Lesson From Haggai

Haggai

By Joe Mack Cherry

I. Background

A. Babylonian Captivity

1. Lasted from 606 BC to 536 BC

2. Jeremiah prophesied of it

a. He was not taken; he was left behind with other older Jew man, along with some women and children.

b. During this time, he wrote the book of Lamentations.

c. Got wind that the remaining Jews were planning to rebel against Babylon and he and others fled to Egypt.

3. Ezekiel prophesied and was taken along with other prominent Jews

a. Ezek. 4:12-15 – he is commanded to cook his food over cow dung. This references that the Jews would be unclean during their captivity because they could not give of their first fruits.

b. Ezek. 24:16-17 – this was a reference to how quickly they would be overtaken by the Babylonians. His wife would die and he was not to cry or mourn.

4. Daniel was taken as a young man and lived through it.

B. The Return

1. In 536 BC, King Cyrus releases the Jews back to their homeland.

2. The book of Nehemiah chronicles the opposition brought on by the Samaritans.

3. They lay the rebuilt the altar and foundation but stopped due to Samaritan opposition for 16 years. Ezra 4.

4. Isaiah prophesied that Jerusalem would be rebuilt before the temple was in

Isa. 44-45.

C. Haggai arrives in August 520 BC

1. Prophesies about 4.5 months

2. Haggai spoke directly to two officials.

a. Zerubbabel – Governor of Judah

b. Joshua – High Priest

3. His preaching moved the nation to start back to work on the temple in 23 days.

4. The temple was rebuilt in 4 years. They worked and stood guard against the Samaritans to complete it.

II. Lesson

A. Excuses not to build

1. The Jews were paralyzed by procrastination.

2. There were several reasons.

a. They were being threatened by surrounding kings.

b. The older men saw that the temple would not have the same curb appeal as the first one.

c. They were too busy building their own extravagant houses to build God’s house.

3. These justifications were not acceptable to God. God demands to be first in our lives; He is a jealous God.

a. Speaking of idols, God says in Ex. 34:14, do worship other gods because He is a jealous God.

b. Anything that we put in front of God is equivalent to an idol; in this case it was their houses.

4. Hag. 1:4 – They were living in panel houses meaning their homes had ceilings while the temple of God lay open and in ruin.

5. Priorities get jumbled up when we start to procrastinate.

B. Haggai starts out with a “Thus saith the Lord”

1. The best lessons, sermons, etc. start with a “thus saith the Lord”.

2. Read Chapter 1: 5-6

3. Will God do to us today what He did to the Israelites?

4. Have we put God in a box and said, “Oh, He doesn’t work that way.”?

a. Planted much and harvested little

b. Eat but never satisfied

c. Drink but never full

d. Put on clothes but are never warm

e. Earn wages and put them in pockets with holes in them.

5. Give careful thought to your ways. Vs 7-11

a. You expected much from God but received little.

b. What you brought home, I blew away.

c. God caused a drought that hamper growth of everything living.

d. This can happen to us today, believe it or not. We should also give careful thoughts to our ways.

C. God gave them guidance

1. Vs. 8- “Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build the house.”

2. We can find guidance from God to get through even the problems we create.

a. When the Spirit moves you get up and do something. Vs. 12-15

b. Just as procrastination is contagious, so is working!

3. In vs. 13, “God says commit and I am with you!” He gives them:

a. The intestinal fortitude to overcome the fear of the threats from others

b. The strength to get started

c. The endurance to FINISH

d. Have you ever asked God to give you strength to get through something?

4. So many times, the solutions are simple, but we complicate them with our emotions and selfishness.

D. God answers a question on the older men’s mind.

1. The old temple “Solomon built” was beautiful.

2. Nothing they could build would compare.

3. God doesn’t see beauty the way that we do.

a. The gold and silver and all the jewels belong to God anyway. They don’t have to be in the temple to be his.

b. Vs. 9 – the glory of this second house will be greater than that of the first.