Obedience and repentance
Let us recap what we have learnt from the book of Haggai…
God has rebuked the Israelites for prioritising their “panelled houses” (1:2-4), or individual pursuits, instead of rebuilding God’s temple that laid in ruins. In the time of Haggai the prophet, God’s presence dwelled in His temple. Previously, the temple was destroyed and since it was not rebuilt the Israelites live in spiritual lethargy. This was characterised by hopelessly eating to be full, drinking but remaining thirsty and being clothed but still without warmth (1:6).
On Sunday we explored the aftermath of the Israelite’s repentance for neglecting God’s temple. Repentance is an emphasised theme throughout the Bible, and the acts of repentance can often be misleading. It does not revolve around emotional persuasions, though it can be deeply evoking of emotion. Nor is it only dedicated to an allocated time in an anticipated church event. Rather, repentance is a regular requirement of Christians irrespective of the ordinariness of daily life. Repentance is humbling and is a process. The Israelite’s journey of repentance can be divided into three stages:
Obedience to God
This is the first, and often the hardest, initial action for most Christians in order to truly repent. Those who remembered God and his temple, and faithfully returned to listening to God louder than their own desires were referred to as the “remnant”. These people obeyed with a sense of urgency and as a result, rebuilt God’s temple between the first day of the sixth month (1:1) until the “twenty-fourth day of the sixth month” (1:15). When we hear God’s voice whether by reading the Bible, in prayer or through another person, we should wholeheartedly obey him because in all things He will ultimately be glorified. As Christians, what could be more important than glorifying God?
“Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God… And the people feared the Lord” (1:12)
Fear of God
The Israelites feared the Lord’s presence, and rightfully so. Fear arose amongst those who received a deeper understanding of the seriousness of sin. In this particular scripture, the overarching sin was selfishness. The rebuilding of the temple was not a urgent priority because the Israelites had forgotten the implications of neglecting God and His holiness. In the book of Revelations, ethereal creatures with wings shielding their eyes and feet are illustrated to be continually praising and reminding the reader of God’s supernatural holiness.
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty; who was, and is, and is to come”
- Revelations 4:8
Our perspective of God informs our behaviour towards God. If we know God to be a heavenly father whose love is unconditional and agape, yet capable of causing a trembling of fear, we would lead live in reverence of Him.
Working for God
While the book of Colossians says that “in everything you do, work for the Lord and not for man” (3:23), it is important not to forsake the role of the Spirit. In verse 14 the spirit of the high priest, Jehozadak; his son Joshua; Shealtiel, the Governor of Judah and his son, Zerubabbel were ”stirred up” by the Lord. When we work for God, we actually work in the power of His Spirit and not of our own. The battle becomes His, and not ours alone. Working for the Lord is not guaranteed to be easy. But truly I tell you, the rewards for working in and of the Spirit for the Lord are far greater than wages owed to ourselves.
Heavenly Father,
I pray that you would urge us to obey you at all times. I thank you for using the book of Haggai to illustrate the journey of repentance. I pray that I would understand that obedience and a reverence for you leads to a stirring of the Holy Spirit within us, to work for your glory.
In your name I pray,
Amen