future, would be indwelled by the Spirit of God.

​

Haggai 2:6-7 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and 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 of hosts.”

​

We know that Haggai’s prophecy is applicable to the end of days because it is quoted as such in the New Testament.

 

Hebrews 12:26-27 “Whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, ‘Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.’

 

Now this, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.”

 

The Desire of All Nations is a reference to Jesus Christ. When the Holy Spirit fell upon the believers on the day of Pentecost, all nations were represented in the city of Jerusalem.

 

Acts 2:5 “And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.”

 

So that we can see the fulfillment of Haggai’s prophecy where God said, I will fill this temple with glory, He was also speaking about filling the physical bodies of His future believers with His glory.

 

And the part of the prophecy that said, I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land, was a reference to His second coming, as explained in the Scripture that we quoted from Hebrews.

 

And it is within this context that He gives us the promise of His peace.

 

I will give peace.

 

Now as we put it all together, we have a chronology of events that paints a picture for us for the times that we are living in, and one thing is made clear to us, we are going to need His inward peace in order to get through these difficult times that it portrays.

 

We need to pray for Inward Peace. Why do we need to pray for peace that passes understanding?

 

Now this, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. The things that are going to be removed are the things that are made, the physical things upon which so many put their lives and energy into.

 

And the reason that God is going to remove them is to see if what is left still has the glory with which He filled the house of all who believe.

​

What would you do if everything that you possess that has been made, all of the sudden is taken away from you in an instant?

 

Will you be at peace in spite of having nothing left of the things that you were so dependent upon? Could you stand in the absence of every comfort and convenience and necessity, and still give heart felt glory to God?

 

Haggai 2:22 “I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; I will destroy the strength of the Gentile kingdoms. I will overthrow the chariots and those who ride in them; the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother.”

 

If the rule of law that governs the nations ceases to exist and anarchy reigns, and if the wealth of the nation's collapses, and if the airliners fall from the skies, and if all modes of transportation come to a halt, will you still be at peace?

 

It is hard to imagine going through such a catastrophic scenario, but did you know that many of our fellow believers around the world are going through indescribable trials that are just as bad?

 

There was a plane not too long ago that disappeared from the sky with hundreds of people in it, and to this date, the family members of those who were lost have no idea what happened to their love ones.

 

Another incident, hundreds of school's girls were kidnapped by those who believe that women have no right to be educated. Those who took them by force plan to sell them as slaves.

 

Throughout Africa, the Middle East, China, Europe, and other parts of the world, believers are driven out on a daily basis, out of their homes, and out of their lands. In many instances they become refugees in other nations where they are not welcome, others are imprisoned, tortured and murdered in the very place that they once called home.

 

I know that the tendency of many of us is that such terrible tragedies will not take place here, wherever our here is. But perhaps many of those to whom those bad things happened felt the same way that we do now. This covid-19 is the latest incident that has stopped everything around us.

 

Now why am I saying all this? Well, if you are a believer like me, you are looking for our blessed hope to appear, that is when Jesus returns to take us all away with Him.

 

If you follow prophecy, you know that the signs of His return encompass a heavenly shaking that will remove all those things that have been made, so that the only things that will remain, will be the eternal things like faith, hope, love, and yes, His peace.

 

Although we have many signs around the world that these things are already taking place, and that many of our brethren are being martyred on a daily basis, we really do not want to face these facts and refuse to acknowledge that these are the end of days that we are witnessing.

 

Haggai 1:2 “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.”’”

 

As you can see, the Scriptures that we are dealing with in this lesson are clearly referring to the days that we are living in right now.

 

The majority of Christians today live in denial, and do not want to consider that the Lord is about to come because they know that the Day of the Lord involves them losing everything they own in this world.

 

Haggai 1:4 “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?”

 

Remember that the temple, or house that lies in ruins, refers also to our physical bodies which are the temple of God, the Desire of All Nations.

 

1 Corinthians 6:19 “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”

 

This is why we are to put all our emphasis on the spiritual qualities that are ours in abundance, for they reside in the Holy Spirit who is in us.

 

1 Corinthians 6:20 “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in in your spirit, which are God’s.”

 

I’m sure you are aware of the many warnings that Scripture proclaims in regards to our relationship with this world system. That friendship with the world is enmity with God. Whoever is a friend of the world is an enemy of God.

 

One sure way to know that we have fallen for the deceitfulness of this world system is if we lose our peace when deprived of worldly things.

 

That is why God is going to remove, and is already removing, the worldly things from many of His servants all around the world, to see what is it that remains within their hearts after all that was made in this world system is removed from them.

 

Our turn is coming; if you have a stronghold within your soul for the delicacies of this world, and if you know that your peace would be lost if you were to lose all your belongings that you’ve received from the world; then you are in need of deliverance from those demonic strongholds.

 

You can begin by renouncing your allegiance to this world system, then take an honest look into your heart, and let God remove from you whatever it is that needs to go in order for you to regain your peace.

 

2 Corinthians 4:2 “But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”

 

Handle the Word of God truthfully, be honest with yourself and strive to produce spiritual fruit, for only that which is produced by the Holy Spirit who is in you will remain after He shakes both the earth and the heavens.

 

2 Peter 1:5-10 “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble.”

 

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all!

 

Haggai 2:6-7 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and 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 of hosts.”