Haggai 2:1-9 - Be Strong

Haggai  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  32:12
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Introduction:
Be strong. Our world today really likes to preach messages like this right? Be strong. Be filled with pride! You can do anything if you set your mind to it. You can be whatever you want to be. You can do whatever you want to do. Just be strong and keep pressing on and you will be successful. Just believe in yourself and you will succeed!
These messages sound great don’t they? They tickle that itch of pride that all of us have. They make us feel special. They make us feel like we are powerful. Frankly, they make is feel like we are a god - like we have absolute power over outcomes. Yet these messages all end bitterly because eventually, it becomes obvious that you aren’t as strong or talented as you thought you were. And what was once pride quickly crumbles in despair.
If you have, have had, or have been around young children, one thing becomes very clear as you observe them. They have pride. How many times do you see them try to pick something up that is obviously too heavy for them? Or how many times do they try to climb something on the playground that is impossible for them to do at their current strength level?
We are a lot like those children when we try to do things in our own strength. We just cannot do it. Yet, we continue to try to live this life in our strength time and time again. We fall time and time again and often seem to be slower learners than even young children!
Today’s message is entitled be strong. But it is not a call to be strong in your own strength. It is a call to be strong in the Lord!
Let’s pray and dive into our Scripture.
Prayer
Today we will see three reasons we can be strong in the Lord. The first is…

I. We Can Be Strong In the Lord Because He is Watching Us (1-3)

Haggai 2:1–3 ESV
In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes?
We left off with the people starting the work of the Lord around a month ago. And now, less than a month later another word of the Lord comes. Why do you think God spoke to the people so quickly after recently speaking with them?
We are given an answer to this question in verse 3. The people are already becoming discouraged.
They are asking these questions:
Who is left among you who saw the house in its former glory?
How do you see it now?
Is it not as nothing in your eyes?
Although it has been some 67 years or so that Solomon’s Temple had been destroyed, there were obviously some elders that still had remembrance of that Temple of Old. And we also have to remember that these people would have been young children at the time of Solomon’s Temple. So not only was it clear that this temple was not going to be like Solomon’s Temple, there also was likely some embellishment and selective memories coming as well.
I mean we have all heard our parents or grandparents talk about how they went up hill both ways to school and how it was always in the snow! We can sometimes have skewed and selective memories! As I preach this, I realize that I’m sure I am getting to this stage of life as well!
Yet despite any memory embellishments, these people had a point. Solomon’s Temple was amazingly beautiful. If you read the description of the temple in 1 Kings 6, you see that there is gold everywhere. In fact, the word gold is used 11 times in chapter 6 of 1 Kings alone! Gems and fine linens are throughout. Vast cedars of Lebanon span the structure and other fine woods are used as well.
These elders were becoming discouraged by focusing on what was, seeing what is, and refusing to see what could be.
I’m sure there are some here that feel that way when they look at our culture. I feel that way already at times, frankly! We see what is and we remember what was and there is a vast chasm between them. But friends, there is hope for us as we will see today. We cannot live in the past. We can certainly learn from the past. But we must live in the present as we look in hope toward the future. We must remember that God is sovereign and in control.
We must remember that God is not done working.
If you recall, we also discussed a couple of weeks ago that the recent Word of the Lord likely came at a time of a specific gathering of the people. We see this is true yet again.
You see, Haggai is bringing this Word of the Lord at the end of a certain feast of Israel. It was called:
The Feast of Tabernacles (also called the Feast of Booths and the Feast of the Ingathering)
During this festival, the people commemorated the wilderness wandering after the Exodus. They lived in tents for a week with their children and celebrated with feasting. We see it recorded many times in Scripture with the first being in Exodus 23:16 with more details given in Leviticus 23:33-43 and Deuteronomy 16:13-15.
The feast would have started on the 15th of the seventh month and would have been wrapping up the last two days when this word of the Lord came. They would have been celebrating the harvest that had just come as they also looked back at how the Lord had provided for them for the forty years in the wilderness after the Exodus as well.
Yet all of this excitement was dulled by the look of the temple. The task was daunting. After a month of work, it was obvious that this was not going to be easy. And it was obvious that this was not going to be anything like Solomon’s Temple.
Although the size might end up close, the beauty and grandeur was not going to be at all comparable to Solomon’s Temple.
Discouragement and despair were creeping in. As J. Alec Motyer (Mo-ty-er) put it:
Two persistent roots of despondency were growing vigorously among Haggai’s people: the past seemed incomparably better than the present, and the present seemed much less than worthwhile.
J. Alec Motyer
Have you ever been there?
You are incredibly excited at first. God has felt so close and has been clear on what you are supposed to do. And so you are now stepping out in faith and doing what He has called you to do. Maybe it is a sin that you have been fighting, and you have a renewed sense of victory. Maybe it is a ministry you have started or jointed. Maybe it is a Bible reading plan you have begun. Whatever it is, you are pumped up and you get to working at it right away.
Things go well for the first few days… maybe even a couple of weeks. But then it hits. Your motivation and excitement is gone and you are left with grit alone.
But you are no quitter right? So you keep persevering and working and working.
Until at last… you run out of energy and start to fizzle out.
But that is when it is really important to know that you are not alone.
You can be strong in the Lord because He is watching over you.
You are not alone. He is right there and has been all along. In your daily grind of battling it out, you have missed the fact that He has been there all along. You knew it at first. You even prayed more at first and felt like you could go on for ever. But in a matter of days or weeks, you forgot where your strength was coming from. And you started feeling alone. But He has been there all of the time - watching over you. And not only has He been watching over you all along, as our next point states… He has been with you all along.
Scripture References: 1 Kings 6, Exodus 23:16, Leviticus 23:33-43, Deuteronomy 16:13-15

II. We Can Be Strong In the Lord Because He is With Us (4-5)

Haggai 2:4 ESV
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts,
Last week we discussed this idea that the Lord is with us in detail. And here it comes up again. Last week I also quoted Joshua 1:9:
Joshua 1:9 ESV
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
As we look at verse 4, we see yet another parallel with Haggai’s message from the Lord. Don’t miss the repetitive nature of God’s admonition here:
Haggai 2:4 (ESV)
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts,
As God told Joshua to be strong and courageous, He does the same for the leaders and remnant of Israel. Be strong. He repeats this three times! He tells Zerubbabel to be strong. He tells Joshua to be strong. And He tells the people to be strong.
Why does God command them to be strong? Because there is work to be done! I love the next command after this series of ‘be strongs.’ He just says Work!
The people need to be strong in the Lord because there is still work to be done.
God commands the leaders and the people to work with a renewed sense of zeal because He is with them.
Let’s look at the end of verse 4 into verse 5.
Haggai 2:4b–5 (ESV)
...Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.
God has commanded them to work because He is with them - the Lord of hosts - the Lord of angel armies is with them.
And God reminds them of the Covenant of Sinai after this command to be strong in the Lord. He reminds them of what He did in the land of Egypt. He sent 10 plagues and delivered the people out of the land of Egypt. Despite the rebellion of the people, God continued to provide for their needs for forty years in the wilderness. He provided manna for them to eat day in and day out (Exodus 16). Their clothes did not wear out and their sandals remained intact (Deuteronomy 29:5). And He made a covenant with them to protect them and provide for them if they were faithful to Him (Exodus 24, 34).
Why can they be strong? Is it because of their sheer power and might? Is it because of their intellect and talents?
No, it is is because God is with them! The Lord of hosts continues to work with them!
He reminds them that His Spirit remains in their midst. They aren’t working alone. They are working in the power of the Lord. This is not a time to get discouraged and quit. This is not a time to fear and back away from the task at hand. This is a time to step up and work even harder because they know Who works with them.
I pray that you approach the things God calls you to do with this mentality. Be strong. Again - not in yourself. But be strong in the Lord. Be courageous. God is with you. As we discussed last week - if you are in Christ, He has filled you with His Holy Spirit and He works in and through you and with you. How wonderful is our Savior and Lord?
So we have seen that we can be strong in the Lord because He is watching us and because He is with us. Finally we see that we can…
Scripture References: Joshua 1:9, Exodus 16, Deuteronomy 29:5, Exodus 24, Exodus 34

III. We Can Be Strong in the Lord Because He is Waiting for Us (6-9)

Haggai 2:6–9 ESV
For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’ ”
Now we see an escalation of God’s command here. He shows His incredible strength and power to reveal who is with Israel. They do not worship a weak God. They worship a great God. They worship a God who is big enough to shake everything!
Scholars have debated the interpretation of this prophecy for some time. However, it seems clear that this prophecy is three-fold in nature.
The Three-fold Nature of Haggai 2:6-9:
Immediate fulfillment
Messianic fulfillment
Millennial fulfillment
Let’s address the first and immediate fulfillment first:
Haggai 2:6–9 ESV
For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’ ”
God has promised to rebuild the temple along with the people. He is with them. And the phrase that the silver is mine and the gold is mine could refer to the fact that the temple rebuilding was funded by a pagan nation. Although initially Persia would fund this, centuries later Herod would end up expanding this temple and remodeling it with the finances of Rome.
God promises that He will rebuild the temple and fill it again. He will fill the house with His glory. It may not look as extravagant as the former temple of Solomon, but He will fill it in an even greater way. They will receive peace through His Presence with them. He is waiting for them to finish the rebuilding so that He can dwell among them again. What an encouragement they must have felt in knowing He was waiting on them, He was watching them, and He was with them.
As amazing as this promise was initially, there was more to come in the future. What they were working on was going to be the place where the Messiah would walk some five centuries later!
The second fulfillment in this Scripture is the Messianic fulfillment:
Many scholars do see a Messianic interpretation in these last few verses as well. Verse 9 even discusses a peace that comes in this house that is even greater than former temple of Solomon.
Many also read this last verse of this section and question how the latter glory will be greater than the former. Wasn’t Solomon’s Temple greater than the second temple? In beauty and splendor, the answer is yes.
But what makes this temple even greater is that it is in this place that God will give lasting peace. This peace comes a little more than 500 years later through Jesus Christ. He will be presented in this temple as a baby as we saw in our study through Luke last year. The Prince of Peace - Jesus Christ - is presented as a baby in the temple (Luke 2:22-38). The latter glory that comes through Christ’s incarnation and consecration far exceeds anything the world has ever known. The peace that He provides also far exceeds anything the world has ever known.
And this Savior will visit the temple multiple times as He grows up and becomes a man as well. He will walk through the temple and teach and even cleanse the temple. But His most amazing work in the temple happens while He is on the cross…
My friends, we worship a God who shakes the heavens and the earth and everything else. And one way He did this was by shaking and defeating death and the grave. He defeated it on the cross! Jesus Christ defeated death on our behalf. The greatest enemies of man - namely sin and death - were defeated on the cross by Jesus Christ. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead 3 days later. Listen to the author of Hebrews lay this out well:
Hebrews 12:2 ESV
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
He endured the cross and despised the shame. The word despised means to treat with contempt. He destroyed the shame of the cross. He claimed victory over it by raising from the dead three days later and now is seated at the right hand of the Father in His glorified state.
When Christ died, He did shake everything - figuratively and literally!
Matthew 27:51–54 ESV
And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
That is quite a shake up my friends! He shook the literal heavens and the earth and He also shook the chains loose from those who would come to a saving knowledge of Him!
Those rebuilding this temple in Haggai’s day did not likely fully understand just Who would walk through this temple that they were rebuilding. As wonderful as Solomon’s Temple was, Jesus Christ never walked through it in the flesh. But the temple they were building, would be the one in which Christ would walk while on earth.
And finally, the Millennial fulfillment:
The New Testament actually quotes this in Hebrews 12:26-28
Hebrews 12:26–28 ESV
At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,
We will discuss this further in our last sermon in this series. But know that God still has a promise to come. He will overthrow all the nations the world and shake this world one last time and Christ returns to reign in His Millennial Kingdom on earth. And His Kingdom can never be shaken. It will last forever.
But for now, may we glory in the fact that Christ is victorious. He has defeated death and the grave. And one day, He will completely destroy all evil including Satan and all who follow him as they will be cast into the Lake of Fire - namely Hell - for all eternity.
How amazing is out God!
Scripture References: Luke 2:22-38, Hebrews 12:2, Matthew 27:51-54, Hebrews 12:26-28
Conclusion:
As we come to a close, I pray that we are encouraged by this message from the Lord through the prophet Haggai today. The same God that was watching Israel. The same God that was with Israel. And the same God that was waiting for Israel - is also for us. He is watching and waiting for us. And He is with us, my friends. We can be strong and do the work He calls us to because we know He is greater than any obstacle that may come in our way.
As we go throughout this next week, I pray that you have a renewed zeal for the Lord. And I pray that you work in the strength He alone can provide.
Be Strong, Church.
Prayer
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