Haggai 1:1-9 – In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.” Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? Now, therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. “Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the Lord. You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the Lord of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house.”
THEME OF THE DAY: HOW ONE BECOMES A BACKSLIDER. One of the most dishonoring and displeasing things a Christian may do in their relationship with the Lord is to become a backslider. And this condition doesn’t come upon a child of God unexpectedly. No Christian suddenly wakes up one morning in a backslidden state with a cold heart far away from the fervency of first love for the Lord Jesus. No believer quickly becomes spiritually indifferent. Missing church, ignoring the Bible, being prayerless, having no desire for spiritual fellowship with other believers, and living for the world doesn’t just come upon a Christian without warning. The backsliding Christian started the slide into this God-dishonoring condition by slow but sure steps of spiritual neglect.
In today’s scripture, the prophet Haggai reveals three downward steps in the life of a Christian which ends him or her in a cold and indifferent spiritual state.
The first step in becoming a backslider is to tolerate the sin of procrastination – “Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.” Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? God’s people delayed in building the Lord’s house. They put off known spiritual responsibilities. And this is where all backsliding begins. Miss church one Sunday and it becomes easy to miss another. Ignore clear commands to love and fellowship with God’s people, and a habit of absenting ourselves is formed and the process of growing cold is underway.
A second step toward backsliding is don’t take time to do spiritual self-examination – Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. Fail to do consistent spiritual evaluation in our lives, and we will miss the warning signs of a heart growing cold. The Lord commands His people, “Consider your ways.” When church is missed with no sadness; the Bible is dull; prayer not sought, and fellowship with God’s people not desired, stop immediately, and consider why. Ignore the warning signs, and soon, very soon, a full-blown backslidden condition will come upon us.
The final step that is not only the way to becoming a backslider but gives the evidence we are already there is when we find we give far more of our free time to the things of the world instead of the Lord – You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the Lord of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house. Friends, if we find ourselves giving more effort, energy, and time to the things of the world instead of the Lord, we are not in a good spiritual place. We are living what truly defines a backslider – worldliness. And the evidence will be a barren soul and no delight in the things of the Lord. Church, family devotions, reading the Bible, prayer, and being with God’s people will become “have to’s” in the Christian life, not “get to’s” in the Christian life. Dull and burdensome obligations, not privileges will be how we view our Christianity.
PRAYER: “Father, please keep me sensitive to sin and the ease of drifting away from You.”
QUOTE: “No one suddenly finds themselves in a backslidden condition and loss of first love for Jesus.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim