Haggai (6) The Right Response

Introduction: Isaiah 55:10-11

Isaiah 55:10–11 ESV

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

Transition: Today, from Haggai 1:12-15 we are going to see an example of how this very truth comes to pass. God’s word stirs a right response. In the previous weeks some of the things we have discovered from chapter one of Haggai, is that God’s word came at the right time… through the right prophet… to the right people. Today, we are focusing on the right response to God’s word.

Read: Haggai 1:12-15

People’s Response

Obeyed the voice of the Lord…

The message of the Lord first came to the leaders, then to “these people”, now they collectively are all referred to as the remnant of the people.

What does remnant mean? See piece of left over carpet..

Michael Stead offers this definition of remnant in his commentary on Haggai,

“The remnant describes those left after a time of judgment to become the focus of God’s ongoing purposes for His people.”

What we discover here is an example of corporate repentance.

I’m praying this is true us of gathered here today. Perhaps we too are a remnant?

Certainly, we all have been asking the question why does there continue to be less and less of us? I’ve had many conversations with most of you to scratch our heads and think what has happened to get us into the shape we are in right now?

I want to offer this word of hope and encouragement. It is very difficult to try to answer these why questions when we are looking horizontally at the reasons people give for leaving.

However, when we look to God word for our answers it really isn’t that difficult.

What if, after a time of judgment, we are a remnant. Not a remnant like the left overs that get shoved into the back of the fridge, but the remnant that will be the focus of God’s ongoing purposes for His people.

What if we have never been as healthy as we are right now?

What kind of fruitfulness might the the Lord be preparing us for? How will His purposes be accomplished?

We know one thing for sure. Our response to His word must be obedience and… as we see in Haggai.. They Feared the Lord.

People’s Response

Feared the Lord: What does this mean?

Illustration of big horrible looking dog. Approach Him with reverence and enjoy the blessings of His love, but turn your back and run away from him and your likely to be consumed.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, so we are reminded that these folks wised up and started obeying the voice of their God.

There are many voices vying for our attention today.

We obey and fear the voice of the god we worship. Is the Lord your God?

Transition: Heart change brought a change of their ways... We see the right response of the people but we also see God responding to their obedience.

God’s Response

Spoke a promise. “I am with you” (13)

No longer is the message, “I am blowing away the produce of your labor… but I am with you.” This reminds us of the character of God. He is not limited to any particular space.

In what way is He “with” them? Certainly not in the way he dwelled in the Holy Place of the temple.... it wasn’t finished yet. However, He is presently with His people to encourage, protect , provide, and accomplish His covenant promises as we will discover in the rest of this book.

Application: What is so important about God’s presence ? Many answers to this, but at least, His presence motivates the accomplishment of His work.

As those who are God’s temple, the church, we should be reminded of the promise Jesus gave us in order to accomplish the work of building His temple. (Matthew 28:16-20)

Matthew 28:16–20 ESV

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Transition: The work of expanding the glory of God among the nations must be a matter of first importance for the people of God. And… we have the promise of Jesus Himself that He is with us all the way to the end. He doesn’t leave us alone to accomplish the work. in the same way that God spoke to His people in the day of Haggai reminding them that He is with them, so too we have the reminder of jesus to His church that he is with us!

Transition: However, Notice in Haggai verse 14… Not only did God speak to His people but He responded to them by stirring them.

God’s Response

2. Stirred their spirit. (this means that God Awakened the breath of His people. He blew life back into them by changing their frame of mind.)

How does He do this? By His word. He speaks and His people repent. This is the rhythm of having our minds renewed by His word, and repenting by changing the direction of our behaviors.

This is God’s normal pattern . See Ezra 1:1,5

Ezra 1:1 ESV

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

Ezra 1:5 ESV

Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem.

Transition: We have discovered the people’s right response to obey and fear the Lord. We see God’s response to speak and stir His people. Now…

What’s Our Response?

The remnant worked on the house of the Lord their God…

Verse 15 reminds us that God’s word accomplished that which He purposed.

God’s word can accomplish more in 24 days than we can with years and years of our own power.

Transition: I offer a challenge for us this week. Keep intentionally loving one another. We know that love one another is a clear work that Jesus has called us to do. We glorify God and make disciples by loving one another. I’ve heard of so many examples of ya’ll doing this. Everything from prayers being offered, cards being sent, coffee being delivered, visits being made, conversations offering Godly counsel and hope, meals being made, even something as simple as a recommendation for health care.

By the power of God’s Spirit in us, everyone of us are able to love. Look for an opportunity, and take it.

Closing verse: See 1 Thess 2:13 God’s word is at work in you believer's, lets pray and ask for His help to continue to walk in obedience and fear of the Lord.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 ESV

And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.

Application: What impact is God’s word having on my life?

Caution of inadvertently manipulating the work of God. When God stirs the core of our being to accomplish His work, it lasts. Not that it will not face opposition and testing and resistance. Rather, when God stirs our spirit the work will endure through the pain and affliction and suffering. (Two examples).

Our imediate example is these people. When we read Ezra, we discover that when they got back to work on the temple the opposition had not gone away. They were continually under the threat of their enemies, however, they took courage and endured in the work.

Example of George Whitfield and the great awakening.

Transition: How will God’s people accomplish God’s work? Zechariah 4:6, 10

Zechariah 4:6 ESV

Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.

This is a blessed reminder to us in our current situation. We may see ourselves as a remnant. Those who are left. And we may be tempted in a genuine effort to please God to rush into activities and pragmatic programs that end up being a continued cycle of trial and error. As a Southern Baptist church that was started during the heart of the church growth movement we have usually only known the way of trying out the newest Christian fades in order to accomplish the work. We have been guilty of adopting whatever program is producing results in some other church. Now, we must thankfully recognize that none of us would even be here right now if it were not for the diligent efforts of those who have gone before us. However, we will only continue to be a church if we humble ourselves to God’s Word and obey the straight foreword directions. This will require wisdom, a stirring of our minds and desires, so that we would unify around the work of the Lord.

Closing: What is the work that the Bible gives the church to do? I’m going to direct us to only one this morning. See Revelation 2:2-5 and John 13:34-35

Revelation 2:2–5 ESV

“ ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

John 13:34–35 ESV

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”