WATCHWORD:
7 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 8 Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. 9 “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. Haggai 1:7-
20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. 22 And have mercy on those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment[a] stained by the flesh. 24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time[b] and now and forever. Amen. Jude 1:20-25
Meditation:
Obedience Delayed?
The prophet Haggai has given King Darius the Word. You have trouble in your fields, they have not produced. You have trouble in your vineyards for the wine has been bitter. You have looked after your own, built your own houses, gathered your own abundance, while the House of the Lord is in ruins. You have made promises to the Lord, and delayed their fulfillment. Delayed obedience is disobedience in the eyes of the Lord.
The Holy Spirit tells you to do this and that, and you say, “I will as soon as I take care of this little bit of business.” Is that disobedience? Am I in trouble with the Holy Spirit?
I think the Lord was seeing the Hebrews getting pretty sloppy and lazy in their role as people of God. The prophet is saying to the people, consider what direction your lives are headed in. Your fields yield very little, your vineyards produce what is hardly drinkable, what you received from your herds is not enough. Life was hard and getting harder.
Does that sound familiar? Who is Haggai talking to, the Hebrews or us, or both? Is our mindset “Someone else will do it”? We just sit back and watch it all happen. Maybe we think that is God is in charge, so let him do it, without realizing that we are the hands of God. Much of what the Lord wants done will get our hands dirty, but we have to get off the dime, as they say. Delayed obedience is indeed disobedience, because delayed obedience breeds laziness.
Think back, when God was neglected in your life, how did that work for you? Were you satisfied with what you were doing? Were relationships going well? Did you get depressed, discouraged because you seemed to be without inspiration. Maybe if we neglect God, he will neglect us. I think I have something — Do you suppose there is a relationship between our praising God and the quality of our life, of our work, of our relationships? Hmmm. By Jove, I think we’ve got it!
But wait, here is another point: Blessings and graces come to us by our receiving them, not by our work or our achievements. Our obedience is part and partial of the graces God gives us. In short, obedience is a gift of grace. We receive obedience because God loves us.
This isn’t brain surgery, but it is heart surgery. This is just you and God. You receive things from God’s goodness, and give Him the praise and gratitude that his graces deserve. King Darius and the people responded, and the house of the lord was built, and abundance returned to the land. We need to take heed, and get on with obedience to our Lord. Amen.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, how best can I serve you, and how can I offer an acceptable sacrifice to you? I have realized that you cannot be deceived with a dishonored gift – no matter how significant it appears! Please help me to serve you without ulterior motives. Let me be sincere with my gifts, and let them come from a pure heart. Let my sacrifices of thanksgiving satisfy you, and enable me to maintain consistent services to you, so that I can be qualified to receive your blessings. For in the name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen. (From chainprayers.com)
