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[0:00] Let us sing to God's praise from Psalm 132. Psalm 132 at verse 11, singing to the end of the psalm.

[0:17] The Lord in truth to David swear, he will not turn from it. I of thy body's fruit will make upon thy throne to sit.

[0:30] My covenant if thy sons will keep, and laws to them made known. Their children bench and also sit forever on thy throne. For God of Zion hath made choice, there he desires to dwell.

[0:45] This is my rest, here still I'll stay, for I do like it well. Her food I'll greatly bless, her poor with bread will satisfy.

[0:55] Her priests I'll clothe with health, her saints shall shout forth joyfully. And there will I make David's horn to bud forth pleasantly.

[1:08] For him that mine anointed is, a lamp ordained have I. As with a garment I will clothe, with shame his enemies all.

[1:19] But yet the crown that he doth wear upon him flourish shall. These verses to God's praise. Psalm 132 from verse 11.

[1:31] The Lord in truth to David swear, he will not turn from it. The Lord in truth to David swear, he will not turn from it.

[2:00] Thy heart, thy body's fruit will make.

[2:10] Upon thy throne, he will not turn from it. By covenant it, thy sons will keep.

[2:31] And rose to them, make known. Thy children in heaven shall also sit forever on thy throne.

[2:59] For God of Zion, I'll rejoice.

[3:10] Then he desires to dwell. This is my rest.

[3:24] Here still I'll stay. What I do like to dwell.

[3:38] Our food, our greatly blessed, our good.

[3:49] With breakfast, our good. let us pray.

[4:09] Stroud, stroud for joy, holy. And then will I make it return.

[4:29] To God for grace and plea. For Him admiring.

[4:43] Anointed His throne. For King of I.

[4:56] As with the God. When I will flow. The shepherds and his own.

[5:14] And yet the crown. That each and every.

[5:26] Upon Him. Flourish out. We can turn now to the passage in scripture that we read together.

[5:45] The book of the prophet Haggai. And we can read at verse 6. Chapter 2 verse 6. For thus saith the Lord of hosts.

[5:59] Yet once it is a little while. And I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations. And the desire of all nations shall come.

[6:12] And I will fill this house with glory. Saith the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine and the gold is mine. Saith the Lord of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than the former.

[6:26] Saith the Lord of hosts. And in this place will I give peace. Saith the Lord of hosts. As some of you will know.

[6:42] Perhaps some of you better than others. Discouragement can affect us at any time.

[6:55] It can affect us to varying degrees. For different reasons. Perhaps when we least expect it. I was listening to someone recently.

[7:10] A sportsman. Who had suffered a major injury. And he described the journey that he was on. It was a journey which he expected to progress until recovery was fully realized.

[7:32] And he had all the help that science could offer him. And he expected to enjoy a full recovery.

[7:42] Part of the journey that he was on involved him in. In experiencing the various physical demands that he had to place on his body.

[7:58] In order that the damage that had been done to it would be removed. And that was not the most difficult part.

[8:13] The most difficult part was not really the physical pressure that that person was under. The various trials he had to endure physically.

[8:31] In order to secure that recovery. The greatest trial he had was the mental one. And those who were responsible for his care.

[8:44] Were very diligent in ensuring that this part of his journey would not cause him to suffer major setbacks.

[8:56] Because mentally that although the physical part was important. And he had all the advice and all the direction that a person could enjoy.

[9:09] The experience of discouragement. A rising out of slow progress. Or setbacks.

[9:19] Or failing to realize the targets that were set. Were always challenges to that person's recovery.

[9:30] Now the same is true spiritually. There are many things that we must endure in our spiritual lives.

[9:44] There are many truths that we apply to our circumstances. That are necessary to apply and discover the depth and the truth that belongs to them.

[10:00] But if we have experienced disappointment or discouragement. There is always the danger that that will cause a relapse.

[10:14] Or will cause us to suffer a delay in achieving the end that we intended for ourselves.

[10:28] Perhaps the best example you find is in the Psalms. Think of Psalm 52. Psalm 42 and Psalm 43. And the Psalmist is there somebody who has enjoyed the blessings of God's presence.

[10:48] In his life at various points. He has enjoyed great heights of blessing. But in the Psalm he is describing the experience of the laws of spiritual life.

[11:04] He is describing the experience of not enjoying the presence of God as he could. So he says in these words of the Psalm.

[11:15] My soul for God the living God doth thirst. And his desire is when shall I near? And to thy countenance approach and in God's sight appear.

[11:30] The desire can only be met by God. And it is created in him by lack of that experience that he once had.

[11:45] And the yearning that has dominated his heart at that moment. That's a spiritual experience. And God's people can understand it.

[11:55] God's people can in some measure empathize with the Psalmist when he speaks of his experience. And the reasons for discouragement as believers can be many.

[12:12] And they can be complex. And they can be difficult to describe and to explain. And yet they are very real experiences that we can have at some point.

[12:28] We may for example be separated from God's people providentially. We can find ourselves unable to meet with them as they gather to worship.

[12:44] And the Psalmist again speaks of that experience. And those who have a yearning for the company of God's people in the act of worship will doubtless feel that very deeply.

[13:02] And if it is prolonged they will feel discouragement. That's not true for everyone. That's not the case for all who profess God's name.

[13:13] Clearly not. But if it was then they would not. Absent themselves from the places where they can meet with God's people in worship.

[13:26] I'm not saying everybody who absents themselves do so purposely. Because clearly there are people who cannot be with us this night.

[13:38] They cannot be with us in the prayer meeting. Because they are unwell or they are engaged in the path of some legitimate duty. But there are those who could well be present and are not.

[13:51] And they are not troubled by it. They are not depressed by it. They are not distressed by it. They are not discouraged as a result of it.

[14:02] But discouragements usually come when the Lord's people are not securing for themselves or with God's help what they envisage is rightfully theirs.

[14:21] Now what is that to do with this passage in the scripture here? Well we know that the prophet Haggai has been sent with a particular message.

[14:36] And that message is to God's people. Particularly to Zerubbabel, to Joshua and to the people that they are responsible for ministering to.

[14:53] I think it's Dr. Sinclair Ferguson that asks. I think at the point that he was speaking of it was something to do with the Psalms.

[15:11] For example that Psalm that we refer to there, Psalm 42. That there are questions that the child of God asks of God.

[15:21] Arising out of the circumstances that have created in them the sense of disappointment or discouragement.

[15:33] And that it is important at that point for the question to be asked. Because if the question is not asked of God then the remedy for their discouragement will not be forthcoming.

[15:49] So when we feel discouraged then it is legitimate for us to ask. What is the cause of my discouragement?

[16:02] What do I feel discouraged about? What is the nature of my discouragement? What is it that makes me feel downhearted or disappointed?

[16:12] Especially if that disappointment is directed at God. And that was the problem really that confronted Haggai.

[16:25] He was sent by God to speak to a people who had given place to two vices really. And they could have been experienced by either.

[16:39] Both of these experiences could have been shared by one person. In the life of one person. Or it could have had one or another. We are not told. But what we do find when we read through this.

[16:53] That he is sent to speak to them who have witnessed in days gone by the raising of the temple.

[17:08] And I suppose we need to firmly place it. The prophet himself. If you read about the prophet.

[17:19] What you are told is that this ministry is very, very unique. It only lasts for four months. All that you find in this book takes place over a period of four months.

[17:30] And all he has to say, as I said, he has to say it to two people in particular. That is the spiritual leader of the people, Joshua the priest.

[17:45] And the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel. They are the focal point of the people. And their role is to govern and to direct the people before God.

[18:02] Now, they have returned, as you will know from your own knowledge of the scripture. They've returned from Babylon. And they've returned in phases, I suppose.

[18:16] So, in the first phase, began with enthusiasm to rebuild the temple. You'll find the account in the book of Ezra.

[18:27] It's a good, short pre-save of what took place. In chapter 3 of the book of Ezra. Then stood up Joshua, the son of Josedek, and his brethren, the priests.

[18:40] And Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren. And built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt offerings thereon. As it is written in the law of Moses, the man of God.

[18:53] And they set the altar upon his basis. For fear was upon them because of the people of those countries. And they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord. They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is written.

[19:06] And offered the daily burnt offerings by number. And so on. And what they're doing is perfectly consistent with what they should be doing as God's people.

[19:20] First and foremost, establishing the place where they are to worship God. Where they are going to offer their sacrifices to God as prescribed by God.

[19:33] And then their duty is to rebuild the temple. And they began to do that very thing.

[19:45] They began to build the foundations of the temple. But very quickly, they ran out of energy.

[20:01] They ran out of steel. They became preoccupied with other things. Two of the main things that we are told within the book of Haggai that caused them preoccupation to come to the fore was They become more concerned with their own personal affairs.

[20:22] Rather than build the house of God. They began to expand their own property. And spend time and energy to do that.

[20:36] At the beginning of chapter 1 you'll find that. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts saying, The people say, The time has not come.

[20:48] The time that the Lord's house should be built. The people say. God gave them direction as to what to do. How to do it. But they decided that, no, it wasn't right.

[21:03] I don't know which one of the commentators or divine says that it's as if a congregation decided that it was necessary for revival of religion to take place in the congregation.

[21:20] In order that the congregation would survive or develop. But in their wisdom they said, not yet. Things are not right in the congregation.

[21:31] It's not suitable. The time is not right for spiritual reformation or spiritual regeneration.

[21:43] As if it was their call. As if it was their task to do that. But they had been given something to do.

[21:53] They were going to build a temple. But the second thing that walks alongside this is the discouragement they felt.

[22:05] And you read that here as well as in Ezra. They began to look at the foundations of what they were building.

[22:17] And there were those amongst them who remembered the glory of the former temple. And they began to lose their impetus.

[22:33] They began to lose interest as it were. Because comparing what they were now doing and what they were now seeing and what they were now experiencing with what was there before.

[22:49] They became discouraged. They became disinterested. And I think that lies at the heart of the problem that the prophet had to deal with.

[23:06] And when we think about our own situation. There can be times when we look back on the history of our congregations or our denomination.

[23:24] Or even our own personal history. Do you do that? Do you think of what it was like when you came to faith in Jesus Christ?

[23:35] When you experienced the quickening of the spirit. When you were filled full of zeal. When you were filled full of joy. When your waking thought was.

[23:48] Who will I meet today of the Lord's people? When you were waking on the Lord's day. What will I hear today? You are so alive. You are so full of zeal for the Lord and for his cause.

[24:06] And you remember that. And you think about that. And you compare it to what you are like today. And there is no comparison. You are dragging your feet whenever.

[24:20] Wherever you go. It is almost impossible for you to witness for the Lord. It is almost impossible for you to think a good thought that you can present to somebody.

[24:32] On the off chance that they might listen. Listen to what you have to say about the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps you are dragging your feet tonight coming to the prayer meeting.

[24:45] Perhaps you find the same feeling on the Lord's day. And you are saying, Ach, if only. If only. And that is the product of the kind of environment that produces in us.

[25:00] A spirit of despondency and discouragement that needs to be challenged. It is the thing. St. Claude Ferguson was saying, When you experience it, you need to probe down to find what is the root cause of it.

[25:19] Because if you don't find the root cause of it, if you don't examine what lies behind it, then you will not be able to find the answer that God has for your predicament.

[25:33] It is interesting that this prophet, he has five different things to say. It is a short book, and yet there are five sections to what he has to say.

[25:48] But he finds himself having to present the God who was the builder of the temple to them again.

[26:01] And to incentivize them to think about the work that he has called them to do. And to think about how they are to engage in it.

[26:15] God says, You know, they look at the former glory and Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory?

[26:28] How do you see it now? Is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing? He's pointing out, This is what you're thinking.

[26:39] This is what the cause of your consternation is. You're looking back at once glorious events And the glory of God's house as God ordained it.

[26:55] Yet he says, Now be strong, O Zerubbabel, Says the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, Son of Josedic, The high priest. And be strong, O people of the land, Says the Lord.

[27:06] And work, For I am with you, Says the Lord of hosts. Isn't that amazing? God, Through the prophet, Points them to the very Problem That has Deprived them of energy And deprived them of Of zeal and purpose.

[27:30] There is a need for The appraisal of whose work it is And what They were doing Was comparably insignificant.

[27:47] But it's what God does That matters. I think we need to Think long and hard About this With regard to Our own approach To the gospel And the blessings Of the gospel.

[28:05] If we lose sight Of the fact That it is God's work That we are And that we are Engaged in As his witnesses Does he not call us His witnesses?

[28:19] You are my witnesses Says the Lord That I am God. And if you lose sight Of that That's what you Bear testimony Your life Speaks about What God Has done In your life What Transformation Has been brought Was wrought By his And not yours We forget That at our peril Now there is no question But that As we look at These words Of this passage That that is What the The prophet Is reminding Them of What God Has done In the past And what he is Going to do In their future That they are Going to see Glory Yet still Glory The like Of which Whatever they Thought of The temple As it was Built There is A greater Work

[29:20] To be Done By a Greater Than Solomon Even though He is not Mentioned You go back To verse 7 It's not an Easy passage To work With It's not an Easy passage You know You can read Read what's There And I find Usually When you Read a Passage That what You read Is Fairly Fairly Easy to Understand And interpret The language Is usually Simple enough But It is At this Point in The passage That we Find a Passage That is Taken By the Apostle In the Epistle To the Hebrews And he Applies That to A particular Context In the New Testament Era And when You see The application Of it In the New Testament

[30:20] It makes It even More hard To understand Exactly What lies At the Heart Of what He has To say Now Most of The older Commentators The older Preachers Apply these Words to The person Of the Lord Jesus Christ Simply Purely And Simply They say I will Shake all Nations And the Desire Of all Nations Shall Come And I Will fill This house With glory Says the Lord of Hosts It's a Simple Understanding Of Who This Person Is The Person That is Referred to Here As the Desire Of all Nations Shall Come But More Recent Interpreters Of the Hebrew Just as The Hebrew For Is And I'm Not a

[31:20] Hebrew Scholar I wouldn't Even Venture To Say That I Would Explain Anything About it To you But I Do know That those Who are Hebrew Scholars Look at These Verses Differently Because of The Language Element Of it And the Hebrew Pointing Which I'm Not really Going into But the Understanding Is that The Words Should Be The Desired Things Rather than That it's Not A person That's Spoken Of But Something That that Person Is Ultimately Responsible For John L.

[32:12] Mackay Is one Of them And One thing That makes Me Favor His Understanding Is the Explanation That he Gives Which is Very Important When When You You Simply Translate It The way The Older Commentators Would Would Interpret it What you Would have Is this The desire Of all Nations Shall Come Namely The Lord Jesus Christ And I Will Fill This House With Glory Says The Lord Of Host Now That's Simple Enough That's Easy Enough To Understand Like That But To Understand The Lord Jesus Christ As Being The Desire Of All Nations Does Not Correspond With How Jesus

[33:13] Is Spoken Of Elsewhere In The Scripture Because He Is Not The Desire Of All Nations All The Nations Did Not Desire The Lord Jesus Christ The Prophet Isaiah Tells Us Quite Clearly That He Was Somebody Who Shall Grow Up As A Tender Plant A Roached Out Of That Dry Ground He Is Somebody Who Is Despised And Rejected Somebody Who Is Seen As Having No Form Or Comeliness That Any Should Desire Him And If That Is Brought To Bear Upon The Meaning Of This Passage Then You Have To Find The Application Of It It's Not I Have No Difficulty At All With Understanding These Words As Referring To The Glory That

[34:13] Is The Church Of Church Of Christ And the Reason for that glory that God Is going to place in its midst The one who will surpass the glory of the former temple and who will present himself Amongst his people and his people will be drawn to him and there is a glory that belongs to him that no other possesses and that is what he will say the silver is mine he says the gold is mine he says the lord of hosts and I suppose I was trying to think well why does he say that now well if you go back to the original erection of the temple Solomon had no difference.

[35:01] That was till��는 Th CCTV To God Toρί vậy building but God has to say to them the silver is mine the gold is mine I am the person who is building this temple I am the person who is building he says elsewhere mine own church the glory of this latter house shall be greater than the former says the Lord of hosts and in this place will I give peace says the Lord of hosts the emphasis is falling on what God is going to do and is doing in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ Jesus is spoken of in New Testament language as the prince of peace he is the source of peace he is the mountain he is the way by which peace becomes the possession of his people we have access to God through him and by the gospel of his grace we have peace with God and there's no question but that Christ is at the heart of what we have here whatever point you know very often we find as I've said often to you there is a prophetic foreshortening occurring on occasion where what is in view is the glory to that is of the latter days the glory that is going to be when when the son of God will come in his glory but then there's the gospel era there's the era of of the the incarnation when Christ comes and the person of the Lord Jesus Christ in his work is brought to view and God working in him to bring to light what is hidden except for in the promise but we have to remind ourselves that God is here having to contemplate people who had lost sight of what was important and we have to remind ourselves of that because it is so easy for us to be distracted by the here and now to be taken up with with pointless many times pointless reflections on on what once was if it doesn't take us to the place who was responsible for what once was if we're just simply looking at ourselves and looking at those people that were beneficiaries of what God did without looking at the God who did it then we're cheating God we're cheating ourselves we're we're not really understanding what needs to happen in our experience there's no question the glory of this latter house shall be greater than the former says the Lord of hosts and in this place shall I give peace says the Lord of hosts there's no place that we can find peace except in Christ we have peace with God through him and I think that's why we need to understand that's what he's pointing us to

[39:04] albeit mindful of the language and mindful of of what he is dealing with in presenting that Christ to us there are many things in our world today that will discourage us there are many things will cause us grief and sadness but don't ever forget what the God of heaven is capable of be strong be strong he says be strong for I am with you says the Lord of hosts and if that's not the case then your strength is is going to give way that will not be sufficient to the challenges that will come upon it may God grant to us the ability to believe these truths let us pray

[40:06] Lord our God we give thanks that your word is a word that reminds us of the the frailty of humanity when we are presented with predicaments there is always the belief that we can overcome them in our own strength and yet even in the face of these predicaments these distractions take us away from where we should be because rather than resorting to the to the God who is God over all who has created all things who possesses all things that we rather resort to the arm of flesh for be merciful to us if that is the case and cleanse from every sin and transgression in Jesus precious name Amen our concluding psalm is psalm 122 we're singing in Gaelic the last two verses of this psalm psalm 122 and the last two verses and thank you you ...

[42:21] ... ... ... ...

[42:32] ... ... ... ZANG EN MUZIEK Amen.

[43:41] Amen. Amen.

[44:41]  Amen. Amen. Amen.