Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Because of me.
[00:00:03] Will Stein, the new head football coach at the University of Kentucky, made headlines with those three words just a few weeks ago at the SEC media days. A reporter asked Coach Stein why he thought he could win big at Kentucky when so many other coaches have not.
[00:00:26] As every college football fan knows, Kentucky football has had its ups, but mostly its downs.
[00:00:33] So it was a fair question for the new head coach. Given the long, disappointing history of Kentucky football, why should Kentucky fans expect anything different?
[00:00:45] Or in other words, why should they have hope?
[00:00:51] Coach Stein responded, because of me.
[00:00:55] That's a bold answer. Takes a lot of bravado to tell people to pin all their hopes and dreams for their football team on you, especially when you're a 36 year old former offensive coordinator who's never held a head coaching job before.
[00:01:12] So it remains to be seen if he can actually back those words up. But with just those three words, Coach Stein gave Big Blue Nation something they've been missing for a long time.
[00:01:25] Time.
[00:01:26] He gave them hope.
[00:01:29] Now there was another nation of hopeless people who had their ups, but mostly their downs. But it wasn't a nation of sports fans. It was a real nation of Jewish people. And Israel had far more serious reasons to be hopeless. They hadn't lost on the football field, they had lost on the battlefield. And they weren't fighting for championships. They were literally fighting for their lives, for their homeland. And they lost big time because of their sinful disobedience. God gave them up to their enemies and they were taken into exile.
[00:02:15] But after 70 years of exile, God graciously brought back a small remnant of people to Jerusalem. And that is the remnant the prophet Haggai has been addressing with these four messages over the course of almost four months.
[00:02:34] God's first message to his people through the prophet Haggai challenged them to put God first and rebuild the temple.
[00:02:43] His second message encouraged them to be strong and keep going.
[00:02:48] In the third, he called upon them to turn to the Lord. And now in this fourth and final message, God gives the Jewish nation the hope that they've been missing for a long time.
[00:03:04] But as we will see, this message was not only meant to give God's people hope, but back then it was meant to give God's people hope today as well.
[00:03:17] And given the state of the world and given the state of so many of our lives, I think we would all agree that we could use some more hope.
[00:03:26] In this text, we'll see first why we are hopeless, and then we'll see how to be hopeful why we are Hopeless and how to be hopeful. Look with me. Beginning in verse 20, the word of the Lord came a second time to haggai on the 24th day of the month.
[00:03:47] Haggai's final word from the Lord is unique in many ways.
[00:03:52] First of all, it's the only time that Haggai gives two messages in one day. It's also his shortest message. Of all the messages that Haggai delivers, this one is the most hopeful and future oriented. Whereas his other messages focused on the past or on the present, this one focuses on the future.
[00:04:16] But perhaps the most unique feature of this message is that it's the only one addressed directly to a single person.
[00:04:27] Notice how verse 21 begins.
[00:04:30] Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah.
[00:04:35] Now, Zerubbabel has been included in some of the other messages, but this time God speaks directly to him.
[00:04:42] The meaning of Zerubbabel's name isn't complicated. We could pronounce it Zerubbabel.
[00:04:49] Babel is an abbreviation of Babylon. The other word in his name means seed or offspring. So his name means offspring of Babylon, which makes sense because he would have been born in exile.
[00:05:07] He's called by his earthly title, Governor of Judah, which reminds us that the Jewish people were still slaves to the Gentile king Darius. The Persian empire still ruled the world, but not for long. As God is about to tell Zerubbabel.
[00:05:26] God's first words to him should sound familiar to us. Look at how that message starts in verse 21.
[00:05:32] Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth.
[00:05:41] That should sound familiar if you were here just a few weeks ago. Look back at Haggai, chapter 2, verses 6 through 7, which says, for thus says the Lord of hosts, yet once more in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land, and I will shake all nations so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. God uses that same exact phrase here. I will shake the heavens and the earth. It's a way of saying, God's going to shake the whole world and all the nations in it.
[00:06:22] The difference here is that back in chapter two, verses six through seven, God promises he will shake the nations in order to take their wealth.
[00:06:32] In these verses, God promises that he will shake the nations in order to take their power.
[00:06:39] God says, I'm about to shake the heavens and the earth, verse 22, and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. The original Word here for overthrow means to turn upside down.
[00:06:55] So what this verse is telling us is that God has got the whole world in his hands, but he's about to turn it upside down and shake it until all the kings fall off their thrones.
[00:07:08] But that's not all. He continues in verse 22, I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, referring to their weapons and armies, and overthrow the chariots and their riders, and the horses and their riders shall go down.
[00:07:26] Here we have imagery very reminiscent of the Exodus, when God brought his people safely across the Red Sea. But when the armies of Pharaoh tried to come after them, God brought the waters crashing down on them and the horses and riders went down into the sea.
[00:07:46] Verse 22 ends saying, they shall go down everyone by the sword of his brother. That means God's people won't have to fight for their freedom. Their enemies will fight one another.
[00:07:59] God will take care of their enemies for them.
[00:08:04] The picture we get in these verses is of a God who is sovereign, of a God who is mighty. What we get is a picture of the Lord of Hosts. That's Haggai's favorite title for God. In these two chapters, he uses it 14 times. It means the commander of heaven's armies. Zerubbabel doesn't need to lead the people in a hopeless attempt to overthrow their Persian overlords because the Lord of Hosts promises that he will do it.
[00:08:43] God says, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth. I am about to turn the world upside down. I am about to destroy their strength.
[00:08:56] And this is exactly the kind of hopeful message that these hopeless people needed to hear.
[00:09:04] Zerubbabel in particular.
[00:09:07] Put yourself in his shoes for a moment. He had every reason to be hopeless.
[00:09:15] Think about his name. He's the offspring of Babylon, not the offspring of Israel.
[00:09:22] Jewish rulers are supposed to be born in Judah.
[00:09:26] Think about his title. He's the governor of Judah, not the king. He's a puppet to his Persian lord.
[00:09:35] Think about his people. They are a tiny remnant. They are slaves to a pagan king.
[00:09:43] Think about his circumstances. No temple, no throne, no palace, no power, no army, no resources, no nothing.
[00:09:52] What could Zerubbabel do?
[00:09:55] What could possibly give him or any of his people any hope?
[00:10:01] And what was true of Zerubbabel back then is still true of us today, isn't it?
[00:10:09] If we look around at our circumstances, we have all kinds of reasons to be hopeless.
[00:10:17] Just look at the news.
[00:10:19] Not a lot of hope there. Just look at the state of the world.
[00:10:22] Not a Lot of hope there.
[00:10:24] And if that wasn't bad enough, when we look inward onto our own lives, we all have our own reasons to be hopeless.
[00:10:33] Some of us are struggling to have hope because we're struggling at work or financially. Some of us have family struggles that seem hopeless. Some of us have really serious health or spiritual struggles.
[00:10:47] Everywhere we look around us, we have reasons to be hopeless.
[00:10:53] But this all reminds me of a story that I once heard about a man who was cutting down some woods on his property. He lived in a place like the Gorge, where there were lots of cliffs and trees. And one day he was cutting down some trees underneath a cliffside. And as he was about to cut down a tree, he looked up and he noticed that there was a mother bird about to start building a nest. And since he was very compassionate man, and since the tree wasn't all that big, he started shaking it to try to scare the bird away.
[00:11:22] But when the bird flew away, she just flew over to the next tree that he was about to start cutting down. So he went over and shook that tree, too. This went on and on until eventually the bird flew to the cliffside and started building her nest amongst the rocks.
[00:11:38] So he left her alone and went back to cutting down trees.
[00:11:42] You see, you and I are just like that bird. We fly from one tree to the next, looking for a safe place for all our hopes and dreams. We fly to the tree of family and put our hope in finding a spouse or having kids or having a close family nearby. But then God starts shaking our tree, and all our hopes and dreams for our family fall apart.
[00:12:09] Maybe the spouse never comes, or maybe there's a divorce, or maybe we have prodigal children or estranged family members. So then what do we do? We fly off to the tree of work and we put our hopes in having a satisfying, lucrative career. But then God starts shaking that tree, too. And our boss overworks us, or our company has layoffs, or our. Our coworkers drive us crazy. So we fly off to the tree of health and put our hope in having a long, healthy life. But then we get hurt or sick or get a bad diagnosis or get old and frail.
[00:12:48] But then on and on, it just keeps going.
[00:12:52] And you know what?
[00:12:54] It's not cruel of God to shake the trees we're putting our hope in any more than it was cruel of that man to shake the trees that that bird was trying to build a nest in.
[00:13:07] God keeps shaking our trees because he knows that if we put all our hope in them, they're coming down and we're coming down with them.
[00:13:19] That's why we're hopeless.
[00:13:22] We're hopeless because we put our hope in things that can be shaken.
[00:13:28] You see, God doesn't just shake the heavens and the earth. God doesn't just shake mighty kingdoms like the Persians and the Babylonians.
[00:13:36] God will shake your little world and your little kingdom too.
[00:13:43] God will keep shaking them until you learn to put all your hopes and dreams in him and in his kingdom that can never be shaken.
[00:13:53] Do you remember Hebrews, chapter 12, verses 26 through 28? Pastor Jeremy mentioned it a few weeks ago. It's the only time the book of Haggai is quoted in the New Testament. It says this.
[00:14:07] At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised. Here comes the quote from Haggai.
[00:14:15] Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but but also the heavens. This phrase yet once more indicates. Listen to this. The removal of things that are shaken, that is, things that have been made in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain.
[00:14:36] Therefore, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken.
[00:14:44] That's why God keeps shaking our little kingdoms. He's mercifully shaking them so that we will fly away from them and build all our hope on Christ the solid rock. Then we won't be shaken, no matter what our circumstances are.
[00:15:02] King David had to learn this the hard way. But when he did, he wrote these amazing words. In Psalm 62, verses 5 through 6, he writes, For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him.
[00:15:22] He only is my rock and my salvation my fortress. I shall not be shaken.
[00:15:32] David's hope and Zerubbabel's hope was not from their circumstance. It was not from their kingdom.
[00:15:38] It was from God.
[00:15:41] And that's what God makes clear to Zerubbabel in this last verse of the book of Haggai, which is just bursting with hope.
[00:15:51] It's in this verse that we will see how to be hopeful.
[00:15:57] Look with me at verse 23 and pay attention to the repetition of the phrase declares the Lord in this verse, verse 23.
[00:16:06] On that day declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel declares the Lord and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.
[00:16:21] Now, whenever you're reading the Bible and you notice that something is repeated three times in one verse, you should pay attention because something is being emphasized.
[00:16:33] In this case, God is emphasizing the fact that what he's promising here will absolutely, positively 100% come to pass. This is an incontrovertible word from the Lord. Or as the King James version puts it, thus saith the Lord, look at how God refers to Zerubbabel. Now on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel.
[00:17:08] First, God calls him my servant.
[00:17:12] In the Old Testament, God doesn't call just anybody and everybody my servant. It's a special title given to certain men who were called by God who for a special purpose. God calls Abraham my servant. He calls Moses my servant. He calls Joshua my servant. He calls David my servant. So when he calls Zerubbabel my servant, it means something. It means Zerubbabel is not merely the governor of Judah, he's not merely the servant of the Persian king.
[00:17:51] He is the servant of the king of kings. He is the servant of the Lord of hosts.
[00:18:00] First, God calls Zerubbabel my servant. Notice that second, he calls him the son of Shealtiel.
[00:18:08] Here God is referring to Zerubbabel's lineage. But it wasn't just any old lineage. As the son of Shealtiel, that meant Zerubbabel was the grandson of King Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, who was captured by King Nebuchadnezzar and taken to exile in Babylon. That makes Zerubbabel a direct descendant of King David. That means Zerubbabel isn't just some kind of puny puppet of King Darius. He is the legitimate heir of of King David's throne.
[00:18:47] So God isn't addressing a hopeless governor. He's addressing his royal servant, the hope of the nation of Israel. And that hope only grows with what God says next.
[00:19:04] In the last recorded words of the prophet Haggai, God says, I will take you, you, Zerubbabel, my royal servant, heir of David's throne. I will take you and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.
[00:19:25] Now, at first glance, those words probably don't mean much to you and me today. But when Zerubbabel heard those words, they would have filled him with hope because he knew exactly what God was saying.
[00:19:39] In our day and age, we. We don't use signet rings anymore because we use signatures. You can hear it and even see it in the word signet in signature, that they have a common root in a word meaning to sign or mark. In our modern literate world, we use our unique handwritten signatures as a sign of identification or ownership or authority. You might have the inside cover of your Bible signed so that people people know who it belongs to. Your driver's license has a copy of your signature that can be used to verify your identity. The president's signature has the authority to make bills into laws. Today we use signatures, but in the past they used signet rings.
[00:20:30] Each ring would have had a unique seal on it that was stamped into wax and left a special mark signifying who it belonged to.
[00:20:41] You might recall from the story of Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38 that Judah gave her his signet as a pledge, and later she used it to identify him as the father of her children. Or just a few chapters later, you might remember that when Joseph was elevated from being a prisoner to second in command over all of Egypt, Pharaoh took the signet off of his hand and put it onto Joseph's hand as a way of showing everyone that Joseph now ruled in the name of Pharaoh and with Pharaoh's authority.
[00:21:19] So these words that God spoke to Zerubbabel, declaring that God would make him like a signet ring would have been hopeful words in and of themselves.
[00:21:30] But there was even more to the story than just that.
[00:21:36] Because before Judah was sent into exile, things had gotten really bad.
[00:21:45] So bad that God spoke a shocking word of judgment to the king of Judah, because so many of their kings had rebelled against the Lord and led the Jewish people to to rebel against the Lord. God spoke this word through the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 22:24 25. Listen to this. God said, as I live, declares the Lord. Though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off and give you into the hand of those who seek your life, into the hand of those of whom you are afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
[00:22:40] This word of judgment was spoken to Coniah, which was another name for Jehoiachin, Zerubbabel's grandfather.
[00:22:50] God's kings were so evil that God declared he was removing them from ruling in his name and authority. He was tearing off the signet ring from his hand and throwing it away.
[00:23:05] The royal line of David was being discarded, and that was devastating news for the people of Judah, because when God took away that signet ring, God took away their last hope.
[00:23:25] All their hopes and dreams for their future as a nation were bound up in God's promises to King David that from his line would come a king who would rule over a global kingdom that would last forever.
[00:23:41] Their hope was in God's chosen king. So their hope was only as secure as David's throne.
[00:23:49] When the kingship died, their hope died.
[00:23:55] God took the signet ring of the line of David off, and for 70 years it seemed like all hope was lost.
[00:24:05] But now God is promising Zerubbabel that he's going to put it back on.
[00:24:12] That's why these words would have meant so much to Zerubbabel and to all the people. That's why these words would have filled them with hope.
[00:24:21] Zerubbabel was God's chosen one to carry on the royal line of David. Remember what God said in verse 23, I will take you, O Zerubbab, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, and for I have chosen you.
[00:24:39] It's not because Zerubbabel was so great, it's not because he was so special. It was because God had chosen him by his grace to keep David's royal line going, which meant all the hopes for an eternal king would keep going.
[00:24:56] That's why this last message would have been so hopeful to Zerubbabel and to all the people who, no matter their circumstances, it didn't matter if they were still ruled by a pagan king. It didn't matter if they still didn't have any power or resources. As long as God's chosen one to sit on David's throne was still alive, their hope was still alive.
[00:25:22] And do you know what that means for you?
[00:25:26] It means your Hope is still alive.
[00:25:30] 2.
[00:25:31] You see, this promise to Zerubbabel finds its full and complete fulfillment in the greater Zerubbabel who was to come.
[00:25:42] Zerubbabel was God's chosen one to carry on the royal line of David. But he never sat upon the throne of a global, unshakable kingdom. That's because the ultimate hope of God's people was not in Zerubbabel or even in David. The ultimate hope of God's people was the chosen one who was David's son, yet David's Lord and Zerubbabel's son yet Zerubbabel's Lord.
[00:26:12] Zerubbabel's name shows up again in the New Testament in Matthew chapter one and Luke chapter three.
[00:26:20] In the genealogy.
[00:26:22] Jesus.
[00:26:24] Jesus is God's chosen one. He took the form of God's servant, as Paul tells us in Philippians. When Jesus came to this earth, it seemed like all the hopes and Dreams of God's people were finally being fulfilled.
[00:26:42] Jesus came with the signet ring of the King of kings. He came to rule in the name and authority of the Lord, because He is the Lord.
[00:26:53] He came to overthrow the kingdom of darkness and to establish the kingdom of God that cannot be shaken.
[00:27:02] But before Jesus could take up the crown, he had to take up the cross.
[00:27:10] And when he died on the cross for our sins and was buried, the hope of God's people was buried with him.
[00:27:21] For three days it seemed like all hope was lost.
[00:27:27] We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.
[00:27:33] That's what one of his disciples said to a stranger as they walked the road to Emmaus. But little did they know that the stranger who they were talking to was their living hope.
[00:27:47] Because that very morning God shook the earth with a great earthquake. And the stone covering Jesus tomb rolled away to reveal that it was empty.
[00:28:04] And on that day, when Jesus, the chosen one, rose from the grave to never die again, our hope was raised to never die again.
[00:28:16] As the apostle Peter writes, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
[00:28:34] That's what his people, his disciples, his church started going around telling everyone, everywhere. They declared the good news that King Jesus died on the cross, but rose again and that one day he's coming back and will reign forever with his people in a kingdom that can never be shaken. So all people from all nations should repent and believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
[00:29:05] And do you remember how the enemies of God responded to that message in the book of Acts? It tells us that in Thessalonica they dragged the disciples before the rulers and authorities and said, these men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.
[00:29:31] Do you know what that means?
[00:29:32] It means the shaking has already begun.
[00:29:36] The gospel is turning the world upside down and shaking kings and kingdoms. Even now God's chosen one, King Jesus is preparing to return in power. And when he does, every knee shall bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth. And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
[00:30:08] So if you want to be hopeful, then put all your hopes and dreams in God's chosen one who can never die.
[00:30:18] That's the main point of Haggai's last message. That's the big idea.
[00:30:23] Hope in God's chosen one.
[00:30:26] Don't look for hope in politics or in the news. Or in the culture. Don't put all your hope in your circumstances.
[00:30:36] Family and friends will let you down.
[00:30:39] Jesus will not.
[00:30:41] Work and money will let you down. Jesus will not.
[00:30:46] Vacations will let you down.
[00:30:49] Jesus will not.
[00:30:50] AI will let you down.
[00:30:53] Jesus will not.
[00:30:55] Sex will let you down, Jesus will not. Health will let you down.
[00:31:01] Jesus will not.
[00:31:04] So when God starts shaking your kingdom, when God starts shaking the trees you've been putting your hopes in, what do you do?
[00:31:12] What does it actually look like to fly to Jesus and put all your hope in Him?
[00:31:18] First of all, when your world starts shaking, remind yourself that your hope is not in this world or in the things of this world. You remind yourself of God's words in Psalm 62. It might even be helpful to memorize Psalm 62:5,6 so that when trials come, the Holy Spirit can bring to mind that my hope is from God. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress. I shall not be shaken.
[00:31:50] So start by reminding yourself that your hope is not in your kingdom or in the kingdoms of this world. It's in God's king and God's kingdom that cannot be shaken.
[00:32:02] Then you put your hope in Jesus and not in some generic wishy washy, positive vibes kind of way.
[00:32:12] That's not hope.
[00:32:14] According to the Bible, hope is a confident expectation based on the character and promises of God.
[00:32:23] So when your world is shaking, hope in Jesus in a specific way that applies to your specific situation.
[00:32:34] Hope specifically in who he is and what he has promised he will do so. For example, if your career is being shaken, put all your hope in Jesus, who is your provider. Hope in his promise that if you seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, everything you need will be provided for you. If your health or the health of your loved ones is being shaken, put all your hope in Jesus, who is the resurrection and the life.
[00:33:07] Hope in his promise that if he wills, he can heal you, and if not, he will raise your body from the grave and give you an imperishable one that can never die.
[00:33:22] If your finances are being shaken, put all your hope in Jesus, who is your greatest treasure.
[00:33:29] Hope in his promise that every single one of your good deeds will be rewarded with treasure in heaven that neither moth nor rust can destroy nor thieves break in and steal. If your family or your relationships are being shaken, put all your hope in Jesus, who is your brother.
[00:33:51] Hope in his promise that he will never leave you or forsake you.
[00:33:58] And if you are not a Christian, your heart is being shaken.
[00:34:04] Put all your hope in Jesus who is your Lord and Savior, hope in his promise that all who believe in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
[00:34:22] That's how to be hopeful.
[00:34:23] Don't put your hope in the world or in your circumstances.
[00:34:28] Hope in God's Chosen One. Put all your hopes and dreams in Jesus alone. If you do that, then even when the world around you is shaking, it won't matter because your hope is unshakeable.
[00:34:46] And when we live as hopeful people in such a hopeless world, we shouldn't be surprised if people ask us about where our hope is found.
[00:34:56] As a matter of fact, the Apostle Peter tells us to be ready for such questions, to be ready to tell people the reason for the hope that is in us.
[00:35:06] And when they do, we'll know exactly what to say.
[00:35:10] When people ask why should we have hope?
[00:35:14] We won't say because of me.
[00:35:17] We'll say because of Jesus.
