Osceola Sermon Minor Prophet Haggai August 4 th, 2012 Pastor Bob Vale Biblical Focus: Matthew 6:33 Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all of these things will be added unto you. Scripture Lesson: Haggai 1:1-13 HAG 1:1 In the second year of King Darius, on the first day of the sixth month, the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest: HAG 1:2 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "These people say, `The time has not yet come for the LORD's house to be built.'" HAG 1:3 Then the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai: 4 "Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?" HAG 1:5 Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." HAG 1:7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. 8 Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build the house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored," says the LORD. 9 "You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?" declares the LORD Almighty. "Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11 I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands." HAG 1:12 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the LORD their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. HAG 1:13 Then Haggai, the LORD's messenger, gave this message of the LORD to the people: "I am with you," declares the LORD. 14 So the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people. They came and began to work on the house of the LORD Almighty, their God, 15 on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year of King Darius.
Traditional Service: Hymn of Praise: # 371 I Stand Amazed At The Presence. Prayer Chorus: # 128 He Leadeth Me (Only Verse One and Refrain) Prayer of Confession: # 890 Holy Communion: Ms. Lynn: Communion Music Solid Praise Service: Please see what Matt & Katie have. Communion Music: DVD s this time. Remodeling Story: When Nancy and I lived in Savannah, Georgia we were a very young couple and had a new born baby and two toddlers. We decided to buy our first home. A modest home on 2250 Bonna Bella Avenue was the street we chose to live. How many of you have ever purchased a house that was a fixerupper? I know Nancy and I did early in our marriage. It was both a joy and trial at the same time. If you are like us, did you find that it took considerably more work and time than you expected? We added on a room to the house, we redid the entire kitchen cabinets, flooring and countertops, new carpet, new plumbing, a new storage shed in the yard, lots of landscaping and many other little things to fix up the house. Another question; what happened to your other priorities, while the home improvement projects were underway? Did you find yourself neglecting important things such as family, work, education and so on while you house was being rebuilt? All kinds of things can turn our priorities upside down; even daily life can be the culprit. Have you ever experienced that nagging sense that your life is out of control? I think most of us have. Getting to the end of the day and wondering if we really did anything that has an eternal significance. As we open the pages of scripture to the Old Testament book of Haggai, we find the people of Israel in a place where every house is a fixer-upper and every household is in disarray and the priorities of life aren t what they should be.
Historical Background: In 586 B.C. the Babylonian army destroyed the city if Jerusalem and the temple of God, three different times. The surviving population of Israel is sent to Babylon as slaves and workers for the wealthy. To make a long story short: 50 years later the Persians conquered the Babylonians and passed a decree allowing the children of Israel to return to their homeland, with an order from the Cyrus the Persian King to rebuild their temple in Jerusalem. (Ezra 1:2-4). Wow Freedom & the ability to rebuild their spiritual temple. By the way: do you know who the modern day Babylonians are? Iraq Did you also know the country of Iraq is the second most mentioned country mentioned in the Bible, under the names, Babylon and Mesopotamia. (Mesopotamia actually means two rivers: Tigris and Euphrates.) Look at some of the facts about the History of Iraq in the Bible. 1. The Garden of Eden was thought to be in Iraq. 2. Mesopotamia which is now Iraq was the cradle of civilization! 3. Noah built the ark in Iraq. 4. The Tower of Babel was in Iraq. 5. Abraham was from Ur, which is in Southern Iraq! 6. Isaac's wife Rebekah is from Nahor which is in Iraq. 7. Jacob met Rachel in Iraq. 8. Jonah preached in Nineveh - which is in Iraq.
9. Daniel was in the lion's den in Iraq! 10. The 3 Hebrew children were in the fire in Iraq. 14. Belshazzar, the King of Babylon saw the "writing on the wall" in Iraq. 15. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, carried the Jews captive into Iraq. 16. Peter preached in Iraq. 19. The "Empire of Man" described in Revelation is called Babylon which was a city in Iraq! The Return to their Homeland: Those Israelites, who returned faced a daunting task, a challenge to rebuild their lives, their city, their country, and most importantly the temple of God, to rebuild that which had laid in ruin for decades! For them this was a journey of faith, work and starting over. On that journey the people of God, were faced with a series of choices. Will they do what they think is important for them, or will they trust God and do what He says is important. Sometimes we thing we know what s best to do and we pursue our own priorities in spite of what God says. Here we are faced with just such a situation, and our insight for that dilemma comes to us from an old prophet named, Haggai. The prophet Haggai is asking the people to get their priorities right and build the temple rather than worrying about their own material possessions. Theme: As we learn about Haggai s challenge to rebuild the temple we will see how easy it is to let God s priorities slip into last place, and the importance of re-establishing the right focus. Question: This leads us to ask the question. How can I accomplish the most important things in life? To this question Haggai gives us three insights, the first being that we need to recognize
I. What are the best priorities? (Haggai 1:2-4) a. As we enter our story Haggai is confronting Zerubbabel, heir to the Davidic throne and Joshua the High priest. Speaking for God Haggai reminds the governor and high priest that the task of the rebuilding the temple has yet to be completed. It had been years since the foundations had been laid by Shesbazzar, and still the work had not been completed. b. The question can and has to be asked Why Why did the zeal and enthusiasm for God s priorities wane? God s people had just been released from their exile, you would think that they would be chomping at the bit, to have God s priorities as their own? Possible Reasons for a lack of good priorities: (1) During the 70 years they were in captivity many simply came to see Babylon as their Home. (2) Others may have been doing somewhat well financially and didn t want to impede on their lifestyle? (3) Note something here the people seem to know that rebuilding the temple is important, they just disagree on the timing of when it should be done. (Perhaps they could not decide on the color of paint or type of brick work to place on the floor.) The time has not yet come, not that it won t come, they are simply saying later!
Is there an area in your life where God has been prompting you to grow and you have been putting if off and procrastinating? You haven t actually told God no, you ve just said not right now a. Where are you saying later God, I ll do it later b. Your marriage, Career opportunities, spending time with family or your children, your relationships, your finances? (4) In Haggai s day it appears it was materialism that got God s people off track a. Comforts they could offer themselves, they were unwilling to offer to God s house. b. Immaculate homes vs. a heaping pile of rubble, it s no wonder God s not pleased. HAG 1:3 Then the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai: 4 "Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?" HAG 1:5 Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." Haggai says stop focusing on your selfish, materialistic pursuits, it s time to start rebuilding! Nancy and I lived in Germany for about four years when I was serving in the military. We really enjoyed seeing Germany in all its glory. There were two places we often visited. Old Castles and Old church Cathedrals. Both were hundreds of years old and both were beautiful. However, there were some distinct differences. The old castles cost us money to get inside and there were lines of people to see the place. The old church cathedrals, on the other hand, did not cost anything to see, and not many folks came to worship.
There were past days, when the cathedrals were filled with worshippers. What happened? By the way, the homes around the churches were amazingly beautiful and expensive. Sounds like history has repeated itself. Transition: Accomplishing the most important things in life starts with recognizing the fact that you have misplaced priorities, but there s more to see, we must also realize II. God can remove blessings when we disobey. Haggai 1:5-6 a. When we stop making God s priorities our priorities, there will be consequences for those actions. Israel is finding this one out AGAIN! b. Haggai explains to the people that their refusal to rebuild the temple has caused God to withhold His blessings. HAG 1:5 Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." c. Verse 6 is a biting accusation, with three pictures of a vicious cycle of needs not met because of their refusal to obey. d. Economic catastrophe is the consequences for their inaction do we perhaps see some parallels in our present time? e. Have you ever experienced a season in your life when God s blessing was withdrawn because of disobedience? Perhaps you have and didn t realize it? f. Many times we attribute lack of blessing to bad luck or happenstance. Perhaps our pride and disobedience has taken away
God s blessings. As much as God wants to bless us; why should he bless the rude and defiant child? g. If your experiencing a time of trial, consider where you are in relationship to God s priorities. h. We must remember that when we turn from God, He is NOT obligated to continue to pour out blessings on us. i. Peter reminds us that God may send or withhold His blessings from our lives depending on whether we pursue or neglect his purposes. I Peter 3-8-12) Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For, Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. 1PE 3:11 He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. PE 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." j. This passage clearly sets out the priorities we need to have if we want to inherit a blessing k. And in case you wanted to know what God s blessing looks like, Peter here describes it for us; love life and see good days SOUNDS PRETTY GOOD TO ME! l. Consider all the relational advice in this passage these areas serve as a check gauge for our priorities, with man and with God! TRANSITION: So we must recognize misplaced priorities, realize that those misplaced priorities remove God s blessings and finally see that we must respond
III. We must move towards obedience towards God. (Haggai 1:12-13) a. What we see happen here is an amazing turn of events, one that is quite rare when it comes to ancient Israel b. The people heeded the words of God and got their priorities in order HAG 1:12 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the LORD their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. HAG c. Most often the prophets found themselves rejected, ignored, mistreated, and even dead. d. The wonder here is that the people immediately responded to Haggai s word and agreed to immediately restart work on the temple b. When they recognized c. The first two verbs in this verse sums up their response obeyed and feared d. Fear doesn t mean scared, it means respect e. These people who had been driven to their knees by God s correction were open to receive His message f. It s like that with us sometimes as well. Only after correction do we see the error of our ways either see it or accept it for what we know it is. g. Saying yes to God when we realized we ve strayed can be a powerful thing, it can unleash God s blessing in our lives.
IV. God Says, I Am With You. a. We need to notice something very important in vs. 13 1:13 Then Haggai, the LORD's messenger, gave this message of the LORD to the people: "I am with you," declares the LORD. b. I am with you declares the Lord though a different Hebrew word it s the same concept as Immanuel God with us c. What amazing words to hear from the heart of God d. This is precisely how God responds when someone resolves to put His priorities first. He promises His presence e. Just imagine God whispering that phrase I am with you in your ear as you begin to realign your life with His priorities f. There s nothing greater than that, and why is this such an important realization? g. Because any shift in priority is never easy it takes time, determination, and encouragement. We ll need God s discerning action in our lives to take that crucial first step and all others that follow The Fake Pearls & The Real Pearls: The cheerful girl with bouncy curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box. Oh please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please? Her mother checked the back of the little foil box and said, Jenny, these pearls cost $1.95. If you really want them, I ll think of some extra chores for you to do and raise your allowance. It won t take long for you to save enough money to buy them yourself.
Her mother was right. After only two weeks, Jenny had enough money saved for the pearls. Her mother took her back to the store, where Jenny proudly counted out her money to the cashier. Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel pretty and grown up. She wore them everywhere Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or took a bubble bath. Her mother said that if they got wet, they might turn her neck green. Jenny also had a very loving daddy. Every night when she was ready for bed, her daddy would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night when he finished the story, he said to Jenny, I love you, sweetheart. Do you love me? Oh yes, Daddy, Jenny replied. You know that I love you. Then give me your pearls, her father said. Jenny was confused. Oh, Daddy, not my pearls, she said. But you can have Princess, the white horse from my collection. Remember, Daddy? The one you gave me last year? She s my favorite. That s okay, Honey, Jenny s father said. Daddy loves you. Good night. And he brushed her cheek with a kiss. About a week later, after story time, Jenny s daddy said once again, I sure do love you, sweetheart. Do you love me? Daddy, you know I love you. Then give me your pearls. Jenny was confused again. Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is so beautiful. You can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper, too. That s okay, Jenny s father said. Daddy loves you. Good night. And as always, he gave her a gentle kiss. A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek. What is it, Jenny? What s the matter? Jenny didn t say anything, but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, Here, Daddy, it s for you.
With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny s daddy reached out with one hand to take the necklace. With the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case and gave it to Jenny. When she opened it, she found a beautiful strand of real pearls. Illustration Conclusion: What are you hanging on to? What kind of cheap, dime-store jewelry is preventing you from receiving the blessings that your heavenly Father wants to pour out on you? Jesus said, But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33). If you truly love Jesus and want to follow him, then you must let go of worldly things that seem so important to you and trust that he will give you much more in return. Maybe it s your friends that are holding you back and keeping you from being the kind of person God wants you to be. The thought of letting them go, of being rejected, of being alone may scare you so much that you refuse to do anything about it. But God is faithful and good. He doesn t want you to be rejected or alone any more than you do. Trust that he will give you back some new friends better friends because you ve been obedient to him. Maybe it s wrong or childish thoughts about God. He s not waiting for you to mess up, so he can zap you with zits! Maybe you re holding onto the fake pearls of popularity or acceptance. You ve been desperate to be liked and, until now, have been holding on to fake acceptance from your peers, rather than the unconditional love and unclouded acceptance that God gives. What s your string of cheap pearls? What feels risky to let go of even though you know it will be better to go for the perfect pearls? Conclusion: As we have discussed the rebuilding of the temple this morning from the book of Haggai, have you detected an area of your life that is in need of correction? Has the spirit of God impressed upon you an area of neglect that need a new focus? The challenge this morning is if there is an area that needs to be addressed, do it now don t wait waiting leads only to misplaced priorities, and missed blessings
Sermon Notes: Pastor Bob Vale Scripture Lesson: Haggai 1:1-13 I. What are the best priorities? (Haggai 1:2-4) II. God can remove blessings when we disobey. (Haggai 1:5-6) III. We must move towards obedience towards God. (Haggai 1:12-13) IV. God Says, I Am With You.
Survey of Haggai Haggai is a book of the Old Testament. 1 - The title of the book Haggai - "My feast" He is the first prophet after the captivity and the releasing of the Jews to go back to their own lands. In chapter 5 v 1 and 6 14 he is referred to as Haggai the prophet. See 2:3. He may have been one of the few who saw the temple of Solomon before its destruction in 586 BC. If so, he must have been around 80 years old when he prophesied. Haggai appears to be the senior of Zechariah because his name is mentioned when both their names are mentioned in the scriptures. The book is dated 520 BC and covers a period of 4 months. 2 - The author of the book Haggai. See above for more detail. 3 - The historical setting Haggai appears in 520 BC and makes his prophesy. Appeals had been made to the Persian government by the Samaritans to stop the Jews from rebuilding the temple. The rebuilding was stopped. They did not have much zeal and were disillusioned by everything that happened. They started doing other things and the land became unproductive as God judged them. After Haggai prophesies the rebuilding starts again. In 516 BC the temple is completed. In 458 BC there is another expedition in which Ezra returns. In 444 BC there was another expedition in which Nehemiah returns. Zerubbabel leads the first expedition. The prophets Zechariah and Haggai are contemporary. 4 - The theme of the book: Matthew 6:33. Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all of these things will be added unto you. 5 - The structure of the book It consists of four messages:- An exhortation to rebuild the temple. Chapter 1. The glory of that future temple. Chapter 2:1-9. Obedience brings blessing. Chapter 2:10-19. God will finally triumph. Chapter 2:20-23. 6 - Selected studies from the book God must come first When they start to rebuild the temple then God provides. Before things were barren. You must put God first to profit spiritually and physically. Discouragement - The second temple was not as great as the first. Do not despise the day of small things. Later in Herod's temple Jesus came. He urges greater in a spiritual sense "Little is much when God is in it". See Haggai 2:11-14. Holiness is not passed on but uncleanness is. They thought God would pass holiness upon them for rebuilding the temple their hearts were not right. Our sin can however, corrupt the work we are involved in.