Series Haggai

A New Passion for Glory: The Danger of Spiritual Indifference

Haggai 1:1-11 · Kaká Monteiro · July 5, 2026

The temple in ruins, the well-finished houses, the God who says to give careful thought to our ways

The central idea

“The opposite of passion for God's glory isn't rebellion: it is indifference.”

The people didn't abandon the faith: they just postponed. With a well-behaved excuse, they left God's house in ruins for fourteen years while looking after their own. God calls it by name and invites them to look at where those ways have led: much effort, little satisfaction. The way out is a new passion to glorify him in everything.

The message in 3 movements

01
God's glory has weight.
The Hebrew word kavod speaks of something heavy: God's character (holiness, justice, love, grace) has nothing light about it. We were created and saved "to the praise of his glory". Knowing who he is holds us up when something tries to convince us that God isn't good.
02
Spiritual excuses hide settling in.
"The time has not yet come" sounded pious, but it was a heart busy with itself. God doesn't condemn beautiful houses; he condemns inverted priorities. And don't let money be the judge of what can be done for God.
03
Give careful thought to your ways.
Working hard and never being satisfied is a portrait of 2026. God uses frustration to call us back. As John Piper says, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.

Reading the text · Haggai 1:1-11

Haggai 1:1-4 · "The time has not yet come"

In the second year of King Darius, the word of the Lord comes through Haggai to Zerubbabel and Joshua: "These people say, 'The time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord's house.'" And God asks: is it a time for you to live in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?

Haggai 1:5-7 · Life in a purse with holes

"Give careful thought to your ways." You have planted much and harvested little; you eat but never have enough; you drink but never have your fill; you put on clothes but are not warm; and whoever earns wages puts them in a purse with holes.

Haggai 1:8-11 · Go up the mountain

"Go up into the mountains, bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored." You expected much and it turned out little, because my house remains a ruin while each of you is busy with your own. That is why the drought came.

Questions for the group

To open: what is the most creative excuse you've ever given to put off something you knew you had to do?

1
The people said "the time has not yet come", an excuse that sounded spiritual. What well-behaved excuses do you use to put off what God has already asked?
2
God doesn't condemn beautiful houses, but the heart that settled in while his house lay in ruins. How can you notice when comfort starts taking God's place?
3
"You plant much and harvest little… wages in a purse with holes." In which area have you felt effort without satisfaction? What might God be saying through it?
4
Passion for God's glory is doing everything for him, even eating and drinking. What would change in your routine this week if that were your goal?

Key passages

1 Corinthians 10:31: "Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." Passion for glory isn't only for Sunday: it is the way to live the whole day.
Ephesians 1:3-14: Chosen by the Father, redeemed by the Son, sealed by the Spirit, all "to the praise of his glory". The reason we exist.
Isaiah 42:8: "I am the Lord… I will not yield my glory to another." Nothing can take the place that belongs to God alone, not even our houses.

To close

A step for this week. Answer honestly: am I where God wants me to be? Have I been doing things out of convenience or out of priority? Choose one area where you have been saying "it's not the time yet" and take a first step in it.

Prayer. Pray with 2 Chronicles 7:14: ask for humility, seek God's face and turn from the ways that led to apathy. Ask for a new passion for God's glory in each life and in the church.