“I didn’t think it would be this hard.”
Rebuilding after a devastating experience is always more demanding than we expect. There may be plenty of excitement initially. But, when we get down to the nitty-gritty, restoration is hard work.
Context:
The People had lost their way—quite literally. The kings were sinful and led the People away from their identity which was married to worship of God in the glorious Temple in Jerusalem. The kings didn’t lead their people astray once or twice. The kings were sinful for 400 years from Solomon (970 BC-931 BC) to Zedekiah (618 BC-561 BC). Sure, there were good kings within the mix and the good kings did focus on God which restored the relationship for a while. But, the People had reached a point of no return. The relationship had gone beyond repair. God’s heart was broken and the People didn’t care.
Deportation. Exile. Diaspora. These words have deep meaning for the People. Separation is sometimes the only response that makes an impact. God had warned, pleaded, gotten angry and even sent messages to the People through prophets to turn around from the direction they were headed. The People kept going their own way—they were filled with contempt, criticism, defensiveness and ultimately stonewalled their way out of their relationship with God. Ironically, these behaviors are also identified as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse of Divorce.*
The Babylonian destruction was God’s way of allowing the People to live out of the consequences of their own choices. Ironically, a foreign king, King Nebuchadnezzar was the catalyst for God to remove the People from their high mountain and take them into captivity in a foreign land. Babylon was a completely different world for the People. The separation would be a trial period—a time to think things through before moving to the dissolution of the relationship. Time apart from Jerusalem and the Holy Land proved to be more difficult than anyone ever imagined. I think it was hard on God, too.
It wasn’t just the Temple that was destroyed. Jerusalem, Judea and the Holy Land were devastated. The society of the People was in shambles. (read 2 Kings 25). Later, power struggles were created in the vacuum of destruction. Necessary leadership and the institutions once part of their economy were ruined. Archaeological surveys help us discover that 90% of the population was deported to Babylon. The entire Judean society collapsed and remained so for 50 years until another foreign Persian king, Cyrus, allowed the People to return. You may have noticed that kings play a crucial role in the lives of the People.
Depopulation of the Holy Land proved difficult and separation took its toll on the environment. Jerusalem was a mess—a foreign army destroyed and ransacked the Holy City and Holy Temple. God’s presence left it long before the total destruction. Imagine the high walls that once protected the city reduced to rubble. City gates that were once a stronghold against violent attackers were gone. The land laid waste for as far as the eye could see. Vineyards, farms and ancestral homes were ruined by neglect and the sands of time. Wild animals moved into homesteads that once housed cooing babies, playing children, wide-eyed youth and intergenerational families. The elderly were forgotten, weddings no longer took place and the celebrations or festivals were no more. Desolation.
Time doesn’t erase memory.
We might think that return was a welcomed sign. Cyrus the Great would give the People permission to return to their Holy Land. 50,000 people did return. Nehemiah helped lead the rebuilding efforts and Ezra blessed the foundation of the Temple. But, that is as far as they would get. The People focused on rebuilding their own lives and the hard labor of restoration encompassed their entire existence. No one noticed the foundation was laid. A foundation isn’t enough—not even a blessed foundation. Restoration would require focus, attention to detail and hearts that were in the right place.
Haggai steps onto the scene. The People were frustrated. Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” (Haggai 1:5-6) Restoration proved to be more than hard labor. The People worked eighteen years with little results. The one thing that would ignite the People and re-establish their blessing would be a restored relationship with God. But, the People were preoccupied with themselves. So, God spoke as the hard work of restoration and redemption began.
What can we learn?
I believe we can learn a great deal from our Jewish brothers and sisters as we rebuild our own world after the devastation of the Coronavirus. God needs to be the priority. If He isn’t, then we will go right back into the frustrated world we’ve been separated from for all these months. RESET. Listen to the words of the LORD ALMIGHTY: "give careful thought…” Don’t just rush into the new routines without re-establishing GOD as your cornerstone. Do not allow the world to run over you again. You will live out the rest of your days like those who became so self-preoccupied they didn’t learn or grow. Learn with me as we experience Haggai: Uncommon Courage.
This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. Haggai 1:7 NIV
Pastor Jen