The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.
My brothers and sisters, we are living in a time when it’s easy to feel like the best moments of our lives have already passed us by.
We look at our youth, our health, our opportunities, and sometimes we wonder:
Have my best days already gone by?
Has my time passed me by?
Is it all over for me?
I came with a word from the Lord today: The best is yet to come.
Look at your neighbor and say: Neighbor, I don’t know what you’ve been through, but the best is yet to come.
Come on tell another neighbor. Say Neighbor, my past may have been rocky, it may have been a little rough, it may have been painful, but my future is powerful.
When we look at the text, the prophet Haggai was speaking to a discouraged people. They had returned from the Babylonian exile, and when they saw the ruins of Solomon’s glorious, beautiful and magnificent temple, they felt defeated.
They felt defeated because the new temple they now have looked smaller, it looked weaker, and it looked less impressive than the one they had lost.
But God spoke through Haggai and said: The glory of the latter house shall be greater than the former.”
Church, when Haggai spoke this word, the people of God were discouraged.
They looked at the temple that they were rebuilding and said, “This doesn’t compare to the glory we used to have.”
I can hear them say wait a minute our last temple had stain glass, our last temple had a steeple on top of it. Our last temple, or our last church, had beautiful Pews, and chandeliers, this does look like what we are use to.
But, I love what God did. God interrupted their despair with a prophecy: and he had the prophet, or the preacher to say that the glory of the latter house, the glory of this house, shall be greater than the former.”
That wasn’t just a word for Israel, but that’s a a word for this house. And that is a word for you and I. I came to tell somebody this morning: God is not finished with you yet. The best is yet to come.
What God was telling His people was, don’t measure what I’m about to do by what you’ve seen before.
Don’t measure what you have been through, by what I’m going to take you to.
Because what I’m about to release in your life, will surpass what you’ve lost.
What I’m about to do for you, (wait a minute) come here 1st Corinthians 2:9, 1st Corinthians But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
Is there anybody here that loves him. If you do, then you need to prepare for the things that God is preparing for you.
My first point is that God is not finished with you yet.
The people thought the temple’s glory was over. But God had a “yet to come” moment waiting.
The people believed the temple’s glory had ended, but God had a greater “yet to come” in stored for them.
They assumed the temple’s best days were behind them, but God was preparing a powerful “yet to come” revelation.
Some of you may think that you have peaked out, but God says, “I still have more for you.”
If you’re still breathing, God still has purpose.
If you’re still standing, God still has glory to reveal.
Don’t write your ending, while God is still writing your beginning.
May I tell you: Don’t Judge Your Future by Your Past
The people compared their new temple with Solomon’s old temple. They were stuck in yesterday’s glory.
Hear me: God is not a God of just yesterday only, but He is the God of tomorrow.
If you survived what tried to kill you, that means God still has work for you.
If the enemy couldn’t take you out in your last storm, it’s because your next season has greater glory.
Say this out loud: “My next season will be greater than my last.
My Second point is. Your latter house speaks to your future.
Haggai’s prophecy wasn’t just about bricks and stones. It was a foreshadowing of Christ. The latter glory wasn’t in the physical building, but it was in the presence of Jesus who would one day walk in that very temple.
What does that mean for us? It means the best is not behind you; the best is in the presence of Jesus Christ ahead of you.
In other words, I dare care about the building, I care about the one who owns the building.
I care about the master builder, I care about the cornerstone. Because if Jesus is not here, then I don’t want to be here.
The prophecy wasn’t really about wood, gold, or stone. The true glory wasn’t in the building, it was in Jesus Christ who would one day step foot in that temple.
That means your future is not in the hands of men, not in the economy, not in politics—your future is in Christ.
Somebody shout: “My best is in Jesus!”
The Latter House Speaks of Christ
My last point is the peace. The peace is the promise of the future.
Peace Is the Promise of Tomorrow
The Lord said, In this place, I will give peace. Notice He didn’t just promise gold or silver. A husband or a wife. He didn’t promise them a new house, but He promised peace.
Some of you don’t need more money, but instead you need some peace.
Some of you don’t need another car, you need some peace.
Some of you don’t need another promotion, you need some peace in the position that you are already in.
Here it is. The best to come, is not just material, it’s spiritual. It’s the peace that surpasses all understanding.
There’s a story of an old woman who served the Lord faithfully all her life. As she grew older, and her health began to fail, she called her pastor to plan her funeral. She gave instructions for the song that she wanted song (pass me not oh gentle savior).
She had the scripture that she wanted read, psalms 27, the Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear, the Lord is the strength of my life of whom shall I be afraid. When the wicked even my enemies come upon me to eat up my flesh they stumble and fell.
She even selected the clothes she wanted to be buried in. She wanted to be buried in her mission uniform. Her white hat, her white dress, her white shoes, and her white gloves.
As the pastor was about to leave, she added one last unusual request.
She said, Brother Pastor, when they lay me in the casket, make sure they put a fork in my right hand.”
The pastor was puzzled. He ask her did you say a fork?
The old woman smiled and said, Yes sir, a fork. Because all my life, whenever we had church dinners, someone would always lean over after the meal and say, ‘Keep your fork—because the best is yet to come. Dessert is on the way.’
And that fork reminds me that my life doesn’t end in this world and in this casket. But it is a reminder that my best is not behind me, but ahead of me in the presence of the Lord.”
And when her funeral came, everyone who passed by her casket saw that fork in her hand, and they remembered her faith.
And I know that you may have been through some storms, through losses, through disappointments, but I came to remind you: Keep your fork. Don’t give up, don’t let go, don’t believe the lie that your best days are gone.
Because the word of the Lord still stands: “The glory of the latter house shall be greater than the former.”
Your best days are not in your past, but they are in your future. Your best worship, your best peace, your best joy, your best glory is yet to come.
God said: “In this place I will give peace.”
He didn’t promise more money.
He didn’t promise a bigger house.
He promised peace.
Because what good is wealth without peace? What good is success without peace?
The best to come is not just material—it’s spiritual. It’s the peace that keeps you when storms rage, it’s the peace that holds you when tears fall, it’s the peace that whispers, “I am with you always.
Somebody ought to lift your hand and declare:
My pain was real, but my future is greater.
My past was heavy, but my destiny is brighter.
The best is yet to come.
Now, if you’ve been living under the weight of your past, today is your moment to believe again. If you’ve been thinking your life is over, today God says, I still have more for you.
Bring your burdens, bring your fears, bring your disappointments. Lay them down and receive the peace of the Lord.
Because God has spoken: The glory of the latter house shall be greater than the former.
And as long as Jesus is alive—your best is yet to come!
