
INTRODUCTION
A. Let’s Go! is a phrase we use for someone who is not moving. It is a statement that causes us to get up, get out and get going. Haggai, a prophet in the Old Testament, had to mobilize the people of Israel to get their priorities right. The people of Israel had stopped focusing on God’s agenda, and instead they began to focus on their own agenda.
B. Haggai teaches us about having the right priorities. He served as a megaphone for God to help Israel recharge and realign themselves to God’s priorities. God has a way of awakening lethargic, discouraged, disinterested followers to motivate them to follow Him again. God used Haggai to wake up His people from a spiritual slumber. Haggai helped the people keep their eyes and focus on the bigger picture.
C. In this little book, we have four messages from Haggai, and each message has a specific strategy to motivate God’s people. In each message, Haggai points out a particular sin that keeps us from accomplishing and finishing God’s work.
D. In this collection of talks we will focus on 5 strategies that help us stay focused on God’s work and the mission at hand.
January 3 - Let’s Go and Recommit (Introduction and Communion)
January 10 - Let’s Go and Rebuild (Haggai 1:1-11)
January 17 - Let’s Go and Reengage (Haggai 1:12-15)
January 24 - Let’s Go and Renew (Haggai 2:1-9)
January 31 - Let’s Go and Remember (Haggai 2:10-23)
Text: Haggai 2:1-9 (CSB, Old Testament)
Today’s Takeaway: God desires the hearts of people more than a place.
I. THE PEOPLE ARE
(v. 1-3)
A. They were focused on the
“And they sang responsively with praise and thanksgiving to the LORD: “For He is good; for His loving devotion to Israel endures forever.” Then all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD had been laid. 12But many of the older priests, Levites, and family heads who had seen the first temple wept loudly when they saw the foundation of this temple. Still, many others shouted joyfully.” —Ezra 3:11-12
“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” —Colossians 3:2
B. They were focused on a
“For we are God’s coworkers. You are God’s field, God’s building.” —1 Corinthians 3:9
“Don’t you yourselves know that you are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God lives in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, and that is what you are.” —1 Corinthians 3:16-17
II. THE PEOPLE FIND
(v. 4-9)
God through Haggai reminds the people:
A. Be
“Be strong and courageous; don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For the Lord your God is the one who will go with you; he will not leave you or abandon you.” —Deuteronomy 31:6
B.
“Then David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He won’t leave you or abandon you until all the work for the service of the Lord’s house is finished.” —1 Chronicles 28:20
C. God’s
D. God will
“After they arrived at the Lord’s house in Jerusalem, some of the family heads gave freewill offerings for the house of God in order to have it rebuilt on its original site.” —Ezra 2:68
“They observed the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, because the Lord had made them joyful, having changed the Assyrian king’s attitude toward them, so that he supported them in the work on the house of the God of Israel.” —Ezra 6:22
Let’s look a snapshot of the dialog between the people and God:
The People Complain (Haggai 1)
1. The job is too big for us.
God’s Response (Haggai 2)
1. The job is mine. Let’s go and work together on it.
The People Complain (Haggai 1)
2. Our resources are too small.
God’s Response (Haggai 2)
2. I am your Source. I own all the resources.
The People Complain (Haggai 1)
3. What we build will not be great like the past. Why bother?
God’s Response (Haggai 2)
3. What you build I will fill with my presence. That is all you need.
Download PDF on Haggai parallels to Jesus by clicking here
CONCLUSION: Do you desire to be used by God to do the work of the Lord?
DEEP DIVE QUESTIONS
The people of Israel were focused on the past and a building. Have you ever been so focused on the past that it kept you from focusing on the future? If so, talk through how it kept you from moving forward.
Read 1 Chronicles 28:20. Discuss God’s promise and our responsibility found in this verse.
Review the comparison of the people’s response in Haggai 1 and God’s response in Haggai 2. Do you see these same responses in today’s culture? If so, how?
Download and review the parallels of Jesus and the New Testament found in Haggai. What prophecy is found in Haggai that will take place in the future?
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