mbjones

‘Pay close attention to these things also. Go up to the hill country and bring back timber to build the temple. Then I will be pleased and honored,’ says the Lord. ‘You expected a large harvest, but instead there was little, and when you brought it home it disappeared right away. Why?’ asks the Lord who rules over all. ‘Because my temple remains in ruins, thanks to each of you favoring his own house! This is why the sky has held back its dew and the earth its produce. Moreover, I have 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 also will harm people, animals, and everything they produce.’”

Haggai 1:7-11

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying spending time reading the so-called “minor prophets” of late. They generally aren’t highlighted segments of scripture and a lot of folks ignore them. And I’ve rarely heard sermons from them (the exceptions that come to mind are when Micah and Joel have been taught at NormCom). Anyways, its been good reading and this passage highlights one of the reasons.

Even though so much of it applies to a time and place incredibly distant from “now” and “here,” the weight of the passage’s conviction is still incredibly palpable. Here in Haggai, the Lord is commanding that His house be rebuilt. The Israelites, now back in Judah, have failed to do this — focusing instead on their own rich dwellings. As a result of this displeasuring the Lord, the entire land is affected. Rain isn’t falling and crops aren’t appearing and things are on the verge of getting much, much worse.

Now, we don’t have a physical house for the Lord anymore. With the death of Jesus, the veil in the temple was forever torn and the Lord now dwells with all of us. And this is where it gets convicting. It doesn’t mean we need to now go out and build up our church buildings and dump millions upon millions of dollars down the drain there. Instead we need to be paying attention to where the Lord IS and WANTS to be dwelling now: our lives. Our we favoring our own special wants, lusts and desires in our hearts? Is the Lord’s temple in ruins because of this? Or are we intentionally building His home in our lives? And certainly even more convicting — have we given up all notions of a life our own and given it totally to God?

Like I said — reading the minor prophets is good. I recommend spending some time. You shouldn’t come out on the other side the same.