I Will Shake All Nations

This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty. Haggai 2:6–7 (NIV)

We’ll get to the shaking later, let’s start w/ these phrases:

What is desired by all nations will come!

I will fill this house with glory.

That sounds good. It sounds even better when we dig into the context. These promises are found in lesser-known OT history. But it’s significant for our celebration of Jesus’ coming.

All through Advent we’ve been looking at Jesus’ family tree as recorded in Matthew. Last week we zoomed in on Jesus’ 28x great-grandpa, David, son of Jesse. David offered to replace the tent of the Lord – the tabernacle – with a cedar house. But the Lord said “not you; your son will build my house”. Instead, the Lord promised to build David a house, an everlasting dynasty.

Solomon, son of David, did build the temple. Cedar and gold, bronze and stone – it was a beautiful house. It was the heart of life in Jerusalem, the place of worship for 14 generations of David’s offspring ruling in Jerusalem.

But when David’s offspring were unfaithful to God, they faced the consequences, just as the Lord warned David:

I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. But my love will never be taken away from him. II Samuel 7:14–15a (NIV)

Jeconiah, son of David, and his brothers trudged to Babylon in handcuffs. Jerusalem and the Lord’s Temple were destroyed.

Fast-forward 70 years: the first wave of exiles came back to Jerusalem. They rebuilt houses and the city. Zerubbabel, great, great-grandson of David, was governor of Jerusalem.

But while the people who returned from Babylon feathered their own nests, God’s house lay in ruins. Through Haggai, God calls his people to account. Haggai’s message is very direct:

Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. Haggai 1:8–9 (NIV)

To their credit, the people obey God’s command. They rebuild the temple. But the old-timers who remember the splendour of the former temple are filled with dismay. It’s not the same. Ezra writes about that day:

All the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy. Ezra 3:11b–12 (NIV)

Now we just read from the 2ndch. of Haggai’s prophecies. The Lord Almighty promises to fill this new temple w/ glory.

Haggai is talking about the glory of God’s presence. One of the NT writers speak of the Lord’s glory:

God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. I Timothy 6:15b–16a (NIV)

We’ll read more about God’s glory in the readings this week.

The glory of the Lord indicates God’s presence. He dwells in unapproachable light. The blinding light is a visible expression of his majesty, righteousness, and holiness.

Remember how Moses removed his sandals and bowed in reverence when he saw the burning bush?

Remember the pillar of fire ahead of the Israelites in the wilderness?

Remember how Moses’ face was radiant after meeting w/ the Lord on Mt Sinai?

Remember how the Apostle Paul was blinded when Jesus met him in brilliant light on the road to Damascus?

Each time, light indicates the glory of the presence of the Lord.

An amazing thing happened in Solomon’s day on the day the temple was dedicated:

When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple. I Kings 8:10–11(NIV)

God lives among his people. He’s their God; they’re his people.

But the temple Solomon built, the house where God’s glory rested was destroyed by the Babylonians. At that time, Ezekiel had a terrible vision. He saw the Lordleave the temple:

Then the glory of the Lord departed from over the threshold of the temple. Ezekiel 10:18a (NIV)

Can you imagine anything more devastating?

God has left the building. It remained that way for years.

Fast forward to days of Haggai. With the Lord’s prompting, the temple is rebuilt. Zerubbabel oversees the project. But even with the gold and silver temple furnishings that Ezra brought back from Babylon, it just isn’t the same.

The beauty of the temple is less important than whether or not God is here. Did you hear Haggai announce God’s promise?

I will fill this house with glory!

The Lord Almighty is returning to Jerusalem. Once again, the Lord dwells among his people. Haggai proclaims God’s word:

But now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord. ‘Be strong, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the Lord Almighty. ‘This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.’ Haggai 2:4–5 (NIV)

Haggai’s prophecy is fulfilled in the days of Zerubbabel, son of David. Although he’s only a governor in the Persian Empire, Zerubbabel is the ruler of God’s people in Jerusalem. He carries the tradition of David’s house in his generation.

The word of the Lord through Haggai is also fulfilled in Jesus’ day. That’s why I was eager to preach today about God’s word to Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel is a descendant of David and the great, great-grandfather of Jesus.

We’re studying Matthew’s gospel this year. Matthew is a Jew and an OT scholar. His gospel highlights the way that Jesus fulfills God’s word in the OT.

Matthew doesn’t describe how Jesus was born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger. He doesn’t talk about the army of angels or the frightened shepherds. We learn those details in the Gospel of Luke. We’ll hear Luke’s account tonight at the 5 pm candlelight service.

Matthew highlights how Jesus’ birth fulfills God’s promises. He tells how Joseph married Mary, despite her pregnancy:

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). Matthew 1:22–23 (NIV)

In Jesus’ birth, God comes to live among his people in a marvellous way. John describes Jesus’ coming this way:

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 (NIV)

Each of the gospel writers finds a way to describe how God the Son came into his own creation to live among his people.

Jesus’ birth is good news, but it’s just the beginning. Jesus lives among God’s people, but his glory is veiled. He is fully human just like his mother, like his brothers and sisters.

Do you recall Haggai’s words? There is more to his prophecy:

This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. Haggai 2:6 (NIV)

Jesus’ coming is earthshaking news. But we don’t hear of an earthquake – not until much later in Matthew’s gospel.

The climax of the gospel comes in Jesus’ death and resurrection. It is at the cross that Jesus deals with the sin and disobedience that make the glorious presence of God uncomfortable for sin-stained humankind. In the radiant glory of the Lord Almighty, we become acutely aware of our own unworthiness. Like Adam & Eve, when the Lordis near, we have the impulse to run and hide.

But Jesus takes my/our guilt and shame on himself when he is nailed to the cross. Jesus’ sacrifice covers our sin and shame. His blood washes us clean and makes it safe for us to stand in God’s presence.

Haggai said that the Lord would shake the earth. Matthew records what happened when Jesus died:

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split. Matthew 27:50–51 (NIV)

Jesus’ death opened the way for us to enter the presence of the Lord Almighty without shame and without fear. Talk about earth-shaking events!

But that’s not all. Matthew records another earthquake in the final chapter of the gospel:

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. . . . The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28:1–2, 5–6 (NIV)