Bible Text: Haggai 1:1-13 | Preacher: Pastor Steve
Maturity
ALWAYS put God FIRST in EVERYTHING!
Seek FIRST HIS kingdom and HIS righteousness
Matthew 6:33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need
I’ll have this whole generation die and the next generation will go into the Promised Land with Joshua
There Are NO EXCUSES For Neglecting The Lord
Haggai 1:1-2 In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying, thus speaks the Lord of hosts, saying: This people says, The time has not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.
The Lord FIRST Always!
The Simple Message of Haggai is:
It is time to prioritize the work and ministry of the Lord!
Good things will happen when you put God FIRST!
PRIORITIES
IF the people of God would refresh their priorities GOD FIRST, THEN they would experience God’s best blessings!
No one is too busy.  It is all about priorities
Consider Your Ways
Haggai 1:3-6 Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet, saying, Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?  Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways!  You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes. 
Evaluate
The Word of God is asking us to reassess our personal priorities and boundaries
MANY OF US LACK MARGINS IN OUR SCHEDULES!
Every good thing is not always the right thing!
Consider Your Ways
Haggai 1:7-11 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways! Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified, says the Lord. You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? says the Lord of hosts. Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. Therefore the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit. For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.
GENEROSITY
A life devoted solely to one’s own needs does not bring real fulfillment or personal satisfaction.
IF we devote ourselves to the Lord’s work THEN there will be time and energy to care for our homes (and lives).
JESUS IS LORD NO MATTER WHAT!
Haggai 1:12-13 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Hag-gai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him; and the people feared the presence of the Lord. Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, spoke the Lord’s message to the people, saying, I am with you, says the Lord.
Understanding And Living For The Lord Requires God’s People To OBEY And SUBMIT To Him
OUR OBEDIENCE is an ACTION
OUR SUBMISSION is an ATTITUDE