Haggai: The Prophet to Procrastinators

We pause before Nehemiah to read Haggai, tracing how stalled priorities, thin harvests, and heavy opposition met a simple call: consider your ways, rebuild the temple, and trust that God is with us. We explore procrastination, purpose, and the courage to bring one brick and begin.

• why Haggai speaks into Zerubbabel’s stalled temple project
• how opposition, drought, and discouragement fed delay
• “consider your ways” as a reset of priorities
• God’s promise of presence and greater future glory
• holiness versus contamination in community life
• blessing tied to resumed obedience, not perfect conditions
• practical steps to move from delay to action

Kelsey and I are releasing three books, a whole trilogy at once, and one of them is very much centered on the story of Nehemiah, and a little bit about Haggai, actually, what we're gonna be reading today as well

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Transcript

Welcome And Post-Ezra Setup

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Hey, this is Mike, and this is the Out Loud Bible Project Podcast. Thanks for being here. Thanks for spending your time in the Word with me, and I'm excited to be able to walk with you through some uh some amazing stories. I uh I I believe last week we finished reading the book of Ezra, and we talked about how Ezra and Nehemiah were actually one book originally, talking about the return of the exiles back to uh the Promised Land after having been kicked out of the Promised Land by God as punishment for their unfaithfulness, and and finally the time of that punishment was over, they started coming back in waves, different waves. It was a gradual process. Um Zerubbabel led a wave. He was kind of the first governor to bring back and set up the promised land, set up the set up the uh the temple specifically, and then Ezra led a wave and brought about a spiritual reformation, and then Nehemiah will lead a wave and and set up the civic center and the culture and and the wall specifically is the big project there. Um and I think I had mentioned that all right, well, what now that we're done, Ezra, let's go into Nehemiah, one of my favorite books, and it is, it is one of my favorite books, in fact, so much so that I'm going to actually uh to put it off another week for a couple of reasons. First of all, we're gonna start Haggai today, um, because Ezra mentioned Haggai and Zechariah as well. Uh Ezra mentioned that Haggai and Zechariah went with Zerubbul and were kind of his, if he was like the leader of the people, not a king, but he was kind of like the leader, the governor there, then Haggai and Zechariah were the prophets that accompanied this. Uh when it whenever there's like a big move of God, there's there's God speaking through people, uh, prophets to be able to equip the leaders and to convict people of sin and to to warn of infidelity and to keep people on track. And so uh Haggai and Zechariah were those prophets for Zerubbabel in this first wave of building the temple. And so before we move on to Nehemiah and building the wall, I think it's a really good idea to take a look at uh try to keep it as in real time as possible, what Haggai and Zechariah said as part of the process of rebuilding the temple. Um and we read Ezra, and then we'll get to Nehemiah after these, after these books of Haggai and Zechariah. That's the main reason I want to hit Haggai today and Zechariah this week, and then we'll we'll go into Nehemiah next week. Uh the second reason is that uh that reading of Nehemiah next week is gonna align perfectly with the release of uh our our books. Kelsey and I are releasing three books, a whole trilogy at once, and uh one of them is very much centered on the story of Nehemiah, and a little bit about Haggai, actually, what we're gonna be reading today as well. So we'll talk more about that then. It's an exciting thing, and uh look forward to talking more about Nehemiah when that time comes. But for now, we have some work to do here. We've got this book of Haggai, which is again in the section of your Bible where the pages often stick together because we don't go here often. Um and it's just a weird one of those weird-sounding books like Hag Hageh, Haggai, Hagi, what it what's going on here? Uh well, Hagi, Haggai is the prophet, like I mentioned, that accompanied Zerubbabel in bringing the people back and helping establish the temple. Now, if you remember from when we read the book of Ezra just recently, that the people came back to Israel, the promised land that had been abandoned for so long, and they had the permission of the king to go build the temple. Well, the locals who had since kind of taken up residence in the abandoned towns and kind of made it their home and were still under the control of the Persian Empire, the Trans-Euphrates region, as they call it, uh, they were not very happy that the Jews were coming in and building a temple and re-establishing their worship and their culture. And so they just made so much trouble. They even went to uh the new king and say, Hey, you're not gonna believe this. They're building the temple and Jerusalem, they're they have a history of being rebellious, and they're just gonna cause trouble for you in your kingship. And the previous king didn't it didn't know any better, but you you can know better because we're telling you. And so that king was, oh, yeah, absolutely, we gotta stop that. Let's tell them to stop. And I I enforce, I support your enforcing the law of having them stop this temple. Like, okay, and so the people, Zerubbabel, the governor, and and the people working are just discouraged because they're like, oh well, okay, now we we can't get materials, we're we're we're being attacked, we're being stopped, and I guess, all right, I guess we don't get to build the temple. They had they had gotten so far as the foundation, but eh. Oh well, even that was disappointing. Because it wasn't Solomon's temple. That was big, beautiful, grand, like the the got the world's attention how beautiful Solomon's temple was. But this one, Zerubable's temple, eh, is smaller, not as impressive. And so they were discouraged because it's like, eh, the foundation is small and uh the king's against us, and uh, the locals don't want to do that. I guess I guess we don't get to build the temple. Oh well. And that went on. And now Haggai comes into the picture with something to say. Let's see what he has to say here in the whole book of Haggai in the New English translation. On the first day of the sixth month of King Darius' second year, the Lord's message came through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shaltiel, governor of Judah, and to the high priest Joshua, son of Jehosadak. This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies has said. These people have said, Oh, the time for rebuilding the Lord's temple is not yet come. Well the Lord's message came through the prophet Haggai as follows Is it right for you to live in richly panelled houses while my temple is in ruins? Here then is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies has said. Think carefully about what you're doing. You've planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but are never filled, you drink, but are still thirsty, you put on clothes but are not warm. Those who earn wages end up with holes in their money bags. Can anyone relate? Moreover, this is what the Lord of Heaven's armies has said. Pay close attention to these things also. Go up to the hill country and bring back timber to build the temple. Then I'll be pleased and honored, says the Lord. You expected a harvest, but instead there was little. And when you would bring it home, I would blow it right away. Why? asks the Lord of Heaven's armies. Because my temple remains in ruins, thanks to each of you favoring his own house. And this is why the sky has held back its dew and the earth its produce. Moreover, I've called for a drought that will affect the fields, the hill country, the grain, new wine, fresh olive oil, and everything that grows from the ground. It'll also harm people, animals, and everything they produce. Then Zarubabel, son of Sheltil, and the high priest Joshua, son of Jehosadak, along with the whole remnant of the people, obeyed the Lord their God. They responded favorably to the message of the prophet Haggai, who spoke just as the Lord their God had instructed him, and the people began to respect the Lord. Then Haggai, the Lord's messenger, spoke the Lord's announcement to the people, I am with you, decrees the Lord. So the Lord energized and encouraged Zerebel, son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua, son of Jehosedak, and the whole remnant of the people. They came and worked on the temple of their God, the Lord of heaven's armies. This took place on the twenty fourth day of the sixth month of King Darius' second year. On the twenty first day of the seventh month, the Lord's message came through the prophet Haggai again. Ask the following questions to Zerebabel, son of Shaltiel, governor of Judah, the high priest, Joshua, son of Jehosedak, and the remnant of the people. Who among you survivors saw the former splendor of the temple? How does it look to you now? Isn't it? Nothing by comparison. Even so, take heart, Zerubul, decrees the Lord. Take heart, Joshua, son of Jehosedak, the high priest, and take heart, all you citizens of the land, decrees the Lord of Heaven's armies. Do not fear, because I made a promise to your ancestors when they left Egypt, and my spirit even now testifies to you. Moreover, this is what the Lord of Heaven's armies has said, in just a little while I will once again shake the earth, and the sky, the seas, and the dry ground, I'll also shake up all the nations, and they'll offer their treasures, then I will fill this temple with glory. So the Lord of Heaven's armies has said, The gold and silver will be mine, decrees the Lord of Heaven's Armies. The future splendor of this temple will be greater than that of former times. And in this place I will give peace, decrees the Lord of Heaven's Armies. On the twenty fourth day of the ninth month of King Darius's second year, the Lord's message came to the Prophet Haggai, this is what the Lord of Heaven's armies said. Ask the priests about the law. If someone carries holy meat in a fold of his garment, and that fold touches bread, a boiled dish, wine, olive oil, or any other food, will that item become holy? Well the priest answered, it'll not. And then Haggai asked, If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body comes in contact with one of those items, will it become unclean? And the priest answered, It will be unclean. Then Haggai responded, The people of this nation are unclean in my sight, decrees the Lord, and so is all their effort. Everything they offer is also unclean. Now therefore, reflect carefully on the recent past before one stone was laid on another in the Lord's temple. From that time, when one came expecting a heap of twenty measures, there were only ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty measures from it, there were only twenty. I struck all the products of your labor with blight, disease, and hail, and yet you brought nothing to me, says the Lord. Think carefully about the past. From today, the twenty fourth day of the ninth month, to the day work on the temple of the Lord was resumed. Think about it. The seed is still in the storehouse, isn't it? And the vine, fig tree, pomegranate, and olive trees have not produced. Nevertheless, from today on I will bless you. Then the Lord spoke to Haggai a second time on the twenty fourth day of the month, tell Zerubabel governor of Judah, I am ready to shake the sky and the earth. I will overthrow royal thrones and shatter the might of earthly kingdoms, I will overthrow chariots and those who ride on them, and horses and their riders will fall as people kill one another. On that day, says the Lord of Heaven's armies, I will take you, Zerebel son of Shealtiel, my servant, says the Lord, and I will make you like a signet ring. For I have chosen you, says the Lord of Heaven's Armies. I like to call Haggai the prophet to procrastinators, because now that we've read the story together, we can see that Haggai had as much to say as he did because God was very concerned with the fact that the people had stopped work on the temple. They had just kind of written it off. They were discouraged for a number of reasons. They kept saying, apparently God quoted to them what they had been saying, that it's just not the right time. It's just not the right time. We can relate, right? For them it was because there was just opposition. And it they were in the middle of a drought and a famine, and it's like we just don't have the resources for this, we don't have the energy for this, and I don't know, it's just it's just not the right time. And God is challenging that. You have time to build the things that you value. I want you to spend time and energy and build the thing that I value. You're spending all the time and energy and money that you have to build your little thingdom. What about my kingdom? Seek first the kingdom of heaven, Jesus says, and then I'll I'll take care of the rest. All the things that you're worried about, stop putting energy trying to do that. They're like, oh man, we're we're out of food, and we I I go and make money and I bring it home and I don't feel like I have as much money. It just goes as quickly as it came. God's saying, look at your situation. Look at the situation you're in. You are laboring and laboring. You're killing yourselves over just trying to scrape by, and you're not recognizing that I'm doing this to try to get your attention to show that all the work you're putting into building your own thing is not worth it. It's not going to work because you're putting off the thing that I've given you to do. I want you to seek my kingdom and my glory first. I want you to establish the God at the center of your life first, and we'll take care of everything else. Are you prioritizing the work of God in your own heart? Are you are you prioritizing getting God and his worship at the center of your life? Or are you it's just not the right time for that? I'll I'll get back to church after I've got some time. I'll I'll do that thing that God put on my heart later when I've got time to do that. And so we procrastinate. Procrastinating, by the way, is not laziness. It's not because you're lazy. It's often due to a lack of clarity or a lack of resources or a lack of of vision or purpose. That's why we don't That's why we put things off. Because we we feel like we don't have what we need. It's not the right time. If I had more understanding or had more resources, then I'd do it, and I just don't right now. But God says in chapter one, verse eight, go up to the hill country, bring back the timber to build the temple. Then I'll be pleased and honored. In this, God's basically just kind of sweeping away every crutch that a procrastinator has to lean on. He's just saying, hey, go where I tell you, use the available resources, and start what you know you need to do. Well, I don't know how to start. Well, leave your routine, go where I tell you. Well, I don't have enough time or resources. The time is now, and you do have what you need. I've provided what you need. Well, I don't know exactly what I'm supposed to do. Build my kingdom. That's what you're supposed to do. I've already given you that task. Leave your routine, go where I tell you. The time is now, you have what you need, I've already provided it, and just build my kingdom. Those are the steps. What step do you need to take now? What have you been putting off because you justify that it's not the right time? But you know in your heart that God has given you something to do. You know that there is a step that you can take to re-establish God at the center of your life. You see something broken or incomplete that you know that God wants to bring wholeness and completion to, but you just are unclear or scared or you don't feel like you have enough. Take the step that you know you can take. That's faith. You don't have to have it all figured out right now. You don't have to bring a whole cathedral, just bring a brick, show up and say, God, I'm here, I'm ready to build. That's the thinking out loud thought for the day. We'll see you next time.