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Haggai, Rebuild

The book of Haggai is a short book with a very specific message. It can be easy for us to gloss over this entry of the Bible. After all it deals with very specific people during a specific time doing a specific task. We don't live in the time of Darius. We aren't rebuilding God's temple. Or are we?

Background

The book of Haggai is written by the prophet Haggai. Not much is known about this man. The book itself was written over a several month span around the year 520 BC. This makes it the first prophetic book to take place after Judah's return from the Exile.

This gives the book of Haggai a very different tone than previous books. This is the first generation of the exiles returning home. They are highly motivated to rebuild their city, as we see in the first seven chapters of Ezra. Haggai is sent to encourage them as they rebuild the temple.

Themes

There is only one theme in the book of Haggai; rebuild. The people of Judah have been called to rebuild the temple of God. At the start of the book the people are preoccupied rebuilding their own houses, all while neglecting to finish the temple. Haggai comes to tell them to finish God's temple first; to make God the priority in their lives.

The people, led by Zerubbabel, obey God's instructions. Chapter two begins with a promise from God to one day fill the temple with his glory. He then, through Haggai, declares that he will bless the people of Judah despite their sinfulness. He uses the Mosaic Law's cleanliness codes to illustrate this point. The book ends with God blessing Zerubbabel as leader of the people.

Theological Point

As stated earlier, it can be very easy to gloss over the book of Haggai. At first glance it seems like there isn't a whole lot of relevance for Christians living in the 21st century. For a while I may have agreed with you. After studying deeper I think this book is still very relevant for us today.

The people Haggai is addressing have been tasked to rebuild the temple of God. They have been living in Babylon for seventy years. Most, if not all, of these people have never even seen Jerusalem. Their entire lives would have been lived under foreign oppression. Now they have been set free, and God tasks them to rebuild his house so it will be ready for the return of his glory.

Think of us today. We all were trapped in slavery to sin. Now, thanks to Jesus, we have been set free. God's grace has flooded our lives and broken the chains. So our master and savior, Jesus Christ, has given us a task; rebuild. We aren't called to rebuild houses of stone or wood but to rebuild hearts and minds. We are called to make the earth, the original temple of Genesis 1, ready for the King's return. 

Still, like the people of Haggai's day, we get distracted by our own lives and problems. We focus on building up our own houses, taking care of our own lives. We focus on retirement funds, car payments, insurance, school, work, and pretty much everything else. We always say that when we get our lives in order, then we will obey the commands of Jesus. The message of Haggai is the same then as it is now; God first. Everything else is a footnote. 

Conclusion

I pray that everyone has a good thanksgiving tomorrow. It is hard to believe, but we are almost done with the Old Testament! I hope you have learned something along the way. I know that I have. God bless!

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