Restoration Quality Part 1: full transcript and answers

▶ 0:00 Uh, we’re talking about restoration out of Ezra, Haggai, and Zechariah. Today, we’re going to be talking about the quality of restoration. It doesn’t do much good to restore something if we don’t restore it back in the quality that would it was originally designed for. Yes. And so, we’re going to look at the quality of restoration this morning. In the second chapter, we’re going to find that 1 month later after they started building the temple, building the foundation, Zechariah comes again and speaks to Zerubbabel, the civil leader, Joshua, the spiritual leader, and the remnant of the people. And he tells them to be strong for God is with them.

▶ 0:56 Now, isn’t that a good message? You know. Be strong. I’m with you. Stop acting like wimps, church. Be strong, God is saying. I am with you. Um Then he goes on to list these people he’s talking to, and one of them is the remnant. The remnant in the Revelations 12:17, remember I brought this to you before, is the seed of the woman in the wilderness. Okay, that had the testimony of Jesus and obeyed his commandments. See, that’s the remnant. The remnant isn’t just people that believe in God. You see?

▶ 1:48 The remnant are those that not only believe, but they have the testimony of Jesus and they keep his commandments. How many of you want to be a remnant, not just a believer? Yeah. And the Bible says the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. See, the Bible explains all this stuff. If we would dare read it instead of all these other books. So, are you a remnant? Hallelujah. Thirdly, he says in this first few verses, verse three to be exact, “Who is left among you who saw this temple in the former glory?

▶ 2:38 How do you see it now? It’s a comparison as nothing in your eyes.” And down in verse five, he says, “According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, my spirit remains among you. Do not fear.” Now, you got to remember, they come out of Egypt with idols. They had idols in Egypt. In the wilderness, they had idols. In the wilderness, they committed sexual immorality. They murdered innocent people. In Canaan land, they took their idols. And yet God says, “As I covenanted with you, my spirit remains among you.” They got drunk.

▶ 3:39 They got greedy. They broke every commandment. They neglected God’s house. They took his name and did detestable things in his name. And yet God said, “Like I covenant with you, my spirit, my presence is with you.” His presence is not his approval. Could that be an accurate statement? Just because you feel God’s presence does not mean he approves you. And I am shocked in all churches, especially spirit-filled churches, that the presence of God can come and there’s no embarrassment for our sins.

▶ 4:33 I told you a story last week when I violated my dad’s wishes and the law when the police got me, took me in jail, my dad come to get me. I was embarrassed when my dad walked through that door. I was embarrassed when those policemen says, “Is this your son?” “Yes, that’s my son.” I was embarrassed. Why? Cuz I had violated his standards of morality. I had violated the laws of the state and the community. And I don’t see people getting embarrassed and ashamed of what they’re doing. And yet they like the presence of the God and they really like feeling and believing that he’s approving them.

▶ 5:27 Are you hearing me? Now, let me switch this around. Sometime later, I’m walking down the street. It’s at night. And there’s five guys picking on a young man and his girlfriend. So, I run across the street to help she looked like a She wasn’t a weird girl. She looked like a normal everyday girl. So, I went over there to help. I didn’t know what they were going to do to this girl or anything. I went over there to help, you know. And as quick as I got across the street, and I was ready to help this couple, about 15 more come out of the park. I go, “Wow.” You know there’s a time to retreat? Yeah. They can say, “You’re just a coward.” No, there’s time to retreat. And suddenly I realized I am in a I These guys were Mommas.

▶ 6:25 They were gangs in my community. These were the Mommas. Later I found out that this guy, this young boy with his girlfriend, was a brother of a high-ranking Stiletto gang member. Well, the Stilettos lived to the east of me, the Mommas lived to the north of me, and I’m in the middle of this thing. And so there’s a movie theater right there, and we we’re you know, when you don’t want to tangle, you start talking. So, we’re giving a lot of verbalized machoness that means nothing. And we move on across the street, and there’s the theater there, and I went right into the theater, went right by the guy taking up tickets. I I went in and sat down, and I watched the movie. And after the movie’s over, I came out.

▶ 7:17 I thought everything had blown away. I go across the street, go across the next big street, and I’m headed toward house. I get right in the middle of the block, and around the corner comes about 15 of these Mommas. With bricks, clubs, knives. I mean, they’re ready for action. I said to myself, “Self, this isn’t good.” I look to my right, there is nothing but houses there and high fences and I was a pretty good jumper. If they’d have been low fences, I would have considered exiting that way. But these fences were too high. I looked behind me and 15 more are coming around the other corner with clubs and knives and bricks and whatever. I go, “Boy, this is really not good.” I looked to my left and there’s a busy street.

▶ 8:10 Cars are just whizzing by. I can’t get run over by a car. So, I sit there and I look for stick. I look for something to pick up to defend myself. Nothing’s around. And uh they’re getting closer and closer. Finally, they’re right there, but as they just got to me, they made the mistake of starting to talk. You know, when you want like the good, the bad, and the ugly. The guy says, “If you’re going to shoot, shoot. Don’t wait.” Bam. You remember that scene? Yeah, if you’re going to do something, do it. Don’t wait. There was a opening in the traffic. I had noticed that there were apartments across the street. Their electronic door was held open and I took across that street, up that apartment, into that door, and shut it. So, these guys dispersed after a while.

▶ 9:07 I stayed in there and these apartment people are telling me get out of there. You can’t be here. I said, “Make me.” I would rather face the apartment people than those guys out on the street. Toss me out, man. I’m I’m hanging right here. Anyway, they left and I went out of the apartment. I went back to a restaurant that I knew of right beside the movie and I called my dad and I said, “Dad, you need to come and get me.” Uh you know, there’s some guys out here wanting to beat me up and it’s not looking good. I need you to come and get me. Man, when he pulled up in front of that restaurant, I wasn’t embarrassed at all. I was happy. I was thankful. I had a smile on my face. Good to see you, Dad. So, there is a time when we need to be embarrassed about our conduct and let God change us.

▶ 10:05 You know, when my dad drove me home from that police station, he didn’t say a word. I already knew. I already knew the rules of the home. I already knew what I had to do. I had to get rid of this friend that I did stupid things with. He went out of my life. I knew I didn’t even ask for the car. I knew the car wasn’t available. I didn’t even ask to go to movies or any place. I just knew that’s over. And when enough time went by, then Dad said, “You want to take the car and get it filled up with gas?” You know, after enough time went by and he saw there was repentance and he saw there was a change. Church, just because you’re filled with the Holy Ghost and you experience the presence of God or you feel the presence of God in some meeting doesn’t mean God’s approving you at all.

▶ 11:04 And somewhere we should be embarrassed, ashamed of our lifestyle, and repent, and take God’s discipline. Could that be true? Hallelujah. His presence is going to stick with you. Why? He loves you. He wants to win you. He’s going to fight for you till the day you die. Don’t misunderstand that for his approval of you. Thank God my dad had enough a godly standards in him to confront his son and correct his son. Amen. Now, what kind of God do we serve who won’t correct us? He’s worthless.

▶ 11:55 A God that won’t correct me, he’ll just, you know, love me no matter what I do. He’s worthless because things I’m going to do are going to destroy my life and it’s going to hurt others. And a lot of people have a worthless Jesus. And it isn’t that Jesus is worthless, it’s their outlook on him. Her response their response to him, the way they see him, it’s worthless. Because they won’t allow Jesus to change their life. Hallelujah. So, that’s one of the main things we need to learn. God’s spirit is with us. But when he comes, there should be embarrassing times and there should be happy times. When he delivers us, when he sets us free, we should be happy. We should be willing to thank him publicly. Hallelujah.

▶ 12:49 Now, verse six. Thus says the Lord of hosts, once more, it is a little while, it’s going to actually be several hundred years, I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and the dry land, and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the desire of all nations, and I will fill this temple with glory, says the Lord. The silver is mine and the gold is mine. The glory of this latter temple will be greater than the former. Now, in Hebrews, the Hebrew author of Hebrews used this scripture to “God is shaking the nations.” He’s shaking people. So, only that which can’t be shaken will remain. Now, what does that mean to us?

▶ 13:41 Well, you go to a apple tree and the fruits on it, there’s a branch hanging over, the fruits on it, some of that fruit is overripe, it’s starting to rot, it’s heavier, and it doesn’t have the life in the stem to hang on. You shake that limb and the no good things fall off. You see? So, that only the good remains. Are you there? Now, you will notice that here in this verse, Haggai changes his prophetic level. Before he was teaching edification, prophesying and edification, exhortation, and comfort. He um suddenly switches to the office of a prophet predicting the future.

▶ 14:36 That’s a big difference. You can never be wrong when you embrace that realm, you can never be wrong. Isn’t that right? It better happen. And he’s talking about the latter house. He’s talking about this temple, the natural temple being better than the former, and it never happened. You say, “Well, how do you know?” Well, I can tell you. In the former temple, the glory cloud of God came down. God’s presence came down. Didn’t do it in the latter temple, the natural temple. You see? In the early temple, God rained fire from heaven and consumed the altar and came down and filled that place.

▶ 15:28 Didn’t happen in the second temple. You see? Now, he’s obviously speaking of the real temple that Christ is going to come to build, which is going to be a few hundred years later. It says in a little while. See, we misunderstand the scriptures and it says a little while, we think, “Man, pow!” God is an attorney and then a little while could be a thousand years. It could be a four Here, it’s like 400 and some years or something, you know. It’s It’s a long To us, that’s a long time. That’s not a little while. Actually, it’s over 400 years. Malachi hadn’t prophesied yet. So, are you with me? Now, the desire of all nations will come. And I will fill this temple with glory.

▶ 16:19 The silver is mine and the gold is mine. I know, I was a young minister, I preached that, you know, God, you know, he owns all the gold and silver and, you know, he’s got the money to do what he wants to do. He didn’t even talking about money there. I, as a young minister, I, you know, he’s talking about the desire of the nations, the valuable of the nation. God sees us as his valuable treasure. You see? And he wants the valuable one, the ones that will be the remnant, the ones will not only take the testimony of Jesus, but they will keep his commandments. That’s the valuable ones to him. Are you there?

▶ 17:12 See, that ought to make you really feel good. God looks at you in spite of the mess you’re in as a valuable thing in this world. Hallelujah. Now, he said the glory of this latter temple will be greater than the former. And I just told you in the first temple in 2 Chronicles when they worshipped and praised him, the glory of God filled the temple. The the cloud, a visible presence filled the temple. His glory is his presence. You see? But his glory is also the people that respond to him. Do you got that? See, that’s his honor. Do we want his presence?

▶ 18:06 Absolutely. And he says the glory, the presence of God is going to be greater in the latter house than the former. Now, this is powerful stuff. Okay? Now, we’re going to go over to the New Testament. All right? In Matthew 16:18, now remember, in Acts twice he said God doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands. So, he never was interested in a natural building, was he? The Crystal Cathedral, as great as it looked, God isn’t even interested in it. The Mormon Temple up there in Salt Lake City, God doesn’t care about temples made with hands. He’s not impressed with all that glass in the cathedral and all them valuable things in the Mormon Temple or any Catholic church or any Protestant church.

▶ 19:05 He’s impressed with you. If we would decorate our life like we want our temples in the throughout the world decorate. Man, God would really be happy. You get the message? We put all that money into the mortar instead of the message to the people. So, in Matthew 16:18, Jesus said, “I will build my church.” See, he’s not He said, “I’m not going to build a natural temple. I’m going to build a church. I’m going to build people.” And the gates of hell can’t prevail against these people. Folks, he is raising up a people. Unlike Israel who failed and failed and failed, he’s raising up a people who are going to conquer the gates of hell.

▶ 20:01 Amen? That’s our description. Over there in 1 Peter, uh we find uh or yeah, 1 Peter 2:5, he says, “You are living stones built up a spiritual house.” See, he plainly says, “We are that house.” That latter house that he’s building is people. Can I hear an amen? See, he’s interested in you, folks. And Haggai prophesied it hundreds of years before, and it came to pass. Now, in John 1:1 and verse 14, “In the beginning was the word. The word was with God, and the word was God. And the word became flesh and dwelt amongst us.” That’s Jesus.

▶ 20:55 See, Jesus is God. And they’re plural. Over in Genesis, he said, “Let us make man in our” I’m plural. You say, “How can something be plural and one?” I mean, well, he’s God. He’s God. He has no limitations. He said, “We beheld his glory as the glory of the only begotten Son of God full of grace and truth.” Now, Jesus comes, he said, “in the midst of the praising congregation or where two or three of you are gathered together, I will be in the midst.” So, when his presence comes, what do we experience? Grace and truth. What is Christ’s glory?

▶ 21:49 Grace and truth. See, he’s going to follow the scriptures. He’s going to do what is truth, speak what is truth, and grace is that divine enablement. How many could use a little divine enablement? You see, you need to know this stuff. When his presence comes, he comes to enable you. And then truth. God will never, the Holy Ghost will never, the presence of Jesus will never go against his word. And when you say things in the name of the Holy Ghost or the spirit of God on you or whatever your excuse is, and it violates the word, you’re just out of order. He never He His His presence is grace and truth.

▶ 22:42 He’s going to come and he’s going to tell you the truth. You need to straighten up this area, boy. Am I right? You know about I understand. I understand. He got Like my dad, he didn’t have to say a word. Just looking at him, I knew. I already knew the rules of the house. I knew the results if I violated them. And the presence of my dad just like that, brought it. I was embarrassed and that’s what we should be. Instead of hardening our heart saying, “I don’t see what’s wrong with this.” We should be embarrassed when Jesus comes. Amen. And glad when he delivers us.

▶ 23:35 Now, so he’s the glory. When his presence come, he’s our glory, folks, and he is the fulfillment of this that the glory of the latter house will be greater than the former. But it doesn’t stop there. Remember in Ephesians 2 or Ephesians 5 right around verse 27. He says, “Husbands love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it.” See, Christ not only died on the cross for the sinners of the world. You need to listen to this. Most Christians do not understand the cross. Jesus just did not die on the cross for the sinners of the world. Right here in Ephesians, he says he died on the cross for his church. He gave himself for his church. These valuable, desirable, remnant people that have the testimony of Christ and a heart to keep his commandments.

▶ 24:38 So, when we mess up the same blood cleanses us as it does the sinner who just started. Amen. Thank God. So, as a Christian, what? I can grow. I don’t have to quit because I mess up. That same blood cleanses me. He died for me, a believer that makes mistakes. And don’t have to stay in those mistakes. That blood will cleanse and deliver me, a believer. Hallelujah. It’s powerful. And he’s going to present, listen to this, in that verse. He says that he’s going to present the church, his bride, glorious, honorable, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

▶ 25:36 Is that what it says? Yeah. Does he have the power to do that? Can he actually perform it or is that just talk? He is a performer. And you remember that when people say he can come any minute. This church isn’t glorious yet. In Ephesians 2, you remember he’s talking about the many-membered body of Christ and how we’re to come into his measure and his stature. See. He placed in the church apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry. And then he says this, we grow in the body, we grow by every joint supplying, by every one doing their part.

▶ 26:40 See, it’s not a one-man A church is not the pastor and the guru. It’s we need leaders. See, as it was in Haggai and Zechariah and Ezra. He spoke to the civil leader, he talked to the spiritual leaders, he spoke to the remnant and told them all to be what? Strong. I’m with you. Build. And see, Paul in Ephesians knew that. He knew that and then he tells us that we’re going to grow into the stature of Christ. The fullness of the stature of Christ as we the leaders and the body members work and do their part, we’re going to grow into this glorious church. That’s why it’s imperative that we assemble together, that we edify and build one another, and we grow.

▶ 27:40 Well, I thought that was hot stuff. You say, you don’t just go to church to attend. You come to church to be a part. You come to church to be changed. It’s a place of change. It’s a place of participation. And God will enable you. Hallelujah. So, it’s everybody’s responsibility to learn the word, share the word, be a light, contribute.