Haggai Lesson 6

WHY? HAGGAI

THE FOURTH MESSAGE

Well, we have come to the final lesson in our study of the Book of Haggai. You have already studied the first three messages from the Lord to His people, the Jews, who had returned to their homeland, after 70 years of exile in Babylon. But, there is till one more message. So, let's now consider this final message, Message # 4, which is recorded in Haggai 2:20-23.

Read the message in Haggai 2:20-23 and then answer the following questions:

When was Message # 4 given? (Day / month / year) (2:20)

______________________________________________________________

Had there been another message already given on this very same day?

(Hint, see also 2:19)

Circle your answer:..................YES........................NO

To whom was Message # 4 given? (2:21)

_______________________________________________________________

Does Message # 4 seem to be another prophecy concerning future events?

Circle your answer:..................YES........................NO

How far in the future does this message seem to be referring?

(Indicate your answer by circling or underlining the answer from the 4 choices below.)

1. Immediate (within the next few days or months).

2. Sometime later, but during Zerubbabel's lifetime.

3. Sometime in the distant future, perhaps hundreds

or thousands of years later.

4. Not sure.

As far as we know, has this prophecy been fulfilled yet?

Circle your answer:..................YES........................NO

In the space provided, list the events that are going to happen in the future according to this prophecy in Message # 4. (2:21-23). Include all of the events including the prophecies concerning Zerubbabel in verse 2:23.

(I'll begin this list for you as an example.)

IN THE FUTURE

1. God is going to shake the heavens and the earth

2. God will overturn royal thrones.

In the text of Haggai 2:21-23, circle every occurrence of the phrase ON THAT DAY or IN THAT DAY with a yellow circle (or use a color of your choice).

What does the phrase, "on (or 'in') that day", suggest to you as to when in time this message or prophecy might be referring? Underline or circle your answer from the 3 choices below.

1. An event which will occur during the present lifetime of Zerubbabel.

2. The Day of the Lord which occurs at the end of the age and includes the Millennium.

By way of explanation, here is some more information for you:

The Day of the Lord is a still future event which will be a time of judgment

on all the ungodly and a time of blessing upon those who worship and obey

the Lord God Almighty.

The Day of the Lord, is spoken of in great detail

in the book of Revelation as well as in numerous other places in the Bible

including Isaiah 2:11, 17, 20 and Zechariah 2:11 and 3:10.

3. Don't know.

Concerning these prophecies about Zerubbabel in Message # 4, many believe that this message is referring to the Day of the Lord which occurs at the end of the age and that God is telling Zerubbabel that he will have a position of great authority during the Millennium.

WRAPPING IT UP -- LET'S REVIEW

As we wind up our study, let's briefly review what we've learned by doing this Interactive Study of the Book of Haggai. (Feel free to refer to your previous lessons to refresh your memory!)

Answer the following questions:

When was Haggai written? (Year)? _________BC

To whom was it written?..............______________________

______________________

_______________________

Why was the book of Haggai written?

:Listed below are very brief summaries of the 4 Messages in the book of Haggai. To the Left of each message, write the number of the message. I have done the first one for you as an example.

Message 2................Prophecy of future when the temple will be filled with glory

.................................Prophecies about the Day of the Lord & specifically concerning Zerubbabel.

.................................The results of Obedience and Disobedience (sin)

.................................The people are told to rebuild the temple.

When Haggai relayed the First Message from God to Zerrubbabel, Joshua, and the Jewish people telling them to resume rebuilding the Temple, did they obey and begin to rebuild?

Circle your answer:...................YES..............NO

When Haggai gave the Second Message concerning "the promise of future glory and peace when the Temple would be one day filled with the Glory ...", what was this glory referring to?

In other words, what event(s) was Haggai prophesying about concerning this Second Temple?

_______________________________________________________

Was this promised coming of God (Jesus) in the flesh to the Second Temple ever fulfilled? When? (Remember what you read in Luke 2:25-32.)

______________________________________________

Even though the Jews obeyed God's message and began to rebuild the Temple, how did God look upon their spiritual condition? Were they consecrated or were they defiled as viewed from God's perspective?

Circle your answer: ................Consecrated...................Defiled

Why were they considered to be defiled? What was their problem? (Write your answer in the space below).

As viewed from God's perspective, is there a correlation between sin (disobeying God) and defilement (being unholy)?

Circle your answer:....................YES.....................NO

Based on what you learned concerning the difficulties that the Jewish people had experienced since they had stopped working on the Temple in disobedience to God's command and the problems they had experienced during the 17 or so years afterward, do you believe that God is showing them and us that sin has consequences and that God can not and will not bless unrighteousness (disobedience, sin)?

Circle your answer:....................YES.....................NO

Summarize in your own words what you learned from this study of the Book of Haggai about the correlation and consequences of sin, defilement, and the blessings of God.

IT IS TIME FOR SOME PERSONAL APPLICATION !

Well, we've come to the end of this short but powerful book of Haggai. Although this is one of the shortest of all the books of the Bible, it is, as you have noticed, filled with both historical and practical information. But it is the practical information that we most need to "give careful thought to ..."

These four brief but important messages from God through Haggai to the people of 520 BC truly cross the barriers of time.

The principles and concepts that these messages teach concerning

consecration (holiness),

defilement (from sin)

and

what to 'do' to return to God

are just as true and applicable to us today as they were to the people of 520 BC.

These messages in 520 BC were written specifically to God's Chosen People and were intended to tell them WHY they were not experiencing God's blessings but were enduring difficulties and hardships.

However, the principles of these messages are still valid today and explain to us why we experience similar problems. The principles and the reason are unchanged.

And that reason is that we, like they, sin (are disobedient to God) !

Furthermore, these messages also explained to them (and to us) that because of their sin (disobedience) they had become defiled.

Since God can not bless disobedience (sin / unrighteousness), then God was not blessing them. Neither can He bless us in our sin!

We have seen the problems that the people experienced in Haggai's day because of their disobedience.

Does it not follow, then, that many, if not most, of the problems and difficulties that we as individuals and as a nation are experiencing today are because we also, individually and as a nation, are defiled because of our sin and disobedience to God's commands!

Using the "Truth and Consequences" chart in the space below, prayerfully

1. list some specific sins that you are doing and that your nation is doing which have caused you and your nation to be defiled in God's eyes and to have resulted in the withdrawal of God's blessings.

2. Then in the appropriate columns also list some of the consequences that you think God might be causing or allowing because of these sins.

.Here is the chart...and, as usual, I am sorry that all these dots have to be in the lines but that is the only way I can leave spaces between the words. My inadequate knowledge of html prevents me from being able to leave blank spaces....but, since you are sharp students, I feel confident you will figure out what this chart is trying to convey. Also, I will fill in the first few things in each column (again sorry about the dots) to give you an idea of the 'types' of answers. You might want to get a separate piece of paper and make a 'dot-less' chart and one which will give you more room to write. Please do so, if you can, as this is a very important 'assignment'.

TRUTH And CONSEQUENCES

Column 1..........................Column2..................................Column 3.....................................Column 4.......................

The TRUTH about ........Could these things be............The TRUTH about the................Could these EVENTS

.....MY SINS......................CONSEQUENCES ...............Sins of my NATION....................be the CONSEQUENCES

....(Disobedience)..............OF MY SINS?........................of my NATION.............................of my Nation's sins?

! Tell white' lies................ can't make ends meet............take God's name in vain................floods

! Tell half truths................. not enough $s to pay bills.....have left God's moral standards....earthqueakes...........

! Not tithing my income...........etc.......................................you continue list..............................crime

! Steal from employer.........you continue list...........................................................................you continue list

(Don't work all day)

you continue list

That was quite a thought provoking chart, wasn't it?

Could it be? Is it really possible that many of the problems and difficulties that we and our nation are experiencing are ... Because of our sin? ...Because we are defiled by sin? ... Because God is not able to bless us because we are willfully disobeying Him?

Hmmmm.

Well, based on what you have read in the Book of Haggai, that certainly seems to be a very valid possibility, doesn't it !

So, what is the cure? What were they to do? What are we to do?

We saw in the Messages of Haggai that God told them repeatedly to "Give careful thought to your ways..."

How about us? You? Me? Our Nation? The World? Do these same truths apply today?

Of course they do!

The principles presented and revealed in these messages to God's Chosen people, the Jews, are equally relevant, valid, and applicable to us today.

In fact, God wants all people, in every century and in every nation, to always, in all things and in every area of life, to turn from sin and to Him, thereby avoiding the defilement which sin produces.

God desires that all people be Consecrated (Holy).

That is why He has given the offer of salvation through Jesus Christ ..."to the Jew first and also to the gentiles."

That is why He has given us the Bible, His Holy Word, to teach, reprove, correct, instruct, and exhort us.

And that is also why He has given the Holy Spirit to indwell those who have believed that Jesus Christ is God and Lord and Savior and who have accepted His free gift of salvation. All who believe this become God's children. The Holy Spirit is given to and indwells each of His children for the specific purpose of enabling and empowering them to obey His commands and to do God's will.

Therefore, as children of God who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, we don't have to be disobedient. It is a choice.

God, through the Holy Spirit, wants to help us make the choices to obey Him and thus escape defilement and thereby be able to receive the blessings He desires to give us NOW as well as in the future.

Have you done that? Have you believed in Jesus?

Are you a child of God?

Have you accepted His free gift of salvation?

If not, why not?

Do it now! You will never regret it.

;

If you would like to accept this free gift of salvation, this is how you 'do' it:

Bow your head now and confess your sins to God.

Ask for His forgiveness.

Ask Him to come into you through the Holy Spirit.

Turn your life over to God

and

let Him be your Master forever, to guide, lead, direct, and fellowship with you.

If you would like to do this, pray this prayer (or one like it):

Oh Father, God, I know that I am a sinner. I am defiled in your sight. I have sinned! I want to be made right with you again. So I confess these sins and ask you to please forgive them. I accept the free gift of salvation which you offer, this salvation which Jesus provided by dying in my place to pay the penalty for my sins. Thank you Jesus for dying for my sins. Please Jesus, come now and live in me through your Holy Spirit. I do turn my life over to you and ask you, Jesus, to be my Lord and Master forever. I want You to be the controller of my life. Amen.

Well, you have finally completed this Interactive Bible Study of the book of Haggai. And, even though Haggai is in the Old Testament and is one of the shortest books of the Bible, it certainly contained much that is applicable and relevant to life today.

Yes, Haggai does have interesting historical information, but it is the practical information and the principles presented that really stand out in this book and make it so relevant for today.

God does not change! Principles that he outlined in 520 BC are exactly the same today. He does not change to adapt to the ways of the world.

Therefore, what God stated concerning consecration, defilement, sin, and the consequences of sin is just as true today as it was then. There have been no revisions, no alterations, no 'loopholes'. Disobedience is sin -- it always has been sin and always will be sin!

Similarly, the consequences of sin have not changed either. Whenever a person is defiled by sin, regardless of whether they are a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ or are a member of God's chosen' race, the Jews, any unconfessed and unrepentant disobedience (sin) must result in God withholding His blessings because God cannot bless what is defiled.

It is this practical information that we most need to remember and "give careful thought to ..."

Therefore, It is my prayer that this has not just been a scholarly' exercise, but that the truths and principles revealed in Haggai have impacted and will continue to impact your life so that you will always "give careful thought to your ways..."

yes, ..."give careful thought to your ways..."

This is WHY we have studied HAGGAI !

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