Consider Your Ways

CONSIDER YOUR WAYS

Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. Haggai 1:5, 1:7, 2:15, 2:18

Haggai was an old prophet who accompanied the Jews back to the promised land when Cyrus of Persia allowed them to return to Jerusalem in 539 B.C. His companion and colleague in those days of prophetic ministry was a younger prophet, a priest named Zechariah. In 520 B.C., between August and December, Haggai spoke to the people of God on five occasions (from August 29 to December 18) about finishing the task of rebuilding the second temple.

Repeatedly he asks the Israelites to consider the values, their lifestyles and their sins. He calls their attention to five realities of their lives:

• Their prosperity has been hindered because they have not put God as their top priority (1:1-11).
• God was with the people to empower and encourage them in their great building project (1:12-15).
• God has greater plans for His Kingdom in the future than He had for the past; do not get stuck in “the old glory days.” This dishonors God (2:1-9).
• Holiness affects all of life. God blesses holiness and disciplines unholiness. Unholiness spreads naturally, like a virus. Holiness is something we must work at (2:10-19).
• God’s master plan has never changed: He will judge the nations and establish His Kingdom. His covenant people lie at the center of this plan (2:20-23).

American people are not very reflective. Oh, we are plenty introspective! We are psychoanalyzed to death and awash with a myriad of “syndromes,” “disorders” and “deficiencies.” (I recently read that basic shyness is now a psychological disorder. It’s called SAD— “social anxiety disorder.” Seems it affects most children under the age of six whenever they are around adult strangers!) But introspection is not the same as self-examination. Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones––both a medical doctor and a pastor––once noted:

Those two terms remind us that the fundamental trouble with these people is that they are not always careful to draw the line of demarcation between self-exam-ination and introspection. We all agree that we should examine ourselves, but we also agree that introspection and morbidity are bad. But what is the difference between examining oneself and becoming introspective? I suggest that we cross the line from self-examination to introspection when, in a sense, we do nothing but examine ourselves, and when such self-examination becomes the main and chief end in our life. We are meant to examine ourselves periodically, but if we are always doing it, always, as it were, putting our soul on a plate and dissecting it, that is introspection. And if we are always talking to people about ourselves and our problems and troubles, and if we are forever going to them with that kind of frown upon our face and saying: I am in great difficulty—it probably means that we are all the time centered upon ourselves. That is introspection, and that in turn leads to the condition known as morbidity.¹¹

Haggai will have nothing to do with introspection. He calls the people of God to “consider your ways.” Introspection would have led to excuses about bad finances, melancholy about their difficulties, bitterness about the past, discouragement about the temple and resentment toward God. Haggai, in each of his five messages, calls the people of God to look at God Himself: His covenant, His promises, His plan, His law and His character. And in lifting up their eyes from selves to God, they lifted up their spirits. What a great message for the Church facing the uncertainties of our faltering economy and troubled society!

PRAYING FOR THE PCA

CEP: Pray for CEP as we develop more study and training resources. We are also working on a curriculum that will help churches understand how to disciple people from a pre-Christian state all the way to being mature believers capable of discipling others and doing the work of the ministry.

CC: Please pray for the members of the support staff who work diligently to serve the community and provide learning opportunities for the students.

MNA: Pray for Jim Hatch as he is in contact with scores of seminary students, assistant pastors and others who show interest in starting a church. Pray for wisdom, effective ministry and that many will hear God’s call to church planting.

PCAF: Pray for the PCA churches who are working with the PCA Foundation, that God will continue to meet their needs and that our service and assistance will glorify God and edify the church.

RH: Pray for the ATA (Appalachian Trail Adventure) camps. The “phase one” ATA is a four-day, three-night introduction to the Appalachian Trail. The “phase two” ATA is for advanced hikers up for an even greater adventure. Pray that the Lord will keep all participants safe and receptive to the discovery of the attributes of God and His saving grace through all that is experienced on the trail.