QUOTES FOR REFLECTION
“There is only one Lord of the Ring, only one who can bend it to his will. And he does not share power.”
~Gandalf, Lord of The Rings
“Human beings are hope-shaped creatures. The way you live now is completely controlled by what you believe about the future.”
~Tim Keller, NYC-based pastor and author
“What would it mean for Christians to give up that little piece of the American Dream that says, ‘You are limitless’? Everything is not possible. The mighty kingdom of God is not yet here. What if ‘rich’ did not have to mean ‘wealthy’, and ‘whole’ did not have to mean ‘healed’? What if being the people of ‘the gospel’ meant that we are simply people with good news? God is here. We are loved. It is enough.”
~Kate Bowler, Canadian academic and writer
“By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.”
~Hebrews 11:9-10 (ESV)
“Jesus did not come with sword in hand, but with nails in hand. Not to bring judgment, but to bear judgment.”
~Edmund Clowney (1917-2005), Presbyterian theologian
“...and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud... [generations later] and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.”
~Matthew 1:11-13a, 16 (ESV)
SERMON PASSAGE
Haggai 1:12-13, 2:1-5, 20-23 (ESV)
Haggai 1
12 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. 13 Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the LORD’s message, “I am with you, declares the LORD.”
Haggai 2
1 In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? 4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts, 5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.’”
20 The word of the LORD came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, 21 “Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, 22 and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. 23 On that day, declares the LORD of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the LORD, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the LORD of hosts.”
The Promise of the Ring
Haggai 2:20-23; March 21, 2021; Chris Audino
March 21, 2021 • Chris Audino • Haggai 2:20–23
Blessing for the Defiled
March 14, 2021 • Scott Sottosanti • Haggai 2:10–19
QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Shame wants us to believe it is accurate in its evaluation of us—that we are too wretched to be made new. Too dirty to be made clean. Too prone to sin for forgiveness to matter.” ~Jackie Hill-Perry, American poet, writer, and hip-hop artist “He that has learned to feel his sins, and to trust Christ as a Savior, has learned the two hardest and greatest lessons in Christianity.” ~ J.I. Packer (1926-2020), Theologian and Writer “If you feel a dark, twisted, heart-wrenching, hate-to-see-your-own-reflection Praying for an intervention, feeling guilt and feeling shame I just call on Jesus name Praying daily, can you take away this pain? Take the thorn away Still, it remains, I feel the same, I know that I’m here, but still feel insane Satan would love to see my give up and throw up my hands He say I’m guilty but You say I’m clean.” ~“Cry for You” by Lecrae Moore, Grammy-winning American hip-hop artist “Heaven excludes nothing more directly than sin… For there enters nothing that defiles, nor that works abomination, nor that makes a lie. When they are there, the saints are saints indeed. He that will wash them with His heart-blood, rather than suffer them to enter unclean, will now perfectly see to that; He who has undertaken to present them to His Father, ‘not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but perfectly holy, and without blemish,’ will now most certainly perform His undertaking.” ~Richard Baxter (1615-1691), church leader, poet and, theologian “I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are very wise and very beautiful; but I never read in either of them: ‘Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden.’” ~Augustine of Hippo (354-430), church father and theologian SERMON PASSAGE Haggai 2:10-19, Zechariah 3:1-4 (ESV) Haggai 2 10 On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, 11 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Ask the priests about the law: 12 ‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?’” The priests answered and said, “No.” 13 Then Haggai said, “If someone who is unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?” The priests answered and said, “It does become unclean.” 14 Then Haggai answered and said, “So is it with this people, and with this nation before me, declares the LORD, and so with every work of their hands. And what they offer there is unclean. 15 Now then, consider from this day onward. Before stone was placed upon stone in the temple of the LORD, 16 how did you fare? When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were but twenty. 17 I struck you and all the products of your toil with blight and with mildew and with hail, yet you did not turn to me, declares the LORD. 18 Consider from this day onward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Since the day that the foundation of the LORD’s temple was laid, consider: 19 Is the seed yet in the barn? Indeed, the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have yielded nothing. But from this day on I will bless you.” Zechariah 3 1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” 3 Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. 4 And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.”
Nothing to Our Eyes: Human Striving, God’s Presence and God’s Promises
March 7, 2021 • Lindsay Whaley • Haggai 2:1–9
QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Oh, how precious is time, and how it pains me to see it slide away, while I do so little to any good purpose.” ~David Brainerd (1718-1747), American Missionary to the Delaware Indians “There was a castle called Doubting Castle, the owner whereof was Giant Despair.” ~From Pilgrim’s Progress, written by John Bunyan (1628-1688), Puritan minister “Give me your presence or give me death One is, without the other anyway From your lips may I feel the Spirits breath Let this be the dawning of a different day” ~Apollus, contemporary Scottish poet “In the house of God there is never ending festival; the angel choir makes eternal holiday; the presence of God’s face gives joy that never fails.” ~Augustine (354-430), theologian and Bishop in Algeria “The real test of being in the presence of God is, that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object.” ~C.S. Lewis (1898-1963), Author and Professor of English SERMON PASSAGE Haggai 2:1-9, Ezra 3:11b-13 (ESV) Haggai 2 1 In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? 4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts, 5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not. 6 For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. 7 And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts. 9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the LORD of hosts.’” Ezra 3 11 …And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. 12 But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, 13 so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted with a great shout, and the sound was heard far away.
Consider Your Ways
February 28, 2021 • Chris Audino • Haggai 1
QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Worldliness is that system of values, in any given age, which has at its center our fallen human perspective, which displaces God and his truth from the world, and which makes sin look normal and righteousness seem strange. It thus gives great plausibility to what is morally wrong and, for that reason, makes what is wrong seem normal.” ~David Wells (1939-present), Contemporary professor and author “I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands, that I still possess.” ~Martin Luther (1483-1546), German professor, author and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation “The soul is torn apart in a painful condition as long as it prefers the eternal because of its Truth but does not discard the temporal because of familiarity.” “The punishment of every disordered mind is its own disorder.” ~St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430), Theologian and philosopher “We have zero motivation to repent, unless we see the mercy of God awaiting us. Not the slap of God, but the embrace of God. Repentance is not just turning from sin, not even that primarily. Repentance is primarily turning to God, moment by moment, because He has promised His mercy to the penitent.” ~Ray Ortlund, American minister and author “True repentance always terminates on Jesus. It does not wallow in self-loathing or delight in self-flagellation. Rather, it allows an honest sense of our sinfulness to drive us toward the depth of Christ’s mercy in the gospel.” ~Kendal Haug & Will Walker, an excerpt from their Lenten Devotional Journey to the Cross SERMON PASSAGE Haggai 1:1-15 (ESV) 1 In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest: 2 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD.” 3 Then the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, 4 “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? 5 Now, therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways. 6 You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. 7 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways. 8 Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD. 9 You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the LORD of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house. 10 Therefore the heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its produce. 11 And I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings forth, on man and beast, and on all their labors.” 12 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. 13 Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the LORD’s message, “I am with you, declares the LORD.” 14 And the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts, their God, 15 on the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.