THE GOD FIRST SERIES PART V: THE GLORY WILL BE GREATER
Haggai 2:1–9 (Primary); Haggai 2:18–19 (Supporting)
“The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace.
INTRODUCTION
Family, we have walked through this God First journey together.
We learned:
When God is not first, frustration follows
When God is restored to first place, favor returns
When God speaks, His people must respond
When the work looks small, God is still present
When obedience begins, heaven takes notice
And now…
We arrive at the promise that sustains every builder:
The glory will be greater.
Haggai speaks to a people who were obedient but discouraged,
working but weary,
rebuilding but remembering.
They laid the foundation, but some folks started crying.
Not because God wasn’t moving —
but because it didn’t look like it used to.
I. THE WORK WAS RIGHT — BUT THE SPIRIT WAS LOW
“Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now?” (Haggai 2:3)
Some of the elders remembered Solomon’s temple. Gold everywhere. Glory filling the room.
Fire falling. Worship thundering.
But now? No gold. No grandeur. No spectacle.
Just faithful people… building with less.
And here is the danger: Comparing what God is doing now to what He did then.
Some of you are:
Comparing this season to your past season
Comparing this church to “how it used to be”
Comparing this ministry to what you lost
Comparing your strength to your younger days
And comparison will drain your joy if you let it.
II. GOD NEVER MEASURES GLORY THE WAY PEOPLE DO
God says something shocking in verse 4:
“Yet now be strong… and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts.”
God does not say:
“Wait until it looks better”
“Stop because it’s smaller”
“Quit because it’s harder”
He says:
Be strong. Work. I am with you.
Because presence produces glory, not polish.
The people saw:
Smaller budgets
Fewer resources
Less recognition
But God saw:
Obedience
Alignment
Faithfulness
And God says: “This may look lesser to you… but heaven is closer than ever.”
III. THE GLORY IS NOT IN THE BUILDING — IT’S IN THE PROMISE
Then God drops the bombshell:
“The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.” (v.8)
Translation: “I don’t need what you don’t have.”
God is saying:
You don’t fund My glory
You don’t create My presence
You don’t limit My power
If God wanted gold, He’d speak it into existence.
But here’s the real shift…
IV. THIS GLORY IS GREATER BECAUSE GOD IS DOING SOMETHING NEW
Solomon’s temple had:
Gold
Grandeur
Sacrifices
But THIS temple? Would host something Solomon never saw.
The Messiah Himself would walk into this house.
Jesus would step into this temple.
Grace would enter the building. Redemption would stand in the doorway.
The former glory had riches… The latter glory had REDEMPTION.
The former had ceremony…
he latter had SALVATION.
The former had fire falling…
The latter had THE PRINCE OF PEACE STANDING.
So yes…
The glory will be greater.
V. GOD SAVED THE BEST FOR THE END
“From this day will I bless you.” (Haggai 2:19)
This is not a backward-looking promise. This is a forward-moving word.
God says:
You struggled before
You labored without reward
You planted without harvest
But from this day forward…
Blessing replaces frustration
Favor follows obedience
Peace crowns the work
This is for:
The church that kept building when it got quiet
The believer who stayed faithful when it felt small
The leader who carried vision without applause
VI. THE GOD FIRST TRUTH: GREATER IS NOT BEHIND YOU — IT’S AHEAD OF YOU
Let me say this plainly:
You have not missed your best season. You are not rebuilding in vain. You are not too late. You are not too small.
If God is first…
The glory will be greater.
Greater peace. Greater impact. Greater wisdom. Greater authority. Greater anointing.
Not louder — deeper. Not flashier — stronger. Not crowded — committed.
CLOSING CELEBRATION
God says:
“I will shake the heavens and the earth…”
And when God shakes things:
What’s fake falls off
What’s unnecessary gets removed
What’s eternal remains
So don’t cry over what doesn’t look like before. Rejoice over what God is preparing now.
Lift your hands and declare it:
“The glory will be greater!”
Greater than my past. Greater than my pain. Greater than my mistakes. Greater than my memories.
Because when God is first… THE END WILL OUTSHINE THE BEGINNING.
INTRODUCTION
Family, we have walked through this God First journey together.
We learned:
When God is not first, frustration follows
When God is restored to first place, favor returns
When God speaks, His people must respond
When the work looks small, God is still present
When obedience begins, heaven takes notice
And now…
We arrive at the promise that sustains every builder:
The glory will be greater.
Haggai speaks to a people who were obedient but discouraged,
working but weary,
rebuilding but remembering.
They laid the foundation, but some folks started crying.
Not because God wasn’t moving —
but because it didn’t look like it used to.
I. THE WORK WAS RIGHT — BUT THE SPIRIT WAS LOW
“Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now?” (Haggai 2:3)
Some of the elders remembered Solomon’s temple. Gold everywhere. Glory filling the room.
Fire falling. Worship thundering.
But now? No gold. No grandeur. No spectacle.
Just faithful people… building with less.
And here is the danger: Comparing what God is doing now to what He did then.
Some of you are:
Comparing this season to your past season
Comparing this church to “how it used to be”
Comparing this ministry to what you lost
Comparing your strength to your younger days
And comparison will drain your joy if you let it.
II. GOD NEVER MEASURES GLORY THE WAY PEOPLE DO
God says something shocking in verse 4:
“Yet now be strong… and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts.”
God does not say:
“Wait until it looks better”
“Stop because it’s smaller”
“Quit because it’s harder”
He says:
Be strong. Work. I am with you.
Because presence produces glory, not polish.
The people saw:
Smaller budgets
Fewer resources
Less recognition
But God saw:
Obedience
Alignment
Faithfulness
And God says: “This may look lesser to you… but heaven is closer than ever.”
III. THE GLORY IS NOT IN THE BUILDING — IT’S IN THE PROMISE
Then God drops the bombshell:
“The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.” (v.8)
Translation: “I don’t need what you don’t have.”
God is saying:
You don’t fund My glory
You don’t create My presence
You don’t limit My power
If God wanted gold, He’d speak it into existence.
But here’s the real shift…
IV. THIS GLORY IS GREATER BECAUSE GOD IS DOING SOMETHING NEW
Solomon’s temple had:
Gold
Grandeur
Sacrifices
But THIS temple? Would host something Solomon never saw.
The Messiah Himself would walk into this house.
Jesus would step into this temple.
Grace would enter the building. Redemption would stand in the doorway.
The former glory had riches… The latter glory had REDEMPTION.
The former had ceremony…
he latter had SALVATION.
The former had fire falling…
The latter had THE PRINCE OF PEACE STANDING.
So yes…
The glory will be greater.
V. GOD SAVED THE BEST FOR THE END
“From this day will I bless you.” (Haggai 2:19)
This is not a backward-looking promise. This is a forward-moving word.
God says:
You struggled before
You labored without reward
You planted without harvest
But from this day forward…
Blessing replaces frustration
Favor follows obedience
Peace crowns the work
This is for:
The church that kept building when it got quiet
The believer who stayed faithful when it felt small
The leader who carried vision without applause
VI. THE GOD FIRST TRUTH: GREATER IS NOT BEHIND YOU — IT’S AHEAD OF YOU
Let me say this plainly:
You have not missed your best season. You are not rebuilding in vain. You are not too late. You are not too small.
If God is first…
The glory will be greater.
Greater peace. Greater impact. Greater wisdom. Greater authority. Greater anointing.
Not louder — deeper. Not flashier — stronger. Not crowded — committed.
CLOSING CELEBRATION
God says:
“I will shake the heavens and the earth…”
And when God shakes things:
What’s fake falls off
What’s unnecessary gets removed
What’s eternal remains
So don’t cry over what doesn’t look like before. Rejoice over what God is preparing now.
Lift your hands and declare it:
“The glory will be greater!”
Greater than my past. Greater than my pain. Greater than my mistakes. Greater than my memories.
Because when God is first… THE END WILL OUTSHINE THE BEGINNING.