“In That Day” (Haggai 2)

And again the word of the Lord came to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, saying, “Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying: ‘I will shake heaven and earth.  I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; I will destroy the strength of the Gentile kingdoms. I will overthrow the chariots And those who ride in them; The horses and their riders shall come down, Every one by the sword of his brother. ‘In that day,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel My servant, the son of Shealtiel,’ says the Lord, ‘and will make you like a signet ring; for I have chosen you,’ says the Lord of hosts.”

After repentance, God promises to bless us openly. His grace chastened us and His holiness wouldn't accept our efforts, but now, seeing our sin and turning to Christ, God’s promised us a better day, whereby He fights for us.  He says, “According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!” (vs5).  The most blessed thing in the world is God being for you, giving you power to honor Him, and then blessing your labors.

Enemies have ruled us and we missed out on blessings, but God put your sin down, gave you godly fear, and He now answers your slavish fear with reconciliation, peace, and prosperity (vs15-19).  He says, “And now, carefully consider from this day forward: from before stone was laid upon stone in the temple of the lord – since those days, when one came to a heap of twenty ephahs, there were but ten; when one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty baths from the press, there were but twenty.  I struck you with blight and mildew and hail in all the labors of your hands; yet you did not turn to Me,’ says the Lord.  Consider now from this day forward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, from the day that the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid – consider it; is the seed still in the barn? As yet the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have not yielded fruit.  But from this day I will bless you”.  You have failed in yourself, but you have God now, working in you, blessing you, and your success is coming GREATER than before.  You have been turned, and the Lord’s goodness is your reward.

I desire ardently that believers know our BEST life now, and it is obedience to God and fearing Him, as commanded (vs6-9).  He says, “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts.  ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts.  ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts”.  We can say, “I will live for me, now that I have Christ”, but it doesn’t satisfy us like living for Him.  Ultimately, rebellion is fighting God for the believer, an uphill unwinnable battle, and we are seeking pleasure where it CAN’T be found, like searching for treasure in an empty jar.  The life that we want is obeying Christ, being strengthened by God, and being rewarded by Him. This may LOOK small, but it is blessed. It may not be mighty in our eyes, as if we’ve done great things for Him, but it will be pleasurable inwardly.  It will give assurance, and it WILL be useful to help others.

Finally, heaven is also coming. It is ultimately “that day” when all shall be well, and every foe defeated (vs20-23). He says, “In that day,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel My servant, the son of Shealtiel,’ says the Lord, ‘and will make you like a signet ring; for I have chosen you,’ says the Lord of hosts.” We look forward to this day, trusting the Lord, and living in hope, now.  We are not obeying for nothing!  We forsake sin because it is best for us, and with this in mind, trust Him wholeheartedly to conquer your struggles and trials.  Don’t say, “My behavior doesn’t matter; it’s all about Christ”, for that is like a son saying, “It doesn’t matter how I act, since my father loves me”.  There is no wisdom in light attitudes towards sin.  It is BEST to fear God, to have Him help you, and to be at peace in your labors.  He will ETERNALLY reward you with joy unstoppable for what you’ve done on earth.