Good morning everyone! Welcome to the Hyde Park Vineyard Church this morning. My name is Insoo Kim and I am the assistant pastor here at the Vineyard and I am really excited to be here with you this morning. If this is your first time with us, we are thrilled that you are here.

Today is the last teaching from the 4-part series that we have been doing entitled, “Whose House Are You Building?” We have been studying the book of Haggai to learn how to have a spiritual makeover of our finances.

On week 1, Rand taught on the importance of budgeting and how we are to put God first. On week 2, Karen taught about what we need to do to remain faithful to a lifestyle that keeps God first in our lives. Then last week, Rand shared about the blessing that comes to those who obey God, even through the most difficult circumstances and decisions. God honors those who obey. And so we now come to today’s teaching, the last one in this series.

It has been our desire in this teaching series to give a Biblical perspective on how we should think about money. Not just how we should use money or what we can do with money, but what can we learn about God and also about ourselves in what he has to say to us about money. As we read the words in the book of Haggai, as they talk about rebuilding the temple of God, what is God trying to teach us about himself and what is God trying to teach us about how we are to live our lives? We have been talking about money, but in many ways, talking about money is one sure way to address our heart condition, isn’t it? And the last 4 verses of the book of Haggai, which is the part that we will be covering today, really drives home this point.

And before we read the passage for today, very quickly, let me give you an overview of the book of Haggai. The Jews have been in exile in Babylon. King Cyrus allows the Jews to go back to their land, Jerusalem, which is now a land that has been totally devastated, and he give them the opportunity to rebuild the temple of the Lord. And this was very important because the temple was the focal point of the Jewish community. It represented the presence of God among them as a people. So, some of the Jews return to Jerusalem and they immediately begin to work on the temple. But they face strong opposition, particularly from the Samaritans, so that they halt building the temple of the Lord. They are in this weird limbo. They must have truly thought that God was ushering in a new era for the Jewish people, but their experience in Jerusalem tells an altogether different story. They become complacent. They neglect work on the temple of the Lord. And it is right in the middle of this that God speaks to Haggai. Through Haggai, God admonishes his people for their complacency. Through Haggai, God tells them to rebuild the temple, a temple that will be greater that even Solomon’s temple, a temple that will be filled with the Glory of God. And through Haggai, God calls his people to holiness and obedience. And so we come to the last part of the book of Haggai.

Let’s read the passage together. Haggai chapter 2, verses 20-23. And if you wouldn’t mind, I would like this read this passage out loud together as a congregation. If you don’t have a Bible, please share one with a neighbor or you can also look at the screen. And just as a sign of our honoring God in this word, please stand as we read the passage together.

20 The word of the LORD came to Haggai a second time on the twenty-fourth day of the month: 21 "Tell Zerubbabel governor of Judah that I will shake the heavens and the earth. 22 I will overturn royal thrones and shatter the power of the foreign kingdoms. I will overthrow chariots and their drivers; horses and their riders will fall, each by the sword of his brother. 23 " 'On that day,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,' declares the LORD, 'and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,' declares the LORD Almighty."

Let’s pray and invite the Holy Spirit to prepare our hearts for what he wants to teach us today. Let’s pray.

20 The word of the LORD came to Haggai a second time on the twenty-fourth day of the month:
This section of the book starts just like the beginning of chapter one. The word of the Lord comes to Haggai. And this happens to be the second time on the same day that God speaks to Haggai. The first time was in chapter 2, verse 10. And we see from verse 18 that this was the same day in which the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid. Remember, this project was on hold for some 16 years because of heavy opposition, and now it is finally starting up again. The foundation has been laid. The word of the Lord comes to his prophet Haggai. Hope begins to stir in the souls of the people who have grown tired, weary, and disillusioned. They have been waiting for the kingdom to be established and it is starting right before their eyes. This dream is beginning to be realized in the establishment of this glorious temple. The foundation has been laid. They begin to dream and hope as they once did before, not so unlike the time when they were being led out of Egypt by Moses. They begin to remember how God split the Red sea open so that his people, his chosen people, were able to walk through the sea and flee from their enemies. The foundation of the temple has been laid. They begin to let themselves hope again. They’ve experienced a lot of heartaches and pain and suffering. But they begin to hope again.

WHERE DO YOU NEED TO HOPE AGAIN?
And this is an experience not simply for the people we are studying in the book of Haggai. This is real today as it was then. I bet it is true for many of us here today. Maybe for some of you, you’ve lost hope and faith in God, so much so that, you have lost your ability to trust in him to provide for all of your needs. Maybe you don’t believe that God will provide for your finances? Maybe you don’t believe that God will keep you safe and out of harm’s way. Maybe your parents and family and friends have failed to come through for you when you needed them the most. And you find it absolutely impossible to believe that there is a God who will come through for you when the people that you trust in your life fail you again and again. So, you’ve gotten very good at taking care of yourself. You’ve become self-sufficient. You’ve put on a tough skin and you’ve vowed to yourself that you will never be in need again. Ever. I know there are some of you here today who have done exact that. You’ve said in your heart, “I will never trust God again!” But for many of us, we never really went through this intentional dismissal of God. It is something that just happened slowly and gradually over time, and so you can’t really pinpoint a specific time in your life when you’ve made this decision not to trust in God anymore. And one easy way to see if you did in fact make that decision in your heart about not trusting God anymore is to check your attitude about money. What is your attitude about money? How do you think about money? How do you feel about money? Do you constantly find yourself looking to your savings account for security? Do you constantly worry about how you will save enough for your retirement or your wedding or your house or your car? How does having money or not having money make you feel? When someone asks you how you are doing, is money usually a factor in how you answer that question?

As I’ve mentioned earlier, talking about money is really a great way to bring out the true heart of a person. I’m sure you’ve heard it said before that your calendar and your checkbook are the real indicators of where your heart truly is. No matter what you say you care about, ultimately, it is where you spend your money and your time, that’s where your heart is. And I believe that’s why Jesus taught again and again about money. That’s why there is more teaching in the Bible about money than just about any other topic. To talk about money, in essence, is to talk about the true condition of one’s heart. Please keep a finger on the book of Haggai, and turn with me to the book of Matthew, chapter 19, verses 16-26:

16Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" 17"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments." 18"Which ones?" the man inquired. Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'" 20"All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?" 21Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. 23Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?" 26Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

This rich young man comes to Jesus. And as far as we can tell from Scripture, he seems to be a good guy with good motives. But this is a very interesting interaction. He comes to Jesus and asks him a question that most of us have also asked at one point in our lives. How do you get to heaven? Jesus gives, what I believe, is an interesting answer. He tells the man that if he wants eternal life that he should obey the 10 commandments. His answer should make us think a little bit here. The cornerstone of Christianity is not works but faith. One of the most common sayings of Jesus in his ministry was “your faith has saved you!” The apostles, the church father, the creeds of the Christian faith, all say the same thing. We are saved not by what we do but what we believe. John 3:16. But Jesus says to this man, obey the commands. Jesus is up to something here. And the man says I already do that. Then Jesus, going for the heart issue of the man and tells him that he should sell everything and give it to the poor. And the rich man hears this, and walks away very sad because he had great wealth.

Like many of us do, this rich young man, sought salvation through works. If I do these good things, and I keep these commands, and if I simply do not make any bad decisions, shouldn’t that be enough? I am a good person? Shouldn’t that be enough? But God says, I don’t care so much about your actions, but I am more concerned about the heart from which those actions are derived. What God wants is not perfection and sinlessness, because we can never live up to that standard. But what God desires is surrender and submission. God is not after a part of our lives or a part of our hearts. God wants it all.

When the rich man wanted simply to give a part of his life, a part of his wealth, a part of his worship and a part of his loyalty, God says, “I want it all! Not just a part of you, but all of you!” And the way that Jesus was able to get to the heart issue with this man was by talking about money.

So, let me ask all of you here this morning. What do you really think about money? How does it make you feel to have it? How does it make you feel not to have it? And if Jesus were to come and ask you to give it all away for the sake of the poor, for the sake of the kingdom, will you be able to lay it all down? And that is the million dollar question, isn’t it. You say, as a Christian, that you will take up your cross to follow Jesus. You say, as a Christian, that you will even lay down your life for the sake of the Gospel. But when God asks you to give 10% to the church, but when God asks you to give 10 dollars to that person on the street that you walk by every morning on your way to work, but when God asks you to give $100 to a friend in need, what is your first response? If Jesus were to ask you, like he asked the rich young man, would you be able to give it all away?

We all have a comfort zone that we live in. Over time, we give ourselves parameters in how we live our lives and how we make our decisions about our money. And my challenge for all of us today is that our comfort zone needs to get a little bit wider and deeper. And for some of you, a lot wider and a lot deeper.

Let’s go back to our passage. So, the word of the Lord came to Haggai a second time and this is what he says. Let’s go to verse 21.

21 "Tell Zerubbabel governor of Judah that I will shake the heavens and the earth.
The prophecy of this section, unlike the others in the book, is directly for Zerubbabel, who is the governor of Judah. In fact, Zerubbabel is not only the object of the exhortation of God, but he is the central figure of it. He is not just the recipient of this word of the Lord but he is the very focal point of its message. And what exactly does God tell Zerubbabel? He tells him that first of all, he “will shake the heavens and the earth.” Literally, God will “cause to tremble” and “shake violently” the heavens and the earth. We saw these very same words back in verse 6. We also see this referenced in the New Testament. We read in Hebrews 12:26 and it says this: “At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’”

And so here is what God is telling Zerubbabel. God is about to do something. And whatever it is that he is going to do, it will not be hidden, and it will not go unnoticed. But this thing that God is about to do will be so huge in scope and magnitude that the entire universe will feel its affects. A powerful God is about to do a very powerful thing. Something only that God can do. And here is what it will look like. Let’s go to verse 22.

22 I will overturn royal thrones and shatter the power of the foreign kingdoms. I will overthrow chariots and their drivers; horses and their riders will fall, each by the sword of his brother.
The Lord is going to annihilate the powers of the universe. The verb “overthrow” is used twice in this verse. It is the common language used in prophecies of doom. It is the same verb that is used in describing what happened in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as we see in Genesis 19. So what God did to Sodom and Gomorrah, God will do to all the royal thrones and powers and kingdoms.

Throughout history the kingdoms of the nations have executed their might by way of military feats in conquering other nations, including the people of Israel. And one of the ways in which the military power is depicted in is in the image of the chariots and their drivers, horses and their riders. And God says that he will overthrow these military might, these chariot and their riders, these horses and their riders. And as God is talking about what he will do to these military powerhouses, in the back of their minds, they must have been thinking about what happened in Exodus as God delivered the people of Israel from the powerful Egyptians, their chariots, their horses, and their armies.

And we see in this verse that God doesn’t seem to mind that his people are small in number and completely defenseless. God says, this is something I will do. I will act on your behalf.

So again, let me ask you again, this morning, have you lost your ability to trust in God? Is your trust in the kingdoms of this world? Is your trust in Obama or Clinton or McCain? Or is your trust in God? Do you trust God?

23 " 'On that day,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,' declares the LORD, 'and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,' declares the LORD Almighty."
Okay. This is an important verse. Not that the other ones weren’t important. But this one is really, really important. So please stay with me! This verse begins with “on that day” and it is followed by 3 repetitions of the statement, “declares the Lord Almighty.” And when you read that, you should be like, “Hey, I think there is something really important here.” And there is! “On that day” this simple statement really changes the tone of this prophecy. It moves from being something that is merely historical in nature and begins to move into something a lot bigger than even history. In other words, what God is talking about in this prophecy extends far beyond Zerubbabel. In fact, God is using this specific situation, this specific group of people, and this specific time period we see in Haggai, to reveal something about not just that day, but the day of all days. The Day of Days! The Day of the Lord!

Hold that thought. We will come back to more of that in just a few minutes, but let’s look at what the rest of the verse says. In verse 23, God calls Zerubbabel his “servant” which is quite significant because this is one of the most common ways in which God referred to David, the lineage through whom the messiah is supposed to come. That is very important. And the figure of a “servant” has in it the idea of a “confidant,” someone who remains close to the king, someone who knows the heart and mind and the wishes of the king. And God calls Zerubbabel his “servant.”

He goes on to say that “I will make you like a signet ring.” The signet ring, or the seal was a symbol of authority. A signet ring was something that was so precious and important that it was usually worn on the right hand or even worn on a chain around the neck to make sure that it is protected against theft. All official documents were authorized by the king’s seal or his signet ring. And Zerubbabel will be God’s signet ring.

This verse began with the statement, “on that day”, referring not merely to the historical context in which we read this story in the book of Haggai, but God begins to give us a glimpse of what is to come on the Day of Days when a divine king, from the lineage of David, will come in all his glory and splendor. He will come and violently shake the heavens and the earth. He will overthrow kingdoms and foreign powers and everything else that stands against his heavenly kingdom. He will overthrow chariots and their drivers, and the horses and their riders. On that day, the Day of the Lord, he will be revealed as the signet ring of God, the very power and authority of the Lord Almighty. And he will be revealed at the promised one. The chosen one. And his name is Jesus! His name is Jesus!

Please turn to Philippians 2:9-11 and let’s read these verses together.

9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

THERE WILL COME A DAY
The splendor of the new temple and the glory of the throne of David will be fulfilled in Christ! There will come a day, that day of days, when every knee will bow in heaven and on earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. There will come a day. That is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. There will come a day. The Day of Days! The Day of the Lord. It is the day of reckoning.

There will come a day when everyone will give an account of how he has lived his life. There will come a day when everything done in the darkness will be revealed in the light of Christ. There will come a day when to whom much has been given, from him much will be demanded.

So let me ask you, how should this affect the choices that we make regarding our finances? How should this affect the house that we are building?

You know the Bible says that everyone is responsible for not merely our actions but also our knowledge. James 4:17 says, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” In other words, we are responsible for our knowledge and what we choose to do or not to do with that knowledge that we have been given. And with the internet and 24-hour news, we have more information now at our disposal then ever before. So does it matter, in light of this passage, that we know about atrocities occurring in Darfur and that we don’t do anything about it? Or does it matter that we know about child sex trades happening all over the world and we don’t do anything about it? Or let me bring it a little closer to home. Does it matter that there are poor and homeless living in Hyde Park and we don’t do anything about it? To not act of our ignorance is one thing. But for us to be in complete knowledge of these things and not do anything about it is sin and we will be held responsible on that Day of Days.

And the way in which we respond will be different. Some of us will be in the front lines of these very battles that entangle humanity. That will be your calling. That will be your ministry. And I bet some of your hearts are beating really fast right now because you know that is exactly what God is calling you to. And if that is you, I want to pray for you in a little bit. But that is not for everyone. Others of us, the way in which we are called to act is through prayer, intercession, through giving of finances to support the very people who are in the front lines.

You and I have been blessed to be a blessing. We have been blessed beyond our wildest dreams. But we have been blessed for a purpose. We have been blessed not for ourselves, but so that we may be a blessing to others in need. So, church, in talking about a spiritual makeover for our your finances, as one pastor admonished, make as much money as you can, so that you can save as much as you can, and so that you can give away as much as you can. And in order to live this way, I think you need a new framework on what Christian maturity looks like, what spiritual maturity looks like.

A spiritual infant says, “This is mine”
A spiritual teen says, “This is ours”
A spiritual adult says, “This is God’s”
A spiritual sage says, “Everything belongs to God, including me.”

OFFERING FOR PUERTO RICO MISSIONS
When we started this series four weeks ago, we told you that today, this morning, we were going to be taking a special offering, above and beyond our normal offering, specifically for outreach and ministry to the poor in Puerto Rico. There is a team of about 16 people from our church who will be ministering in Puerto Rico in March. They will be partnering with a local Vineyard church there and doing a lot of servant evangelism and ministry to the poor. And the offering that we are taking this morning is specifically for this purpose. So, we are going to be passing the offering basket around and you can either drop in your offering for the Puerto Rico mission or if you forgot to bring it this morning, you can also drop in your pledge and bring it with you next week.

CONCLUSION
So, church, whose house are you building? Are you neglecting the house of the Lord while you are living in paneled houses? Have you been so self-absorbed, that you do not see the need in others? Or are you building the house of the Lord. Are the decisions that you make about your life, including the finances, honoring to God? Are you a spiritual infant, a teen, and adult? Or are you a sage? Whose house are you building? Church, may we together build the house of the Lord!

Let’s all stand and pray together.