Reflections in Haggai

My Tuesday-morning men's group begins Haggai next week. Here is the hand-out I sent them yesterday. While Haggai is embedded in my soul, I have not looked forward to walking the guys through this prophet because of the pain it brings me.

When I see the situation in Haggai and look around me today I see the same self-centeredness, the same disregard for the Temple of God, the same "me first" thinking in the church (the Temple) - and it breaks my heart.

We seldom think as one people in the Trinity - if ever. We seldom even give lip-service to the idea that we are members of the Body of Christ. Our individualistic view of salvation, our failure to see that Jesus Christ birthed a new People, our refusal to take the Bible seriously (even in those churches which profess a high-view of Scripture), our privatization of salvation and sanctification (which really is part and parcel of salvation), our persistent insistence in being the center of everything rather than being Christocentric...well...just saying.

We were saved from sin to be living stones in the Temple, just as the Jews of Haggai's time were set free from captivity to rebuild the City and the Temple. But we'd never know it from the sermons we hear, the books we buy, the decisions we make.

Here's what I sent the men:

For the next few weeks we’re going to explore the prophet Haggai, for while Haggai consists of only two chapters, these two chapters ought to challenge us regarding our commitment to Jesus Christ and our assumptions that influence the way we live.

Keep in mind that the reason we read Ezra (and hopefully we also read Nehemiah) was to set the stage for Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. We can’t have an appreciation for these three prophets unless we understand the setting in which they served.

Throughout our meditation on Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi there is one critical thought that we should always keep in mind: the one and only reason the Jewish people were set free from exile was to rebuild the Temple and City of God and to worship God in His Temple and in His City. If we don’t see this we might as well tear these prophets out of the Bible. To refresh our memory: Daniel 9:1 – 3, 24 – 25; Ezra 1:1 – 4; Isaiah 44:28 – 45:3.

With this in mind, what is the historical situation in Haggai Chapter 1? What is the problem with the people of Judah?

Note that the “word of Yahweh” comes via Haggai to the civil (Zerubbabel) and religious (Joshua) leaders. Both spheres of leadership are responsible for the disobedience of the people. (Haggai 1:1).

Now I want to ask us, “How important is the Temple of God to us? How important is the Body of Christ? How important is the Church?”

I’m not talking about a social organization, I’m talking about Ephesians 2:13 – 22; 4:11 – 16; 1 Corinthians Chapter 12; 1 Peter 2:4 - 10…to name just a few of many passages.

As we used to say in the days of the Jesus People, “The church is not an organization, it is an organism.” A foreign thought to most Christians.

From Genesis through Revelation we see God working with a people, speaking to a people, redeeming a people, seeking a Temple to dwell within, seeking a many-membered Son showing forth and glorifying the Only Begotten Son. The Bible culminates in a People radiating the Glory of God in Revelation chapters 21 and 22. (Note John 12:24 and our unity in the Trinity that Jesus prays for in John Chapter 17).

So then, are we or are we not like the people in Haggai Chapter 1?

Are we putting the Temple of God, the People of God, the Living House of God before our own houses, our own interests, our own agendas, our own comforts?

Or…are we living as the Jews did in Haggai Chapter 1? Saying it isn’t time to devote ourselves to God’s Trajectory? It isn’t time to sacrifice ourselves for our brothers and sisters? Is isn’t time to be “all-in” for the Temple of God?

The Jews were squandering the freedom they had been given, what are we doing? Christ has set us free from sin and given us eternal life – are we living as independent agents or are we living as slaves (bond-servants) of Jesus Christ?

Are our lives our own, to do with as we see fit – or are we focused on God’s Temple and are we accountable to one another in Jesus Christ?

Just saying…just saying…just reading the Bible…maybe we should tear these three prophets out…after all, so much of our “Christian” culture and church culture teaches that life is all about us.

Eugene Peterson has written about a new Holy Trinity, a new Holy Text:

“The most popular way of conceiving this self these days is by understanding the self in a Trinitarian way. This way of self-understanding is not as an intellectual interested in ideas or as a moral being seeking a good life or as a soul looking for solitary solace, but as a divine self in charge of my self. And this divine self is understood as a Holy Trinity.

“Here’s how it works. It is important to observe that in the formulation of this new Trinity  that defines the self as the sovereign text for living, the Bible is neither ignored or banned; it holds, in fact, and honored place. But the three-personal Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is replaced by a very individualized personal Trinity of my Holy Wants, my Holy Needs, and my Holy Feelings.” (Eat This Book, page 31).

Which Trinity do we serve?

Just saying….