When It’s Okay to be Irrational

February 3, 2010 at 12:40 pm | Posted in Haggai | 14 Comments
Tags: commentary on Haggai, Haggai, Jerusalem, Matthew 6, priorities, rationalism, rationalizations, Sunday School lessons on Haggai, the Priority of God's Kingdom, the Priority of Jesus

The people had made a good start. Bravely, they had gone back to Jerusalem, and had begun rebuilding the temple. Then, for 16 years the work stopped. God sent the prophet Haggai to get the people working again. We can see from the prophet’s words three major sins that were the cause of the delay.

First, the workers were guilty of the sin of rationalization. To rationalize something is to give an excuse for not doing what we really don’t want to be doing anyway.

Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD’S house should be built.

Haggai 1:2

When we say that we intend to do what the Lord has commanded, but that right now is not the right time, we must be careful of the sin of rationalization.

Second, the workers were indulging in the sign of rationalism. Rationalism is man-centered thinking in disregard of the principles and precepts of God’s Word.

Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.

Haggai 1:6

Man-centered reasoning says that if there is opposition to God’s work, He must not want us to continue. However, God-centered reasoning says that if God has commanded it, He will make a way to overcome all opposition.

Third, the workers had sinfully re-ordered their priorities. They were working on their own houses while the house of the Lord remained unfinished.

Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.

Haggai 1:9

We must put the things of God first on our priority list. If we seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, all our needs will be met by Him (Matthew 6:33).

Christians today should beware of working for themselves instead of working for the Lord. Ask the Holy Ghost to give you a spiritual check-up today, to make sure you are free from the sins of rationalization, rationalism, and re-ordered priorities.