"A Thrill of Hope"

ZOOM!!!

Read: Haggai 2:1-9

Haggai 2:1–9 KJV 1900

1 In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the Lord by the prophet Haggai, saying, 2 Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying, 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? 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: 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. 6 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.

Text: Haggai 2:7

Haggai 2:7 KJV 1900

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.

Introduction:

We have begun one of the biggest holiday months of the year - December. While I grew up knowing about Christmas and Hannaka, there are several holidays this month I wasn’t aware of until a couple of years ago.

One fascinating fact of our current society is that Christmas season unofficially begins around October in some stores.

There’s something about Christmas music and pine scent that makes people want to buy I guess.

Christmas music, especially secular Christmas (now that’s an interesting sounding conundrum secular Christmas music) is a multi-billion-dollar industry.

The BBC put out a documentary in 2012 called, “The World’s Top Richest Songs” three of the highest grossing songs in the world were Christmas songs.

in the year 1934 a publisher in New York City approached a lyricist by the name of Haven Gillespie and said to Gillespie, “You know, I think that you have a vocabulary that children can understand,” which I don’t think really is a complement. He went on to say, “I’d like you to write a Christmas song.”

So Gillespie sits down with his collaborator J. Fred Coots. He writes down some lyrics on the back of an envelope. It takes him about 15 minutes. It takes his collaborator J. Fred Coots not much longer, and they come up with the song, “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town.” That song has made $27 million. The families have a copyright on it until the year 2029. Every time you hear it, they make a little more money.

Now, the second song was written in 1934 by a jazz musician by the name of Mel Tormé. It’s called, “The Christmas Song,” and it goes like this: “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Jack Frost nipping at your nose.” He wrote it in the middle of a blistering Los Angeles summer with his collaborator, so I assure you there were no chestnuts roasting on an open fire, and there was no Jack Frost nipping at his nose on that particular day. It took them 45 minutes. They made $20 million dollars off of it, and Mel Tormé, who is Jewish, has profited greatly off of that Christmas song.

But, these two songs pale in comparison to the number-one-selling single in the world. It’s the second highest grossing single in the world next to Happy Birthday ...and the song has made $30 million. It was written in 1940 by a Jewish immigrant from Russia by the name of Irving Berlin. It was sung by a young man who was nicknamed Bing when he was 7-years-old. What’s the name of the song? “White Christmas.”

While our scripture reading this morning was not a song, it has inspired songs and music:

Charles Wesley wrote:

The Poetical Works of John and Charles Wesley, Volume 1 Hymn for Christmas-Day

7 Come, Desire of Nations, come,

Fix in us Thy humble home;

Rise, the woman’s conquering Seed,

Bruise in us the serpent’s head.

Haggai was a prophet who spoke to the apathy and indifference to the post exilic Jews who were so preoccupied with making their own homes nice and inhabitable that they left the temple in ruins. He spoke of other things but he gives us a burst of hope and joy here in the middle of his two chapter book:

God was going to do something great for them and among those works was that the temple that now was no where near the glory and beauty of Solomon’s temple, would one day outshine that masterpiece of architectural design and beauty.

I like how the English translated the French Carol we call “Oh Holy Night” put it:

“A Thrill of Hope”

That’s what we have - a thrill of hope a little glimmer of something greater to come!!!

Now there is quite a bit of controversy as to what this verse actually means:

There are three main thoughts:

1.) Eschatological (End Times)

2.) Messianic (First Advent)

3.) Blended

Here is why I believe it is a Messianic prophecy - you ready for my well crafted and water tight argument -

I believe it is referring to the Coming of the Christ child in “A Thrill of Hope”

because Jesus says so: He calls himself a “greater than Solomon” Matthew 12:42 and Luke 11:31

Every time He stepped inside the Temple its glory far surpassed Solomon’s work and ingenuity.

This morning - maybe you’re feeling beat down, maybe you’re feeling like you have been fighting a loosing battle

Your “temple” is still in ruins or not near what it has been in the past

I just want to give you “A thrill of hope”

While there was a Holy Night a long time ago

The Desire of Nations is still coming into Temples -

He’s still making them shine with His Glory!!!

I want to ask you this morning - HOw long has it been since He’s been in your temple?

Has the Desire of Nations ever come to yours?

This would be a great time:

All you have to do is ASK!!!

Let Him Come in!!!!