It Is Time For Renewal

Hag 2:1 in the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by 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 that saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not in your sight as nothing? 4 Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the LORD; take courage, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; take courage, all you people of the land, says the LORD; work, for I am with you, says the LORD of hosts, 5 according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit abides among you; fear not. 6 For thus says the LORD of hosts: Once again, 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 splendor, says the LORD of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of hosts. 9 The latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place I will give prosperity, says the LORD of hosts.'"

Some common synonyms of renew are refresh, rejuvenate, renovate, and restore. Renewal it is a process of shedding the old outer covering and putting on the new. This takes place in the 'spirit of your mind'. As we come to know God, our minds are renewed in accordance to the knowledge of Him. In Romans 12: 2 Paul speaks of 'proving' what is that good, acceptable and perfect will of God. Is It Time for Renewal? Ro 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

The first message of Haggai to the people encouraged them to consider their ways and then reprioritize their lives. Misguided priorities had led the people of God away from their assignment. The work was neglected 18 years. After the first message from Prophet Haggai, the whole nation repented and returned to the work. The first order of business was to secure the needed materials and start to build again. The enemy of our souls works continuously to pull us away from our God-given assignment. What Satan failed to do through misguided priorities and outward opposition, he tries to accomplish through discouragement. The world is going through a lot of pain. But in dark times, we also see that people stand together as bright torches shining through the blackest night. When people in great suffering cannot keep their faith and kneel to the ground in discouragement, let us who still can share our faith and our courage with them.

"A long time ago, there was a rumor that the devil is going out of business and he is selling his tools to whomever bids the most for them. One night he opened doors to his customers and showcased all his tools: hate, jealousy, fear, deceit, and many more. But somewhere in a dark corner of the room was a very old, harmless and worn-out object, looking as if it has been used throughout eternity. It had the highest price of all. Somebody asked the devil what that instrument was and why was it so expensive.

"Discouragement," answered the devil. "It is the most expensive tool because it is the one, I use most on people. When nothing else works, I can enter slowly in their minds and hearts, and nobody notices. Once I am there and get them discouraged, I can do whatever I want with them. This tool is so worn out because I've been using it since the dawn of humanity and it works with everybody."

"Very few people know this tool belongs to me. When they get discouraged and lose hope, they think it's them to blame, other people or the world around them," laughed the devil. "People hit obstacles in life, they encounter problems, but when they get discouraged, when they lose hope, that's just me doing my job."

The second message of Haggai was sent to combat the high level of discouragement among the people. The present difficulties created by the pandemic has discouraged many. First because of how long it has impacted our lives with no end in sight. The mixture crowd in Haggai were made up of young and old, many who could remember the former temple and temple worship with all its beautiful form, rituals, and glory. The former temple had a glorious history and drew people from all over the world. The floor was black and white marble, the walls were the finest cedar overlaid with pure gold, the curtains were made of fine linen with embroidered work of angel wings. The veil was made of woven materials nine inches thick, and all the instruments of temple were forged and beaten from fine gold and silver. The returning exiles had no fine gold or silver, no fine linen cloths, or embroidered works. The temple that they were building was only a shadow of its former self. They were discouraged and started losing hope. But God sends a word of encouragement.