Sunday
School Lessons
Commentary by Walter Albritton
June 15
The Lord Stirs Us to Choose Wisely the Priorities of Our Work
Haggai; Ezra 5:1, 2.
Key Verse: Is it time for you, O ye,
to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste? – Haggai 1:4
People sometimes argue
about the correct way to pronounce the name of the prophet Haggai. Some say “Hag-eye,”
others “Hag-ay-eye.” My research indicates that either pronunciation is
acceptable.
What matters more is
the prophet’s message! After a long period of silence, when it may have seemed
God did not care, He speaks through this prophet.
Several years have
passed since the foundation for the temple was laid. The people have been busy
with other things – the harvesting of their crops and the building of their own
houses.
Their indifference is
jolted by the stern words of the prophet. Haggai warns the Israelites to
consider their ways. It was a wake-up call to examine their priorities and to
ask hard questions about why they had the problems they were facing.
If we are not careful,
we may find ourselves doing well things that are not worth doing. Clearly, we
need the inspiration of God’s Spirit to help us choose wisely the priorities
that will guide the investment of our lives in daily work. With God’s help, we
can avoid spending our days in useless endeavors.
Haggai explains to the
Israelites that God had withdrawn his favor upon them because of their selfish
neglect of the restoration of the temple. The people were concerned about their
own houses rather than the house of the Lord.
If we will, we can see
ourselves in this story. We too excuse ourselves from the Lord’s work because
what we truly care about is the feathering of our own nest. We find that we
cannot tithe because we have so many other obligations – the payments for the
new car, the new television, the new furniture, the new clothes, the vacation,
and a thousand other things.
Selfishness creeps up
on all of us. Satan hooks us with subtle bait, like the idea of the television
commercial that says, “For everything else there is Master Card.” We begin even
to lust for the things that others have. We yield to the temptation to believe
that we need not wait until we can afford something; we can get it now with the
plastic card.
I like the story of
the man who, on a camping trip with his family, became lost in the woods. When
a fierce storm developed, he sought refuge in a hollow log. After the rain
subsided, he found that the log had swollen so much that he could not crawl out
of the log.
He screamed for help
in vain. Fearful that his family might never find him, and that he might die
inside the log, he began to pray. He thought of all the bad things he had done,
and begged God to forgive him.
Then he thought about
his pledge to his church, and how little he had ever given for the Lord’s work.
Embarrassed, he suddenly felt so small that he was able to crawl right out of
the log.
The scathing words of
Haggai may have caused some of the Israelites to feel a little small and
selfish themselves. However, he did more than condemn them. He inspired them to
believe that the Lord was with them. Overcoming their selfishness, they came
together, and working together, they completed the work God wanted them to do.
The dream of every
preacher is to be able to persuade people to come together and accomplish the
mission of God. In his day, and in his own way, Haggai inspired the people to
hear God saying, “I am with you!”
Haggai, we should
observe, does not take credit for the response of the people. The prophet was
faithful; he did his part. However, it was God himself who “stirred up” the
people to obey God and finish the work. We must be as wise as Haggai and see
that God receives the glory!
Our hedonistic culture
needs preachers with guts like those that Haggai had. From time to time, there
are defining moments when people need desperately to hear a word from God.
One such moment may be
before the people of
Governor Riley has
asked the people to debate the matter, then to support the reform that his plan
outlines. While the plan may not be perfect, it does give citizens a chance to
relieve the present tax burden on the poor, and to provide better funding for
our school system. The Riley plan will also provide a much-needed update in our
property tax formula.
Remembering that God
is not happy with systems that oppress the poor, those of us who proclaim God’s
word must not be bashful in speaking about this issue. We have a golden
opportunity to persuade the people of
I cannot imagine that
Haggai would be silent were he among us today! + + + +