Thursday, March 16, 2017

A STIRRED UP SPIRIT



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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord.

Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave this message of the Lord to the people:

“I am with you,” declares the Lord. So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua, son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people. They came and began to work on the house of the Lord Almighty, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month.

Haggai 1:12-15

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Let’s summarize the first two devotions from Haggai, recalling what we know so far.

First, a remnant of Israelites from the Babylonian captivity had returned from their seventy year exile, blessed by God with the opportunity to rebuild their nation, their homes, and their relationship with Him. The people of God were under the leadership of Zerubbabel who had been appointed governor over Judah.

Well, we discovered the Israelites had invested a lot of time in reconstructing their own homes but had procrastinated badly in rebuilding God’s temple in Jerusalem, a deliberate inaction that drew the ire of the Lord who was not going to tolerate the sin of complacency.

So how did God respond?

We saw in yesterday’s message that He sought to motivate the Israelites by calling them to get busy while sending mild punishment in the way of a drought to get their attention. In other words, if the people of God were not going to produce His temple, then He wasn’t going to bless them with the ability to produce a harvest.

Today, as we close our chapter one of this book, we see how the Israelites responded to God’s motivation. Look again at these words here:

Then Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord.

Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave this message of the Lord to the people:

“I am with you,” declares the Lord. So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua, son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people. They came and began to work on the house of the Lord Almighty, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month.  Haggai 1:12-15

You have to love how the Israelites reacted collectively to what God was calling them to do. From the governor to the high priest to the “whole remnant”, obedience was the common thread as they all “obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai”. And they did so out of reverence and respect.

So what prompted such a quick turnaround?

Was it the suffering yield of the drought stricken crops? Was it the shaming of God?

No, it was none of these. Rather, it was God rallying His people as their divine, holy cheerleader. He reminded them He was with them and then stirred up all their spirits, an action which resulted in the Israelites beginning “work on the house of the Lord Almighty, their God”.

It was an amazing turnaround from the general lethargic attitude the Israelites had about the temple before as it sat in ruins while they lived comfortably in their nicely constructed homes. But this is what the Lord has made a history of doing, reviving the fervor of His people when it wanes by stirring up their spirits to carry out His will and achieve His purposes.

Is there some area of your spiritual life that needs rejuvenation?

Recommit yourself to being obedient to the Lord and then watch Him stir up your spirit in amazing ways to achieve all He desires for you to do. As He did for the Old Testament Israelites of Haggai’s day, He’ll always deliver.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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