008 It Is Not Yet What It Will Be - So Keep Working! (Part 3)
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1 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:
2 “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,
3 ‘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?
4 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,
5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.
6 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.
7 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.
8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts.
9 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.’ ”
Command One: Be strong.
Command Two: Get to work.
COMMAND 3: Fear not.
COMMAND 3: Fear not.
Take courage. I am with you.
First, this...
According to the promise I made with you when you came out of Egypt.
They were ONE!
God speaks to them as if they were the very people that came out of Egypt.
God’s promise to them remained.
This was an all encompassing promise!
(Pack that away for a minute)
Most accurately: “Remember” or “take to heart”
Let those words sink in this morning.
There are a lot of heavy things going amongst our church family.
People are walking down life changing roads.
Things are being thrown our way to discourage us.
Fear not.
Just as God’s promise to Israel still stood.
Just as God saw the Jews as one.
So does God see the Church as one.
The the promise to the disciples.
I am with you always!
Sometimes we just need to be reminded like the Jews needed reminding.
10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
God doesn’t just tell us not to be afraid. But...
7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
COMMAND 3: Fear not.
COMMAND 3: Fear not.
This seems like a strategic way for God to say this.
He could have just told them He was with them.
Instead He purposefully pointed them back and caused them to see His faithfulness for generations!
Not only do we need reminded not to fear, but sometimes we need to be pointed back to God’s faithfulness.
God calls us to work.
But He promises to be right there with us through it all.
We have no reason to fear.
We have no reason not to work.
Be strong.
Work hard.
Fear not.
These commands together draw us a picture of persistent obedience.
A couple of months before this they were ready to go.
God shook them up.
They had a holy discontentment.
They went to the hills and started cutting trees.
Then they realized how slow it would be.
They realized how much work and how hard it would be.
The saw it wasn’t turning out like they thought it should.
And they got discouraged.
They were discouraged because they were not seeing things from God’s perspective.
Next He will tell them that their persistent obedience would lead to greater things than they could imagine.
Here is one of the reasons I love local church ministry and wouldn’t want to be an itinerant preacher.
Yes - major decisions are good.
Often they don’t last.
The ones that last are usually preceded by many small decisions.
Persistent obedience is better!
God encourages them with three future promises.
God encourages them with three future promises.
6 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.
7 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.
8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts.
9 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 encourages them with three future promises.
God encourages them with three future promises.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
I will shake.
An incredible action by the almighty God.
The Israelites were afraid of the powerful nations that opposed them.
God’s promise was meant to bring comfort and courage.
Once more
I will, once more...
Looks ahead with imminence.
A sure promise that will happen at a time in the future.
There has already been a shaking.
Haggai is saying: One more time.
There was already a shaking.
16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain.
18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
The previous shaking gave the Jews the law.
This shaking made the condemnation of the human race obvious.
22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.
24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.
25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
This was already showing us our need for Christ.
There are 1,189 chapters in the Bible.
The human race made it to chapter 2 before they ruined what God started.
In chapter 3 we already see the promise of a Messiah.
God shook the earth to show us our need for a Savior.
There will be another shaking.
But, there will only be one more shaking.
The author of Hebrews quotes Haggai.
25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven.
26 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.”
27 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.
28 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,
29 for our God is a consuming fire.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
In a little while
First: Hebrew - one little bit.
One single brief space until something happens.
Looking ahead to the future.
Helping us understand the prophetic nature of the shaking.
By the way… “a little while”… over 500 years until the birth of Christ.
Then thousands until the finality of the prophecy.
If this is a little while, what is a few months or years to God?
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
PROMISE 1: I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land, and the nations.
All of this shaking is ultimately preparation for the reign of Christ.
A violent trembling of the earth.
As judgement and wrath are poured out on the enemies of God.
The people of Haggai’s day feared world powers.
Haggai is assuring them that these powers will fall.
Christ will be victorious.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
God said He would fill the temple with glory.
This seems to be a twofold promise.
28 Then the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.”
7 and he said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoring and by the dead bodies of their kings at their high places,
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
The spiritual glory will be greater.
During the Millennial Kingdom, the glory of the Temple will be restored. (with the presence of God).
The presence of the Messiah in the Temple will be all the glory needed.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
But there is more in this context.
7 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.
8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts.
9 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.’ ”
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
PROMISE 2: The glory of this temple will be will be greater than the former temple.
The physical glory of the temple will be greater as well.
This passage speaks of the wealth that will come to the temple.
This would happen after their lifetime.
This promise has eschatological implications.
We too often want instant gratification.
PROMISE 3: I will give peace in this place.
PROMISE 3: I will give peace in this place.
26 I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore.
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
PROMISE 3: I will give peace in this place.
PROMISE 3: I will give peace in this place.
Why was God ok with the Temple being less than the first one?
Why was God ok with the Temple being less than the first one?
Because His plan was bigger than the Jews.
God’s plan is bigger than you and I.
We must persistently obey while patiently waiting for the harvest!
We must persistently obey while patiently waiting for the harvest!