THE ABIDING OF THE SPIRIT THE GLORY OF THE CHURCH – Charles Spurgeon
THE ABIDING OF THE SPIRIT: THE GLORY OF THE CHURCH
“Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, says the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, Son of Josedech, the High Priest, and be strong, all you people of the land, says the Lord, and work: for I am with you, says the Lord of Hosts: according to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you: fear you not.” Haggai 2:4, 5.
Satan is always doing his utmost to stop the work of God. He hindered these Jews from building the Temple and today he endeavors to hinder the people of God from spreading the Gospel. A spiritual temple is to be built for the Most High, and if, by any means, the Evil One can delay its uprising, he will stop at nothing. If he can take us off from working with faith and courage for the Glory of God, he will be sure to do it. He is very cunning and knows how to change his argument and yet keep to his design—he little cares how he works, so long as he can hurt the cause of God.
In the case of the Jewish people on their return from captivity, he sought to prevent the building of the Temple by making them selfish and worldly, so that every man was eager to build his own house and cared nothing for the House of the Lord. Each family pleaded its own urgent needs. In returning to a long-deserted and neglected land, much had to be done to make up for lost time and, to suitably provide for itself, every family needed all its exertions. They carried this thrift and self-providing to a great extreme and secured for themselves luxuries, while the foundations of the Temple, which had been laid years before, remained as they were or became still more thickly covered up with rubbish. The people could not be made to bestir themselves to build the House of God, for they answered to every exhortation, “The time is not come; the time that the Lord’s House should be built.” A more convenient season was always looming in the future, but it never came. Just now it was too hot. Further on it was too cold. At one time the wet season was just setting in and it was of no use to begin. And soon after, the fair weather required that they should be in their own fields. Like some in our day, they saw to themselves, first, and God’s turn was very long in coming—therefore the Prophet cried, “Is it time for you, O you, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this House lie waste?”
By the mouth of His servant, Haggai, stern rebukes were uttered and the whole people were awakened. We read in verse 12 of the first chapter, “Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua, the son of Josedech, the High Priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the Prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him, and the people did fear before the Lord.” All hands were put to the work. Course after course of stone began to rise and then another stumbling block was thrown in the way of the workers. The older folks remarked that this was a very small affair compared with the temple of Solomon, of which their fathers had told them. In fact, their rising building was nothing at all and not worthy to be called a Temple. The Prophet describes the feeling in the verse which precedes our text. “Who is left among you that saw this House in her first glory? And how do you see it now? Is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?”
Feeling that their work would be very poor and insignificant, the people had little heart to go on. Being discouraged by the humiliating contrast, they began to be slack and, as they were quite willing to accept any excuse, and here was an excuse ready-made for them, they would soon have been at a standstill had not the Prophet met the wiles of the archenemy with another Word from the Lord. Nothing so confounds the Evil One as the Voice of the Eternal! Our Lord, Himself, defeated Satan by the Word of the Lord and the Prophet Haggai did the same. The subtle craft of the enemy is defeated by the Wisdom of the Most High which reveals itself in plain words of honest statement. The Lord cuts the knots which bind His people and sets them at liberty to do His will.
He did this by assuring them that He was with them. Twice the Voice was heard—“I am with you, says the Lord of Hosts.” They were also assured that what they built was accepted and that the Lord meant to fill the new house with Glory—yes, He meant to light it up with a Glory greater than that which honored the Temple of Solomon! They were not spending their strength for nothing, but were laboring with Divine help and favor! Thus they were encouraged to put their shoulders to the work—the walls rose in due order and God was glorified in the building up of His Zion.
The present times are, in many respects, similar to those of Haggai. History certainly repeats itself within the Church of God as well as outside of it and, therefore, the messages of God need to be repeated. The words of some almost-forgotten Prophet may be re-delivered by the watchman of the Lord in these present days and be a timely word for the present emergency. We are not free from the worldliness which puts self first and God nowhere, otherwise our various enterprises would be more abundantly supplied with the silver and the gold which are the Lord’s, but which even professing Christians reserve for themselves! When this selfish greed is conquered, then comes in a timorous depression. Among those who have escaped from worldliness, there is apt to be too much despondency and men labor feebly as for a cause which is doomed to failure. This last evil must be cured.
I pray that our text may, this morning, flame from the Lord’s own mouth with all the fire which once blazed about it. May faint hearts be encouraged and drowsy spirits be awakened, as we hear the Lord say, “My Spirit remains among you: fear you not.”
I. Discouragement Forbidden
Discouragement comes readily enough to us poor mortals who are occupied in the work of God, seeing it is a work of faith, a work of difficulty, a work above our capacity and a work much opposed. Discouragement is very natural—it is a native of the soil of manhood. To believe is supernatural—faith is the work of the Spirit of God. To doubt is natural to fallen men, for we have within us an evil heart of unbelief. It is abominably wicked, I grant you, but still it is natural, because of the downward tendency of our depraved hearts. Discouragement towards good things is a weed that grows without sowing. To be faint-hearted and downcast happens to some of us when we are half drowned in this heavy atmosphere, and it also visits us on the wings of the east wind. It takes little to make some hands hang down—a word or a look will do it. I do not, therefore, excuse it, but rather I condemn myself for having a nature prone to such evil.
Discouragement may come and does come to us, as it did to these people, from a consideration of the great things which God deserves at our hands and the small things which we are able to render. When in Haggai’s days the people thought of Jehovah and of a Temple for Him—and then looked upon the narrow space which had been enclosed and the common stones which had been laid for foundations—they were ashamed. Where were those hewn stones and costly stones which, of old, Solomon brought from afar? They said within themselves, “This house is unworthy of Jehovah—why are we laboring thus?”
Have you not felt the depressing weight of what is so surely true? Brothers and Sisters, all that we do is little for our God—far too little for Him that loved us and gave Himself for us. For Him that poured out His soul unto death on our behalf, the most splendid service, the most heroic self-denial are all too little and we feel it is so. Alabaster boxes of precious ointment are too insignificant a gift. It does not occur to our fervent spirit to imagine that there can be any waste when our best boxes are broken and the perfume is poured out lavishly for Him. What we do fear is that our alabaster boxes are too few and that our ointment is not precious enough.
When we have done our utmost in declaring the Glory of Jesus, we have felt that words are too poor and mean to set forth our adorable Lord. When we have prayed for His kingdom, we have been disgusted with our own prayers—and all the efforts we have put forth in connection with any part of His service have seemed too few, too feeble for us to hope for acceptance. Thus have we been discouraged. The enemy has worked upon us by this means, yet he has made us argue very wrongly. Because we could not do much, we have half resolved to do nothing! Because what we did was so poor, we were inclined to quit the work altogether! This is evidently absurd and wicked. The enemy can use humility for his purpose as well as pride. Whether he makes us think too much or too little of our work, it is all the same to him—so long as he can get us off from it.
It is significant that the man with one talent went and hid his Lord’s money in the earth. He knew that it was but one and, for that reason, he was the less afraid to bury it. Perhaps he argued that the interest on one talent could never come to much and would never be noticed, side by side with the result of five or 10 talents—and so he might as well bring nothing at all to his Lord as bring so little. Perhaps he might not have wrapped it up if it had not been so small that a napkin could cover it. The smallness of our gifts may be a temptation to us. We are consciously so weak and so insignificant, compared with the great God and His great cause, that we are discouraged and think it vain to attempt anything.
Moreover, the enemy contrasts our work with that of others and with that of those who have gone before us. We are doing so little as compared with other people—therefore let us give up. We cannot build like Solomon, therefore let us not build at all. Yet, Brothers and Sisters, there is a falsehood in all this, for, in truth, nothing is worthy of God! The great works of others and even the amazing productions of Solomon all fell short of His Glory! What house could man build for God? What are cedar, marble and gold as compared with the Glory of the Most High? Though the house was “exceedingly magnificent,” yet the Lord God had of old dwelt within curtains and never was His worship more glorious than within the tent of badgers’ skins. Indeed, as soon as the great Temple was built, true religion declined! What of all human work can be worthy of the Lord? Our little labors do but share the insignificance of greater things and, therefore, we ought not to withhold them.
Yet here is the temptation from which we must pray to be delivered. The tendency to depreciate the present because of the glories of the past is also injurious. The old people looked back to the days of the former Temple, even as we are apt to look upon the times of the great preachers of the past. What work was done in those past days! What Sabbaths were enjoyed, then! What converts were added to the Church! What days of refreshing were then vouchsafed! Everything has declined, decreased, degenerated! As for the former days, they beheld a race of giants who are now succeeded by pigmies!
We look at one of these great men and cry— “Why, man, he does bestride the narrow world Like a Colossus! And we petty men Walk under his huge legs and peep about To find ourselves dishonorable graves.” But, Brothers, we must not allow this sense of littleness to hamper us, for God can bless our littleness and use it for His Glory. I notice that the great men of the past thought of themselves even as we think of ourselves. Certainly they were not more self-confident than we are. I find in the story of the brave days of old, the same confessions and the same lamentations which we utter now.
It is true that in spiritual strength we are not what our fathers were—I fear that Puritan holiness and truthfulness of doctrine are dying out, while adherence to principle is far from common—but our fathers also had faults and follies to mourn over and they did mourn over them most sincerely. Instead of being discouraged because what we do is unworthy of God and insignificant compared with what was done by others, let us gather up our strength to reform our errors and reach higher attainments! Let us throw our heart and soul into the work of the Lord and do something more nearly in accordance with our highest ideal of what our God deserves of us. Let us excel our ancestors. Let us aspire to be even more godly, more conscientious and more sound in the faith than they were, for the Spirit of God remains with us.
II. Encouragement Imparted
The Spirit of God remains among you to aid and assist the ministry which He has already given. Oh, that the prayers of God’s people would always go up for God’s ministers, that they may speak with a Divine power and influence which none shall be able to oppose! We look too much for clever men. We seek out fluent and flowery speakers. We sigh for men cultured and trained in all the knowledge of the heathen—but if we sought more for unction, for Divine authority and for that power which hedges about the man of God, how much wiser would we be! Oh, that all of us who profess to preach the Gospel would learn to speak in entire dependence upon the direction of the Holy Spirit, not daring to utter our own words, but even trembling lest we should do so! We must commit ourselves to that secret influence without which nothing will be powerful upon the conscience or converting to the heart!
Know you not the difference between the power that comes of human oratory and that which comes by the Divine energy which speaks so to the heart that men cannot resist it? We have too much forgotten this! It were better to speak six words in the power of the Holy Spirit than to preach 70 years of sermons without the Spirit! He who rested on those who have gone to their reward in Heaven can rest, this day, upon our ministers and bless our evangelists, if we will but seek it of Him! Let us cease to grieve the Spirit of God, and look to Him for help to the faithful ministers who are yet spared to us.
This same Spirit who, of old, gave to His Church eminent teachers can raise up other and more useful men. The other day, a Brother from Wales told me of the great men he remembered. He said that he had never heard such a one as Christmas Evans, who surpassed all men when he was in the pulpit. I asked him if he knew another Welsh minister who preached like Christmas Evans. “No,” he said, “we have no such man in Wales in our days.” So in England we have neither Wesley nor Whitefield, nor any of their order. Yet, as with God is the residue of the Spirit, He can fetch out from some chimney-corner another Christmas Evans, or find in our Sunday school another George Whitefield who shall declare the Gospel with the Holy Spirit sent down from Heaven!
Let us never fear for the future, or despair for the present, since the Spirit of God remains with us. What if the growing error of the age should have silenced the last tongue that speaks out the old Gospel? Let not faith be weakened! I hear the tramp of legions of soldiers of the Cross. I hear the clarion voices of hosts of preachers. “The Lord gave the Word; great was the company of those that published it.” Have faith in God through our Lord Jesus Christ! When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive and received gifts for men. He then gave Apostles, teachers, preachers and evangelists—and He can do the same again.
III. Encouragement Further Applied
The final perseverance of saints is the result of the final perseverance of the Holy Spirit—He perseveres to bless and we persevere in receiving the blessing! If He begins, you have begun with a Divine power that faints not and neither is weary. I wish it might so happen that on this fifth day of the ninth month, not the Prophet Haggai, but I, God’s servant, may have spoken to you such a word as you shall never forget! And may the Lord add to the word, by the witness of the Holy Spirit, “From this day will I bless you!” Go away with that promise resting upon you! I would like to shake the hand of every stranger here this morning, and say, “Brother, in the name of the Lord I wish you, from this day, a blessing.” Amen and amen!