January 15, 2003
Reading: Haggai 1:1-14

 

“This says the LORD of Hosts: Consider your ways” (5)

 

Eighteen years before God spoke these words through Haggai to the people of Judah, Cyrus, King of Persia ordered them to leave Babylon and “build the house of the LORD God of Israel, which is in Jerusalem” Ezra 1:3. After 70 years of captivity, they were to return to their land with “silver and gold, with goods and livestock” (4) for the single purpose of rebuilding the temple that Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed. It took them over two years to begin construction, but it was not long before they bowed to the opposition and quit building – Ezra 4:1-6, 24. The new foundation lay exposed to the weather for 16 years while the people concentrated on building luxurious houses for themselves- Haggai 1:4. This is where Haggai and Zechariah stepped in.

God’s message to the people was simple and to the point, “Consider your ways!” Think back to when and why I brought you back to Judah from Babylon. You began the project and stopped because you believed the opposition rather than My promises. Have you ever wondered why your harvests have not yielded what you expected? Have you ever questioned why your wine vats are only half full? Haggai 1:9-11.

What a reminder this is of our responsibility to be active in the work of the Lord. Paul tells us that we, God’s people in Christ, constitute His temple, we are “God’s building” – 1 Cor 3:9. Jesus Christ is the Foundation and we are to build upon Him – 1 Cor 3:5-17. The challenge is, “Are we active in the construction of God’s temple,” or are we like the Jews and spend more time concerned with our personal welfare and comforts? Perhaps it is time for us to “consider our ways.”

We must ask ourselves, “How am I involved in the building of God’s house? It is true that Jesus said, “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matt 16:18), but He has chosen us to be the laborers. We are the laborers and Jesus is the General Contractor. Do we allow opposition to force us back into our homes and cower for fear of what the enemy may do? Are we fearful of what others may say or think about us, or are we like Paul, who said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek” Rom 1:16.

Paul told the Christians in Ephesus that Jesus is the “Chief Cornerstone,” and Jew and Gentile alike are growing “together into a holy temple” where God dwells – Eph 3:19-22. As in the days of Haggai, the people of God will be judged according to their participation in the construction of His house. The first thing we need to consecrate on is our own obedience and faithfulness to God. If we are weak in these areas we will never be useful in the building of His temple. Hear the words of Jesus, “Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God” Rev 3:11-12. It all begins with faithfulness, “But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does” James 1:25-26.

Let us take to heart the words of God, “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Consider your ways! Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,’ says the LORD”” Hag 1:7-8.