Haggai 2:10-23
1. Intro: Out, stubborn spot!
Coffee stains and food spillages may be some stains which we may have encountered in the past. They are hard to get rid off.
Sins are similar. We also find them hard to get rid off. Even though we know Jesus has died on the cross, cleansing us from our sins, we still feel the guilt many times. We can't wait for the day when Jesus returns, when we finally feel that all our sins have been washed away.
2. The context: Three months into reconstruction (2:10)
The year is 520BC. 4 messages were given to Israel through Haggai the prophet:
29 Aug (Hag 1:1) - 1st word: The lesson of prioritising God first. They were to show that they put God first by giving priority to the temple.
21 Sep - Recommencement of the construction of the temple. The Israelites had stopped work soon after laying the foundations. They were very enthusiastic at first, but soon lost heart due to fear of the neighbours around them, spreading lies that they were trying to install their own monarch and overthrow the King of Persia.
17 Oct (Hag 2:1) - 2nd word: The lesson on patience. The Israelities were told not to give up on building the temple, despite discouragement that the temple was not as impressive as before, and despite discouragement by opposition from their neighbours
18 Dec (Hag 2:10) - 3rd word (today's sermon)
18 Dec (Hag 2:20) - 4th word (today's sermon)
The calendar during the ancient times was based on the reign of the monarch. The calendar begins from day 1 of the monarch taking the throne. As highlighted in the previous weeks' sermons, the Israelites had just returned from exile in Babylon. 70 years before, the nation was in a state of apostasy. They had turned away from God. God punished them by allowing them to be captured by the Babylonian Empire. But the Babylonians were soon conquered by an even greater power, the Persians. It is King Cyrus of Persia who allows the Israelites to return to their homeland and rebuild. The Israelites are still under a foreign power and do not have a king of their own. They only have governor Zerubabbel.
Before we go into the 3rd and 4th word that God spoke to the Israelites through Haggai, we want to answer this question - isn't the temple building not very important? We know today that true worship is in spirit and in truth, not at a particular location. Yet the post-exilic prophets focused on the physical. Why?
The main lesson for the Israelites to focus on building a physical temple, is that God did not want them to make divisions between their relationship with God and everything else.
A lot of people talk about having a balanced life. "Yes, you can go to church, but don't forget your studies! Church may take up too much time." Or, "Don't study too hard, you must spend more time in church for that is where we serve God." This is called compartmentalisation. We compartmentalise our lives such that there are some parts of life which God is not part of. This view is completely wrong. We think that as long as we do the 'religious things', or we allow God into some parts of our lives, we are ok. We forget that how we study, how we do sports, what we wear, what we drive, how we drive -- all and every aspect of our life must be submitted under God. God cannot be compartmentalised.
Similarly, the Israelites thought that as long as they were back in the Promised Land, as long as they didn't forget God completely, as long as they continued with the usual practices of offerings, they were ok. Do the religious rituals, but don't have to be overly committed. It is the case of loving God, but not with all their heart. It is the case of thinking that their relationship with God is the 'spiritual' aspect of life, whereas the 'physical' aspect of life is separate.
God is not pleased with such an attitude. What the Israelites do in all of life concerns him, and affects their relationship with God.
Yet, we see in Haggai 2:6-7 that God's attitude towards the Israelites changed once they started taking Him seriously, rebuilding the temple.
"In a little while... I will fill this house with glory."
Which leads to the second lesson for the Israelites to build up a physical temple.
In Haggai, the people were told to keep working at the temple even though it looked unimpressive. It was not glorious. But they were to keep at it. They were not to be discouraged by the appearance.
In the New Testament however, we see that the temple idea is replaced by 3 images:
1) Jesus. Jesus is the temple. He is Immanuel "God with us". In John 1:14, Jesus described as the Word 'dwelt among us' or 'tabernacled' among us, the idea of the tabernacle/temple, where God meets His people.
2) The individual Christian is described as the temple as well. The individual Christian is to abstain from sexual immorality, for the Holy Spirit dwells in the Christian (1 Cor 6:19)
3) The church or gathering of Christians is described as the temple too. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. (Eph 2:19-22)
Although we no longer focus on the physical, we still face the same issues as the people at the time of Haggai. The temple does not look glorious now. Christian life and ministry in the present time is unimpressive. Praying, reading the Bible, meeting other Christians to read the Bible are not spectacular. But we must wait for the blessed hope! (Titus 2:13). We must remember that the glory is not now. It will come soon. The Christian life is a life of hope. God's word to the Israelites through Haggai was to 'be strong!' because He rescued them from slavery out of Egypt. We must heed the word to 'be strong' as well, because God has rescued us from slavery to sin through the death of His son Jesus Christ.
3. The message:
a. The problem of an unclean people (2:11-14)
The point of the message is that they could not make an 'unholy' object 'holy' just by allowing it to touch something 'holy'. However, a 'holy' object can be made 'unholy' by getting it to touch something 'unholy'.
During those times, there were 3 categories for the Israelites. Persons or objects were 'holy' or set apart for God, 'clean' or 'unclean'. For example, dead bodies were the most 'unclean' of all, since death was closely linked to sin. People who touched dead bodies had to be ceremonially purified.
This system of classification taught the Israelites 2 things:
1) Like the lesson of building the temple, their relationship with God was deeply connected with every aspect of their life
2) It was excruciatingly difficult to be holy. It was very easy to become unclean.
For 16 years, they had not prioritised God. They focused on building their own houses rather than rebuilding the house of God. Effectively, they had become unacceptable to God. Effectively, they had become an unclean people (Hag 2:14).
b. The judgment of a holy God (2:15-17)
Hence, whatever they did and whatever they offered was defiled as well. God judged them, to the effect of: 'don't you realise that because you did not prioritise God your harvest has been poor?' God was not pleased with unclean people offering sacrifices to them. In 1 Samuel 15:22, we see what God is really interested in. "But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams."
Even if they praised God till their face turned blue, if they were without faith and disobeyed God, God wouldn't listen to them.
By not blessing their works, God was hoping for them to turn back to Him (Hag 2:17).
c. Faith, repentance and blessing (2:18-19, 20-23)
However, once the foundation of the LORD's temple was laid (Hag 2:18), once reconstruction recommenced, God changes His thoughts toward them. "Is the seed yet in the barn?" This is actually a positive statement. It implies that there would be a harvest. A farmer would not look for seeds in the barn if there was no harvest. He would pull out the seeds from the barn after a harvest.
"From this day on, I will bless you."
But what was it that lifted the curse on Israel? Was it really just because they started rebuilding the temple?
To some extent it was (Hag 2:18), but if the people were unclean, it would still be unable to please God (Hag 2:17)!
The reality is, Israel had an idea that God would still accept them as clean people again (prior to God saying so in Hag 2:19). There was only one way they knew how to become clean again - through sacrifices.
However, from reading Haggai, it seems clear that they did not become clean by making sacrifices. They were defiled, so 'whatever they did and whatever they offered was defiled as well' (Hag 2:17)
So how did God accept them as clean again?
The answer is found in the New Testament.
It was because of their faith prompted by His promises (e.g. regarding the temple and that He would fill it with glory again), their faith prompted by His word, their faith expressed by works. All Israel did was to listen to God and obey Him.
God creates a clean people for Himself, not because of who they were, or by what they had done, but by their obedient faith and repentance.
4. The fulfilment: The Lord purifies a people
When we get to the New Testament, something astonishing happens. Jesus comes. This Holy One of God comes and touches unclean things, and instead of Himself becoming unclean, He actually cleanses them. He healed a leper, brought a dead girl to life etc. The leper is made clean and can present himself to the priest.
How is He able to do so? How is He able to make unclean things clean?
The answer is found in Jesus' death on the Cross.
The way the community of Old Testament community could make themselves clean before God was to make animal sacrifices. Bulls and goats were sacrificed and blood spilt, in order rid themselves of the stain of sin.
But in the book of Hebrews we learn that those things were really just external washings. What Jesus does is to wash and cleanse us, truly.
"The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Heb 9:13-14)
Jesus Christ gave Himself for us, to redeem us from all lawlessness to clean us from the stain of sin, so that we can become a people of His own possession and do good works.
"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." (Titus 2:11-14)
We can't become clean by our own effort. What we need is somebody else to die in our place. What we need is God Himself to purify us through Jesus' death.
5. The lesson: stone upon stone!
Recap the lessons of Haggai:
In this world, There are many things in this life that seek for our attention, seek for us to prioritise it. We must prioritise God instead.
In this world, living as a Christian and doing Christian ministry will be difficult, but there will be a glory that is to come.
Even though we are a people who continue to sin, even though we are a people who continue to have memories of things which we regret, there will be a day when we will forget all that. That day is assured because of what Jesus has already done!
Through His blood, Jesus washes us.
By His death, we are clean.
In His life, we have hope.
All we need to do now between Christ's death and His future coming, is to have faith in these truths.
Just like the Israelites patiently rebuilding the temple little by little, stone upon stone, we are to be strong and persevere in this faith. God says, "Be strong, for I am with you."
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