Haggai – Whom will you serve?
Scripture References: Haggai 1:2-6, 9-12, 2:3-4, 9, 1 Kings 17:1, 16:32-33, Deuteronomy 11:13-17, Matthew 12:6, John 2:19, 1 Peter 2:5
Introduction:
As we approach Rally Day weekend at First Baptist, we celebrate our transition into fall ministries. This is a time of celebration as a church body…to stop and celebrate what God has done, while looking forward to what God has for us in this next season. To emphasize this transition, I feel like we had a fitting sermon topic last week leading to another this coming Sunday on Rally Day. If you were not able to hear Pastor Kuntz’s sermon this past Sunday, I encourage you to check it out online!
Pastor Kuntz preached on preeminence. The key question is: ‘What does it mean to give Christ preeminence?’ The short answer in the words of Pastor Kurtz was: ‘To give Jesus first place. All the time. In everything.’ This coming Sunday, Pastor Chuck will be in Nehemiah 2 focusing on the big idea of: “God accomplishes great things when his people work together.”
This week in my personal study, I found that God had me in such an appropriate spot in Scripture that forms a bridge in between these 2 topics mentioned above. My study this week was in the short book of Haggai. As we will see in this devotional, Haggai forms a beautiful connection between making God preeminent and seeing what He accomplishes when His people work together. Let’s talk about that…
Devotional:
The book of Haggai is set in post-exilic Israel. After their time in Babylonian captivity, the empire of Persia takes over and eventually let’s a group of Israelites return to their own land. When they return they are faced with the enormous challenge of rebuilding. Rebuilding their homes, their city, the temple…their whole lives! This is certainly no small task and is a huge undertaking for any group of people. Right away in the book of Haggai, the people are faced with a critical decision…one which will affect who they will be as a people moving forward, but more importantly…whom they will serve.
2 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.” 3 Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, 4 “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? 5 Now, therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. 6 You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. -Haggai 1:2-6 ESV
The people have a problem. They are planting many crops, but not getting much of a harvest. They are clothing themselves, but never warm, they are earning wages just to see them consumed as if they are putting it into a bag full of holes. Those of us who have experienced the hardship of living paycheck-to-paycheck can probably relate to this feeling. It does not appear that the people are necessarily being lazy…they are sowing much, building their houses and trying to meet their own needs…but it is not amounting to much. They are not fulfilled. The description of the houses they are building for themselves gives the impression that they are seeking comfort. In verse 4, we see the people dwelling in ‘paneled houses’. The Faithlife Study Bible commentary notes this:
Many of the Israelites’ homes had been decorated with ornate paneling. The Hebrew word used here is the same word used in 1 Kings 6:9 to describe the opulent interior of Solomon’s temple.1
While these houses they’ve built for themselves are of course not as extravagant as Solomon’s temple, we can gather from this observation that the people were certainly not building cheap houses. They were putting effort and care into making a comfortable living space for themselves. Now, there isn’t anything inherently wrong with building a comfortable house to live in…I’m sure many of us are blessed to live in insulated houses and apartment buildings. But here we see a problem with Israel’s priorities. They are doing all this work focusing on their own comfort, but they are neglecting the worship of God…the temple still lies in ruins.
I love the phrase God uses through Haggai: ‘Consider your ways’ In other words…’Think about what you’re doing here!’…
9 You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the Lord of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house. 10 Therefore the heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its produce. 11 And I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings forth, on man and beast, and on all their labors.” -Haggai 1:9-11 ESV
When we read carefully, we start to see the core problem. This isn’t simply about the people building houses and this is not simply about the temple in and of itself. This is about the people’s worship! This is about preeminence, as we heard from Pastor Kuntz. Priorities are simply not in order and the worship of God is not their priority in this moment. The logic is backwards: They are trying to cultivate and make the earth give it’s yield so that they can have food and water…basic necessities they need to survive…but they neglect the God who is sovereign over creation itself. The God who can simply make things grow or make things die as He sees fit, and this is exactly what is going on here. God is telling them plainly “I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings forth, on man and beast, and on all their labors.” The people don’t have to wonder why this is happening. Why?
We see something very similar in Israel’s history that came to mind as I studied this passage. Another God-ordained drought comes on the land during the days of Elijah and King Ahab of Israel…
“Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe[a] in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” -1 Kings 17:1 ESV
Why was this drought ordained in the days of Elijah? For a very similar reason. Israel had a worship problem. We read this about Ahab in the previous chapter:
32 He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. -1 Kings 16:32-33 ESV
In the Ancient Near East, Baal was seen as the Canaanite storm god and a god of fertility. What did this mean to people? It meant, if you needed it to rain…if you needed crops to grow, then you called out to Baal! In this moment of their history, Israel had forgotten and neglected the true God. The God who is sovereign over all creation. If Israel and Ahab had been paying attention to the Word of the Lord, they would have realized that this drought should not have come as a surprise…the one who controls creation is the creator Himself. This is made clear back in Deuteronomy…
13 “And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil. 15 And he will give grass in your fields for your livestock, and you shall eat and be full. 16 Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them; 17 then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain, and the land will yield no fruit, and you will perish quickly off the good land that the Lord is giving you. -Deuteronomy 11:13-17 ESV
Do you hear the echoes of Deuteronomy in 1 Kings and Haggai??
The very reason the people were conquered and sent into exile in the first place was because they broke their covenant with the Lord their God! They pursued ‘self’ which lead to the pursuit of other gods. Israel in the days of Haggai are now at a crossroads. Will they make the same mistakes as their ancestors did which lead to exile, or will they choose the Lord? Will they make the Lord preeminent and not themselves? The words of Joshua seem to fit so clearly here…’Choose this day whom you will serve…’ (Joshua 24:15)
Here is the moment of truth. What is the people’s response to the Word of the Lord through Haggai?
12 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord. -Haggai 1:12 ESV
Their answer: Obedience! Not just from some of them…from all of them! The leaders (Zerubbabel and Joshua) and ‘all the remnant of the people’. The entire community from the top down makes the decision to fear the Lord and obey His command.
They once again come to the point where they understand that their survival in the land will come, not as a result of their own work and their own efforts…but in placing their trust in the Lord…making Him preeminent.
What is the hope now that the whole community is on board?
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, –Haggai 2:3-4 ESV
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.’” – Haggai 2:9 ESV
Although this rebuilt temple will not compare to the former temple in physical appearance…God is going to do something even greater with this temple!
6 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. –Matthew 12:6 ESV
19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” -John 2:19 ESV
The temple had symbolized God’s presence and glory dwelling among His people. In Jesus, that reality is fulfilled: The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Now, through the Holy Spirit, God dwells within His people – We are His temple.
Now as living stones, we are building the temple of God…not with physical stones…but with people. Those who step forward in obedience and place their faith in trust in Jesus.
5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. -1 Peter 2:5 ESV
This is how the Lord, through Haggai can say that the glory of the rebuilt temple will be far greater than the glory of the former temple. When we, as a community make Jesus preeminent, God accomplishes great things as His people work together. This bridges our topic from last Sunday, into our topic on Rally Day this coming Sunday!
One last observation as we close…
When you read through Haggai, you will notice there are several date markers indicating when these events occurred. This is intentional…but why is it interesting? It tells us that this book and the command to rebuild the temple is structured around Israel’s festival calendar! A time when Israel is called to remember their story and celebrate God’s deliverance and provision throughout their history. In particular, the dates point to the celebration of ‘The Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles)’ How fitting to be given the command to rebuild the temple around the feast of tabernacles! Even Haggai’s name in Hebrew means ‘Festive’!2
How fitting it will be to celebrate Rally Day as our own church festivity! An opportunity to remember all that God has done, and look forward to what God has for us in this next season. To follow him in obedience – make Him preeminent – and watch Him do amazing things as we work together in community!
Amen.
Sean Wagner