Key Verse: Verse 8 - “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts."
Key Words: The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts"
Haggai would have ministered during the time of Jerusalem’s captivity by Babylon. He also would have been a part of Jerusalem’s restoration under Nehemiah and Ezra.
Haggai asked this question of the people in Haggai 2:3, “Who is left among you that saw this house [the temple] in her first glory?” The purpose behind the question was to motivate the people in the rebuilding of the temple.
I have discovered that people get excited about building programs, but not excited enough to give financially to the building program. That’s the reason for Haggai’s reminder in verse 8 that the silver and gold all belong to God anyway. We are just stewards of it.
When you go to a doctor for your annual check-up, he or she will often begin to poke, prod, and press various places, all the while asking, “Does this hurt? How about this?” If you cry out in pain, one of two things has happened. Either the doctor has pushed too hard, without the right sensitivity. Or, more likely, there’s something wrong, and the doctor will say, “We’d better do some more tests. It’s not supposed to hurt there!” So it is when pastors preach on financial responsibility, and certain members cry out in discomfort, criticizing the message and the messenger. In that case, I say, “My friend, we’re in need of the Great Physician because it’s not supposed to hurt there.”
What to do:
✞ Remember, if it hurts to give, you have a spiritual problem, but it’s not supposed to hurt to give.
