that you are waiting on the Lord; but that you have
other things that are of such consuming concern to you that you are indifferent
to the things of God. Your love of the world has made you lukewarm toward
Christ.”
He appeals to our sense of shame. God's house
was in ruins while they lived in comfortable homes. They had shamefully
neglected the house of the Lord. Our Master addresses this very issue in
Matthew 6:33.
(Mat
6:33) "But seek ye first the
kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto
you."
Now, let us learn the lesson. ― It
is impossible to ignore Christ and the interests of his kingdom and glory, it
is impossible to live in indifference to the things of God and prosper. We will
suffer the consequences of such behavior. Ask Bro. Jonah. The Jews sowed much
and reaped little, though they looked for and expected much. They ate, but they
were not filled. They drank, but they were not satisfied. They put on clothes,
but they were not warm. They received wages for their labor, but they had holes
in their pockets. They gathered wood, but God's breath of judgment was upon
everything. Everything they did came to nothing, because they were serving
themselves, not God (1:6, 11).
(Hag
1:6) "Ye have sown much, and bring
in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with
drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth
wages to put it into a bag with holes."
(Hag
1:11) "And I called for a drought
upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine,
and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and
upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands."
They made God, his worship, and his
glory secondary to their own pleasure, comfort, and earthly concerns.
Haggai’s message had its desired effect,
and the house of God was built (1:14).
(Hag
1:14) "And the LORD stirred up the
spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of
Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant
of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the LORD of hosts,
their God,"
Discouragement
A month later, the work stopped again.
So Haggai steps up to deliver his second message (2:1-9). The people had worked
hard on the temple and finished it. But the restored temple appeared to be
nothing compared to the great edifice Solomon built. Some of the people
remembered the former temple, and said, “This is nice, but it is not nearly as
great and glorious as Solomon’s temple.” They compared the present to the past,
and said to themselves, “We cannot reproduce what our fathers did, so let’s
just do nothing (2:3; Ezra 3:12).
(Ezra
3:12) "But many of the priests and
Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the
first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept
with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:"
(Hag
2:3) "Who is left among you
that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not
in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?"
Haggai had a
message from God for the complainers, and it had four parts:
1.
The Lord said, “I am with you” (v.4).
(Hag
2:4) "Yet now be strong, O
Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high
priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for
I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:"
2.
Then he assured them of the Lord’s presence and his
steadfast covenant (v.5).
(Hag
2:5) "According to the word
that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth
among you: fear ye not."
3.
Then the prophet spoke of greater things than their natural
eyes could see, promising the coming of Christ and the glory that would fill
his house (vv. 6-7, 9).
(Hag
2:6-7) "For thus saith the LORD of
hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and
the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; {7} And I will shake all
nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house
with glory, saith the LORD of hosts."
(Hag
2:9) "The glory of this latter
house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this
place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts."
Certainly, this prophecy was fulfilled
when Christ came into the temple at Jerusalem as an infant. But the ultimate
fulfillment referred not to the physical temple, but the church and temple of
God that that temple represented. The glory spoken of here is the glory that
shall revealed and shall be ours in the last day, when we are made partakers of
his glory (Heb. 12:25-29).
(Heb
12:25-29) "See that ye refuse not
him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth,
much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh
from heaven: {26} Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath
promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
{27} And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those
things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which
cannot be shaken may remain. {28} Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which
cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with
reverence and godly fear: {29} For our God is a consuming fire."
Note: In verse 28 the apostle declares that we are presently receiving this
kingdom and glory of which Haggai spoke.
·
Christ is the Desire of all nations. ― He is
that One who alone is the embodiment of all those things every human heart
desires (Gen. 49:10; Mal. 3:1).
(Gen
49:10) "The sceptre shall not
depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and
unto him shall the gathering of the people be."
(Mal 3:1)
"Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way
before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even
the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith
the LORD of hosts."
It is only in Christ (crucified, raised from
the dead, ascended into heaven, and accepted) that sinners find righteousness
with God, forgiveness of all sin, and that peace of conscience that flows from
a well-grounded assurance of eternal life.
·
Let us never despise the day of small things. ― The
Lord our God has promised that our labor is not in vain (1 Cor. 15:58).
(1
Cor 15:51-58) "Behold, I show you a
mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, {52} In a
moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall
sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
{53} For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must
put on immortality. {54} So when this corruptible shall have put on
incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be
brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
{55} O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy
victory? {56} The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is
the law. {57} But thanks be to God, which giveth us the
victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. {58} Therefore, my beloved
brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord,
forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."
We can never measure, by carnal means, the
success of our labors in the kingdom of our God, and should never try to do so.
WE should never pine for former days, as if they were more desirable for us
that the present. The day in which we live and serve our God and Savior is the
very best day for us to do so. We ought to say, regarding the day in which the
Lord has placed us, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Ps.
118:24).
We cannot do what others do, and are not
responsible to do what they do. We cannot do what are forefathers did, and are
not responsible for that. We can and must do what the Lord our God has given us
the means and opportunity to do; and for that we are responsible. As we put our
hands to the work, our God will both sustain us in it and enable us to
accomplish it.
This fact ought to cheer the hearts of all
those men who labor for Christ in obscure places, with little apparent success,
and those small assemblies of God’s saints scattered across the globe who are
scorned by the world as meaningless and insignificant. No child of God and no
assembly of God’s saints faithfully doing what they can for Christ ever has
reason for discouragement. If like that redeemed sinner described in Mark 14,
we do what we can for him, like her we shall be honored by him.
4.
In verse 8 the Lord God assures us that he
has in his hand everything we need to do what he would have us to do.
(Hag
2:8) "The silver is mine,
and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts."
Our God owns all things, and rules all
things. He is both the possessor of all things and the omnipotent “Lord of hosts.” If only we (both
individual believers and local churches) used what the Lord God has put in our
hands as stewards in his house (time, talents, possessions, and opportunities)
for the furtherance of the gospel, the building of his kingdom, and the glory
of his name, rather than for our own gratification, we would never lack the
means to do his work.
Uncleanness
Haggai’s third message describes our
utter inability to do anything acceptable to God because of our uncleanness
(2:10-19). Apparently, many who worked feverishly in restoring the house and
worship of God got the idea that they were making themselves holy by their
contact with the temple. So Haggai takes us back to the law of Moses to show us
that we cannot be accepted of God and cannot serve him acceptably, cannot do
anything acceptable in his sight, except we be made clean (2:11-14).
(Hag
2:11-14) "Thus saith the LORD of
hosts; Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying, {12} If
one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch
bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the
priests answered and said, No. {13} Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean
by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests
answered and said, It shall be unclean. {14} Then answered Haggai, and
said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith
the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer
there is unclean."
In verses 15-17, the prophet tells us to
consider the temple itself, from its very foundation. Our cleanness and
acceptance with God is to be found in the person and work of Christ that was
portrayed in all the sacrifices and priesthood connected with the temple.
(Hag
2:15-17) "And now, I pray you,
consider from this day and upward, from before a stone was laid upon a stone in
the temple of the LORD: {16} Since those days were, when one came
to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came
to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there
were but twenty. {17} I smote you with blasting and with mildew
and with hail in all the labours of your hands; yet ye turned not to me,
saith the LORD."
As the building of the temple was God’s
work alone, so our salvation, our righteousness, is God’s work alone.
Again, he calls for us to consider all
that was typically symbolized in the temple at Jerusalem, and keep our hearts
focused on that, focused on Christ and his glory, and be assured of the
blessedness found in and flowing to us from him (2:18-19).
There is “a time to sow and a
time to reap.” Here, we are, as it were, just planting the seed. While
the seed is in the ground, no one looks for the harvest. The harvest time is
future. This is our sowing time. So let us sow. Soon, we shall reap.
Coming
Blessedness
Haggai’s last message was about the
coming blessedness that awaits God’s people (vv. 20-23). He spanned the ages of
time and speaks of Christ even more fully.
(Hag
2:20-23) "And again the word of the
LORD came unto Haggai in the four and twentieth day of the month,
saying, {21} Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will
shake the heavens and the earth; {22} And I will overthrow the throne of
kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the heathen; and I
will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and
their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. {23} In
that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant,
the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I
have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts."
Zerubbabel is set before us here
as great a type of our Lord Jesus Christ.
·
He is the Governor of Judah.
·
He shakes heaven and earth.
·
He overthrows and subdues kingdoms.
·
He is Jehovah’s Servant.
·
He is the Signet, “the express image” (Heb. 1:1-3),
of the Father.
·
He is Jehovah’s chosen One.
·
He is the One who builds his house.
The words of Psalm 2 and Zechariah 4 are echoed at the conclusion of Haggai's prophecy:
(Psa
2:6-8) "Yet have I set my king upon
my holy hill of Zion. {7} I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said
unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. {8} Ask
of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance,
and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession."
(Zec
4:6-10) "Then he answered and spake
unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying,
Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. {7} Who
art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a
plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying,
Grace, grace unto it. {8} Moreover the word of the LORD came unto
me, saying, {9} The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this
house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of
hosts hath sent me unto you. {10} For who hath despised the day of small
things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of
Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which
run to and fro through the whole earth."
To me, Dr. Ed Solomon was Mr. Southern Baptist. He
led in formulating the Cooperative Program, served many years as editor of the
FLORIDA BAPTIST WITNESS, motivated others in building the Baptist Hospital of
Jacksonville, Florida. One morning he came to my office and told me this story
about the celebrated Dr,. B.. H.. Carroll.
"When I was a student at Southern
Seminary," Dr. Solomon began, "I enjoyed a strong friendship with
Harvey Carroll, son of B. H. Carroll. Harvey was also a Southern Seminary
student and pastor of a nearby rural church. He lived in the church's
pastorium. I invited him to use my room for his convenience for study or rest.
Our friendship grew. Many times I told Harvey of my strong desire to study
under his father's instruction."
"'Are you really that serious about your desire
to study under my father?'" Harvey asked me after several months.
"When I told him just how very serious I had
become, Harvey went to the desk, wrote briefly, sealed what he had written in
an envelope addressed to his father."
"Take this,'" Harvey told me, "‘and
give it directly to my father. Mrs. Carroll will offer to take it to him, for
she protects him in every possible way, but insist on giving the message to him
in person."'
"So I took the envelope, unopened, and traveled
to B. H.. Carroll's home in Waco."
"Responding to my knock, Mrs. Carroll
graciously offered to carry the message to her husband. When I told her that
Harvey had instructed me to deliver it in person, she smiled and led me into
the room where Dr. Carroll was reading."
"What a distinguished figure Dr. Carroll
made," Ed continued, " He was tall, broad-shouldered, erect. His
white hair and full beard gave him the look of a patriarch." "He took
the letter, and, having opened it, silently read its brief message. When he
spoke, he said simply, 'I'm glad to receive you, Harvey.' "
"Obviously he was very deaf, so I spoke loudly
in the horn he raised to his ear and explained, 'My name is not Harvey. It is
Ed, Ed Solomon.' "
"Carroll smiled and replied, 'Harvey, you will
stay with us, of course. Mrs. Carroll will take you to your room. Dinner will
be served in a few minutes.' "
"When I came to dinner," Solomon went on to tell me," Dr. Carroll told me to sit at his right. Again he called me Harvey and only smiled when I tried to correct him. So I was, much to my surprise, established in B. H. Carroll's own home with a new name, Harvey. For no matter how I tried to explain that my name was Ed Solomon, Dr. Carroll continued to call me Harvey".
"One morning at breakfast, Dr. Carroll turned
to me and said, ‘Harvey, take the third book on the second shelf, the sixth on
the third, the seventh on the fourth. Please bring them to class for me.'
"
"This I obeyed."
"t class he lectured for a few minutes before
he said, 'Harvey will you bring me the books now?'"
"When I brought them to the platform and turned
to return to my seat, he drew me to his side. Standing there with his arm
around my shoulder, Dr. Carroll took from his coat's inner pocket a letter.
'This letter is from my son, Harvey,' Dr. Carroll explained to the class.
'While Harvey was a student at Southern, he was pastor of a small rural church.
At the seminary Ed Solomon opened his heart and his room to my son. Because Ed
wanted to come here to study, Harvey sent him bearing a letter whose contents
Ed has never seen."'
"Taking this letter, Dr. Carroll read, 'Dear
father, the bearer of this letter is Ed Solomon. Here at Southern, Ed has taken
me into his room and shared with me in every way to help me. As he earnestly
desires to study under your instruction, I am sending him to you. Please
receive him as you would receive me for he is a true brother. Your son,
Harvey.'"
"As I listened to Dr. Carroll, I could see and
hear how much even the memory moved him. "Dr. Carroll laid the letter on
his desk," Ed continued. "The tears flowed from his eyes and ran down
his beard as he spoke with great emotion to his class. 'One day I will stand in
the presence of our Heavenly Father,' Dr. Carroll's voice radiated his joyous
faith as he continued. ‘And He will, because I have received His Son on earth,
He will receive me into His glory even as He would receive His only begotten
Son.'"