第 29 課: 屬靈爭戰的武器 — 士兵的鞋子 (以弗所書 6:15)
Related Media6:14 所以要站穩了，用真理當作帶子束腰，用公義當作護胸甲遮胸；6:15 用平安的福音當作鞋子穿在腳上；6:16 此外又拿着信心的盾牌，用以滅盡那惡者一切的火箭；6:17 並戴上救恩的頭盔；拿着聖靈的寶劍，就是 神的道。6:18 在聖靈裏，隨時多方禱告祈求，並要為此儆醒恆守，為眾聖徒祈求。
引言
“Roll Freddy Roll” 是我看過最有趣的電影。蒂姆康威（Tim Conway）飾演「弗雷迪」（Freddy），這位父親為了取悅兒子，他希望名字能記錄在健力士紀錄大全。經過一連串事件，在他的努力下，他創下了逗留在滾軸溜冰鞋上最長時間的世界紀錄，這意味他不論做甚麼事情，弗雷迪都需要在滾軸溜冰鞋上進行。
趣事的序幕，從弗雷迪穿上了他的滾軸溜冰鞋來駕駛他那部大眾甲殼虫（Volkswagen beetle）開始。他的腳和油門踏板纏在一起，導致他超速駕駛。這個時候，剛巧一名第一天值班的警員駛過，要使弗雷迪靠路邊把車停下來便己很費力氣，接著警員要求弗雷迪下車，並且堅持要他「靠在車上」給他搜查。不過，弗雷迪無法在穿上滾軸溜冰鞋的情況下靠在車上，他和那警員都掉在地上。過了一段很短的時間，弗雷迪參加朋友的喪禮，他是其中一位扶靈的至親好友，把棺材送上柩車要走上好些路，途中，弗雷迪失足，他拼命地抱住棺材，並造成很大的騷動。
因為弗雷迪被限制在滾軸溜冰鞋上，他才開始體會到能夠平穩用雙足在地上站穩是祝福。若是站在滾軸溜冰鞋上發動戰爭，我們都能想象得到那情況。當描述「穿著合宜的士兵」時，保羅形容參與屬靈爭戰時最理想的鞋，基督精兵所穿最好的鞋是「平安的福音」。這是第15節和這一課的主題。
NET中文譯本的翻譯： 「所以要站穩了，用真理當作帶子束腰，用公義當作護胸甲遮胸；用平安福音當作鞋子穿在腳上。」（以弗所書 6:14-15）。讓我們傾聽這些話，因為他們是關於全副裝備，這裝備能確保我們得勝；若沒有它，我們無法在撒旦的詭計下站穩。
平安的福音
在這段經文，保羅並沒有為平安下定義，這顯示他預期我們已從別的經文明白甚麼是平安。故此，我們在這裡的方針，是從創世記至啟示錄追溯「平安」這主題，然後再看保羅在不同的書信中，包括以弗所書前面數章，再聚焦保羅怎樣理解平安。我們以這樣得出平安的定義，應用在我們研讀的經文，看看如何應用在我們的屬靈爭戰中。
在舊約中的平安
在舊約創世記中，我們讀到約瑟的兄弟把自己的兄弟賣作奴隸。隨後因著饑荒，他們要到埃及購買糧食，他們到了約瑟的家，但他們不知道那就是他們所出賣的兄弟的家，我們暫且把這因素放在一旁。他們感到害怕，因為他們相信那人是藉故殷勤，而他一定會傷害他們（參創世記43:18）。當約瑟的家宰看到他們感到害怕，便對他們說：「你們可以放心[原文按字義是願你們平安]，不要害怕，是你們的神和你們父親的神賜給你們財寶在你們的袋子裡，你們的銀子我早已收了。」（創世記43:23）。安慰只從那位真神、那位以色列的神而來。這位埃及家宰和他們談及他們的神（可能是約瑟吩咐他的），並告訴他們，他們袋裡的銀子，是他們的神給他們的祝福。故此，他們應感恩和感到平安，而不是感到困擾和恐懼。
不論在甚麼時候，當以色列人要出戰，他們不會感到恐懼或驚慌，他們深深感到平安的根源，是神與他們同在，並且會賜給他們勝利：
20:1 你出去與仇敵爭戰的時候，看見馬匹、車輛，並有比你多的人民，不要怕他們，因為領你出埃及地的耶和華你 神與你同在。20:2 你們將要上陣的時候，祭司要到百姓面前宣告說：20:3「以色列人哪，你們當聽：你們今日將要與仇敵爭戰，不要膽怯，不要懼怕戰兢，也不要因他們驚恐，20:4 因為耶和華你們的 神與你們同去，要為你們與仇敵爭戰，拯救你們。」(申命記20:1-4) 1
當神命令基甸帶領以色列的軍隊抵禦米甸的襲擊，祂知道基甸仍然缺乏信心和勇氣，因此祂給基甸一個經歷，給他在爭戰中所需要的平安：
7:9 當那夜，耶和華吩咐基甸說：「起來，下到米甸營裏去，因我已將他們交在你手中。7:10 倘若你怕下去，就帶你的僕人普拉下到那營裏去。7:11 你必聽見他們所說的，然後你就有膽量下去攻營。」於是，基甸帶着僕人普拉下到營旁。7:12 米甸人、亞瑪力人和一切東方人都布散在平原，如同蝗蟲那樣多。他們的駱駝無數，多如海邊的沙。7:13 基甸到了，就聽見一人將夢告訴同伴說：「我做了一夢，夢見一個大麥餅滾入米甸營中，到了帳幕，將帳幕撞倒，帳幕就翻轉傾覆了。」7:14 那同伴說：「這不是別的，乃是以色列人約阿施的兒子基甸的刀。 神已將米甸和全軍都交在他的手中。」基甸大敗仇敵 7:15 基甸聽見這夢和夢的講解，就敬拜 神，回到以色列營中說：「起來吧！耶和華已將米甸的軍隊交在你們手中了。」(士師記7:9-15) 2
神答允賜給以色列入的平安是有條件的。當他們相信神並且遵守祂的話語（特別是遵守律法），他們就有所應許的平安。如果他們不信神和撇棄祂的律法，神保證以色列人不再有平安，取而代之是恐懼與疑惑：
28:63 先前耶和華怎樣喜悅善待你們，使你們眾多，也要照樣喜悅毀滅你們，使你們滅亡，並且你們從所要進去得的地上必被拔除。28:64 耶和華必使你們分散在萬民中，從地這邊到地那邊，你必在那裏事奉你和你列祖素不認識木頭石頭的神。28:65 在那些國中，你必不得安逸，也不得落腳之地，耶和華卻使你在那裏心中跳動，眼目失明，精神消耗。28:66 你的性命必懸懸無定，你晝夜恐懼，自料性命難保。28:67 你因心裏所恐懼的，眼中所看見的，早晨必說：『巴不得到晚上才好！』晚上必說：『巴不得到早晨才好！』(申命記 28:63-67)
這是摩西在申命記第28-32章的主題，被後來的先知引用。他們確保那些叛逆神的以色列人沒有平安，所得的是神的審判：
耶和華說：「惡人必不得平安！」 (以賽亞書48:22和合本; 另參57:21)
12:12 滅命的軍隊都前進，來到曠野中的丘陵。因耶和華要用他們為刀，從地這邊直到地那邊盡行殺滅。 (耶利米書12:12; 另參7-13節)
30:5 不錯，這是祂所說的：「你聽到惶恐和懼怕的哭號；平安無處可見。 (耶利米書30:5)
與此同時，先知亦發出警告：假先知會否定神審判以色列，並且假稱平安，並保證神給子民祝福：
『他們草率地醫治我子民的損傷，說：「平安了！平安了！」其實沒有平安。』(耶利米書 6:14 新譯本) .3
平安在創世記開始便出現，但卻很快便失去了。神並非單單創造了這個世界，還有所有的植物和動物；並且創造了人類和一個園子，祂把人安放在園子裡和祂相交。在人墮落前那段日子，是何等的和平。在傍晚，神和亞當夏娃在園子裡散步，關係密切；但人的墮落使一切改變了，那平安也失去了。亞當和夏娃不是與神在園子裡散步，他們躲避神（創世記3:8）；他們並以他們被造時那赤裸為恥，並試圖遮蔽（創世記3:7）。整個創造都被拋進混亂中（參羅馬書8:18-23）。平安被棄的原因是亞當和夏娃不完全相信神和不肯守神給他們唯一的命令。
創世記第三章描述了人的墮落，神不僅道出罪的後果，並且也表明了終極的醫治，一個重新帶來平安的醫治。就如罪因一人進入世界，一位救主將人從罪中拯救出來：
3:15 我又要叫你和女人彼此為仇，你的後裔和女人的後裔也彼此為仇。女人的後裔要擊打你的頭，你要擊打她後裔的腳跟。」(創世記 3:15).
這話誠然為人帶來希望，同時亦是撒旦的厄運。這話是對撒旦說的，他的國度要被女人的後裔擊破。彌賽亞撥亂返正，為人類帶來救恩，恢復創造秩序，用平安取代紛爭和混亂。
過了幾章經文，我們便被給予進一步關於那將要來的彌賽亞的提示。在創世記12:1-3，神給予亞伯拉罕應許--亞伯拉罕之約；並且在整本書中不斷向他和他的後裔重複這應許要透過他的「後裔」（參加拉太書3:15-16），那將要來的彌賽亞、給全世界祝福。創世記第14章給一位神秘的王麥基洗德作了一個簡短的介紹，他是那要來的彌賽亞的預表，希伯來書的作者指出一個事實：
14:18 又有撒冷王麥基洗德，帶著餅和酒，出來迎接。（他是至高 神的祭司。）14:19 他為亞伯蘭祝福，說：「願創造天地的主，至高的 神，賜福與亞伯蘭。14:20 至高的 神把敵人交在你手裡，是配當稱頌的。」(創世記 14:18-20)
這位撒冷王麥基洗德是至高神的祭司，他在亞伯拉罕擊敗諸王回來的時候給他祝福；亞伯拉罕把戰利品的十分之一獻給他。他的名字翻譯出來，頭一個意思就是「公義的王」；其次是「撒冷王」，就是「平安的王」的意思。他沒有父親，沒有母親，沒有族譜，也沒有生死的記錄，而是與神的兒子相似，永遠作祭司。(希伯來書7:1-3 新譯本)
隨著舊約聖經不斷地揭示彌賽亞降臨的應許，舊約時代的聖徒漸漸清晰地看到永恆的「平安」只有透過彌賽亞才會來臨。只是怎樣得享這「平安」仍是一個秘密；這並非因為沒有啟示，而是關於彌賽亞降臨的不同啟示中有不協調的地方。
一方面，彌賽亞是以凱旋的軍王降臨，他坐在大衛的寶座上，他會打敗他的敵人，並建立應許的國度。
9:4 因為他們所負的重軛，打肩頭的杖，欺壓他們人的短棍，你都已經折斷，好像在米甸的日子一樣。9:5 戰士每一雙震地的戰靴，滾在血中的戰袍，都必當作柴燒。9:6 因有一嬰孩為我們而生，有一子賜給我們。政權必擔在他的肩頭上。他名稱為「奇妙的策士」、「全能的 神」、「永在的父」、「和平的君」！(以賽亞書 9:4-6)
而另一方面，彌賽亞卻因世人的罪而受苦，透過受苦帶來「平安」：
53:4 但他擔當我們的病患，背負我們的痛苦；我們卻以為他受責罰，被 神因他所行的擊打苦待了。53:5 哪知他為我們的悖逆受害；為我們的罪孽壓傷。因他受的刑罰，我們得平安；因他受的創傷，我們得醫治。53:6 我們都如羊走迷；各人偏離己路，但耶和華使我們眾人的罪孽都歸在他身上。(以賽亞書53:4-6)
舊約結束，先知們仍感到迷網，神如何透過一位既要受苦、又是榮耀的彌賽亞帶來「平安」：
1:10 論到這救恩，那預告你們要得恩典的眾先知，早已詳細的尋求考察；1:11 他們藉着心裏基督的靈引導，預先探討基督受苦難、後來得榮耀，要應驗在誰的身上，並怎樣的時候應驗。(彼得前書1:10-11)
只有這些預言的應驗解開了謎團。
在新約中的「平安」
當主耶穌降世，祂是一位完美的神，同時是一個完美的人時，祂被確定了祂就是帶來「平安」的那位。撒迦利亞曾說及基督的出現和那要來的平安，他的兒子約翰作先鋒，宣告主的來臨：
1:76 孩子啊，你要稱為至高者的先知；因為你要行在主的前面，預備他的道路，1:77 叫他的百姓，藉罪蒙赦免，得知救恩。1:78 因我們 神的溫柔憐憫，叫清晨的日光從高天臨到我們，1:79 要照亮坐在黑暗中死蔭裏的人，把我們的腳引到平安的路上。」(路加福音1:76-79)
在祂出生時，天使因祂帶給世人平安而讚美神：
1:14 歡喜快樂必臨到你，有許多人因他出世，也必喜樂。 (路加福音1:14).
年老的西面望著嬰孩耶穌，他說出他的平安，那平安能助他快樂地面對他的死亡：
2:25 在耶路撒冷有一個人名叫西面，又公義又虔誠的人，素常盼望以色列得蒙救贖，聖靈又在他身上。2:26 他得了聖靈的啟示，知道自己未死以前，必看見主所立的基督。2:27 他受了聖靈的指引，進入殿院，當耶穌的父母抱着孩子進來，要照律法的規矩辦事，2:28 西面就用手接過他來，稱頌 神說：2:29「全權的主啊，如今可以照你的話，釋放僕人安然離世了。2:30 因為我的眼睛已經看見你的救恩，2:31 就是你在萬民面前所預備的：2:32 光，是外邦人的啟示，又是你民以色列的榮耀。」(路加福音2:25-32)
耶穌在地上的事奉，祂給人平安的話。一個婦人偷偷的摸了耶穌的衣服，「盜取」了一個神蹟，她恐懼戰兢來到耶穌跟前，耶穌知她所做的事，耶穌怎樣作呢？
5:32 耶穌周圍觀看，要找出作這事的人。5:33 那女人知道在自己身上所發生的事，就恐懼戰兢的來俯伏在耶穌跟前，將實情全告訴他。5:34 耶穌對他說：「女兒，你的信救了你，平平安安的回去吧！你的病痊癒了。」(馬可福音 5:32-34)
在祂被捕、面對審問和被釘十字架以前，祂給門徒留下平安的話：
14:27「我留下平安給你們，我將我的平安賜給你們；我所賜的，不像世人所賜的。你們不要心裏憂傷，也不要害怕。14:28 你們聽見我對你們說過：『我要去，還要到你們這裏來。』你們若愛我，就要因我到父那裏去而喜樂，因為父是比我大的。14:29 現在事情還沒有實現，我預先告訴你們，到事情實現的時候，你們就可以信。14:30 我沒有時間和你們多說話，因為這世界的王將到。他沒有能力勝過我，14:31 但為要叫世人知道我愛父，父怎樣吩咐我，我就怎樣行。起來，我們走吧。」 (約翰福音14:27-31)
16:32 看哪！時候將到，現在就是了，你們將要分散，各自歸家，只留下我獨自一人；然而我不是獨自一人，因為有父與我同在。16:33 我將這些事告訴你們，是要叫你們在我裏面有平安。在世上你們有苦難；但你們可以放心，我已經勝了世界。」(約翰福音16:32-33)
在耶穌死後，門徒躲在一間樓房內，他們懼怕那些猶太宗教領袖將要怎麼樣對付他們。當耶穌向這群受驚的人顯現時，祂給他們平安的話：
20:19 當日（就是七日的第一日）晚上，門徒聚集在一起，因怕猶太人的領袖，把門都鎖上了。耶穌來站在他們當中，對他們說：「願你們平安！」20:20 說了這話，就把手和肋旁給他們看。門徒看見主，就喜樂了。20:21 耶穌又對他們說：「願你們平安！父怎樣差遣了我，我也照樣差遣你們。」20:22 說了這話，就向他們吹一口氣，說：「你們受聖靈。20:23 你們赦免誰的罪，誰的罪就赦免了；你們留下誰的罪，誰的罪就留下了。」(約翰福音 20:19-23) 4
五旬節後，門徒開始傳福音。路加稱他們「傳從耶穌而來的平安」：
10:34 彼得就開口說：「我真看出 神是不偏待人，10:35 原來各國中，那敬畏主行義的人，都為主所悅納。10:36 神藉着耶穌基督（他是萬有的主）傳平安的福音，將這信息賜給以色列人。10:37 這話在約翰宣傳洗禮以後，從加利利起，傳遍了猶太；10:38 神怎樣以聖靈和能力膏拿撒勒人耶穌，這都是你們知道的。他周遊四方行善事，醫好凡被魔鬼壓制的人，因為 神與他同在。(使徒行傳 10:34-38)
彼得在他的書信中繼續表達平安是值得追求的：
3:10 因為經上說：「人若愛生命，願享美福，須要禁止舌頭不出惡言，嘴唇不說詭詐的話。3:11 也要離惡行善，尋求和睦，一心追趕。3:12 因為主的眼看顧義人，主的耳聽他們的祈禱；惟有行惡的人，主向他們變臉。」 (彼得前書3:10-12)
你們彼此要用愛親嘴問安。願平安歸與你們凡在基督裏的人。 (彼得前書 5:14)
彼得在他最後的一封書信，極力勸勉他的讀者要能安然見主，不要被假教師傅的教導誘惑而沉淪：
3:14 親愛的弟兄啊！你們既等候這些事，就當努力，使自己沒有玷污，無可指摘，安然見主。3:15 以我主的忍耐為救贖，就如我們所親愛的弟兄保羅，照着所賜給他的智慧，寫信給你們；3:16 在他一切的信上，也都是講論這些事。信中有些難明白的，那無知、不堅定的人曲解了，如曲解別的經文一樣，就導致自己的沉淪。3:17 親愛的弟兄啊！你們既然預先受了警惕，就當防備，恐怕被惡人的錯謬誘惑，就從自己的堅固上墜落。3:18 你們卻要在我們主和救主耶穌基督的恩典和知識上有長進。願榮耀歸給他，從今直到永遠！阿們。(彼得後書3:14-18) 5
在保羅著作中的平安
使徒保羅明白和曾經歷神的平安，他在書信開首祝願收信人平安，有時在結語也有平安的祝頌語：
1:3 願恩惠、平安，從 神我們的父，並主耶穌基督，歸與你們！(哥林多前書1:3)
6:23 願平安、愛、信，從父 神和主耶穌基督，歸與弟兄姐妹們。 (以弗所書6:23)
保羅使用行善和作惡的人的結局作對比，指出公義的果子是平安；而作惡的後果是磨難與痛苦：
2:4 還是你藐視他豐富的恩慈、寬容和忍耐，而不曉得他的恩慈是領你悔改呢？2:5你竟任着你頑梗不悔改的心，為自己積蓄忿怒，直到 神震怒的日子，顯他公義的審判。2:6 他必照各人的行為報應各人：2:7 凡恆心作善工，尋求榮耀、尊貴和不能朽壞的，就賞以永生；2:8 但是放縱私慾，不順從真理，反順從不義的，就報以烈怒。2:9 將有患難和困苦加給一切作惡的人，先是猶太人，後是希臘人；2:10 卻將榮耀、尊貴和平安加給一切有善行的人，先是猶太人，後是希臘人。(羅馬書2:4-10)
他說平安是因信基督又得到救恩所產生的結果：
5:1我們既因信稱義，就藉着我們的主耶穌基督得與 神相和。5:2 我們又藉着他，因信得進入現在所站的這恩典中，並且歡歡喜喜盼望 神的榮耀。(羅馬書5:1-2)
他還談到平安是聖靈所結的果子：
8:5 因為以肉體而活的人有肉體的想法；以聖靈而活的人有聖靈的想法。8:6 有肉體想法的就是死，有聖靈想法的乃是生命和平安，8:7 因為有肉體想法的就是與 神為敵，原因是不服從 神的律法，也無力服從。8:8 而且在肉體裏的人不能得 神的喜歡。(羅馬書8:5-8) 6
對保羅來說，平安是基本要素，並非偶發性的。追求平安在基督徒的生命中應該有優先的位置，追求平安可以避免不必要的絆跌、分歧與紛爭；也規管參與教會聚會的方式：
14:16 不可叫你看為善的被人看為惡，14:17 因為 神的國，不在乎吃喝，只在乎公義、和平，並聖靈中的喜樂。14:18 這樣服事基督的，就為 神所喜悅，又為人所稱許。14:19 所以我們務要追求和睦的事，彼此建立。(羅馬書 14:16-19)
倘若那不信的人要離婚，就由他吧。無論是弟兄或是姐妹遇着這樣的事，都不必受約束。 神召我們原是要我們和睦。(哥林多前書7:15)
14:33 因為 神不是叫人混亂，乃是叫人安靜。在聖徒的眾教會裏，(哥林多前書14:33)
13:11 最後，願弟兄姐妹們都喜樂，改正，要受勉勵，要同心合意，要彼此和睦。如此，仁愛、和平的 神必常與你們同在。(哥林多後書13:11)
3:15又要叫基督的平安在你們心裏作主（你們蒙召，歸為一體，進入這平安），且要常存感謝的心。(歌羅西書 3:15)
2:22你要逃避少年的私慾，同那清心求告主的人追求公義、忠信、仁愛、和平。(提摩太後書2:22)
當基督徒在生活中遇到逼迫、逆境和苦難時，他或她在這種處境中應仍經歷神的平安。因此保羅譴責焦慮並讚揚平安：
4:6 應當一無掛慮，凡事只要藉着禱告、祈求，和感謝，將你們所要的告訴 神。4:7 神所賜超人理解的平安，必在基督耶穌裏，保守你們的心懷意念。4:8 最後，弟兄姐妹們，凡是真實的、可敬的、公義的、純潔的、可愛的、值得表揚的、上好的，或是可稱讚的，這些事你們都要思念。4:9 你們在我身上所學習的、所領受的、所聽見的、所看見的，這些事你們都要去行。平安的 神就必與你們同在。(腓立比書4:6-9)
3:16 願賜平安的主，隨時隨事親自給你們平安。願主常與你們眾人同在。 (帖撒羅尼迦後書3:16)
保羅也談及非信徒錯誤以為可得安慰，他們所得的是假平安和假保障，他們的厄運和毀滅的日子就在眼前：
5:3 人正說「平安穩妥」的時候，毀滅忽然臨到他們，如同產難臨到一個懷胎的婦人一樣，他們絕不能逃脫。(帖撒羅尼迦前書5:3)
以弗所書所述的平安
保羅在以弗所書，以平安來開始和作結語：
1:2 願恩惠、平安，從 神我們的父，和主耶穌基督歸與你們！ (以弗所書1:2)
6:23 願平安、愛、信，從父 神和主耶穌基督，歸與弟兄姐妹們。(以弗所書6:23)
不管你翻到這書的那一個篇幅，你都會找到和平安相關的教導或勸勉。這卷書的任何一章，也許是直接、或是間接，都不會不處理平安這課題。
在以弗所書第一章，保羅一開始便以平安作為問安語（1:2）。接著，他叫讀者留意神的旨意和永恆計劃，那就是一切在基督裡同歸於一（1:10）。神揀選我們在祂面前成為聖潔是這計劃的一部份（1:4）。我們的終極，取決於那永恆的過去，我們在基督裡的應許有聖靈的印記（1:13）；而永恆的未來安於神的計劃和在基督裡。
我們能夠肯定救恩，就如我們肯定神的大能可以成就祂的旨意。保羅在15-23節禱告的焦點，是我們能抓緊我們能肯定那將來盼望的實在。他禱告我們得到神的啟迪，我們能抓緊祂的呼召所帶來的盼望，聖徒得到成為祂的繼承人的至高榮耀和神在永恆的過去成全祂的旨意那大能。這大能在基督的復活和高升超過其他地上和天上的權勢，明顯地表達出來；天使和撒旦與及他的黨羽都在基督的權能下。
第2章充滿和我們平安相關的保證。在這章裡，保羅述說了兩種平安，平安是從基督的死亡、埋葬和復活而來，這平安首先是「與神和好」，其次是「與人和好」。
在以弗所書第二章的開端告訴我們，藉著基督的十字架，我們現在才能與神和好。當我們還作不信的人，我們在不知不覺中成為撒旦的僕役，我們以前「死在罪惡和過犯中」，不單「隨從今世的風俗」，而且「順服空中掌權者的首領」（以弗所書2:1-2）。我們過往並非按著聖靈的引領而活（5:18），但隨着肉體和心中所喜好的去行（2:3）。
那時，我們「與基督分離」（2:12），甚至與基督為敵。我們與神的祝福無份，沒有指望：
2:13但你們從前遠離 神的人，如今卻在基督耶穌裏，已經被他的血帶近了。(以弗所書 2:13)
所有遠離神的人，都因為耶穌基督在各各他所成就的救恩而改變了：
2:13但你們從前遠離 神的人，如今卻在基督耶穌裏，已經被他的血帶近了。2:14 因他是我們的和睦，將兩下合而為一，拆毀了中間隔斷的牆，彼此的寃仇，2:15 就是當他在肉體中廢掉那記在律法上的規條的時候。又將兩下藉着自己造成一個新人，如此便成就了和睦。2:16 他既在十字架上為這寃仇受害，便藉這十字架使兩下歸為一體，與 神和好了；2:17他並且來傳和平給你們遠處的人，也傳給那近處的人，2:18 以致我們兩下藉着聖靈進到父面前。2:19 這樣，你們不再作外人和客旅，而是與聖徒同國，是 神家裏的人了；2:20 因為你們已被建造在使徒和先知的根基上，有基督耶穌自己作為房角石35，2:21 全屋靠他聯繫作準則，漸漸長成為主的聖殿；2:22 你們也靠他同被建造，成為 神藉着聖靈居住的所在。(以弗所書 2:13-22, 重點在屬我的和矇).
基督是我們獲得平安的途徑；那平安既是與神和好、也是神的平安。基督的救贖將那因為我們的罪而在我們和神之間的障礙移除。我們不單被拉「近」祂，並且成了祂的一部份；作為信徒，我們現在是祂的身體的一部份。
主得勝而來的平安並不止此，在我們得救以前，我們是猶太人的敵人，在神和他們所立的約以外，並沒有得到祂福份的指望。我們和猶太人並無情誼，並且明顯地與他們為敵。在我們得救以前，我們不單與神為敵，我們也與猶太人為敵。那疏遠和分隔並非單方面的，猶太人對我們懷有敵意，而我們對他們同樣懷有敵意。在聖殿中有一幅「牆」，將猶太人和外邦人分隔。這牆象徵我們外邦人和他們猶太人之間的疏離與仇視。
基督在各各他的工作改變了這情況，祂把那分隔猶太人和外邦人之間的牆拆毀。祂成為我們的平安，祂將雙方在祂裡面合而為一，那信福音的，不再分為「猶太人」和「外邦人」。現在，所有信基督的人在祂裡面成為一體。祂叫我們與祂和好，成為「一個新人」。我們在祂裡面成為一體--教會，那是祂在人間的居所。
在第3章，保羅將焦點放在苦難的另一來源--恐懼，它給撒旦立足之地、使人不安。保羅是在監獄中寫這封書信，他因信仰而遭受不公的苦難，他的被關押可能令其他聖徒驚惶失措。第三章是為了消除聖徒中可能因他的捆鎖而出現的恐懼，並且表明他的受苦是一種榮譽，也是神揭示祂的奧秘的總計劃的其中一部份，這奧秘就是把福音傳給外邦人。保羅以他的事工，包括他的被捆鎖視作一種榮譽，神施恩授予他的特權：
3:8 我本來比眾聖徒中最小的還小，然而他還賜我這恩典，叫我把基督那測不透的豐富傳給外邦人；3:9 又使眾人都明白，這歷代以來隱藏在創造萬物之 神裏，奧秘的計劃42，3:10 就是要藉着教會使天上執政的、掌權的，現在得知 神百般的43智慧。3:11 這是照 神從萬世以前，在我們主基督耶穌裏所成就的永恆旨意。3:12我們因着耶穌的信實，就在他裏面放膽無懼，篤信不疑的來到 神面前。3:13 所以我求你們，不要因我為你們所受的患難喪膽，這原是你們的榮耀。(以弗所書 3:8-13)
在第三章14-21節，保羅在這裡提供了信心和勇氣的進一步原由。他向天父屈膝禱告，他向「天上地上的全家，都是從祂得名」（15節）的那位禱告。從伊甸園起，誰為別的起名，便對被起名的擁有管轄的權柄。故此，神不單為祂的創造起名，也給人賜新的名字，將他們的命運改變了（參創世記17:4-7,15-16；35:9-12）。
假如天父就是那位給天上地上全家賜名的，那就是說祂擁有管轄天上眾生，包括天使的權柄（另參以弗所書1:20-22；歌羅西書1:16-18）。祂是全能的神，掌管祂創造的每一部份。因此，我們可以因為曉得祂的計劃和旨意將會成就，就算我們如基督處於受苦的過程中，都能經歷和得享平安。這些苦難將我們領到榮耀和喜悅裡，受苦也是值得的。
在第四章，在基督裡的合一和聖靈所賜予的多元恩賜，是神戰勝撒旦和他的黨羽的另一明證。聖靈所賜的禮物，不僅幫助我們成長和長至成熟，這也是第8-10節基督戰勝撒旦的證據：
4:8 所以經上說：「他升上高天的時候，囚禁了仇敵，將恩賜給人。51」4:9 既說升上，豈不是先降在地下52嗎？4:10 那降下的，也就是遠升諸天之上為要充滿萬有的。(以弗所書 4:8-10)
以弗所書的餘下部份，由4:17至6:9主要是處理如何維持平安。特別是神在那些在基督裡有寶貴信心的人中所成就的平安。總體而言，要保存這平安，我們要放棄未信前的思維和行事為人的方式（3:17-32）；要保存平安，我們要行在愛中（5:1-7）、在光明中（5:8-14）、在智慧中（5:15-20）、在聖靈裡（5:18）和順服（5:21–6:9）。
結合所引用有關平安的經文，我們可以看到平安的樣貌；我們也可以透過甚麼不是平安而為平安下定義。平安和下面的情況恰恰相反：恐懼、怯懦、恐慌、擔心戰慄、絕望、懷疑、畏懼、焦慮和煩躁不安。平安是一種內在的平靜與安寧，既自信、又清醒。從入際關係的角度，不論是和神或與其他人的關係，平安是沒有敵意和仇恨，是真正的團結與和諧。
最後我要說的，平安只從神而來。不同形式的假「平安」，或許在片時能夠製造出和真平安相似的果效，但它們卻是短暫的和站不住腳的。神是平安的唯一來源，唯獨祂透過基督在各各他的十字架，扭轉和糾正了伊甸園人類墮落的問題，在基督裡移除了神和罪人之間的障礙，並且在相信的人當中帶來和諧，不管他們是甚麼種族、性別或身份。
平安和屬靈爭戰
初看起來，平安和屬靈爭戰是兩碼子的事情，一個人怎能在爭戰時，卻又是「平安」呢？我相信聖經的教導是：一個人若沒有平安，就不能爭戰。這告訴我們為甚麼平安是屬靈爭戰的軍備之一。
平安並非指沒有外在的試探和苦難。平安是內在的平靜，它是我們面對外在困難時最明顯和最需要的。當以色列人要出征，有部份人是不准許參戰的：
20:5 官長也要對百姓宣告說：『誰建造房屋，尚未奉獻？他可以回家去，恐怕他陣亡，別人去奉獻。20:6 誰種葡萄園，尚未用所結的果子，他可以回家去，恐怕他陣亡，別人去用。20:7 誰聘定了妻，尚未迎娶，他可以回家去，恐怕他陣亡，別人去娶。」20:8 官長又要對百姓宣告說：「誰懼怕膽怯，他可以回家去，恐怕他弟兄的心消化，和他一樣。」(申命記20:5-8)
我相信那些得到豁免無需出征的人，是因為他們沒有作為一名士兵所需要的平安。有新房屋的人，他心裡想的是他的房子而不是那場戰事；那訂了親的，無法把未婚妻置諸腦後而令他分心；那懼怕的也會分心。故此，一個參與爭戰的人，必須有平安。
撒旦眾多方法的其中一項，就是促使聖徒產生內在疑慮和恐懼，並且促使外在的不和諧來搶奪聖徒的平安。他的目的是使我們驚慌懼怕，以致我們做出愚魯和破壞性的行動：
5:6 你們若謙卑在 神大能的手下，到了時候他必叫你們升高。5:7 謙卑就是將一切的憂慮卸給 神，因為他顧念你們。5:8 務要謹守、儆醒。你們的仇敵魔鬼，如同吼叫的獅子，遍地游行，尋找可吞吃的人。5:9 你們要抵擋他，信心堅定，因為知道你們在世上的弟兄姐妹，也在忍受同樣的苦難。5:10 這樣，那賜一切恩典、曾在基督裏召你們，得享他永遠榮耀的 神，等你們暫受苦難之後，必要親自復興、確認、堅固，和建立你們。(彼得前書5:6-10)
我不認為彼得在指示我們要將一切的憂慮交托給主後，即時談論撒旦只是巧合。撒旦在尋找心靈受困擾的人來威嚇他們，他的目的是要那些人在驚惶失措時落入他的魔掌。我們抵擋撒旦的方法是透過尋求和保存從神而來的平安，那平安源自認識到撒旦是戰敗者；並且認識神的旨意和應許是真確的，當我們信靠祂的時候，我們就安全了。
用平安的福音當作預備
在這節經文中，關於「預備」這個詞語的討論十分多。一般來說，這個詞語有兩個常用的理解和應用方法。一方面這詞可以指「準備好」去宣揚福音。若按此詮釋，平安就如一名跑手從起跑器所得到的初始推力。無疑，我們應該準備好和願意把福音傳給失喪的人（參彼得前書3:15）。保羅在這節也許是指要為傳福音作好準備。
然而，若將這字解釋作「準備就緒」就更切合他的主題。一名士兵絕不可丟掉他的鞋子，否則他必被打敗。耶穌基督的福音帶來平安，這平安讓基督的戰士準備就緒，使他能經受得起那場戰事。與神和睦相處給予基督徒部份軍備，乍聽起來是那樣奇怪，這軍備讓他在抵擋撒旦和他的黨羽的屬靈爭戰中站立得穩。
結語
我的基督徒朋友啊！我並不感受到今天的信徒經歷完全的平安，故此我們受撒旦猛烈的攻擊。在教會中有強烈的憂慮：父母為孩子們憂慮、家庭為經濟問題而憂慮、教會為他們的活動安排和其他無數的困難而憂慮；我們為罪惡、經濟與及國家和世界的前景而憂慮。這些憂慮都是對那掌管萬事萬物的神不敬，並且使我們在敬拜和爭戰中分心。
在我們研讀的經文和其他的經文，神給我們表明平安是祂在基督裡成就的，也是基督徒必須追求的。那麼，我們如何追求平安？我們如何能夠重新得到那失落的平安呢？
首先我們必須記住，平安是神供應給我們的；這平安是祂在十字架上成就的。我們必須恆常回到主耶穌的十字架和默想各各他所帶來的果效。我們必須以締造和平作為優先和主導原則來規範我們的行為。我們要把焦點調校在神的屬性、神的主權和祂的旨意與計劃上。
我們的優先次序應是締造和平，並以此作為我們行為的指引。我們的焦點應放在神的屬性和神按祂的主權所定下的旨意和計劃。我們必須認識到，在逆境和苦難中祂賜下平安。我們是以神賜予其他恩賜的相同方式獲得平安--透過神的恩典和我們的信心得到這些禮物。
最後讓我們看看腓立比書4:4-9，這是保羅給予處理焦慮和經歷神的平安最重要的教導。讓我們一起來看：
4:4 你們要在主裏常常喜樂。我再說，你們要喜樂！4:5 讓眾人見到你們的溫柔。主已經近了！4:6 應當一無掛慮，凡事只要藉着禱告、祈求，和感謝，將你們所要的告訴 神。4:7 神所賜超人理解的平安，必在基督耶穌裏，保守你們的心懷意念。4:8 最後，弟兄姐妹們，凡是真實的、可敬的、公義的、純潔的、可愛的、值得表揚的、上好的，或是可稱讚的，這些事你們都要思念。4:9 你們在我身上所學習的、所領受的、所聽見的、所看見的，這些事你們都要去行。平安的 神就必與你們同在。(腓立比書 4:4-9)
首先，平安來自在神裡的喜悅。祂是我們的救贖、祂是我們的保障、祂是我們的勝利、祂是我們的喜樂。平安在祂裡面安歇和歡樂（第4節）。其次，平安來自追求和在主內的弟兄姊妹合一與和諧，滿有恩典地包容相互之間的弱點（第5節，另參以弗所書4:17-32）。我們為我們所需用的向神祈求，並且相信祂會成就，我們透過禱告得著平安（第6-7節）。當我們約束我們的心懷意念，拒絕那些不合真理與公義的心思意念，我們得著平安（第8節）。當我們思考真理、實踐真理，我們得著平安（第9節）。
聖經向所有人說話，並應許那些在心內有困擾的人在基督裡的平安。假如你並未接受耶穌基督為主，以下是主自己發出的邀請：
11:28 凡勞苦擔重擔的人，可以到我這裏來，我就使你們得安息。11:29 你們當負我的軛，學習我心裏的柔和謙卑，這樣，你們的心就必得享安息。 (馬太福音 11:28-29).
祂常對困苦疲乏的人、背負罪的重擔的人和充滿恐懼的人說：「平平安安地去吧。」
平安唯獨從神而來。平安從耶穌基督而來，祂使神和人復和，祂使敵對的人和平相處；祂賜給人內在的平安，就是在撒旦攻擊我們的時候，祂幫助我們站立得穩。願你在祂裡面能夠找到平安，透過相信耶穌基督赦免你的罪，也因為祂公義的緣故我們能夠與神相交。
16:20 平安的 神快要將撒但踐踏在你們腳下。願我主耶穌的恩常和你們同在。(羅馬書 16:20)
6:24 願耶和華賜福給你，保護你。6:25 願耶和華使他的臉光照你，賜恩給你。(民數記 6:24-26)
6:23 願平安、愛、信，從父 神和主耶穌基督，歸與弟兄姐妹們。 (以弗所書 6:23)
我不情願在結束前不提出警告。平安並非我們信心的基礎；聖經裡所說的平安，建基於我們對神的信。我常常聽到人們以「我感到平安」來為他們的決定、態度和行為作出辯護。舊約和新約的經文都為假平安警告我們那是具破壞性和致命的。我們應以神的屬性和神的話語為我們平安的基礎，平安的根源必須源於神，並且合乎公義與真理。內在平安的感覺並不能證明我們是對的，但處於正確與公義中是平安的基礎。讓我們透過信靠順服神來尋求平安。
譯者註：除特別標示的地方，中文經文採用NET（中文版）
Translated by: Jenny Pao 鮑婉玲譯
1另參申命記31:1-8.
2要留意當神賜基甸「平安」好與米甸人爭戰，神實際上是使米甸人驚慌和顫抖的心。神是以色列人平安的來源，也是以色列的敵人恐懼的來源。比較出埃及記15:13-18。
3 另參耶利米書 8:11; 以西結書 13:10, 16
4另參路加福音 24:36-40.
5希伯來書的作者勸勉他的讀者要追求和平：「你們要追求與眾人和睦，並要追求聖潔；非聖潔沒有人能見主。」(希伯來書12:14)
6 另參加拉太書5:22.
Related Topics: Spiritual Life
Lesson 10: Why Serve God? (Malachi 3:13-18)
Related MediaDo you ever get discouraged in serving God, to the point that you feel like quitting? Many pastors do. I read recently that 1,500 pastors a month in the United States are leaving the ministry. Some leave because of moral failure, but many leave because of spiritual burnout or discouragement because of opposition or contention in their congregations.
Several recent surveys revealed that 85 percent of pastors said that they are weary of dealing with problem people. Seventy percent said that they felt that God had called them to pastoral ministry before their ministry began, but after three years of ministry, only 50 percent still felt called (from an email sent out on January 30, 2003, by the late Bill Bright and the Global Pastors Network).
At our men’s retreat last weekend, I was chatting with our speaker, Dennis Ahern, who is the West Coast Regional Director for CB International. He said that while there are many short-term mission workers, few are accepting the call to be career missionaries, and even of those, many are serving only one term. Apparently, many pastors and missionaries need to think through the question, “Why serve God?”
I encounter many in the local church who have served God, sometimes for many years, but they feel burned out and they are not involved in serving any longer. In some cases, they drop out of church altogether, claiming that they can worship God better by avoiding the church. In other cases, they may attend church, but that’s all that they do. If you ask them to serve, they say, in effect, “No thanks! Been there, done that!” In many cases, they were criticized or attacked for their efforts. Often, they feel unappreciated and used. But whatever the reason, they are not serving. Our text speaks to all such burned out workers, answering the question, “Why serve God?”
The people in Malachi’s day had grown indifferent to God’s great love. The theme of Malachi is, “I have loved you,” says the Lord. But the callused response of the people was, “How have You loved us?” (1:2). The prophet seeks to show them that the problem was not on God’s part. It never is. The problem was their sinfully selfish, temporal perspective. They needed to see things from God’s eternal perspective and serve Him by faith.
Behind their wrong attitude was the age-old subject that we covered in 2:17: Why do the wicked prosper and the godly suffer? You may wonder, Why bring it up again so soon? The answer is, this problem doesn’t get put to rest once and for all. It keeps creeping back into our thinking. God knows that we wrestle with it, and so He graciously addresses the subject repeatedly, so that we will maintain His perspective when we are tempted to think that it is vain to serve Him. The prophet shows us:
We should serve God because He notices and cares deeply for all who serve Him.
There are two groups in our text. Group A (3:13-15) is the group to Avoid. This group grumbled against God, complaining that there is no reward for serving Him; you may as well be an arrogant, wicked person who tests God and escapes. Group B (3:16-18) is the group to Be in. These people feared God and esteemed His name. They encouraged one another to continue serving God in spite of the seeming prosperity of the wicked and suffering of the righteous. God takes special notice of them and promises that He will spare them in the day of judgment because they are His special treasure.
1. Group A: Avoid being among those who complain about serving God (3:13-15).
This group spoke arrogantly or harshly against the Lord, but when the prophet confronts them, they ask, “What have we spoken against You?” As verses 14-15 show, they weren’t directly shaking their fists at God. Rather, they were complaining to one another, but God was eavesdropping! He always does, of course! He notices all that we think or say. But these people were not God-oriented, and so they spoke brazenly to one another, voicing their common complaints as if God were deaf or non-existent.
Their complaint was, “It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept His charge, and that we have walked in mourning before the Lord of hosts?” (3:14). They went even farther, probably in sarcastic mockery. They called the arrogant blessed, and said that wicked people are not only built up, but also they test God and escape (3:15). There are four characteristics of this group to avoid:
A. These people were sitting in judgment on God, rather than submitting to His dealings with them.
Whenever we grumble about our circumstances or the wrong treatment that we have received, we are really elevating ourselves above God. We are saying, in effect, “God, I could run this universe better than You are running it! I’m just trying to serve You, and all I get is unfair treatment and trouble. But the guy who arrogantly defies You is living a happy life. I’d fix this problem if I were in charge!” What arrogance, to think that somehow I’d do a better job of running the universe than the Lord of hosts!
One of the most prevalent sins of the Israelites in the wilderness was their spirit of grumbling and complaining against God. They rather would have returned to slavery in Egypt than to trust God and endure hardship in the wilderness! He had delivered them from bondage in a dramatic and miraculous way through the Red Sea. From there, they went three days into the wilderness, found no water, and began to grumble (Exod. 15:22-27).
Later they grumbled about the boring manna that God faithfully supplied every day, and so the Lord graciously provided quail (Numbers 11). They grumbled at the report of the spies about the giants in the land, and talked about appointing a leader to return to Egypt (Numbers 14). God was displeased with their grumbling. That entire generation, except for Joshua and Caleb, who trusted God, died in the wilderness (Num. 14:26-38).
Whenever we grumble about our circumstances, we are impugning the character of God and exalting ourselves above Him. We’re saying, “God doesn’t really love us, or He wouldn’t let us be in this difficult place.” And, we’re saying, “I know better than God what is good for me.” John Calvin observes, “But in the service of God the chief thing is this— that men deny themselves and give themselves up to be ruled by God, and never raise a clamor when he humbles them” (Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker reprint], on Malachi 3:13, pp. 595-596). As Paul exhorts us from his prison cell, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing; that you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world” (Phil. 2:15).
B. These people had a self-centered attitude.
They ask, “What profit is it that we have kept His charge …?” (3:14). What’s in it for us? The Hebrew word translated “profit” was a technical term for a weaver cutting a piece of cloth free from the loom. The idea here is that these people expected their “cut” or percentage, much as a gangster would demand his cut for his dirty work (Walter Kaiser, Malachi, God’s Unchanging Love [Baker], p. 98). They were grumbling that God hadn’t given them their fair share.
Be careful here! The flesh is inclined to self-pity, self-focus, and self-centeredness, and the world feeds this. If there’s nothing in it for you, why do it? If the church isn’t meeting your needs, bail out. You deserve some happiness. You can’t worry about the needs of others! God understands. Your needs come first!
We need to be careful about how we present the gospel. If we approach it as, “Come to Jesus and He will meet all your needs,” we aren’t giving the full picture. It’s true, of course, that Jesus satisfies the deepest longings of every heart that trusts in Him. But He is not Aladdin’s Genie, waiting to grant our every wish. While following Christ brings us deep and lasting joy, the path to that joy is daily self-denial and the cross (Luke 9:23-24), which are not immediately pleasant experiences!
I always chuckle when I read about the time Peter said to Jesus, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You.” Jesus affirmed that whatever they had given up to follow Him, they would receive a hundred times as much in this present age. Then, while I’m sure the disciples were nodding in approval, Jesus added almost offhandedly, “along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life” (Mark 10:28-30).
What’s in it for you, if you serve the Lord? He gives abundant blessings, both in this life and in eternity. But don’t forget the persecutions! “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12). Self-centered people don’t last long in serving God.
C. These people had lost the motivation for holy living.
They asked, “What profit is it that … we have walked in mourning before the Lord of hosts?” (3:14). Outwardly, they went through the motions of fasting and humbling themselves before God. But they were not doing these things out of a heart of love and devotion for God. Inwardly they were thinking, “This religion stuff is a drag! We want some fun out of life!”
Motivation is everything when it comes to obeying and serving God. I read about an elderly Christian lady who was a shut-in. She had two daughters, both Christians, who came by to clean and help out. Both made everything shine, but the first daughter left the impression that her task was an awful burden. The second daughter was cheery and made her mother feel loved. Both daughters did the same task, but the first did it out of duty alone. The second did it out of love for her mother. Her motive made all the difference.
Jesus rebuked the church at Ephesus. They were doing many good things. They had persevered and endured for Christ’s sake. But they had left their first love for Him (Rev. 2:1-4). When Jesus restored Peter to service after his fall, He asked three times, “Do you love Me?” With that as a foundation, He said, “Tend My sheep” (John 21:15-17). Paul said, “… the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me” (Gal. 2:20). Love for the Lord Jesus, who gave Himself on the cross for me, should be the motive behind everything that I do for Him.
So this group to avoid was sitting in judgment on God, they had a self-centered attitude, and they had lost the motivation of love as the basis for holy living and service.
D. These people had focused on the seeming prosperity of the wicked, but had lost the eternal perspective.
While saying that it is vain to serve God, they were calling the arrogant blessed. From all that they could see, there was no reward for following God, and there were many rewards for defying God and seeking your own prosperity.
Whenever we start thinking that way, we have lost God’s eternal perspective and adopted the world’s temporal perspective. Asaph wrote about this in Psalm 73. He contrasted the prosperity of the wicked with his own trials and concluded that he was following God in vain. This was troublesome in his sight until he went into the sanctuary of God. There he considered the end of the wicked and the reward of the righteous. I encourage you to meditate on that Psalm whenever you’re tempted in this manner.
Also, read Paul’s great resurrection chapter, 1 Corinthians 15. He states (15:19), “If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” Why serve Christ if this life is all there is? Rather, “eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (15:32). But, if Christ is risen and if we will be raised from the dead also, Paul’s conclusion is, “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord” (15:58). So avoid Group A. But there’s a second group:
2. Group B: God notices and cares for those who fear and serve Him in spite of hardships (3:16-18).
This is the group to Be in! They were probably the minority group, numbers-wise. But God always has a faithful remnant that serves Him in spite of many difficulties. Note that Group B, those who serve God, are called righteous, whereas Group A are called wicked (3:18). That is not to say that serving God earns the label of “righteous.” We can do nothing to commend ourselves to God. Our righteousness is in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose righteousness is imputed to us as a gift of God’s grace through faith (Rom. 3:21-26). But serving God is a distinguishing mark of the righteous person, whereas not serving God marks the wicked, who live for themselves. There are two, and only two, groups here. Either you have not trusted in Christ and you live for yourself, or you have been justified by faith in Christ and now you live to serve Him. Make sure that you’re in Group B, not in Group A! Three characteristics mark Group B:
A. These people fear God and esteem His name above the opinions of others.
Twice verse 16 emphasizes that these people feared God, and it further adds that they esteemed His name. “Esteem” (KJV = “thought upon”) means to meditate, to regard, and thus to set value on something. Isaiah (13:17) uses the word to describe the Medes, who “will not value silver” when they invade Babylon. In other words, they would not be bought off with silver, because they did not value it above victory. (See also, Isa. 53:3.)
In our text, this group valued the Lord and His character (“name”) above the majority opinion. They didn’t go with the prevailing flow of their day, because they looked to God in His majesty, and they feared Him and valued Him above everything else.
In my opinion, the Christian world today needs a revived emphasis on the proper fear of God. We rightly emphasize God’s love, because “God is love” (1 John 4:8). But we are out of balance if we emphasize God’s love to the neglect of the fear that is due to His holy name.
I wish that many of God’s people today, who view God as their Good Buddy, would read John Bunyan’s excellent “Treatise on the Fear of God” (The Works of John Bunyan [Baker], 1:437-491). He writes, “When God comes to bring a soul news of mercy and salvation, even that visit, that presence of God, is fearful” (p. 438). In God’s presence, he says, “even our best things, our comeliness, our sanctity and righteousness, all do immediately turn to corruption and polluted rags” (p. 439). The proper fear of God causes us to hate evil and turn from it (Prov. 3:7; 8:13; 16:6). Too many pastors today fear what people think of them more than they fear what God thinks of them! Fearing God gives us the courage to confront sin, even if people don’t like us for doing so.
B. These people encourage one another in the face of surrounding evil.
“Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another” (3:16). “Then” refers to verse 15. when the wicked called the arrogant blessed. Group B had to counter the evil talk of Group A. They had to be as bold for God as Group A was bold for evil. They did it by getting together and talking. We are not told specifically what they said, but they probably encouraged one another by saying, “Don’t listen to these scoffers. Don’t give up serving the Lord! He will reward all that serve Him and He will judge the wicked scoffers.”
The point is, we need fellowship with like-minded believers in order to stand firm against the wrong ideas that come at us from the world, the flesh, and the devil. If all you do is attend church and leave, but you don’t fellowship with other Christians during the week, you will struggle to maintain a godly perspective in the face of the evil around us. That’s why Hebrews 10:24-25 commands us to think about how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, and not to forsake assembling together, but to encourage “one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”
Group B fears God and encourages one another. Finally,
C. These people are especially noticed and cared for by God.
“The Lord gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him…” (3:16). The Hebrew word translated “gave attention” means to prick up the ears, as an animal does when it hears something. The word “heard” means to bend over so as not to miss a word. The picture is that of a parent, eavesdropping on the conversation between his children (Charles Simeon, Expository Outlines on the Whole Bible [Zondervan], 10:620-621). The book of remembrance probably refers to the record book that Persian kings kept with the names and favorable deeds of those who had helped the king (Esther 6:1-2).
God hears and remembers everything said by everyone at all times, of course. But these human pictures applied to God remind us that He is not forgetful of His children when they take a stand for Him or when they pay a price to serve Him (Heb. 6:10).
God promises that they will be His on the day that He prepares His own possession, or treasure. He will spare them when He judges the earth, as a man spares his own son who serves him. So God is assuring His people that He hears and takes notice of that which the world overlooks or despises. The world notices the powerful, rich, and famous. God notices those who fear Him and serve Him out of love. They are His special treasure. And so we should not despair at the seeming prosperity of the wicked or at our own trials. When God judges the earth, the line between the righteous and the wicked, between the one who serves God and the one who does not, will be clear (3:18).
Conclusion
Years ago, an elderly missionary couple who had served for years in Africa, was returning to New York City to retire. They were feeling discouraged, defeated, and afraid. Their health was broken and they had no retirement pension. When they got to the wharf to board the ship, they discovered that they were booked on the same boat as President Theodore Roosevelt, who was returning from a big game hunt. No one paid any attention to this old couple, but they watched the fanfare as the President arrived. A band was playing and the crowd was waving and straining for a glimpse of the great man.
As the ship crossed the Atlantic, the old man grew more and more depressed. He said to his wife, “Something is wrong. Why should we have given our lives in faithful service for God in Africa all these years, and yet no one cares for us? This man comes back from a hunting expedition, and everyone throngs to see him. It doesn’t seem fair!” His wife tried to comfort him, but he couldn’t shake his depression.
As the boat docked in America, more bands were playing and more crowds had turned out to greet the President. Many dignitaries were there, and the papers carried the story on the front page. But no one noticed the missionaries. They slipped off the boat and went to hunt for a cheap apartment and for jobs.
That night, the man’s spirit broke. He felt that God had abandoned them. He complained to his wife, “We don’t have anyone to help us and no where to go. Why hasn’t God met our needs?” His wife wisely replied, “Why don’t you go in the bedroom and talk to the Lord about the whole thing?”
Some time later, he came out of the bedroom, but his face was different. He was happy now. His wife asked what happened. He said, “I went in and told the Lord the whole thing. I told Him that it’s not fair. I told Him how I was bitter because the President received this tremendous homecoming, but no one met us as we returned home. And you know, as I finished, it seemed as though the Lord put His hand on my shoulder and said simply, ‘My child, you’re not home yet.’” Why serve God? Because He notices and cares for all who serve Him!
Discussion Questions
- What does it mean to serve God? Is it a position, a role, or a mindset?
- How has our self-centered culture permeated the church? How has the church fostered this mentality?
- Where is the proper balance between the love of God and the fear of God? How can we know when we’re in balance?
- What would you say to a Christian who bitterly said, “I can worship God better by myself, apart from the church”?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Character of God, Discipleship, Leadership, Missions, Pastors, Suffering, Trials, Persecution
Lesson 11: The Coming Day (Malachi 4:1-3)
Related MediaWe live in a day when very few fear God’s judgment. The “god” of most Americans is a feeble, tolerant old man, who would never send anyone, except the very worst, to hell. This American “god” grades on the curve, and it’s a very lenient curve. Unless you’re a terrorist, mass murderer, serial rapist, or habitual child molester, you have nothing to fear come judgment day.
This attitude was reflected in a letter to the editor of our local newspaper last week (Arizona Daily Sun [10/26/03], p. A-6) regarding the recent death of the well know local liberal protester, Bruce Green. The author commended the departed man for his respect and willingness to listen without anger to those with whom he disagreed. Those are certainly commendable qualities. Then she said, “He is in a much better place now, a place where there is no anger, bitterness, resentment or hatred—only love. God bless you, Bruce. Save me a seat. It would be my pleasure to sit next to you.”
That’s the popular theology of our day—if you’re a “good” person, it doesn’t matter what you may believe about God or Jesus Christ. Don’t worry about your sins. God understands and will overlook them. Some day we’ll all be together in heaven, in spite of our many faults.
It is vitally important that we base our view of God and His future judgment on His revelation in His Word, not on the common notions of popular culture. If we join our culture in thinking that God’s judgment is nothing to fear when, in fact, we are in danger of coming under that judgment, we would be in for a horrible shock on that day. On the other hand, if in fact we will be delivered from that judgment according to God’s promise in Christ, we would be putting ourselves through needless misery to live in fear of that day. Our text shows us that…
The coming day of judgment should bring great fear to all that scoff at God, but great comfort to all that fear His name.
In the context, these verses (there is no chapter break in the Hebrew Bible) continue to address the problem that was raised in 2:17 and again in 3:13-15 of the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous. The skeptics looked at the seeming prosperity of the wicked and concluded that there is no benefit in serving God. They said that the arrogant seemed to be blessed and to get away with their evil deeds. There did not appear to be a God of justice, and so it is a waste of time to live according to His righteous standards.
To counter this scoffing, Malachi showed that God especially remembers those who fear His name; in fact, they are His special treasure (3:16-18). There is a huge difference between those who serve God and those who do not. That difference will be unveiled at the coming day that God has prepared, a day that will consume the wicked like a furnace. But those who fear God need not fear that coming awful day, because for them it will be a day of great comfort and triumph. So our text is written to disturb the comfortable and to comfort the disturbed.
1. The coming day of judgment should bring great fear to all that scoff at God (4:1).
“Behold” should arrest our attention. “Wake up, pay attention to what is about to be said!” Malachi makes two points about this coming day:
A. The day is coming with certainty.
Verse 1 states twice, “The day is coming….” Verse 3 underscores that God is preparing that day. Twice it is emphasized that this warning comes from none other than the Lord of hosts, who rules over the entire universe, both physical and spiritual. As the apostle Paul told his skeptical audience on Mars Hill, God “has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:31). If the Lord of hosts has fixed that day, you can count on it: It is certainly coming!
Malachi mentions this coming day four times in the closing verses of his prophecy (3:17; 4:1, 3, 5). Walter Kaiser points out (Malachi: God’s Unchanging Love [Baker], p. 102) that this “day of the Lord” was both “near” and “at hand” for each of five Old Testament prophets working in four separate centuries: Obadiah (15) and Joel (1:15; 2:1) in the ninth century; Isaiah (13:6) in the eighth; Zephaniah (1:7, 14) in the seventh; and Ezekiel (30:3) in the sixth. Each of these prophets saw fulfillments in specific events of his own times, and yet each of these prophecies has a still yet unfulfilled future nuance. Thus Kaiser concludes that “the day of the Lord” encompasses a number of successive judgment events throughout history, all of which depict some aspect of the final climatic fulfillment at the culmination of history. In other words, there have been a number of precursor days of the Lord (such as the destruction of Jerusalem under Nebuchadnezzar and again under Titus) that point ahead to the final great and terrible day of the Lord at the end of history (Mal. 4:5).
The irony is that the very people who need to fear this coming day of judgment are usually the ones who scoff at it. Peter (2 Pet. 3:3-4) pointed this out, that in the last days mockers will come, who will say, “Where is the promise of His coming?” The Book of Revelation (18) makes the same point, that the world will be reveling in luxurious splendor and sensuality, oblivious of impending judgment, right up to the end. But then, in one hour, judgment will fall and all of proud Babylon’s splendor will be laid waste.
So the biblical warning is clear: Just because judgment is delayed does not mean that it will not happen. God has fixed the day! It is coming with certainty or else God is lying!
B. The day is coming with awful terror for all that scoff at God.
Those who should fear this coming day are described as the arrogant, evildoers, and the wicked (4:1, 3). “Arrogant” is a relatively rare word in Hebrew, but is the same word used in Malachi 3:15. It has the idea of “a sense of self-importance, which often is exaggerated to include defiance and even rebelliousness” (Theological Word Book of the Old Testament, ed. by R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer, and Bruce K. Waltke [Moody Press], 1:239). The words “evildoer” (4:1) and “wicked” (4:3) come from the same Hebrew root word and point to evil thoughts, words, and deeds that are contrary to God’s character and hostile to others (ibid., 2:863).
So at the root of wickedness or evil in God’s sight is human self-reliance and self-centeredness. The person who thinks that he is good enough in himself to get into heaven is arrogant in God’s sight. He does not understand how absolutely holy God is, nor how utterly corrupt his own heart is. He establishes himself as his own standard of righteousness and arrogantly thinks that his good deeds will commend him to God on the day of judgment. But God, who sees the heart, is not impressed! He describes them as chaff and that day as burning like a furnace. It will be so hot as to leave them neither root nor branch. In other words, no one will recover from this scorching heat.
Our paper showed last week a picture of a car in Crestline, California (where we used to live), that had been burned in the terrible fires there. The fire was so hot that the aluminum rims had melted into streams of liquid! Whether there will be literal flames in hell or whether God uses symbolic language to make a point, it ought to be clear that you don’t want to go through the blaze of God’s judgment! It will be thorough and completely devastating.
We need to be careful here not to fall into the error of annihilationism. Some modern evangelical theologians, most notably Clark Pinnock and John Stott, recoil at the idea of God tormenting people in flames forever and ever. They teach that the wicked will suffer in hell for an appropriate time, but then will cease to exist.
While that idea is emotionally appealing, Jesus mentioned eternal punishment in the same sentence that He mentioned eternal life (Matt. 25:46). If eternal life is forever, then eternal punishment must be forever. Revelation 20:10, 15 makes it clear that the devil, the beast, and the false prophet will be thrown into the lake of fire, where they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. If anyone’s name is not found written in the book of life, he will also be thrown into the lake of fire. “Day and night forever and ever” sounds like a long, long time! Jesus described hell as a place “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:48). As difficult as the doctrine of eternal punishment may be, we cannot change it into the more comfortable idea of annihilationism without contradicting Jesus Himself.
Another common error that we need to avoid is universalism. This is the idea that somehow in the end, everyone will be saved. There are variations of this teaching. Some say that sinners may go through a time of punishment in hell, but that ultimately they will be saved. Others teach that because Christ died for all, all will be saved (based on a faulty interpretation of Rom. 5:18-19). Universalism goes back to the earliest days of Christianity. It probably originated with the early Gnostics, and was taught by some of the early church fathers, most notably Clement of Alexandria and his student, Origen, whose teachings were later condemned as heresy (D. B. Eller, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. by Walter Elwell [Baker], p. 1128).
Universalists make the mistake of putting God’s love above His justice and holiness. They would have to interpret our text as God’s purging with a view to restoration (as in Mal. 3:2-3). But the words, “it will leave them with neither root nor branch” (4:1) indicate that recovery will be impossible. The arrogant wicked who do not repent will suffer God’s eternal punishment. Those who scoff at God should be fearful, although they seldom are.
2. The coming day of judgment should bring great comfort to all that fear God (4:2-3).
The purpose of these verses is to comfort the Lord’s people, especially those who were being persecuted because of their stand for God. As in 3:16, they are identified as those who fear the Lord and esteem His name. God’s name means all that He is in His glorious attributes. Two thoughts here:
A. If we fear God now, we do not need to fear His judgment on that terrible day.
It is ironic that often those who should fear God’s judgment scoff at the idea, whereas those who need not fear His judgment do worry about it. Perhaps it is because God has given His true people a tender conscience, along with a higher view of His holiness and justice. We know and believe that it is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God for judgment. The enemy of our souls comes along and uses this healthy fear of God to produce in us an unhealthy anxiety about standing before Him someday. He accuses us of all of our sins, which we must admit are true. The only way to overcome his accusations is through the blood of the Lamb (Rev. 12:11). Cling to the cross and you do not need to fear judgment.
The Bible is abundantly clear that we are justified (= “declared righteous”) through faith alone in Christ alone (Rom. 3:21-31). In the act of justification, God takes our sin and places it upon His Son, who paid the awful penalty for it on the cross. He takes the righteousness of His Son and places it around us, so that we stand before God with the perfect righteousness of Jesus, not with any righteousness of our own. Along with the free gift of justification, God makes us a new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). Rather than scoffing at God and living in accordance with our proud wisdom, we submit to God and His wisdom. We live in the reverential fear of God, and yet, because of His abundant grace, we no longer fear His judgment on the last day, since Christ bore that for us.
This is illustrated by a technique used by those fighting forest fires: They light a backfire along a break in the path of the advancing fire. The idea is that when the fire gets to where the backfire has burned, there will not be anything left to burn, and so the fire will die out. God judged our sins in Jesus on the cross. The fires of judgment burned Him. If we are in Him by faith, the fire will not harm us. It has nothing left to burn, since Jesus bore that Himself.
B. God causes the sun of righteousness to rise with healing in its wings for all that fear Him.
Some scholars do not interpret this as a reference to Jesus, but rather to the conditions that will exist in the millennium. But I think it is a reference to Jesus Christ. Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, seemed to pick up the language of this verse when he prophesied that John would prepare the Lord’s ways, “to give His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:77-79). Because of the link between John the Baptist in Malachi 3:1 & 4:5, and because of Zecharias’ similar language about the Sunrise from on high, I believe that our text is messianic. It has at least five implications:
1) The sun of righteousness brings light where there was darkness.
These verses refer to the blessings of our salvation that begin at the moment we trust in Jesus, but grow brighter and brighter until that glorious moment when He comes again and we shall be caught up to be always with the Lord. Outside of Christ, the world lives in spiritual darkness, blinded to the truth of God’s Word (Acts 26:18). Only Christ can open blind eyes. By His power, God delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (Col. 1:13). Jesus made the bold claim, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12). When Jesus Christ shines into your darkness, suddenly you see. As Charles Wesley put it, “Long my imprisoned spirit lay, fast bound in sin and nature’s night. Thine eye diffused a quickening ray; I woke, the dungeon flamed with light.”
2) The sun of righteousness brings healing where there was disease and brokenness.
The darkness of the evil one’s domain brings spiritual sickness and death to the human race. The warm rays of the sun of righteousness bring restoration and healing. (“Wings” is poetic language for the rays of the sun.) One of the devil’s lies is to get us to think that sin brings satisfaction, whereas righteousness is restrictive. But the truth is, sin always brings disease and death, whereas righteousness heals and restores.
Have you ever had the flu, where your bones ache? If it’s gloomy and damp outside, it only seems to add to your misery. But then the sun breaks through the clouds and you find a chair in the sunlight streaming through a window. Those warm rays of the sun feel so good on your aching bones! That is an earthly illustration of the spiritual truth of the gospel. When you repent of your sins and begin to live in the warm rays of God’s righteousness, He brings healing from the wounds of sin in your life.
3) The sun of righteousness brings comfort and hope where there had been despair.
I think that we who live in Arizona, where the sun shines over 300 days a year, don’t appreciate how wonderful the sunlight is. When Marla and I traveled in Eastern Europe, we learned that sunshine in the winter there is a rare thing. Studies have shown that people who live in the extreme north suffer from what is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). They get depressed because they live in the dark for months during the long, cold winters. When the first rays of the sun appear over the horizon, they throw a party! The sunlight brings them hope.
Outside of Jesus Christ and the salvation that He brings, there is no hope. One of the most depressing phrases in the Bible is Paul’s description of unbelievers, that they have “no hope and [are] without God in the world” (Eph. 2:12). But when the sun of righteousness rises in your heart, He brings the wonderful hope of eternal life!
4) The sun of righteousness brings great joy where there was sadness.
“You will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.” Perhaps many of you who are city-borne and bred have not seen this, although I have. After being cooped up in a stall, calves will literally jump as if for joy. Part of this for the believer is the great joy of being freed from the bondage of sin and judgment. The angel announced the birth of Christ to the shepherds by saying, “I bring you good news of a great joy” (Luke 2:10). There is simply no greater joy than the news that God has sent a Savior to set us free from the penalty and power of sin, so that we may dwell with Him in the glory of His presence forever!
So, the sun of righteousness brings light where there was darkness; healing where there was disease; hope where there was despair; and, joy where there was sadness. Finally,
5) The sun of righteousness brings right where there was wrong.
“You will tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under your feet….” In this evil world, God permits the wicked often to triumph over the godly. There are many injustices, where the innocent suffer and their tormentors often literally get away with murder. But when the sun of righteousness rises in that final day that God is preparing, all wrongs will be righted. Perfect justice will prevail. Every sinner will be judged according to his works, and the righteous will rejoice.
You may wonder, “I thought that vengeance is wrong. How can the righteous rejoice over treading the wicked underfoot like ashes?” While personal vengeance is wrong, it is not wrong to long for the day when God will exercise His perfect justice. In Revelation 6:9-11, John looks into heaven and sees the souls of those who have been slain because of their testimony for Christ. They cry out, asking God how long it will be until He avenges their blood. God tells them to rest for a bit longer, until the number of martyrs is complete. Then, in Revelation 18, when wicked Babylon has finally fallen, the angel proclaims, “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her” (18:20). God’s final answer to the problem of the prosperity of the wicked and the unjust suffering of the righteous is the coming day of judgment. His promise of that day should bring great comfort to all of God’s elect.
Conclusion
A ninth-grade civics teacher had to issue one student an F. The boy reacted as though the teacher had caught him by surprise, by asking, “How come?”
“You didn’t pass a single test,” the teacher explained. “You never turned in one homework assignment. You would not participate in classroom work.”
The boy stood there in silence for a moment, then exclaimed, “And you mean you flunked me for that?” (Reader’s Digest [4/79], p. 64.)
Don’t be caught off guard when God’s day of judgment hits! If you’re comfortable in your sins, and your notion of God is that He would never judge anyone, I hope that you are disturbed enough to flee to Jesus Christ. Unless you are in Him, the blaze of that day will leave you with neither root nor branch. If you are in Him, looking ahead to that coming day should be a source of great comfort. The sun of righteousness will right every wrong and give you eternal peace and joy.
Discussion Questions
- How much should we emphasize God’s judgment when we present the gospel to someone?
- Should we mourn or rejoice over the thought of God’s coming judgment? Consider both Luke 19:41-44 & Rev. 18:20.
- Why is the doctrine that God will annihilate the wicked incompatible with Scripture?
- Discuss: The extent to which we dislike the doctrine of hell reveals our inadequate understanding both of God’s holiness and man’s sin.
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Character of God, Comfort, Eschatology (Things to Come)
Lesson 12: Reconciled Families (Malachi 4:4-6)
Related MediaA boy once asked his father, “Dad, how do wars begin?” “Well, take the First World War,” said his father. “That got started when Germany invaded Belgium.” Immediately his wife interrupted, “Tell the boy the truth. It began because somebody was murdered.” The husband drew himself up with an air of superiority and snapped back, “”Are you answering the question, or am I?”
Turning her back on him in a huff, the wife walked out of the room and slammed the door as hard as she could. When the dishes stopped rattling in the cupboard, an uneasy silence followed, broken at length by the son. “Dad, you don’t have to tell me any more. I know now!”
It is not news that American families are fracturing at an alarming rate. Only 34 percent of all children born in America will live with both biological parents through age eighteen. Seventy percent of African-American babies and 19 percent of white babies in the United States are born out of wedlock. Most will never know their fathers, let alone experience their love (source, James Dobson newsletter, March, 2002).
If those statistics were only “out there,” it would be alarming enough. But evangelical Christians don’t fare much better than the world when it comes to fractured families. At a recent pastors and wives conference that Marla and I attended, the speaker said that he grew up in an evangelical family, but his parents’ faith never quite connected with the way that they related to one another in the home. That’s tragic, in light of the fact that the second great commandment is to love one another! What good is our faith if it doesn’t result in daily loving relationships in our families?
Malachi’s parting shot tells us how to have reconciled families. It is significant that this is also God’s parting shot to His people for 400 years. Malachi was the last of the Old Testament prophets. After him, there was no fresh word from the Lord for four long centuries, until John the Baptist began preaching in the wilderness. In His parting shot, God speaks to His people about reconciled families. It is not a minor subject: God indicates that the only alternative to reconciled families is His curse upon the land! Our families are the building blocks of our churches and of our entire society. If our families fracture en masse, we will have a fractured nation. It’s vital that we all follow God’s directives on how to have reconciled families.
Many commentators interpret “fathers” in verse 6 to refer to the Jewish patriarchs, and “children” to refer to the disobedient people of Malachi’s day. I reject that interpretation for two reasons. First, in 2:10-16, we have already seen that the people in Malachi’s day were intermarrying with unbelievers and experiencing fractured families. Second, Malachi here does not just refer to the children being reconciled to their fathers, but also the fathers to the children. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob didn’t need to be reconciled to the people of Malachi’s day. So I interpret it in the normal sense, to refer to literal fathers and children being reconciled.
There is a progression here: First, there was personal alienation from God due to neglecting His Word (4:4). Next, there was family alienation (4:6a). If that were not corrected, the final step would be national deterioration (4:6b). God’s remedy for the nation was to send Elijah the prophet to call the people to repentance before the day of judgment (4:5). God only sends judgment if we reject His offer of mercy. These people were indifferent to God’s great love (1:2). So they needed first to get right with God by obedience to His Word and then to get right with one another. These are the two great commandments that sum up all of the Law and Prophets. Malachi is saying,
The key to reconciled families is that we obey God’s Word.
That may strike you as an overly simplistic answer to complex problems. You may protest, “That answer ignores my abusive father and all of the emotional pain that I have suffered as a result!” You may say, “That answer glosses over the poor communication that causes friction between my spouse and me!” “That answer doesn’t help me deal with my rebellious teenager.”
I grant that it’s not always easy to get to the root of these problems and it’s not easy to apply the solution. But I contend that virtually all of our relational problems in our families stem from disobedience to God’s Word on the part of at least one, and almost always more than one, family member. If we obeyed God’s Word, we would love Him fervently, and we would love one another as we do in fact love ourselves. We would treat others as we wish to be treated. Since God’s Word is sufficient to equip us for all of life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3; 2 Tim. 3:16-17), we do not need to go to therapists to get in touch with our feelings and to learn to cope with our rage. We need to go deeper with God through His Word!
Let’s look then at the root cause of fractured families:
1. Family alienation results from forgetting and disobeying God’s Word.
Sin always results in alienation, both toward God and toward one another. When Adam and Eve sinned, they hid from God and they suffered distance in their own relationship. Adam began to blame Eve (and God) for his problems (Gen. 3:12). Sin leads to guilt; guilt not properly dealt with leads to blame; blame leads to anger and alienation. Pride causes us to justify ourselves and to attack the other person.
This is a basic pattern that applies to all relationships. One party wrongs the other party. That party retaliates with anger or resentment or some way to “even the score.” Instead of humbling themselves before God, asking His forgiveness, and then asking forgiveness of the other party, both sides begin blaming each other. The increasing blame and anger create further distance and alienation. At the bottom of the whole cycle is the root sin of pride.
What is the solution? God says (4:4), “Remember the law of Moses My servant, even the statues and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel.” “Remember” is used 14 times in Deuteronomy with regard to the law. It means not only to recall what the law says, but also to obey it (Craig Blaising, The Bible Knowledge Commentary, ed. by John Walvoord and Roy Zuck [Victor Books], 1:1587). Note that, contrary to liberal critics, Malachi believed that God inspired Moses to write the first five books of the Old Testament! John Calvin observed, “God makes himself here the author of the law, that all the godly might reverently receive it as coming from him” (Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker reprint], on the Minor Prophets, p. 625). There is a threefold progression:
A. We forget God’s Word.
Forgetting assumes prior knowledge! Some may need to back up a step and learn God’s Word in the first place! I am appalled at how many Christians have never even read through their Bibles once, let alone repeatedly. I have read through the Bible many times, and each time I find many things that I forgot from the last time. My brain leaks! So God says, “Remember My law!” If we forget it, we won’t obey it.
B. We disobey God’s Word.
As the Lord accused this people (3:7), “From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them.” As we’ve seen, every time Malachi confronted them they protested, “What do you mean? How can you say these mean things about us?” They were disobeying God, but because they had forgotten His Word, they didn’t even know that they were disobeying! They were blaming God because things weren’t going well for them, but it never occurred to them that the problem might lie with them, not with God.
Proverbs 19:3 (New Living Translation) says, “People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord.” I encounter this all the time. People come for counsel because they are having severe family problems. I don’t have to listen long before I can see that they are violating God’s Word in many ways. But, invariably, they moan, “Why is God allowing this to happen to me?” Like the people of Malachi’s day, they are blind to their own disobedience because they have forgotten God’s Word.
C. We experience alienation.
God never divorces the spiritual from the relational, although we often do. We’re prone to say, “Things are fine between the Lord and me, but that wife of mine! Those kids of mine! Those parents of mine!” But God connects our relationship with Him and our relationship with others. The apostle John bluntly says, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:20; see also, Matt. 5:23-24).
When fathers turn away from obedience to God’s Word, the result will always be alienation between them and their children. Scripture is clear that fathers should not be angry and harsh with their children (Eph. 6:4; Col. 3:21). The fruit of the Spirit includes love, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control, whereas the deeds of the flesh include strife and outbursts of anger (Gal. 5:19-23). “The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:20). There are many more such verses—it’s not as if the Bible rarely mentions this!
Yet so many professing Christian fathers are perpetually angry with their children. They sound like a drill sergeant, yelling and barking orders at their kids. When they correct them, they sound like they’re correcting their dog. They don’t bring their anger under the control of the Holy Spirit, and they never humble themselves before their kids to ask forgiveness when they sin. They don’t demonstrate to their kids the gracious love of Jesus. Then when the kids hit their teen years and rebel, the dad shakes his head and says, “After all that I’ve done for that kid, I just don’t understand why he’s giving us all this trouble!” When we forget and disobey God’s Word, we will experience family alienation.
How do we reverse the process and experience reconciliation in our families?
2. Family reconciliation results from remembering and obeying God’s Word.
The entire Bible is a manual of relationships: How to be rightly related to God and to your fellow man (the two great commandments). It explains why we are alienated from God (our sin), and how we can be reconciled to God through faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ. It tells us how to maintain a close walk with God through daily faith, obedience, and repentance. It explains why we are alienated from one another (same reason: our sin) and how to be reconciled to one another through following God’s commandments in all our relationships. To reverse the cycle…
A. We need to remember God’s Word.
You can’t obey it if you don’t remember what it says. You can’t remember what it says if you haven’t diligently studied it in the first place. But we can’t use our lack of knowledge or our short memories as a valid excuse for disobedience. Much could be said here, but I limit myself to two observations:
1) You only remember what you already know.
That sounds so obvious as to be ridiculous, but it is not. Many Christians disobey God’s Word all over the place, often through ignorance. But when they start reaping the consequences of their disobedience, they blame God or they blame others. But at the root of their problems is the fact that they never learned God’s Word in the first place.
Dorothy Sayers (referred to on a tape by Dr. Haddon Robinson) pointed out that there are two kinds of laws: man-made laws, and natural laws. A man-made law, for example, would be a city’s parking ordinances. A natural law would be, “If you put your hand in the fire, you will get burned.” Natural laws are not affected by man. The city council could pass a resolution that said, “You can now put your hand into the fire and not be burned.” I wouldn’t advise you to test that city law!
Sayers points out that the law of God is like the natural law. You don’t break it without it turning around and breaking you. It has built-in consequences. The human race can get together and agree that it’s okay now to engage in premarital sex, adultery, homosexuality, and abortion. We can decide that anger is not a sin; it’s just a natural human emotion. But our opinions and resolutions do not alter the law of God. He has ordained that if we sow to the flesh, we will reap from the flesh destruction (Gal. 6:8). If a man sticks his hand into the fire and then complains, “I didn’t know that it would burn me,” his ignorance doesn’t alter the fact that he got burned. The fire burns everyone, even those who are ignorant of its characteristics. Sin destroys people and relationships, even when those sinning don’t realize that they are sinning.
So if you want to remember God’s Word, you must apply yourself to learn what it says. Read it over and over. Memorize key verses that tell you how to love others. You will only remember and obey what you already know.
2) You remember what you regard as important.
I’ve heard many complain that they just can’t remember what the Bible says. They say, “I’ve just got a bad memory.” But that is seldom the case. Unless you’re suffering from a brain disease, like Alzheimer’s, you can remember the things that are important to you. The key is to regard the information as important.
Marla and I often chuckle over the different things that we each remember. I once heard her talking with one of our daughters about the color of the table settings at a wedding reception. As far as I can recall, they must have had table settings, or we couldn’t have eaten there, and I would have remembered that! Or, sometimes we will talk about someone new that we met at church. She will ask me, “What was she wearing?” I’ll say, “I know she was clothed, but beyond that, I can’t remember!” The details weren’t important to me, so I forgot.
A main reason we forget God’s Word is that we don’t regard it as crucial for our survival. You’ve got to come to the place where you see that this Book holds the answers to life’s most important issues. It tells you how to know God and walk with Him, and how to love your neighbor, including the neighbors who live under the same roof as you do. Remember God’s Word!
B. We need to obey God’s Word.
Both Moses and Elijah are mentioned in our text. Moses wrote the law, the first five books of the Old Testament. Elijah symbolizes the prophets, although he did not write any prophetic books. “The law and the prophets” was a common way of referring to the entire Old Testament (Luke 24:27, 32).
As I said in our study of Malachi 3:1, there is a double fulfillment of this prophecy about Elijah. John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah as the forerunner of Christ in His first coming (Luke 1:17; Matt. 17:10-13). Before Christ’s second coming, another will come, probably Elijah himself, to give people one last chance to repent before judgment (Matt. 17:11; Rev. 11:3-6). The application for us is that we need to obey all of God’s Word, especially as it relates to our family relationships. Note two things:
1) God’s Word contains commandments.
God didn’t give Moses some helpful hints for happy living. He commanded Moses statutes and ordinances for all Israel. God’s moral and relational commandments are not just for the Old Testament era. Living under grace does not mean living without commandments. Believers under grace are given all sorts of commandments, including the oft-repeated command to love one another. If you are not acting in love toward your family members, including your church family, you are sinning! Obedience to God’s commandments is not legalism. Legalism is when a person tries to earn acceptance with God or status from others by outward behavior. Obedience to God’s commands should stem from the heart because of His grace and love toward us. But the point is, loving one another is not just a nice thing to do when you feel like doing it. It is God’s commandment.
2) God’s Word is often very confrontational.
God doesn’t say, “Behold, I am going to send a therapist to help you work through your rage toward your emotionally abusive father!” He promised to send Elijah the prophet. Elijah was probably the most confrontational prophet in the Old Testament. So was John the Baptist, who called his audience a brood of vipers.
If God’s Word steps on your toes, welcome to the club! That’s what it is designed to do. We wouldn’t budge from our selfish, sinful ways if it didn’t clobber us once in a while. The Jews didn’t like the confrontational way that Malachi ended his prophecy, talking about a curse on the land if they didn’t obey. So in the Hebrew Bible, verse 5 is repeated after verse 6, and in the Septuagint, verse 4 is repeated after verse 6. In fact, they did the same thing at the endings of Isaiah, Lamentations, and Ecclesiastes.
But the Lord knew that our proud, stubborn hearts need some direct confrontation as the parting shot to remember. We need an occasional Elijah to get in our face so that we will deal with our sins and be ready for the coming great and terrible day of the Lord. That’s one of the great benefits of reading the Bible consistently: it is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16). It will hit you with your sins.
You may be thinking, “I thought that God is love. Confronting me sounds judgmental.” But what can be more loving than to shout a warning at someone heading toward destruction? God’s warnings through His Word stem from His love. We will experience His love personally and in our families if we submit to His Word by correcting our sinful behavior.
C. Family reconciliation will result from obedience.
The hearts of fathers will be restored to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers. One mark of true conversion is when the bitterness of past alienation between fathers and children is healed and their hearts are reunited in love.
Maybe you’re wondering, “Steve, why are you mentioning fathers, but not mothers?” The answer is, the text mentions fathers. We can easily extend everything I’ve said to mothers. If they obey God’s Word by dealing with their sin, they will be reconciled to their children. But I mention fathers because so many American men, even Christian men, are relationally passive in their homes. They leave the spiritual training of their children to their wives. They put in excessive time on the job, rationalizing it by saying that they are showing their love by providing for their families. But if you are an absent, passive father, or if you are not relating to your family in God’s love, you are not providing what they need most.
When you begin to obey God by judging your anger, by demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit towards your family, and by setting an example of walking with God, He will bring healing into your home. It won’t happen all at once, but it will begin. If you have been sinning against your wife and children by not loving them, first ask God’s forgiveness. Then ask your family’s forgiveness, and begin to obey God by walking in love, just as Christ loved you and gave Himself up on the cross (Eph. 5:2).
Conclusion
Former First Lady, Barbara Bush, spoke these words several years ago at a college commencement:
As important as your obligation as a doctor, a lawyer, or a business leader will be, you are a human being first, and those human connections with spouses, with children, with friends are the most important investments you will ever make. At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, winning one more verdict, closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend or a parent. Our success as a society depends not on what happens in the White House but on what happens inside your house. (Reader’s Digest [1/91], pp. 157-158.)
What should happen inside your house and mine is that we obey God’s Word so that our hearts turn toward one another in love. The alternative is that God will come and smite the land with a curse.
Discussion Questions
- Is it simplistic to say that virtually all of our family problems stem from disobedience to God’s Word? Why/why not?
- When I preach on obedience, there are always some who label the message “legalistic.” Why is obedience not legalism? What is legalism?
- Suppose someone says, “It’s better for my children to live in a single-parent home than in one where there is constant fighting.” What would you say?
- Does the Bible label all feelings as neutral? Are some feelings sinful? How do we deal with sinful emotions?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Bibliology (The Written Word), Children, Christian Home, Fathers, Fellowship, Forgiveness, Marriage, Mothers, Parenting, Relationships
Lesson 1: Putting First Things First (Haggai 1:1-15)
Related MediaEvery day you exchange a day of your life for something. It’s as if at the start of life each of us were issued a certain number of coins. They’re hidden inside a large machine so that we don’t know how many we were issued or how many we have left. Each day, the machine issues us a new coin. It may be the last coin we get, or we may get many more. All we know is that the average person in America gets between 70 and 80 years’ worth, but some get far less; a few may get more.
You take each day’s coin and exchange it for something: a day at work or school, shopping, church, leisure, or whatever. Once spent, you can never get the coins back to spend them differently. The art of living wisely is largely a matter of spending your coins on the things that really matter in light of eternity and not frivolously wasting them. Living wisely is difficult because often the choice is not between the bad and the good, but between the good and the best.
The Book of Haggai, second shortest in the Old Testament, has a potent message. It tells us to put first things first in our lives. It was written to people, like us, who would have told you that God must be first. They believed that; we believe that. But, they had drifted into a way of life where their intellectual belief in the supremacy of God was not reflected in the way they were living. They gave lip service to the priority of God, but in fact they lived with other priorities. God sent this prophet to help His people get their priorities in line with what they knew they should be.
The historical setting is the early chapters of Ezra (see Ezra 5:1). In 536 B.C., a remnant of about 50,000 Jews had returned from Babylon to Judah under the decree of Cyrus, King of Persia. They quickly rebuilt the altar and began offering sacrifices. Two years after returning, they had laid the foundation to rebuild the temple. Their Samaritan neighbors had offered to join in the work, but the Jews refused their offer. The Samaritans, in turn, threatened the workers and sent men to Persia to lobby against the Jews, bringing the work to a halt.
At least 14 years had passed. The people got caught up in the routine of life—farming, building houses, raising families, and that sort of thing. They got used to life without a temple. Even their leaders, Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the high priest, had gotten used to things as they were. Into that scene, God raised up Haggai and (two months later) Zechariah to proclaim His message to this returned remnant.
The Book of Haggai consists of four precisely dated messages from the Lord. The first (1:1-15) was on the first day of the sixth month in the second year of Darius (1:1, August 29, 520 B.C.). The second (2:1-9) came on the 21st of the seventh month (2:1, October 17th). The third (2:10-19) and fourth (2:20-23) messages came on the same day, the 24th of the ninth month (2:10, 20; December 18th). To sum up the first message:
God will grant true blessing when we put His house first.
Charles Feinberg (The Minor Prophets [Moody Press], p. 240) put it, “In short, Haggai is saying, ‘Give God the supreme place in your life.’” Or, as Jesus put it, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). We all know this, but …
1. We all are prone to put our prosperity above God’s house.
This is the default mode on all of our fallen “computers”! If we give no thought to how we’re living, we will naturally live for our agendas, not for God’s. All of us who have trusted Christ as Savior know (intellectually) that it is foolish and vain to live for the things of this world. We know that these things never deliver the satisfaction that they promise. We know that we will not find true happiness apart from God. And yet we keep drifting towards loving the world if we don’t fight against it. Note four things about those who put their prosperity above God’s house:
A. Those who put their prosperity above God’s house are often committed believers.
We would not understand Haggai’s message properly if we forgot that the people to whom he was speaking had made the difficult commitment to leave their established way of life in Babylon and make the dangerous journey back to the land of promise. They had homes and jobs in Babylon. Most of them had been born and raised there. But they knew that God’s purpose for His people involved the Promised Land. By faith they had responded to the call to return and had committed themselves to the hardships of getting re-established in the land that had been devastated by war. Probably most of them made that commitment because of their commitment to God.
Shortly after returning, they had made an attempt to rebuild the Temple, but the opposition had stopped the project. Gradually, they had lost their vision and had drifted into a lifestyle where God’s house was no longer the priority. They probably viewed it as nice, but not necessary; extra, but not essential.
We need to see ourselves in this picture. If you know Christ, there was a time when you made a personal commitment to Him. You decided to follow Jesus, as the chorus goes. At first, you were zealous for spiritual things. You read your Bible every day. You got involved with groups like Campus Crusade or Inter-Varsity during college. You got involved serving in a local church. But perhaps your efforts met with difficulties. You had a personality clash with another Christian, or you were disillusioned with the disappointing results, or you encountered personal trials that God didn’t remove, even after much prayer.
Meanwhile, life moved on. You started a career and a family. You had bills to pay and other demands on your time. Church and the Lord’s work drifted into the background. You still attend church as often as you can, but it has become a slice of life, not the center. You tell yourself that you just don’t have time to serve as you used to. Someone else who doesn’t have the responsibilities that you have will have to get involved. Without deliberately rebelling against God, you have drifted into putting your house above God’s house. When your conscience nags, you have reasons to explain why things are this way:
B. Those who put their prosperity above God’s house have “reasons” (excuses) for their lifestyles.
They were saying, “The time has not come, even the time for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt” (1:2). If you had asked them why the temple had not been built, they would have responded, “Don’t get me wrong! I’m all for rebuilding the Temple. It’s a great cause. But the timing just isn’t right. We’re in an economic downturn right now. Everyone’s pinched for money. There aren’t enough good jobs. It’s all I can do to provide for my family. But times will get better, and then we’ll rebuild the temple!”
Again, we must see ourselves here! We’re all prone to make up excuses for why we are not obedient to put God first with the time and money He entrusts to us. Sometimes we even use the Bible to support our excuses. “The Bible says that if a man doesn’t provide for his own family, he’s worse than an unbeliever and has denied the faith! I’m just trying to obey that verse by providing for my family. But someday I’ll have all the kids through college and the bills paid, and then we’ll give more to the Lord’s work.” Or, “This is a hectic time in our family life. The kids demand so much attention. Every day is taken up with meeting their needs. But someday we’ll be through this phase, and then we’ll get involved in the church.”
C. Those who put their prosperity above God’s house are blind to God’s chastening hand.
The people in Haggai’s day were having problems. They sowed plenty of seed, but there was a drought and the crops didn’t yield as much as they had hoped. That meant that they had less to sow the following year, even though they needed to make up for the previous bad year. No matter how hard they tried, they just seemed to be spinning their wheels. Inflation seemed to gobble up the little bit that they earned. It was like putting money into a bag with holes (1:6). By the end of the month, there was nothing left. Of course the hard times meant that they didn’t have any extra to give toward the temple building fund. But surely God understood their difficult circumstances!
What they didn’t see was that God not only understood their circumstances, He had caused them! They were working harder but going behind faster, but they hadn’t stopped to consider that God was trying to tell them something. Haggai came along and said, “Hey, folks, it’s God who controls the rain and the harvest. He is withholding His blessing because your priorities are not right! Put His house first and He will bless you. Seek first His kingdom and all these things will be added unto you.”
People who slip into putting their prosperity above God’s kingdom have lost the spiritual perspective they need to get out of the quicksand they’ve fallen into. They’re working for the food that perishes, but not for the food that endures to eternal life (John 6:27). They’re forgetting that if their ways are pleasing to the Lord, He will give them all that they really need. They need to stop and consider that they are working against God, who merely blows on their take-home pay and scatters it (1:9). He does that to get them to reconsider their mixed up priorities.
D. Those who put their prosperity above God’s house never get what they’re after.
Some of these people had a measure of material success. They lived in fine, paneled houses (1:4). But the point of verses 6 & 9-11 is, even if you get what you’re working for, it never satisfies. Solomon, who tried money, fame, knowledge, sensual pleasure, and everything a man could dream of, ended up cynically saying, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!” (Eccl. 1:2). In the words of the Rolling Stones, “I can’t get no satisfaction”!
What good does it do to work hard all your life so that you can retire and enjoy the good things in life, if a month after your retirement, you have a heart attack and die? You have just put your wages into a purse with holes! What good does it do to build bigger barns to hold your increased wealth if God says, “You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?” (Luke 12:20)?
History is strewn with people that devoted themselves to climbing the ladder of worldly success, only to find out too late that it was leaning against the wrong wall! Sadly, some of those people have been God’s people who just drifted downstream with the world. The truth is, only God can satisfy your soul. As Jesus promised, when we put God and His kingdom first, He gives us all the material things we need. But we have to fight constantly the drift toward wrong priorities.
2. We must deliberately and continually put God’s house above our prosperity.
Let me clarify what I mean by “God’s house.” In our text, of course, it refers to the temple in Jerusalem, which was the center for worshiping God. Although God is everywhere, the temple was the place on earth where God dwelled in a special sense. He revealed His glory there. The sacrifices offered there pointed ahead to the coming of God’s Messiah, Jesus, who would offer Himself as God’s final and complete sacrifice for our sins. To allow the Temple to lay in ruins was to neglect the worship of God. It was to have inverted priorities, and as James Boice puts it, “in the final analysis all inverted priorities are idolatry. They put the creation before the Creator” (The Minor Prophets [Baker], 2:469).
In the church age, God’s temple is not a physical building, but rather, His people, both individually and corporately (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:16). God dwells in individual human hearts, and together we are being built into the temple or house of God (Eph. 2:21; 1 Pet. 2:5). To make God’s house the priority in life means that your number one aim is to make your body a fit dwelling for the Holy Spirit and to devote yourself to building others in Christ so that their lives are a proper dwelling for God. It means that your main goal is to know Christ at home in your heart by faith and to do all that you can to help others do the same. Note two things:
A. To put God’s house above material prosperity requires deliberate and continual effort.
As I said, our default mode is to put material prosperity above spiritual prosperity. That is the strong pull of the world. If we want to go God’s way, we have to fight every inch of the way.
It is striking that in contrast to many of the prophets, like Jeremiah, who preached all their lives to stubborn and disobedient people, Haggai preached and the people obeyed! It started with the leaders, Zerubbabel and Joshua (1:12). That took humility on their part. It would have been easy for them as the political and spiritual leaders to resist Haggai’s message in order to preserve their esteem in the eyes of the community. “Who does this upstart prophet think that he is? We’ve never heard of him before. He has no credentials. He just comes along and says, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts’ and we’re supposed to believe him?” Yes, they were, and thankfully they did!
It’s interesting that proportionately, Haggai claims to speak the word of the Lord more than any other prophet in Scripture (25 times in 38 verses) and he refers to God as “the Lord of hosts” 14 times. He is saying, “God is the Lord over all the armies of heaven and earth, and I am bringing you His message, so you’d better listen!” In this case, the people did listen and obey.
The application is that we must accept the Bible as the authoritative word of the Lord of hosts and submit to it. When it confronts the way we live, we can either resist it by making up more excuses, or we can obey it. But one-time obedience is not enough. We must deliberately and continually obey if we want to keep our priorities in order. How do we do that?
B. To put God’s house above material prosperity requires constant self-evaluation in the fear of God.
Twice the Lord tells the people, “Consider your ways” (1:5, 7). That means to stop long enough in your busy schedule to evaluate your life in the light of God’s Word and fearing Him (1:12).
(1) How are you spending your time? These people had plenty of time for themselves, but they didn’t have time for God. Rearrange your schedule!
(2) How are you spending your money, which is really God’s money? These folks claimed that they had to get their own houses built first, and then they could build God’s house. That was backwards. God says that we are to give Him the first fruits, off the top. We are to give Him the best. We are managers of all that He has given us, to invest it profitably for His kingdom.
(3) What are your goals? What is it that you’re aiming at in life? If you live to an old age, what do you want to look back on as far as accomplishments?
(4) What do you think about the most? What secretly occupies your thought life? Do you dream of getting rich, of achieving fame, of some hobby or leisure pursuit, or do you think about the Lord and how He wants you to spend your life?
(5) Who are your heroes or models? Whom do you most admire? Whom would you like to be like? Why?
(6) Who are your friends? Whom do you like to spend time with? Why do you like to be with them?
(7) How do you spend your leisure time? When you have time off, how do you spend it? Do you watch TV? Do you live for sports? Do you hang out with friends? How does your leisure time reflect and affect your devotion to Jesus Christ?
It’s helpful to write down your goals and re-evaluate every so often to see where you’re at. Otherwise, you drift off course.
Undergirding all of these questions should be the fear of God (1:12). Some think that the fear of God is an Old Testament concept, and that we are to focus on His love. But the New Testament has plenty of references to fearing God (Matt. 10:28; 2 Cor. 7:1; Eph. 5:21; Col. 3:22; 1 Pet. 2:17; Rev. 14:7; 15:4; 19:5). While we do not need to fear His final judgment if we are in Christ, Peter tells us, “If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth” (1 Pet. 1:17).
What is the result when we reverently obey God by putting His house above our material prosperity?
3. When we put God’s house above our prosperity, He is pleased and glorified, His work gets done, and He truly blesses us.
A. When we put God’s house above our prosperity, He is pleased and glorified (1:8).
God is looking for pleasure and glory from His people. The main problem when we fail to put His house first is that we are indifferent to His glory. I commend to you John Piper’s deep, but worth wrestling with, God’s Passion for His Glory [Crossway Books], which includes the full text of Jonathan Edwards’ The End for Which God Created the World. God created and called a people for Himself for His glory (Isa. 43:7). Our aim should be God’s glory.
B. When we put God’s house above our prosperity, His work gets done.
The Lord stirred up the hearts of the leaders and the people (1:14), “and they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God.” While we are responsible to get our priorities in order, when we do it, it is because God has moved in our hearts. As I said recently, whatever you do to pay bills, the chief business of every Christian is to extend the kingdom of God.
C. When we put God’s house above our prosperity, He truly blesses us.
When the people obeyed, God sent word, “I am with you” (1:13). If we have God with us, we have everything. If God is with us and for us, who can be against us (Rom. 8:31)? If God seems distant in your life, perhaps your priorities have gotten mixed up. When you put God truly in first place, you experience a new awareness of His presence. That is true blessing!
Conclusion
I’ve shared before the story of the time management expert who was speaking to a group of business students. He pulled out a large, wide-mouth jar and filled it with fist-sized rocks. When he couldn’t put any more in, he asked, “Is this jar full?”
The class responded, “Yes.” He said, “Really?” Then he pulled out a bucket of gravel and poured it in, shaking it down through the cracks. Then he asked, “Is the jar full?”
The students were onto him, so they said, “No.” “Good,” he replied. He dumped in a bucket of sand. Once more he asked, “Is the jar full?” “No,” they shouted. Again he said, “Good.” He poured in a pitcher of water until the jar was full to the brim.
Then he asked, “What is the point of the illustration?” One student ventured, “No matter how full your schedule, if you try hard, you can always fit more in.”
“No,” the speaker replied, “that is not the point. The point is, if you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.” (First Things First, by Stephen Covey, Roger & Rebecca Merrill [Simon & Schuster], pp. 88-89.)
What should your “big rocks” be? God and His house! Put them into your life first!
Discussion Questions
- Should every Christian put God and His house first, or is this just for “full-time” Christian workers? Defend biblically.
- How can a Christian succeed in a career if he puts God’s house first? Does God want Christians to excel in their careers?
- Is it okay for a Christian to have and enjoy nice things? Where do we draw the line? Is “luxury” sin?
- To what extent (if any) is the notion of retirement biblical? How should Christians view their “retirement” years?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Discipleship, Finance
Lesson 2: God’s Encouragement for Discouraged Servants (Haggai 2:1-9)
Related MediaThe famous inventor, Thomas Edison, tried again and again to find the right filament for the incandescent electric light bulb. One day he had completed his 10,000th experiment only to discover another way that would not work. When he arrived home that night, he shared this bit of news with his wife. “Aren’t you pretty discouraged, Tom?” she asked. “Discouraged?” responded Edison. “Certainly not! I now know 10,000 ways that won’t work!”
Perseverance seems to be an outdated concept in our day of instant everything. If it doesn’t come easy, why pursue it? If it’s hard or requires endurance, maybe it isn’t your thing.
It’s easy to start a new diet. It’s tough to stick to it when you crave that cinnamon roll. It’s easy to start a new exercise program. It’s tough to persevere when your aching muscles scream, “No more!” It’s easy to get married. It’s tough to hang in there and work through problems over a lifetime. It’s easy to begin a new ministry in the local church. It’s tough to keep on when problems arise or when the results don’t match your initial expectations.
That describes the people in Haggai’s day, just shy of a month after they had obeyed his first message and resumed work on rebuilding the temple. The foundation had been laid about 15 years before, but the project had been set on the shelf. But now, in response to Haggai’s word from the Lord, the leaders and people had begun to rebuild on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of the second year of Darius (Sept. 21, 520 B.C.; 1:15). The seventh month in Israel began with the Feast of Trumpets on the first day, followed by the Day of Atonement on the tenth day. Then the Feast of Tabernacles went from the 15th to the 21st. On the last day of that feast (Oct. 17th), Haggai delivered his second message to the people (2:1-9). It is a message of God’s encouragement to discouraged workers. We learn that …
God encourages His discouraged servants to persevere in His work.
These verses teach us three things about persevering by turning our discouragement in serving the Lord into encouragement:
1. God understands and cares about the discouragement we face in serving Him (2:1-3).
The Lord did not gloss over or ignore the reality of the situation. He knew what they were thinking and feeling, and He brings it up to show them that He understood and that He cared for them. If we do not keep in mind that in all our troubles the Lord understands and cares for us, we will easily become discouraged. The text and historical context reveal several potential sources of discouragement when we get involved in serving the Lord:
A. The loss of initial excitement can discourage us.
There is always a certain sense of excitement when you begin a new ministry or project. But the glow easily rubs off in the grind. There were probably piles of rubble that needed to be removed. Perhaps some of the workers had envisioned putting the finishing touches on some gold work or other craftsmanship, but they hadn’t thought about hauling rubble. Their initial enthusiasm was already wearing thin.
The summer after I graduated from seminary, I was involved with a group of men in starting a new church that was branching off of an existing church. We received some wise counsel from the elders of the mother church. They said, “What you’re doing now is new and exciting. But the time will come when the glamour wears off and then you’ll need to know that God has called you to this work and persevere in it.” The leaders did persevere, because last year I received an email from the pastor telling me that they were celebrating their 25th anniversary.
B. Delays can discourage us.
Work for the Lord seldom moves as quickly as we had hoped. Perhaps working around the numerous feasts and Sabbath days in the seventh month had dampened the initial enthusiasm because the work was going so slowly. It’s easy for that to happen in anything we do for the Lord, and the delays get us down.
C. Outside opposition and criticism can discourage us.
In verse 5, the Lord says, “Do not fear!” He would not say that unless they had a reason to be afraid. Probably the same men who had threatened them and lobbied against them at the Persian court 15 years before were at it again. Any time you attempt to do God’s work, Satan will stir up opposition. We’re in a battle with the forces of darkness that are opposed to the church of Jesus Christ. Expect opposition!
D. Inside pessimism, comparisons, and faulty expectations can discourage us.
When I began in ministry, I naively thought that most of the opposition would come from outside the church. Boy, was I wrong! Most opposition comes from within, and it takes different forms.
One common form is pessimism. “We tried that before. It won’t work!” When they had laid the foundation years before, there was great joy mixed with weeping (Ezra 3:11-13). The young people who had not known the glory of the former temple were rejoicing. But the old-timers, who had seen Solomon’s Temple, wept at this new temple, because it just didn’t measure up. Although they would be in their seventies or older by now, a few were still around when the work got started again. Maybe they were saying, “God’s blessing just isn’t on this temple!” Pessimism!
A second form of inside opposition comes from those who drop little comparisons on you. The old-timers were saying, “You should have seen Solomon’s Temple. Now that was a temple! This new one is hardly worth calling a temple compared to the old one!” Sometimes people will say, “That church on the other side of town really has their act together!” (Implication: You don’t!) Or, “Have you ever heard Chuck Swindoll preach? He’s really good! You ought to listen to him.” Thanks for the encouragement!
And then there are those who have faulty expectations. This usually operates in conjunction with comparisons. “Where is all the gold? Solomon’s Temple was lined with gold. Why isn’t this one?” I’ve had people tell me about their former pastors who must never have slept and changed into their pastor uniforms in a phone booth! These pastors would visit everyone in the church, preach superb sermons (with great illustrations), attend all the youth activities, and always have time for drop ins. Besides that, they never neglected their families! Implication: “Why aren’t you like they are?”
E. A wrong view of success can discourage us.
Some view success externally rather than internally (or spiritually). “This temple isn’t as big as Solomon’s Temple was. This temple doesn’t have all the gold and fancy workmanship that Solomon’s Temple did.” But God says through Haggai, “I own all the gold and silver in the world, and I could cover this temple with gold if I wanted to. But I’m going to do something better. Instead of gold, I’m going to fill this temple with glory, the glory of My Messiah” (paraphrase of 2:7-9).
God doesn’t view things as we do. Just because one church isn’t as big or outwardly slick as another church doesn’t mean anything to God. A church may have a multi-million dollar facility, but if it doesn’t honor God’s Word or promote His glory among the nations, that facility is a big pile of wood, hay, and stubble! God is looking for the glory of Christ formed in the hearts of His people, not for the outward, superficial signs of success.
Another wrong view of success is the instant view as opposed to the eternal. None of the workers on this temple lived to see its glory exceed that of Solomon’s Temple. That didn’t happen until Messiah came into this temple over 500 years later, and even then many missed it! God says, “Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land” (2:6). While there may have been a partial fulfillment of that prophecy within a few years of Haggai’s day (in the overthrow of powerful kingdoms), the ultimate fulfillment is still future in our day! God will shake all the nations at the Second Coming of Christ, and they will bring the wealth of the nations to His temple in the Millennium.
If the people in Haggai’s day were viewing success from the short range, they would have been very discouraged. With God, a thousand years is as a day. True success will be measured in the light of eternity, not in our lifetimes. We need to keep this in mind as we labor for the Lord. The harvest is at the end of the age, not at the end of the meeting. God’s timing is not our timing.
Whatever our source of discouragement, God understands and He cares. But He doesn’t coddle us or let us stay there.
2. God’s word to us when we discouraged in serving Him is to persevere (2:4a).
Three times the Lord repeats, “Be strong!” (“Take courage!”) And He tells them to work. Keep going! Persevere! There are two aspects to this kind of perseverance: an attitude and an action.
A. Perseverance requires the right attitude: Be strong!
The people had the wrong attitude. They were weak because they had gotten their focus off the Lord and onto the slow, disappointing progress on the temple. Maybe they were thinking, “This will never get done. We’re just wasting our time!”
Have you ever noticed how much your attitude affects your ability to persevere? If you’re motivated, you can stay up all night on some project. But if you get discouraged, you procrastinate and never get around to finishing it.
We hear about many pastors burning out and quitting the ministry. While in some cases the cause of burnout is not properly managing one’s schedule, often the real cause is an attitude of discouragement because of setbacks or disappointments. I recently read that 70 percent of pastors constantly fight depression. Eighty percent of pastors and 84 percent of their spouses feel unqualified and discouraged in their ministries. I think every pastor should feel unqualified (2 Cor. 2:16), but not discouraged. As Americans, we’re far too emotionally fragile. Someone offends us, so we get our feelings hurt and drop out of service. Someone doesn’t do what we had expected, so we quit. Someone criticizes what we’re doing, and we say, “I’m out of here!”
But God says, “Be strong!” We aren’t to be strong in our own strength, of course, but in God’s strength (2 Cor. 3:5). But, be strong! Have the attitude that hangs in there in spite of obstacles. The real question is not how do we see things, but how does God see things? If we have not factored God into the equation, we don’t see things in the right perspective.
Do you remember the story of the 12 spies who went into the land of Canaan? Ten of them came back focused on the giants in the land and said, “We’re like grasshoppers in their sight. We can’t conquer them!” But Joshua and Caleb came back and said, “Because God is with us and He has promised us that land, we will eat them for lunch!” (Num. 14:9, paraphrase). Be strong in attitude!
B. Perseverance requires the right action: Work!
The attitude provides the motivation, but motivation without work won’t get the temple built. Joshua and Caleb had the right attitude of trust in the Lord. But they still had to go into the land and fight the giants. Much of the Lord’s work is far more perspiration than inspiration! That is certainly true of my weekly sermon preparation. These messages don’t come floating down from the sky! I have to work hard to prepare them. Just because you’re gifted in whatever you do for the Lord does not mean that it just flows effortlessly. To persevere we must not only be strong; we also must work.
Thus God encourages us in our service for Him by showing that He understands what we’re feeling and He cares. His word to us is, “Be strong and work!” Finally,
3. God assures us when we are discouraged in serving Him by His presence, His promise, and His prophecy (2:4b-9).
A. God assures us when we are discouraged in serving Him by His presence (2:4b).
After telling Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the people to be strong and to work, God adds, ‘“For I am with you,’ says the Lord of hosts.” The Jews may have feared a hostile host against them, but God is the Lord of hosts, the Supreme Ruler over all the armies of heaven and earth. If the Lord of hosts is with us, who can defeat us? If we’re serving Him, then nothing can happen to us accidentally or without His express permission. The assurance of His presence should lift our discouragement and enable us to press on.
After many years of hardship and danger in the heart of Africa, David Livingstone received an honorary doctorate from the University of Glasgow. On that occasion, he said, “Would you like me to tell you what supported me through all the years of exile among people whose language I could not understand, and whose attitude toward me was always uncertain and often hostile? It was this: ‘Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ On those words I staked everything, and they never failed.”
B. God assures us when we are discouraged in serving Him by His promise (2:5).
“Promise” (2:5) refers to the covenant God made with Israel when they came out of Egypt. He promises them now, as He had then, that His Spirit would go with them and abide in their midst. Therefore, they need not fear.
God has made a better covenant with us than He did with them, the New Covenant, enacted on better promises (Heb. 8:6). Jesus sealed that New Covenant with His own blood. He promised us the indwelling Holy Spirit to be with us forever (John 14:16). When we grow discouraged in our service for Him, we should remember His promise, that He would not leave us as orphans, but would come to us and that in the meanwhile, He has given us the Holy Spirit to enable us to serve Him.
C. God assures us when we are discouraged in serving Him by His prophecies (2:6-9).
The many prophecies in Scripture are not given for us to speculate about the future, but to strengthen and encourage our faith. When we see how God has worked down through the ages in accordance with what He told His people in advance, it encourages us to keep serving Him, knowing that the remaining unfulfilled prophecies will surely yet be fulfilled.
Commentators differ on when the shaking of heaven and earth and the nations (2:6-7a) would take place. Some say that it referred to God’s stirring up Darius to supply help and materials for this rebuilding of the temple (Ezra 6:6-15). Others say that it refers to God’s bringing future judgment on the Persians, Greeks, and Romans (see James Boice, The Minor Prophets [Baker], 2:476-477). While that may be an initial fulfillment, like many biblical prophecies, there may be multiple fulfillments. In this case, it refers ultimately to the Second Coming of Christ, when God will shake the heavens and the earth (2:21; Joel 3:16; Matt. 24:29; Rev. 16:18-20) and conquer all the rebellious nations (2:22).
Haggai 2:6 is the only verse from this book quoted in the New Testament. In Hebrews 12:26-27, the author states, “And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, ‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.’ This expression, ‘Yet once more,’ denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.” This refers to the final judgment when God will destroy the heavens and the earth, prior to establishing a new heavens and earth (2 Pet. 3:10, 12-13; Rev. 20:11; 21:1).
There is also debate about the translation of the phrase, “the wealth of the nations” (2:7). Some translations have it, “the desire of the nations,” which would be a reference to Jesus Christ. While this is possible, both the Hebrew grammar and the reference to silver and gold (2:8) probably tilt the evidence toward “the wealth of the nations,” a reference to the nations in the Millennium bringing their wealth in homage to Jesus Christ.
The Lord also says that He will “fill this house with glory” and that “the latter glory of this house will be greater than the former” (2:7, 9). Again there is some debate. How could Zerubbabel’s temple be greater in glory than Solomon’s? While Herod replaced this temple with more glorious buildings (the temple in Jesus’ time), this verse probably refers to the coming of Jesus into that temple. His presence made it even more glorious than Solomon’s Temple. In the Millennium, His presence as King of Kings and Lord of Lords will surpass the veiled glory of His first coming. In the new heavens and earth, there will be no temple, “for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (Rev. 21:22).
Finally, the Lord promises that in this place He will give peace (2:9). Again, this has multiple fulfillments. In His first coming, Jesus preached peace to both Jew and Gentile (Eph. 2:17). We have peace with God and with one another when we trust in His shed blood (Rom. 5:1). But true and lasting peace for this world and for Jerusalem will only come when Jesus returns.
We could get hung up on the details of interpreting these prophecies. But the application for us is that since the Lord of hosts has predicted the certain final triumph of the kingdom of His Son, we should be encouraged in our work for Him, knowing that our work in the Lord is never in vain (1 Cor. 15:58).
Conclusion
One of the most remarkable examples of a Christian persevering in the Lord’s work is that of William Wilberforce of England (1759-1833). He was converted in 1785. Two years later he gave notice in the House of Commons, where he served, that he would bring a motion for the abolition of the slave trade. This was a hugely lucrative business that brought much income into the British economy. The British plantations in the West Indies depended on slave labor for their profit. Owning slaves was a strong cultural institution. So it was an enormous task to undertake.
Numerous times Wilberforce’s life was threatened. There was political pressure to back down because of the international political ramifications. For example, if Britain outlawed slavery, the West Indian colonies threatened to declare independence from Britain and associate with the United States, which still allowed slavery. But in spite of all of these obstacles, Wilberforce persevered.
Finally, on March 25, 1807, after 20 years of setbacks, Wilberforce prevailed when the House voted to outlaw the slave trade. But the battle wasn’t over. Wilberforce battled on for the next 26 years, until his death, to abolish not only the slave trade, but also slavery itself. The decisive vote on that issue came on July 26, 1833, just three days before Wilberforce died. After 46 years of battle, slavery itself was outlawed in the British Empire.
But Wilberforce wasn’t just a one-issue man. He was also involved heavily in a number of missionary endeavors and in many social causes. He worked to alleviate harsh child labor conditions, for agricultural reform, prison reform, and the prevention of cruelty to animals. And he continually sought to win his colleagues to personal faith in Jesus Christ. (The above facts are taken from John Piper, The Roots of Endurance [Crossway Books], pp. 129-134).
Not many of us can rack up such a record! But we can persevere in whatever the Lord has given us to do for His kingdom. Just as the result of the people’s building the temple in Haggai’s day would bring more glory to God, so our obedience in building His spiritual temple, the church, will glorify Him. If you are discouraged in your service for the Lord, He wants to encourage you to persevere for His glory.
Discussion Questions
- Why are so many American Christians “burning out”? Are we too emotionally fragile, or are there other causes?
- How can we know if we are too committed to the Lord’s work? Where is the proper balance between work, home, and church commitments?
- What discourages you the most in your service for the Lord? How can you prevent and overcome it?
- What is a biblical definition of “success” in Christian service?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Comfort, Discipleship, Establish
Lesson 3: Seek First His Righteousness (Haggai 2:10-19)
Related MediaWhen asked what he needed for his birthday, a six-year-old said firmly, “I don’t want to need, I want to want.” Perceptive kid!
What do you want in life? That question requires careful thought! The story of King Midas, who was granted his ultimate wish that everything he touched would turn to gold, shows us how easy it is to want the wrong things. Midas quickly discovered that you can’t eat gold and you can’t relate to gold people! He made the wrong choice!
What I want more than anything—I covet it—is God’s blessing. When you’ve got God’s blessing, you’ve got it all. You may be rich or poor, healthy or ill, living in a mansion or hiding out in a cave. But if you know that God is blessing your life, you’ve got something that the world can’t give or take away. You are truly satisfied! On the other hand, if you lack God’s blessing, you may get what you think will satisfy, but you will have leanness in your soul (Ps. 106:15, KJV).
The prophet Haggai’s third message (2:10-19) to the remnant that had returned from the Babylonian captivity tells us how we can experience God’s true blessing. As we saw in his first message, the people to whom he was preaching were, for the most part, believers. They had made the difficult commitment to leave their familiar circumstances in Persia and return to the Promised Land. We see their commitment to the Lord in that one of the first things they did when they got back was to rebuild the altar and to begin to rebuild the temple. But they encountered strong opposition from the Samaritans and other peoples of the land, and the project came to a halt.
Meanwhile, they got busy with their own work and their own houses, and the temple got set aside. About 15-16 years later, God raised up Haggai with the message, “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house lies desolate?” (1:4). The people responded and the work on the temple started again.
In Haggai, the first and the third messages are similar, as are the second and fourth. The first and third are messages of rebuke or exhortation. The second and fourth are messages of encouragement. The first message told us to seek first God’s kingdom, not our own priorities. This third message shows that not only should we seek first God’s kingdom, but that we must do so from pure hearts. Thus it develops the second half of Matthew 6:33, “and His righteousness.” The first message was, God will grant true blessing when we put His house first. The third message is:
God will grant true blessing when we put His house first from righteous lives.
Why did this message come from Haggai when it did, on December 18, 520 B.C., about three months after the first message? A couple of factors may explain the timing. First, the early rains begin in Jerusalem in mid-October, softening the ground for plowing and planting seed. By mid-December, this work would be done, but there would be no evidence yet as to whether it would be a good year for the crops. As verse 19 implies, the seed was not in the barn; it had been planted. But neither the seed nor the fruit trees had yet given any evidence as to the harvest. Would it be another year of drought (1:11)? Would it be another frustrating year of sowing much, but harvesting little (1:6)? God assures the anxious people that because they had put His house first by rebuilding again, He would bless them.
But it was not enough just to reconstruct the physical temple. God never desires a fancy building and lots of sacrifices if the hearts of the worshipers are not right before Him. Among those working on the rebuilding project there were some, if not many, who thought that if they just got that building reconstructed, it would be like a good luck charm. Since they rebuilt God’s temple, He would bless them with a bountiful harvest. But their hearts were not right before God. They were not drawing near to Him with clean hands and pure hearts (Ps. 24:3-4). So Haggai delivers this message to exhort the people not only to keep working on the temple, but also to do it from hearts that are right before God. Outward religion is never enough. God looks on the heart.
We will look at the two sections in reverse order, because the second section really reiterates the message of chapter 1, whereas the first section adds to it the requirement of personal holiness.
1. God will grant true blessing when we put His house first (2:15-19).
Haggai’s message reveals both the negative and positive sides:
A. When we do not put God’s house first, He brings discipline into our lives.
There is some confusion over the time references here. It could mean, “Think back over the past years of drought and frustration and you will see that your problems began when you set aside the Lord’s house and put your houses first.” Or, it could have the nuance that the NIV gives it, “From now on, start thinking about the past and how your problems correlate to your neglect of God’s house.” Either way, the main idea is clear: “There is a direct correlation between your selfish priorities and your difficult circumstances of the past few years.” Perhaps the reason that they were still experiencing frustrating circumstances was that God had not removed the consequences of their past neglect.
God’s discipline is not pleasant but it really is a blessing, as Hebrews 12:1-11 tells us, because it is a mark of His love toward us as His children. Those who lack God’s discipline are not His true children (Heb. 12:8)! Sometimes His discipline stems directly from some sin in our lives. It is like a spanking: we sinned and our Heavenly Father administers the rod of His love to teach us not to sin.
At other times, His discipline is not directly related to any specific sin, but rather it is to bring us to spiritual maturity. This is like a loving parent who gives his child a difficult chore to do. It is not pleasant, but by submitting to his father, the child learns some valuable lessons that he will need throughout life. As a general rule, we do not learn to trust God and to submit to Him when everything is smooth as much as we do when things are difficult. The trials force us to rely on Him, because we have no where else to go.
In the case of the Jews here, the frustrations and hardships that they had been experiencing were due to their neglect, whether deliberate or inadvertent, of God’s house. They had slipped into the wrong priorities, putting their own pleasure and comfort ahead of God’s kingdom. God sent His discipline to get them to stop and consider their mixed up priorities.
B. When we do put God’s house first, He truly blesses us.
The people had begun to obey three months earlier, but as of yet, they did not see any results. But God graciously assures them through Haggai (2:19), “From this day on I will bless you.” Verse 18 has a couple of problems. First, why does Haggai seem to say that God would bless them from this day (Dec. 18th) on, when they had started to rebuild three months earlier? And, why does he mention the founding of the temple then, when it had been founded some 16-18 years before?
As to the first question, probably the sense of what he is saying is, “From today onward, start thinking about how things have been for the past 16-18 years. Write it down and you will later see that God’s true blessing began at this very time” (adapted from Robert Alden, Expositor’s Bible Commentary [Zondervan], 7:590).
As to the founding of the temple, the Hebrew word does not necessarily refer to the foundation being laid, but to the start of the work (Joyce Baldwin, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries [IVP], pp. 52-53). The work of rebuilding had begun 16-18 years before; now it was beginning again. Haggai’s point is that God would truly bless them because of their obedience in putting His house first. Note two things in this regard:
(1) God’s blessing is the most important thing in life’s labors.
Without God’s blessing, our work ends in frustration. We go to our store of grain expecting to find 20 measures, but only 10 are there. We expect to draw 50 measures of wine, but only find 20 (2:16). We plant expecting a crop, but blasting wind, mildew, and hail decimate the yield (2:17).
In Leviticus 26, God spells out for Israel the blessings that He would bring on them if they obeyed Him, as well as the curses that would come if they disobeyed. If they obeyed, God promised that five Israelites would chase 100 enemies, and 100 would chase 10,000 (Lev. 26:8). That is way out of proportion to any human explanation. The only explanation was God’s blessing. His blessing gives results that are out of proportion to human ability, calculations, or effort.
We see the same thing in the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. Jesus tested the disciples by asking them where they would get the bread to feed this huge crowd (John 6:5-6). They did some quick calculations and figured that 200 denarii would not be sufficient for everyone just to get a little. Of course, this was hypothetical, because the disciples didn’t have anywhere near 200 denarii (200 day’s wages). But the point of the miracle is that when Jesus blessed the five loaves and two fish, it was sufficient for everyone to eat plenty and to have 12 baskets full of leftovers.
When we scheme how to build God’s church by using the latest slick methods or how to raise money for God’s work by hiring professional fund raisers who could get the same guaranteed results from any group of people, we are operating outside the sphere of God’s blessing. Any time that I get a flyer advertising “proven methods” for building your church or boosting attendance, I know that while the methods may work, they work apart from God’s blessing. I am not interested in such approaches.
But when we simply obey God, honor His Word, depend on Him in prayer, and preach the gospel, and the results are far beyond any human explanation, that is His blessing! I must add, we may not see any such results in our lifetimes, and only eternity will reveal what God does with such sacrifices of obedience on His altar. Many missionaries have labored for years in dependence on God with no visible fruit. But because they were obedient to Him, He will bless their labors in eternity, if not in their lifetimes. We need to keep His perspective. But let’s ask Him for His blessing on all that we do in dependence on Him!
But what about godly people who are truly seeking first God’s kingdom and righteousness, but they have many great trials?
(2) True blessing does not mean that God removes our problems, but rather that He grants His presence in our problems and His promises for eternity.
These Jews were still under Persian rule. They were still surrounded by hostile nations. They were still just a small remnant in the land. None of them lived long enough to see God’s glory rest on this humble temple in greater splendor than it had on Solomon’s temple. I agree with John Calvin, who says, “It often happens that those who sincerely and from the heart serve God, are deprived of earthly blessings, because God intends to elevate their minds to the hope of eternal reward” (Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker reprint], on Haggai 2:15-19, p. 382).
In other words, the greatest blessings are not temporal blessings that quickly vanish, but the abiding joy and satisfaction that God’s obedient servants will know throughout eternity in heaven. While God often blesses His obedient servants on earth with material things (as He here promised the Jews), His greatest blessings are reserved for us in heaven. We need to keep the eternal perspective or we could easily become discouraged.
How can we get God’s true blessing on our lives and our work for the Lord?
2. God blesses those who put His house first from holy lives (2:10-14).
Through Haggai, the Lord asks two questions of the priests. First, if a man carries holy meat (meat offered in a sacrifice) in the fold of his garment and touches bread (or other food) with this garment, will that food become holy? The priests correctly answer, no (the meat would make the garment holy, but the process stopped there; see Lev. 6:27). The second question was, if one who is unclean through contact with a dead body touches any of these things, will it become unclean? The priests correctly answer, “yes” (see Lev. 22:4-6; Num. 19:11-16). Note three lessons:
A. Holiness is not contagious, but corruption is.
It’s like health and disease. If I am healthy and you have the flu, my coughing in your face won’t make you well, but your coughing in my face will make me sick. Health is not contagious, but disease is. As we all know, it’s much easier to get sick than it is to stay healthy, especially when you have constant contact with sick people. At school, kids pick up germs from other kids and then they bring those germs home. It takes a lot of careful effort to avoid catching whatever is going around!
Sin is like that! You don’t pick up “holiness antibodies” by hanging around holy people, but you do pick up “sin viruses” by hanging around sinful people. But we tend to think just the opposite. We think that if you hang out in church buildings around the “God crowd,” surely some of it will rub off! We also tend to think that we can hang out with godless people without any adverse effects on us. Wrong on both counts!
I’m not suggesting that you check yourself into a monastery to avoid contact with the world. But I am saying two things. First, you won’t catch godliness by joining a godly group of people. You must personally get right with God by repenting of your sins and trusting in Jesus Christ, and you must walk in personal holiness before Him. Hanging out with godly people will definitely help you to walk with God, but you won’t catch holiness by osmosis.
Second, you should view your contacts with the world, whether it’s worldly people or exposure to worldly ideas, as a doctor views his patients. There is a very real danger of infection, so you must exercise proper caution and keep your objectives in mind. You are not in the world to cavort with sinners. You are there to snatch them from the fire, “hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” (Jude 23). In other words, you have contact to lead them to Jesus Christ, but you must be careful or you will be contaminated by their infection of sin. It’s contagious!
B. God will not bless a cause, no matter how great (e.g. the temple), unless the people involved in it are holy.
The temple was the greatest cause on earth in that day. God would manifest His presence and His glory to His people there. Sacrifices for sins would be offered there. The various feasts and celebrations took place there. These people were offering sacrifices and going through the prescribed rituals, but their hearts were not right before God. The contamination of their disobedient hearts was defiling the very sacrifices that they offered, just as those who touched a dead body contaminated others who touched them (2:14). To live in sin during the week and then come to the temple to worship was like dragging a corpse into the temple. It defiled everything. If they thought that God would bless them just because they were involved in rebuilding the temple, they were sadly mistaken. God isn’t fooled by anyone who labors for Him while hiding sin in his heart.
In our day, the church is the greatest cause in the world. Jesus said, “I will build My church” (Matt. 16:18). Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her (Eph. 5:25). The church (people, not buildings) is God’s temple, where He dwells and makes Himself known on earth today (Eph. 2:21-22). But Haggai’s word to us is, “You can be involved to the hilt in the local church, you can give money to the church, you can even be on the staff of a church, but if your heart is not clean before God, you’re defiling everything you touch!”
As we all know, there are professing Christians who build multimillion dollar ministries, who are on TV and in the national news, and who have thousands flocking to hear them speak. Sometimes they sell millions of copies of their books on how to have God’s blessing in your life. But if they are not broken and contrite of heart, if they are not striving against sin and for holiness on the heart level, then they are just slick showmen who happen to be in the church business. God’s true blessing is not on them.
C. Holiness that pleases God must be inward, not just outward.
We often look on the outward activity: “Lord, look at all that I’m doing for You!” But God looks on the heart. Do we do what we do from hearts made clean through faith in Christ? Do we abstain from evil when no one else is looking, except God?
It’s not enough to build His temple; we must build from hearts that please Him who knows our every thought. Motives are important to God. Our private thought life matters to Him. Do we truly seek Him every day, or is our Christianity just a mask to cover the corruption of our hearts? Do we take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5)? Do we pluck out our eye or cut off our hand, if need be, in order to be holy before God (Matt. 5:27-30)? If not, we’re only practicing our righteousness before men (Matt. 6:1), but God sees right through us. The godly 19th century Scottish pastor, Robert Murray McCheyne, said, “According to your holiness, so shall be your success. A holy man is an awesome weapon in the hands of God.”
So, what is the bottom line? What should we do?
Conclusion
Three times God repeats the same phrase that He repeated three times in the first section (1:5, 7): “Consider” (2:15, 18). It is literally, “set your heart,” or “fix your attention on this.” What God wants us to consider is, if we seek first His kingdom from righteous hearts, He will bless us. So we need to take frequent inventory of our lives, beginning on the heart level.
- Do I spend frequent time alone before God, in the Word and in prayer (Matt. 4:1-11)?
- Do I immediately confess any known sin and turn from it in genuine repentance, without blaming or excuses (1 John 1:9)?
- Do I build into my life protection and accountability in order not to make any provision for the sins that so easily entangle me (Rom. 13:14; Heb. 12:1-2; James 5:16)?
- Do I memorize and meditate on Scriptures that will keep me from temptation and sin (Ps. 119:9, 11)?
- Am I completely truthful in my closest relationships, or do I put on a mask of hypocrisy through deception (Eph. 4:25)?
- Is my love for Jesus Christ fervent and vital because I think often on what He did for me on the cross (Gal. 2:20; Rev. 2:4)?
- Do I truly want God’s blessing on my life, on my family, and on the ministry that He has entrusted to me?
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Ps. 139:23, 24).
Discussion Questions
- Are all problems (health, financial, relational, etc.) a part of God’s discipline? If we are seeking to live in obedience, will we be problem-free? Why/why not (cite Scripture)?
- Some equate God’s blessing with physical health and wealth. Why is this not biblical? (Cite Scripture to refute it.)
- How can we guard ourselves against hypocrisy?
- How honest should we be in sharing our inner struggles with others? Where does discretion fit in?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Discipleship, Spiritual Life
Lesson 4: God Will Prevail (Haggai 2:20-23)
Related MediaA correction notice in a local Oregon newspaper read, “The title of a First Christian Church program in last week’s paper was written as ‘Our God Resigns.’ The actual title is ‘Our God Reigns’” (Reader’s Digest, [9/93], p. 53). What a difference one letter makes!
But maybe that typo is more true in our experience than we care to admit! Many Christians live as if their God resigned, not as if He truly reigns as the Sovereign of the universe. As I mentioned recently, 70 percent of pastors constantly fight depression and over 80 percent of pastors and their wives feel discouraged in their work. If we aren’t careful, we can easily develop that perspective, because as you look around, it seems as if the enemy is winning. In spite of all of the Christian influence and Christian resources available in this country, evil has escalated to unimaginable proportions in the past 35 years.
Most Americans used to agree with Christian moral standards, even if they didn’t keep them. But now even many professing Christians do not live by those standards, let alone those in the world. People flaunt their sin as if it’s a badge of honor. Several Christian denominations tolerate homosexual sin not only among their members, but even among the clergy! Very few churches take a stand for absolute truth, whether in morals or in doctrine. The gospel has been changed from how a person can be saved from God’s judgment to how we can use God for personal fulfillment!
When you consider the cause of world missions, it also can be discouraging. The worldwide threat of militant Islam is daunting. Often new converts in Islamic countries are killed, which is no small problem in founding new churches! There are still thousands of people groups with no gospel witness. Quite often, even in this country, let alone in developing nations, professing Christians mingle cultural folk religion with their Christian faith. If we focus too much on these problems, it’s easy to wonder if our God resigned!
Zerubbabel found himself in that sort of discouraging situation. He was the grandson of Jehoichin, the last ruler of Judah before Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and conquered the land. Most of the population had been carried off to Babylon, and even now, only a small remnant of about 50,000 had returned under Cyrus’ permission. They were still under Persian rule and surrounded by hostile neighbors who opposed the Jewish resettlement. The Jews who returned seemed more concerned with their own comfort and prosperity than with the things of God. Although there was a good response to Haggai’s call to rebuild the temple, many of the Jews were religious outwardly, but their hearts were not right before God (2:14). The walls of Jerusalem were still torn down, leaving the city vulnerable. Somehow, Zerubbabel was supposed to govern in this bleak situation.
That was the picture on December 18, 520 B.C., the day that Haggai had a message from God for the people (last week, 2:10-19). He called them not only to continue the work on the temple, but to do it from hearts that were holy before God. He promised to bless them from that day on.
On that same day, God gave Haggai a message directly to Zerubbabel. As I said before, the first and third messages in Haggai are parallel, and the second and fourth are parallel. The first and third were messages of rebuke or exhortation. The second and fourth are messages of encouragement. To Zerubbabel and to all of God’s servants who may be discouraged, God has this word:
Because the Sovereign Lord will prevail in His eternal plan, His servants should be encouraged to trust Him and to do His will.
1. The Sovereign Lord will prevail in His eternal plan.
This is the explicit message of the text. The application (being encouraged to trust God and do His will) is by way of implication. Five truths drive home this overall message, that the Sovereign Lord (“Lord of hosts”) will prevail.
A. God has a definite plan for history.
Note the repetition of the first personal pronoun, “I”:
*“I am going to shake the heavens and the earth…”
*“I will overthrow the thrones of kingdoms…”
*“I will overthrow the chariots and their riders…”
*“I will take you, Zerubbabel…”
*“I will make you like a signet ring…”
*“‘I have chosen you,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”
You get the impression that God has an idea about what He is going to do! History isn’t just careening out of control with God desperately trying to grab the reins! The Sovereign God controls all of the events of history for His purpose. As He declares through Isaiah:
The Lord of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand” (14:24).
Remember this, and be assured; recall it to mind, you transgressors. Remember the former things long past, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, “My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure”; calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of My purpose from a far country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, surely I will do it (46:8-11).
As you know, there are many Christians today who effectively deny God’s sovereignty over man’s will. One popular Bible teacher even has a message he calls, “The Sovereignty of Man,” which I consider to be a blasphemous title! Scripture affirms that people make choices for which they are responsible, but it also affirms that over and above the choices that we make is the sovereign purpose of God. His ultimate purpose is that He will be glorified: “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:14). We have the choice of either cooperating with that purpose, in which case we will be blessed; or of fighting against it, in which case we will not in any way thwart it, and He will be glorified in our judgment.
B. God is mighty to accomplish His plan.
Our text does not contain any conditions. God does not say, “I hope to be able to shake the heavens and the earth, but it depends on how men respond with their free will! I would like to take you, Zerubbabel, if you’re willing, and make you My signet ring. I sure hope that you say yes!” God is quite absolute in declaring what He will do in the future to accomplish His plan.
Zerubbabel easily could have said, “But, Lord, we Jews who have returned to the land are few in number. We have no king, no army, no weapons to use in our defense. We’re surrounded by hostile and powerful nations and we’re subject to the most powerful kingdom on the face of the earth. How can we prevail?”
But clearly, God’s ability to accomplish His sovereign purpose does not depend on the puny resources of His people, but on His power and might. The Bible is loaded with stories of how God delights to overthrow powerful kingdoms that dare to exalt themselves over His weak, vulnerable, chosen people.
He is the God who brought the plagues on the mighty Egyptians and drowned their king and his army in the Red Sea. He delivered Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan, into the hands of this ragtag bunch of refugees in the wilderness. He toppled the walls of Jericho. He used Joshua and Caleb, who trusted Him, to conquer the fearsome giants in the land. He delivered the horde of Midian into the hands of Gideon with a mere 300 men. He felled Goliath and put the Philistines to flight at the hands of a teenaged shepherd named David. He delivered Hezekiah and Jerusalem from the siege of Sennacherib, king of Assyria, by sending His angel to kill 185,000 soldiers in one night.
He repeatedly declares in His Word, as Jeremiah put it, “Ah Lord God! Behold You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You!” (Jer. 32:17; see Jer. 32:27; Gen. 18:14; Zech. 8:6; Matt. 19:26; Luke 1:37). Now, what is your problem?
C. God’s plan is carried out in accordance with His choice.
God plainly states the reason that He will make Zerubbabel like His signet ring: “‘for I have chosen you,’ declares the Lord of hosts” (2:23). Again, note that God does not say, “I will make you like My signet ring because I can foresee that you will choose Me.” There are many Christians who would force that meaning onto this text, but I am content to let the text read as it stands. God accomplishes His sovereign plan through His choices. As John Calvin observes, “For God does not here ascribe excellencies or merits to Zerubbabel …; but he attributes this to his [God’s] own election” (Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker], 15:387). Calvin goes on to say that if we ask why God had so much exalted Zerubbabel, “it can be found in nothing else but in the goodness of God alone.” In other words, God’s election is not conditional on anything that He sees or foresees in fallen man, but only on His grace and good pleasure.
I agree that Zerubbabel willingly cooperated with God’s plan; but the reason he cooperated with God’s plan was that God chose him to do so. God’s sovereign, eternal choice lies behind the temporal choices of men. But at the same time, men are responsible for the choices that they make.
It is the same in the matter of salvation. People must choose to trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Indeed, God commands them to repent and believe the gospel (Mark 1:15). But when people make that choice, it does not stem from anything in them. It does not happen because they considered all the alternatives, and with their innate brilliance, they saw that it made the most sense to trust in Christ.
The natural mind is blinded by Satan and by sin, so that it cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4). The natural mind cannot understand or accept the things of the Spirit of God, because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14). So when anyone chooses to trust Christ, it is only because God has sovereignly chosen them and because Jesus willed to reveal the Father to them (Luke 10:22). Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9).
In our text, the Lord says that He has chosen Zerubbabel to be like a signet ring. The signet ring was the instrument that the king used to seal all official documents. It was a symbol of honor and authority. When the wicked Queen Jezebel confiscated Naboth’s vineyard for her weak-willed husband, King Ahab, she wrote letters in his name and sealed them with his seal (1 Kings 21:8). That seal told the recipients of the letters that the king stood behind the message and it had better be obeyed (see also, Dan. 6:17; Esther 8:8). Since it carried such authority, the king’s signet ring was a precious object of great care, which he usually wore on his person so that no one could steal it (Jer. 22:24).
God had said concerning Zerubbabel’s wicked grandfather, Jehoiachin (Coniah), “even though … [he] were a signet ring on My right hand, yet I would pull you off; and I will give you over into the hand of those who are seeking your life” (Jer. 22:24, 25). But now God graciously is reversing that judgment and restoring the Davidic line through Zerubbabel. Although Zerubbabel himself did not reign on the Jewish throne, he is included in both of the genealogies of Jesus Christ, the son of David (Matt. 1:12; Luke 3:27). So God’s promise of His choice of Zerubbabel as His signet ring should have brought great comfort and encouragement to this discouraged man in these difficult times.
Other than the fact that the doctrine of God’s sovereign election humbles the flesh and gives us no reason to boast, I do not understand why Christians stumble over and invent ways to get around it. It is given to us repeatedly in Scripture to comfort and encourage us. God’s message to Zerubbabel was that even though the most powerful kingdoms on earth would shake and fall, he need not fear because he is God’s chosen one, as precious in God’s sight as a signet ring was to a king. God’s message to His church and to individual believers in frightening times, when world or personal events cause us to quake with fear is, “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32). The doctrine of God’s choosing us should comfort, encourage, and strengthen us when we face hard times!
Thus, God has a definite plan for history. He is mighty to accomplish that plan. He carries out His plan in accordance with His sovereign choices.
D. God’s plan centers on the person of Jesus Christ.
We cannot correctly understand our text unless we see that Zerubbabel is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ (Calvin saw this over 450 years ago, ibid., p. 384). Jesus Christ is the center and final goal of what God is doing in human history. All of the Old Testament points ahead to Jesus Christ. God’s promises to Abraham and to David find their fulfillment in Christ. All of the New Testament centers on the person and work of Jesus Christ. As Luke records of Jesus on the Emmaus Road after His resurrection, “beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures” (Luke 24:27).
Richard Wolff (The Book of Haggai [Baker], pp. 80-81) writes,
[Zerubbabel] is a type of Christ, the true servant of God and God’s signet ring. All that has validity in God’s eyes, bearing the seal, the stamp of His approval, comes to us through Jesus Christ….
[Zerubbabel] led Israel out of the Babylonian exile and Christ delivered from the bondage of sin; Zerubbabel built the temple of God and Christ is building the spiritual temple, the church. Christ is the signet ring in and through whom all divine purposes are sealed. After the final shaking of the nations we shall receive a kingdom that cannot be moved and all nations shall walk in the light of God and He shall be all in all.
It is important to affirm that Zerubbabel is a type of Christ because these promises were not fulfilled in Zerubbabel’s lifetime. He never ruled on a throne over Israel. He didn’t live to see the thrones of kingdoms overthrown. He didn’t see his name in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. That points to the last thing about God’s plan for history:
E. God’s timing for fulfilling His plan is different than our timing.
In 2:6, the Lord says, “Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. And I will shake all the nations ….” Haggai 2:21 & 22 obviously refer to the same shaking, which God said would take place “in a little while.” Although there may have been some partial fulfillments of that shaking of the nations when Persia, Greece, and Rome were overthrown, the final fulfillment is still future in our day! Clearly God’s idea of “a little while” does not coincide with our idea of “a little while”!
Because these prophecies were not fulfilled in Haggai’s day, liberal Bible scholars make comments like these: “The nations did not press into the Second Temple of the prophet, here anticipated; the kingdoms of the world were not overthrown, the messianic age did not at once begin, and the governor Zerubbabel held no honourable place in it… ideals which, in the sense in which they were spoken, remain unfulfilled” (S. R. Driver, cited by Wolff, p. 79).
Such liberal commentators are the type of men of whom Peter wrote, mockers who say, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” As Peter goes on to point out, “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:4, 8-9).
As Hebrews 11:13 states with regard to the men of faith from the past, “All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.” Faith is the issue, isn’t it! We must accept by faith in God’s Word the promise of Christ’s return and all that it holds for us who believe, as well as the warnings about the coming judgment to those who scoff. That leads to the implicit application of our text:
2. God’s servants should be encouraged to trust Him and to do His will.
God calls Zerubbabel His servant (2:23), which is a title used of David (Ezek. 34:23; 37:24) and repeatedly of Messiah (Isaiah 40-55). So again in that sense, Zerubbabel is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. But also, we who believe in Christ are all His servants. Just as He chose Zerubbabel to serve a unique role in His sovereign plan, so He has chosen you, if you know Christ, to serve Him.
Haggai ends with this final triumphant note, but it is only a source of encouragement if we trust God’s word. If Zerubbabel heard this word through Haggai and hoped that it would be fulfilled in his lifetime, he would have died as a disappointed man. He had to take God at His word and trust that in His timing, the Lord would fulfill all of these promises in His perfect way. And he had to get on with the task of governing this people, which God had called him to do.
This final message of Haggai teaches us that frightening world circumstances, powerful enemies of the gospel, and personal discouragement are not good reasons for neglecting what God has called us to do. God’s Word to the leaders and the people in the second message, “Be strong and work,” is His message to us now. We have the great privilege of participating in God’s plan for the ages, the plan that brings Him eternal glory through Jesus purchasing for God with His blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation (Rev. 5:9). But to serve Him as we should, we have to trust His promises about what He is going to do in the future. Our God will prevail! He has not resigned. Our God reigns!
Conclusion
We don’t know what happened to Zerubbabel after this. Some scholars assume that both Haggai and Zechariah encouraged Zerubbabel to look forward to a time when Judea would be free from foreign domination and be governed by a descendant of the house of David. And they assume that the promise of our text led to the crowning of Zerubbabel, an act that was quickly crushed by Darius (R. K. Harrison mentions these views, Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible [Zondervan], 5:1057). But this is not likely. Although there are several legends about what happened after this, the Bible is silent. It leaves Zerubbabel with these hopeful promises, and we never hear of him again until he appears in the genealogies of Jesus Christ.
Maybe some of his unbelieving contemporaries scoffed, “You’re just believing in pie-in-the-sky when you die!” If they did, and if anyone scoffs in that manner at you, the correct answer is, “That’s true!” “If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:19). As believers in the promises of God, we put all of our “eggs” in the eternity “basket.” If God’s promises about the resurrection to life and to judgment are not true, then “let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (1 Cor. 15:32).
But if God’s Word is true and if Christ is raised from the dead, then let us “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58)!
Discussion Questions
- Is the doctrine of God’s sovereign election a source of comfort or of confusion to you? Why?
- How can we know that promises given thousands of years ago will yet be fulfilled? What assurance do we have that they are true?
- Why is it important to trust God even when we die without receiving the things that He promised (Heb. 11:13)?
- Is Paul’s statement, “If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:19), true of you? If not, why should it be?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2003, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Character of God, Discipleship, Faith, Spiritual Life
The Net Pastors Journal, Rus Ed 6, Зимний выпуск 2013
Составлено
Др. Роджер Паскоу, президент
Институт Библейского проповедования
Кембридж, Онтарио, Канада
«Укреплять церковь в библейском проповедовании и руководстве»
Часть I: Весть, Которую Мы Проповедуем: Истина О Христе (1 Тим. 3:14-16)
В первой части осеннего выпуска The NET Pastors Journal за 2012 год речь пошла о теме «Весть, которую мы проповедуем», я бы хотел и в этом выпуске продолжить эту тему. Существует две основополагающие истины, которые мы проповедуем: (1) весть о кресте (см. осенний выпуск за 2012 год); и (2) истина о Христе, которую мы провозглашаем.
Более всего люди сегодня нуждаются в «истине». В этом мире звучит столь много самых разных голосов, которые претендуют на то, что они знают и возвещают истину, но они противоречат друг другу. И даже среди нас, христиан, то и дело появляются новые богословстования и обычаи, каждая из них притязает на некую новую истину или толкование истины. Не мудрено, почему люди запутались: во что верить. На самом деле, они запутались возможно ли вообще знать истину. Но Христос сказал: «И познаете истину, и истина сделает вас свободными» (Иоанна 8:32). А также Он сказал: «Я есмь путь и истина и жизнь; никто не приходит к Отцу, как только через Меня» (Иоанна 14:6). Возможно от того над истиной и глумятся: ведь мир не хочет знать Христа.
Но мир способна изменить именно истина о Христе. Люди, окружающие нас нуждаются в том, чтобы услышать истину о Нем. А услышат они ее только тогда, когда мы будем ее проповедовать.
В 1 Тим. 3:14-16 апостол Павел раскрывает основополагающие истины о том Христе, Которого мы проповедуем. В этом отрывке Павел дает указания Тимофею о надлежащем порядке в церкви. Речь идет о том, что церковь должна придерживаться истины в поведении и в том, во что мы верим (проповедуем). Наши дела и наши слова должны соответствовать природе церкви и проповеди церкви. Церковь должна быть наставлена и придерживаться порядка под руководством Христа, а также правлением церковных лидеров, и в соответствии с истиной.
Прежде всего в этом отрывке нужно обратить внимание на то, что НАШЕ ПОВЕДЕНИЕ ДОЛЖНО РУКОВОДСТВОВАТЬСЯ ПРИРОДОЙ ЦЕРКВИ. «Сие пишу тебе... чтобы..ты знал, как должно поступать в доме Божием» (14 стих) «сие» относится ко всему тому, что Павел пишет о доме Господнем: молитва (2:1-7), роль мужчин и женщин на публичном служении (2:8-15), нравственные и духовные качества старейшин и дьяконов (3:1-13). После того, как он писал «сие», он дает общие указания относительно: (1) природы церкви (3:14-15) и (2) проповеди церкви (16 стих).
Природа церкви состоит в том, что она является «Божьим домом» (15а). Это место, где Бог пребывает со Своими народом. Это не общественное учреждение, но семья. Это не здание, это семья (сравните с Ефес. 2:18-22). Домашние в Божьем доме должны вести себя надлежащим образом. Мы не можем вести себя, как нам вздумается в доме Божьем. Мы должны отвечать определенным моральным стандартам, духовным убеждениям, и ежедневной жизни, которые к лицу домочадцам Божьим и Самому Богу. Таким образом, общественная молитва, должна обладать определенными характеристиками и направленностью, лидеры церкви, должны отвечать определенным требованиям, и истина нужно добросовестно преподавать и защищать, потому что церковь есть "дом Божий".
Дом Божий "Церковь Бога живого" (15б). Это не место для поклонения мертвым идолам из дерева и камня, но это место, где живой Бог присутствует со своим народом. Это "жилище Божие Духом" (Еф. 2:22;. ср. 1 Фес 1:9-10;. Деяния 14:15). «Бог, сотворивший мир и все, что в нем, Он, будучи Господом неба и земли, не в рукотворенных храмах живет» (Деян. 17:24 и далее, 2 Кор 6:16). Когда поместная церковь встречается, чтобы поклоняться Богу, это практическим и видимым образом выражает ту истину, что живой Бог присутствует и являет Свою силу среди нас (1 Кор. 14:25). Мы показываем это, когда мы молимся, поем песни и гимны, когда читаем Писание, когда проповедуем Слово, когда вместе принимаем причастие, преподаем крещение и просто проводим общение. И мы укрепляем Его присутствие среди нас благодаря евангелизации и миссионерству, как в непосредственной близости, так и по всему миру.
Поскольку Бог живет и присутствует среди нас в Своем доме, мы должны вести по Его стандартам, ведь именно Он смотрит на нас, и Он судит нас.
Подобно тому, как колонна поддерживает и поднимает некий груз, так и церковь поддерживает и поднимает истину, дабы все могли видеть и слышать ее. Общественные здания часто известны своей впечатляющей колоннадой, которая отражает нрав и значение здания: некую выносливость, полномочия и власть (например, здания судов, парламента зданий, соборов). Подобно этому церковь должна быть впечатляющим проявлением Божьей истины: выносливость, полномочий и власти. Церковь превозносит Божью истину, как некий столп, чтобы она была видна и слышна всем.
Но природа Божьего дома, это не только «церковь живого Бога», но и «столп и утверждение истины» (15в). Скорее всего, апостол Павел использовал образ столпа, поскольку он знал, что церковь в Эфесе сразу вспомнит красивое здание храма богине Дианы в этом городе. Храм украшали 127 мраморных колонны, украшенным золотом и драгоценными камнями. Иногда столпом общества называют некий выдающий пример того, каким может быть гражданин. Похожим образом, Павел говорит, что церковь – это «столп истины».
Природа Божьего дома или церкви: (1) "Церковь Бога живаго", (2) "столп истины", (3) "утверждение истины". Подобно тому, как фундамент удерживает структуру всего здания, чтобы придать ему устойчивость, прочность и надежное основание, так и Церковь (по словам Павла) является "основой (утверждением) истины". Церковь представляет собой неподвижную опорную конструкцию, которая поддерживает истину, высоко ее поднимает, когда на нее нападают лжеучителя. Церковь является надежным основанием, на котором безопасно покоится истина.
Поэтому церковь – это и столп и утверждение истины: столп – это то, что над землей, а утверждение – это фундамент. Как столп истины, церковь отображает истину сверху. Это проповедь «с кровель», когда мы излагаем ее, учим ей, проповедуем ее при все людях и деятельно участвуем в благовестии всем народам. Как основание истины, церковь поддерживает истину снизу, следуя истине, в послушании ней, в том, что она воплощается в жизнь (Кол. 3:12-17). Именно Слово Божье считается окончательным авторитетом веры и жизни, Слово нужно изучать, преподавать и объяснять (2 Тим. 2:15), истину нужно утверждать и защищать (Фил. 2:16). Церковь – это краеугольный камень, на котором покоится истина.
А как столп истины, церковь является видимым, мощным, славным, публичным и невозмутимым глашатаем истины. Как основание истины, она является непоколебимым, твердым защитником и приверженцем истины, которая никуда не девается и не исчезает. Это истина, на которой мы стоим и которой придерживаемся. Для этого требуется определенные нормы поведения: нормы, соответствующие нашей Вести. Как бы там не было, мы – Божий дом, мы являемся носителями Его природы, Его характера. Он присутствует в этом мире через нас. Наше поведение подчинено природе церкви, которая поднимает знамя истины, как славный столп, на которой покоится истина.
Итак, апостол Павел говорит, что наше поведение подчинено «природе» церкви, но также обратите внимание, что он говорит, что НАША ВЕСТЬ ПОДЧИНЕНА ИСТИНЕ О ХРИСТЕ. Весть, которую несет церковь названа «истиной», а церковь является «столпом» и «утверждением» именно этой истины. Под «истиной» тут мы пониманием нашу общую суть веры, некий свод и сущность христианских верований, за которые мы стоим горой. Истина – это фундамент на котором почивает христианская церковь, и это столп на котором держится Весть христиан. Это наше исповедание веры, если вам угодно, то, что мы исповедуем в проповеди, в преподавании, песнях, молитвах, свидетельстве.
Истина – также является великой тайной благочестия, «и беспрекословно - великая благочестия тайна» (16 стих). «Благочестие» - это первая характеристика христианской жизни и поведения, которая приходит на ум. Это проявление Бога в нашем поведении (стихи 14-15), и в нашем исповедании (стих 16), т.е. это то, что мы делаем, и что говорим. Это поведение, присущее и достойное тех, кто держится «истины». Христианская вера, по словам Павла, является «великой тайной», причина кроется в том, что хоть оно и было в некой мере явлено в прошлом, оно стало видимой, ощутимой, доступной реальностью во Христе только сейчас (Еф. 3:1-7). «Тайна» состоит в том, что Бог явил Себя во Христе. Иисус Христос совершенно и полностью явил то, что было не вполне понятно: а именно природу и характер Бога. В Нем мы узнаем Бога. Он – есть образ невидимого Бога, точное отображение сущности Божьей (ср. с Евр. 1:3). Иисус Христос – Бог.
Таким образом, во Христе мы видим явленное нам «благочестие», в Нем мы преображаемся в образ, Который задуман Богом. В Иисусе Христе «тайна благочестия» становится явной. Своей жизнью Христос совершенным образом явил «благочестие» и «истину». Пример Его жизни является руководством для нас в истинном благочестии. Истина, по своей сути – это истина о Христе, ведь Он и есть Истина, и именно в Нем наиболее явно мы видим Бога. Таким образом «истина благочестия» наиболее совершенным образом явлена в Христе Иисусе, именно она представляет собой фокус поведение церкви и ее (церкви) Весть. Истина, которую исповедует церковь, и которой она держится, - это евангелие, тайна благочестия, которая ныне явлена о личности, и в личности Христа: Его деле, жизни, смерти и воскресенье. Благочестие коренится в нашем знании Христа и подражании Ему. Бог наиболее полностью явлен во Христе, и у Него мы учимся благочестию.
Взаимоотношения с Христом и исповедание Его определяют Церковь и формируют ее. В чем же именно состоит истина о Христе, которая является стержневой для христианской Вести? Наша Весть о воплощении Христа. «Бог явился во плоти» (16а). Христос не начал свое существование, когда произошло воплощение. Он существует предвечно, когда Он пришел на Землю, Он отказался от Своих божественных прав и привилегией, Он стал человеком во всем, и при этом не прекратил быть Богом (Фил. 2:6-8, Евр. 2:14). Таким образом Бог явил Себя нам. Иначе Бог оставался для нас всегда загадкой, наше богопонимание всегда было туманным, нечетким и ограниченным тем проявлением Бога, которое мы бы видели в творении и в нашей совести. Но благодаря тому, что Бог Сам Себя явил во Христе, мы знаем Его лично, близко и искупительно. «И Слово стало плотию, и обитало с нами, полное благодати и истины; и мы видели славу Его, славу, как Единородного от Отца» (Иоанна 1:14), - говорит Иоанн. Сказавший “Я есмь истина”, открыл нам истину про Бога, ведь Он и есть Бог, Он – Эммануил, «с нами Бог», для того, чтобы сделать Бога известным нам.
«Бог явил Себя в плоти». Он родился от Святого Духа у Девы, принял на Себя человеческую природу, сохранив при этом божественную, и обитал среди нас, встретившись с теми же проблемами и тленностью, что и мы. «Посему Он должен был во всем уподобиться братиям, чтобы быть милостивым и верным первосвященником пред Богом, для умилостивления за грехи народа. Ибо, как Сам Он претерпел, быв искушен, то может и искушаемым помочь» (Евр. 2:17-18). Апостол Иоанн говорит, что возвещает Того, Кого видели, слышали, Кого касались (1 Иоанна 1:1-3).
Наша Весть подчинена истине о Христе: прежде всего истине о воплощении Христа («Бог явился во плоти»), а во-вторых, истина об защите (оправдании) Христа (16б). Быть «оправданным» означает быть очищенным от обвинений, быть провозглашенным невиноватым, получить защиту от нападения. Если явление Христа в плоти говорит нам о Его человечности, то оправдание Духом говорит о Его божественной составляющей. Он был оправдан Духом при крещении, когда Дух помазал Его на служение. Он был оправдан Духом в Своих делах, когда божественной силой совершал чудеса. Он был оправдан Духом при Своем воскресенье, когда встал из мертвых (Рим. 1:4, 8:11 и Еф. 1:20). Это было окончательное оправдание и доказательство того, что Он про Себя говорил: безгрешный Богочеловек. Это было окончательное подтверждение Его совершенной праведности, полного принятия Его совершенной жертвы, окончательное доказательство того, что Он Бог, Который явил Себя в плоти.
Поэтому наша Весть о воплощении Христа: Он явился в теле и был оправдан Духом. Обратите внимание, что наша Весть – еще и свидетельство о Христе. Прежде всего, было свидетельство ангелов о Христе, ведь Он «показал Себя Ангелам» (16в). Он уничижил Себя ниже ангелов, когда принял на себя страдания смерти (Евр 2:9), они могли видеть это. Им было известно, Кто Он был на самом деле, они видели Его с начала и до конца Его пребывания на земле, и они свидетельствуют о Нем.
Ангелы наблюдали Его рождение. Они несли свидетельство, что Он – воплощенный Бог. Вот почему ангел сказал Иосифу: “Не бойся принять Марию, жену твою, ибо родившееся в Ней есть от Духа Святаго” (Матф. 1:20). Вот почему ангел открыл Марии: “посему и рождаемое Святое наречется Сыном Божиим” (Лук. 1:35). Ангелы несли свидетельство, что Он был предвечным Царем, они сказали Марии: “Он будет велик и наречется Сыном Всевышнего, и даст Ему Господь Бог престол Давида, отца Его; 33 и будет царствовать над домом Иакова во веки, и Царству Его не будет конца” (Лука 1:32-33). Ангелы свидетельствовали, что Иисус и был обещанным Спасителем. Вот почему они воскликнули пастухам: “ибо ныне родился вам в городе Давидовом Спаситель, Который есть Христос Господь” (Лука 2:11). Вот почему ангелы указали Иосифу наречь имя Ему Иисус, поскольку Он “ибо Он спасет людей Своих от грехов их” (Матф. 1:21).
Ангелы видели Его не только при рождении, но они также видели Его при всех искушениях. Вот почему они явились Ему в пустыне и “служили Ему” (Матф. 4:11; Марка 1:13). Вот почему ангел укреплял Его в страданиях в Гефсиманском саду (Лука 22:43). Более того, ангелы видели Его при Его смерти и были готовы спасти Его. Поэтому Христос сказал: “или думаешь, что Я не могу теперь умолить Отца Моего, и Он представит Мне более, нежели двенадцать легионов Ангелов?” (Матф. 26:53). Ангелы видели Его при Его воскресенье, когда был отвален камень (Матф. 28:2). Вот почему они могли сказать женщине при гробнице: “что вы ищете живого между мертвыми? Его нет здесь: Он воскрес” (Лука 24:4-7). Ангелы видели Его, когда Он был вознесен. Они сказали ученикам: “что вы стоите и смотрите на небо? Сей Иисус, вознесшийся от вас на небо, придет таким же образом, как вы видели Его восходящим на небо” (Деян. 1:10-11). И наконец, ангелы видели Его прославление. И они поклонялись Ему, говоря: “достоин Агнец закланный принять силу и богатство, и премудрость и крепость, и честь и славу и благословение” (Откр. 5:12).
Весть, которую несет церковь – это Весть о Христе. О Христе свидетельствовали не только ангелы, но и люди свидетельствовали о Христе, ведь Он «проповедован в народах» (16г). Его не только видели небесные создания, но о Нем «слышали» люди. Христос дал указание ученикам: «и будете Мне свидетелями в Иерусалиме и во всей Иудее и Самарии и даже до края земли» (Деян. 1:8). Истину о Нем провозглашал Бог Отец («Се, Сын мой возлюбленный»), и ангелы, и именно Его должны провозглашать ученики «всем народам». И это и наша Весть, и наша задача. Всем народам мы проповедуем Того, над Кем издевались, глумились, осудили и распяли. Именно Его «мы проповедуем» (Кол. 1:28), - говорит Павел. «А мы проповедуем Христа распятого, для Иудеев соблазн, а для Еллинов безумие, для самих же призванных, Иудеев и Еллинов, Христа, Божию силу и Божию премудрость» (1 Кор. 1:23-24; сравните с 1 Кор. 2:2).
Весть церкви – это истина о Христе: (1) воплощение и (2) оправдание Христа. Весть церкви – это свидетельство о Христе: (1) свидетельство ангелов, и (2) свидетельство людей.
И наконец, весть церкви об отклике на Христа. Земля откликнулась на Христа. «Принят верою в мире» (16д). В результате того, что провозглашалось Евангелие, многие уверовали в эту Весть, 3000 людей покаялось в день пятидесятницы, и это движение распространилось по всей Иудее, Самарии, и до языческих народов, в Него уверовали и язычники, и иудеи. Иудеи приняло его верою в мире, читайте: «и из священников очень многие покорились вере» (Деян. 6:7). Язычники приняли его верой в мире, читайте «Язычники, слыша это, радовались и прославляли слово Господне, и уверовали все, которые были предуставлены к вечной жизни» (Деян.13:48; ср. 17:12).
Церковь провозглашает истину о том, как люди откликнулись на Христа: (1) был отклик на земле, и (2) был отклик на небе «вознесся во славе» (16е). На этом завершилось Его земное служение. Он вознесся и сел одесную Бога, на месте силы, славы ходатайства за Свой народ. Люди ненавидели Его, били Его, распяли Его, отвергали Его, положили Его в гроб, но Бог воскресил Его и в славе вознес Его. В конце Его жизни были не смерть и унижение, но вознесение и слава.
Подведем итоги: задача церкви состоит в том, чтобы держаться истины и исповедания (Вести). Наше поведение подчинено природе церкви: мы Божий дом, церковь живого Бога, столп и утверждение истины. Наша Весть подчинена истине о Христе. Эту истину мы смело провозглашаем, и ее держимся: истину о том, что Он явил Себя во плоти, был оправдан Духом, его видели ангелы, о Нем проповедовано меж народами, в Него уверовали в мире, Он был взят во славе, и оттуда Он грядет вновь.
Это и есть та истина, которую мы проповедуем: истина о воплощении Христа, истина о Его смерти, воскресенье, вознесении и прославлении. Это и есть та Весть, которую мы возвещаем: истина о ключевой личности всемирной истории, чья жизнь, учения и дела разделили мир. Истину, столь нужную всем людям, о том, Кем является Христос, и о том, как Он изменил мир, истину, которой столпом и основанием является церковь.
Нашей целью в том, что мы держимся Вести и провозглашаем ее является прославить Его за то, Кем Он является, быть послушным Его Великому Поручению, приводить других в живые, преобразующие взаимоотношения с ним. Важной целью церкви является быть столпом и основанием истины. Это достигается поведением и исповеданием, так, чтобы благодаря поведению (которое отображает природу церкви, как Божьего дома) и благодаря нашему исповеданию (которое отображает Весть церкви, как Божьей истины) другие могли принять личность Христа, пришли к познанию Его, любили Его, шли за Ним и служили Ему.
Давайте стремиться к тому, чтобы быть верными проповедниками истины, которую мы исповедуем, и которую провозглашаем. Будем защищать и твердо держаться истины о Христе.
ЧАСТЬ II. Руководство: быть благочестивым примером – “Ваша личная святость”
Др. Роджер Паскоу, президент
Институт Библейского проповедования
Кембридж, Онтарио, Канада
Быть «святым» означает быть отделенным для поклонения и служению Богу, быть посвященным, чистым, отданным Богу. А как же нам сохранить святость в культуре, которая позволяет одно-половые браки и внебрачные интимные отношения? Как вообще передвигаться по городу, когда в глаза бросаются билборды с сексуальным или развратным посланием. Даже телевизионная реклама в обязательном порядке введет в красу или будет оскорбительной. Как же нам, христианам, жить так, чтобы любить то, что любит Бог и ненавидеть то, что Бог ненавидит?
Джон Оуэн был одним из тех, кто прожил святую жизнь. В книге «Жить для Бога» Джон Пайпер пишет, что, скорее всего, Джон Оуэн был величайшим пастором-богословом среди британских пуритан. Его влияние было заметно в политической, деминационной, богословской, академической, пасторской и личной среде. Несмотря на его чрезвычайную занятость и множество бед (из его одиннадцати детей десять умерло в детском возрасте, а одиннадцатая дочь умерла, когда уже в юном возрасте), его личная святость была объектом его неугасимых желаний. Он говорил: «Желанием моего сердца является Бог и Его замысел касательно моей жизни… это всеобъемлющая святость, которая должна отображаться в моем сердце, и в сердцах других». Джон Пайпер продолжает: «Не многие лидеры сегодня цель своей жизни сформулируют вокруг святости. Все больше и больше лидеров открыто исповедуют, что их личная святость не имеет значения для публичного служения… Джон Оуэн не был таким. Чудо, сила и красота его публичной жизни состояла в его личном общении с Богом в чистоте и радости… ключ к чистоте и святости, это ключ к долгосрочной эффективности в полноте жизни, которая постоянно созерцает славу Христа1»
В каком-то смысле, все мы, христиане, находимся в странствии, на протяжении которого мы становимся все более похожими на Христа. Но с другой стороны, мы, христианские лидеры, от которых требуется быть образцом христианской нравственности и образа «безупречной» жизни (1 Тим. 3:2), когда живем подобно тому, как жил Христос (1 Иоанна 2:6). Нужно умертвлять дела плоти (Рим. 8:13), мы должны поступать в Духе, и не исполнять вожделений плоти (Гал. 5:16). Мы должны отвергнуть старого человека и облечься в нового (Эф. 4:22-24), распяв плоть с ее страстями и желаниями (Гал. 5:24). А посему, нам нужно упражняться в…
A. Чистота В Поведении
Мы призваны к святости: “Будьте святы, ибо я свят”. Чистота – это необходимое требование общения с Богом, исполнения Духом, убедительности вашей личной жизни, силе проповедования и руководства. Одна из ключевых областей, которую нужно хранить – это сексуальная чистота.
1. Чистота В Сексуальном Поведении
“будь образцом для верных… в чистоте” (1 Тим. 4:12)
“А блуд и всякая нечистота и любостяжание не должны даже именоваться у вас, как прилично святым. Также сквернословие и пустословие и смехотворство не приличны [вам], а, напротив, благодарение; ибо знайте, что никакой блудник, или нечистый, или любостяжатель, который есть идолослужитель, не имеет наследия в Царстве Христа и Бога. Никто да не обольщает вас пустыми словами, ибо за это приходит гнев Божий на сынов противления; итак, не будьте сообщниками их. Вы были некогда тьма, а теперь - свет в Господе: поступайте, как чада света, потому что плод Духа состоит во всякой благости, праведности и истине. Испытывайте, что благоугодно Богу, и не участвуйте в бесплодных делах тьмы, но и обличайте. Ибо о том, что они делают тайно, стыдно и говорить” (Еф. 5:3-12)
“Брак у всех [да будет] честен и ложе непорочно; блудников же и прелюбодеев судит Бог” (Евр. 13:4)
Мы в огромной мере уязвимы нравственным стандартам нашей культуры, а особенно, если мы занимаемся каким-либо христианским руководством. В этой области уязвимы мы все, молодые или старые, пасторы мы или просто живем по-христиански, выполняя свою работу.
Пасторы и христианские лидеры особенно уязвимы потому что некоторых женщин по-особенному привлекает их общественное положение и коммуникабельность. Когда пасторы и христианские лидеры проводят беседы с женщинами, они узнают подробности из личной жизни, вследствие этого их могут привлекать другие женщины, а женщин они. Не допускайте, чтобы кто-то противоположного пола усыпил вашу бдительность. Не поддавайтесь искушениям. Пусть вас знают со стороны полного посвящения вашей супруге (если она у вас есть), пусть вас знают, как сексуального чистого человека.
Если вы желаете быть христианином, вы должны быть «безупречны». А быть безупречным в области сексуального поведения, словами Павла, означает «быть мужем одной жены» (1 Тим. 3:2 и Титу 1:6). Подразумевается, что вы «мужчина одной женщины», т. е. ваши глаза и желания устремлены только на вашу жену, и ни на кого иного.
Уделяйте особое внимание в вашей молитвах чистоте, просите, чтобы Бог хранил вас чистыми. Потерпеть неудачу в этой области, значит подорвать доверие, как пастырь Божьего народа, это значит нанести ущерб и своей собственной жизни. Вы должны защищать Божьих овец, а не подвергать опасности. Вы должны верно удовлетворять нужды Божьей отары, а не предавать их.
Даже и не приближайтесь к ненадлежащим отношениям с противоположным полом. Не способствуйте тому, что не стоит. Подорвать доверие в этой области – это рискнуть всем вашим служением и репутациею: доверием, целостностью, надежностью, как лидера.
Являемся ли мы пасторами или рядовыми лидерами, сатана хочет воспользоваться нами. И он расставляет для нас ловушки, а особенно, когда мы испытываем стресс, разочарование или одиночество. Когда служение или христианская жизнь не ладятся, тогда вы меньше боитесь нравственного падения, а посему эта угроза становится более реальной.
Итак, храните себя от сексуального искушения. Как это осуществить? Защитить себя от падения в сексуальные отношения можно, оградив себя. Что имеется ввиду? Установите границы, которые помогут вам защититься от сексуальных искушений и нечистоты. Например, (1) планируйте какой-то отдых, который поможет вам снять ежедневный стресс, (2) проводите время с супругой, (3) никогда не проводите встречу с противоположным полом за закрытыми дверями (то ли в кабине, то ли наедине), (4) не отказывайтесь от нужного отпуска, (5) отдыхайте достаточно, (6) не смотрите фильмов, которые сексуально вас возбуждают. Вопрос: в чем еще нужно себя «оградить?».
Можно защититься от сексуального согрешения, размышляя о потенциальных последствиях ненадлежащих отношений или сексуального поведения. Подумайте о последствиях потери уважения со стороны детей. Подумайте о последствиях для вашей супружеской и семейной жизни, для служения. Подумайте о последствиях для вашей церкви, которой вы руководите, о чувстве предательства, потери доверия или искушения последовать вашему примеру. Подумайте о том, что этим оскорбите Господа, Который умер, чтобы спасти вас от греха. Подумайте о печальных воспоминаниях, которые будут сопровождать вас всю оставшуюся жизнь.
Можно защитить себя от того, чтобы не поддаться сексуальным искушениям развивая подходящие взаимоотношения. Иосиф считал, что его отношения с Потифаром и Богом более значимыми, чем сиюминутное удовольствие (см. Бытие 39). Он в своих отношениях продолжал показывать уважение Потифару («нет больше меня в доме сем; и он не запретил мне ничего, кроме тебя, потому что ты жена ему») и он сохранил свои отношения с Богом, в почтении Ему («как же сделаю я сие великое зло и согрешу пред Богом?»). Это защитило Йосифа в этот момент от искушения впасть в сексуальный грех.
Можно защитить себя от сексуального согрешения поступая ответственно и зрело. Ненадлежащее сексуальное поведение является результатом неответственного и незрелого поведения. Вновь-таки, если взять Йосифа как пример, то он действовал ответственно, зрело и мудро по отношению к своему работодателю и своей работе.
Можно защитить себя от сексуального согрешения улучшая и укрепляя свой брак (если вы в браке). Скорее всего это лучший способ как сохранить себя сексуально чистым. Прилагайте усилия, чтобы проводить время со своей супругой и любите ее глубоко. Если вы – мужчина, то пусть все другие женщины знают, что ваша жена №1 в вашей жизни. Не подпускайте слишком ближе, чем на локоть других женщин.
Часть III. Мысли Для Размышления: Христос является нашим примером в том, как побеждать в искушениях2
Составлено Джоном Мак-Артуром
(пастором Grace Community Church, Солнечная долина, Калифорния)
“Он же сказал ему в ответ: написано… написано …. написано ” (Матф. 4:4a, 7б, 10б)
Наш Господь Иисус Христос действительно является нашим неотразимым примером того, как противостать искушениям. Послание к Евреям 4:15 напоминает нам: “Ибо мы имеем не такого первосвященника, который не может сострадать нам в немощах наших, но Который, подобно [нам], искушен во всем, кроме греха” (сравните с 2:18). От нас ожидается, не забывать множество искушений, с которыми Он сталкивался, взирать на Него, а также следовать за Ним, отвергая грех.
Сатана во всю силу пытался искусить Христа, но Христос одержал победу. И Он ныне желает разделить радость победы со всеми Своими святыми. “Вас постигло искушение не иное, как человеческое; и верен Бог, Который не попустит вам быть искушаемыми сверх сил, но при искушении даст и облегчение, так чтобы вы могли перенести” (1 Кор. 10:13).
Ключ к нашему триумфу над искушениями состоит в том, чтобы противостать им так, как Он делал Христос, то есть в послушании Богу и Его Слову. Точно также, как и во всех проявлениях христианской жизни, мы будем иметь успех только тогда, когда противостанем искушениям “ взирая на начальника и совершителя веры…” (Евр. 12:2). Словно спортсмен, что находится на беговой дорожке с препятствиями приобретает навык смотреть вперед на финишную прямую, не останавливаясь на каждом отдельно взятом препятствии, так и мы должны держать свой взгляд на конечной цели: вечное пребывание с нашим славным Господом и Спасителем на небесах.
Задайтесь вопросом: раз Слово Божье имеет такую особенность, что чем больше времени проводишь в нем, тем больше оно тебя влечет и проникает в наши сердца, мысли, склонности, действия и речь, то прибегаем ли мы каждый день к этому сокровищу? Пусть сатане придется преодолеть массу отрывков из Писания, прежде он сможет к вам добраться!
Часть IV. Планы Проповедей
Др. Роджер Паскоу, президент
Институт Библейского проповедования
Кембридж, Онтарио, Канада
Я публиковал планы проповедей о семи сверхъестественных делах Христа, о которых повествует евангелие от Иоанна. В предыдущем издании The Net Pastors Journal, были напечатаны последние четыре плана проповеди из этой серии. А теперь мы начинаем новую серию проповедей о семи чудесных встречах (беседах), приводимых в евангелии от Иоанна.
План проповеди
Ев. от Иоанна 3:1-8, Беседа Иисуса и Никодимом (части 1)
Для того, чтобы прослушать аудио-версии этих проповедей на английском языке, нажмите эти ссылки: Иоанна 3:1-5; Иоанна 3:5-6; Иоанна 3:7-8
Тема: войти в царство Божье
Пункт №1: В чем секрет вхождения в Царство? (2-3)
1. Царство Божье имеет и духовный, и физический аспект
2. Вхождение в царство происходит на основании духовного принципа нового рождения
Пункт №2: Как же происходит это новое духовное рождение? (4-8)
1. Духовное новое рождение происходит только благодаря «воде и Духу» (5)
2. Духовное рождение весьма разнится от физического рождения (6)
3. Духовное рождение – это ключ от Царства, данный для всех людей (7)
4. Духовное рождение подобно ветру (8)
1 John Piper, A Godward Life (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 124-125.
2 John MacArthur, “Christ Our Example in Overcoming Temptation,” in Daily Readings from the Life of Christ (Chicago: Moody Publisher, 2008), January 26.
Related Topics: Pastors
Equipping The Saints
The Mission of Equipping The Saints is to help churches and mission organizations to train ordinary lay people to do the work of ministry and to edify the Body of Christ as instructed in Ephesians 4:12. Equipping The Saints seeks to practically balance the Great Commandment of Jesus Christ with His Great Commission in the lives of lay people through hands-on training programs.