Beacon Hill Church

The exiled Jewish people returned to Jerusalem after 70 years of captivity in Babylon.

· They were commissioned by King Cyrus of Persia to rebuild the Temple that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had destroyed in 586 B.C.

· They started well, laying the foundation of the temple, but after a while the returned exiles became weary.

Construction on the Temple came to a standstill for 16 years.

Zerubbabel, the appointed governor of Judah, and the people responded to the word of correction from the Prophet Haggai and began to rebuild the Temple.

Prior to the completion of the temple and after the initial prophetic word of Haggai, the people, once again went through a period of disillusionment and discouragement.


Point #1 – Comparison will compromise our motivation

King Darius who succeeded Cyrus as the King of Persia actually provided the funds for the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem out of the treasury of Persia in fulfillment of the Word of the Lord.


The work the returned exiles did in rebuilding the Temple and restoring the worship of Yahweh in the land of Israel prepared the way for God to send His Son, Jesus Christ – the Messiah. And because Jesus would one day be present in that place . . . The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory


We are in a new place in the life of the church – we are in the rebuilding process.
We are not looking at rebuilding a physical structure.
The church is not a building, it is “people”.


We too can become discouraged if we fall into the trap of “comparing” what is happening now with what has happened in the past.



Point #2 – Perseverance brings blessing and provision

If the Lord has ignited a passion within you regarding a people or an outreach, don’t allow comparison to extinguish the flame of the Spirit.

The work that Zerubbabel and the people had undertaken would not be accomplished or effected through human strength, but by the Spirit of God.


The Apostle Paul writes to the believers in Philippi regarding their partnership with him in the Gospel work. He expresses his confidence that God will bring that work to completion:

We serve the same God, who has deposited His Holy Spirit within us as a seal of His promise. The Holy Spirit who empowers us for service as we follow Christ’s commission to make disciples of all nations.


Zechariah concludes his thought with a question:
WHO DESPISES THE DAY OF SMALL THINGS?


No one who hopes to accomplish or does accomplish anything great, despises the day of the small things.

Why? Because everything starts small.

This is more than an antidote from the business world; it is a “Kingdom Principle” advocated by Jesus Himself:

Point #3 – Don’t despise small beginnings


Anything that is accomplished for the Kingdom of God begins with the first stone, the foundation stone – that stone is Jesus.

The work is completed step by step; stone by stone, until it is finished.


Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty