Sermon Cloud

Haggai 1

The primary theme of the Book of Haggai is the rebuilding of God's temple, which had been lying in ruins since its destruction by King Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C. Haggai used five messages from the Lord to exhort the people of Israel to renew their efforts to rebuild the temple and he motivated them by noting that the drought and crop failures were caused by misplaced spiritual priorities.

The body at Lakeside Bible Church can take lesson from the story of Haggai as we make plans to embark on our Phase II building campaign. As such, the time for discussion about finances is most appropriate, and in spite of the challenges of the current economic climate in our country (and the world over), there is good news in giving. Generous congregations respond to clear vision, and on this basis, the church body must not be afraid to discuss its financial and material needs because this enables a clear vision to be established, which in turn allows for godly decisions to be made regarding  funding priorities.

Everything that people do is based on matters of priority, and the same is true with a church body. Priorities will almost always be funded, for it is priorities that define who we are, how we spend our time, and how we spend our money. For this reason it is helpful to regularly evaluate our priorities as individuals and as a church. This is what the Book of Haggai demonstrates - Haggai's rebuke of the people for losing their sense of priority and the refocus and recommittal of the people as a response.

Although a direct parallel cannot be drawn to the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem, we can make one conclusion regarding the story of Haggai: the state of our facility at Lakeside Bible Church affects (and reflects) the priorities of its body. G. Campbell Morgan stated it well when he noted that when a church's enthusiasm is dying out, it will be reflected by the state of decay of its building. In such circumstances, the Godly response is that something be done to stir up the congregation - just as was done through the rebuke of Haggai in the midst of the temple that lay in ruins before God's people.

Then and now, ambitious building campaigns that are waged in challenging economic times provide opportunities to vindicate God before the world. God uses the achievements of men in such times to demonstrate that He is in no way affected by difficult economic times. Just as for the people of Israel, it represents an opportunity for us to glorify God and to minister to those who need it. Matthew 5:16 encourages us - "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

May our comfort in difficult times be that God is with us. God demonstrates that He is with us by His providence through His people who do His work. Jesus said it best in Matthew 6:33 "but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." God is glorified when His people make Him their highest priority and sacrificially give to carry out His work!