John Edmund Haggai
February 2, 1999
10:30 am
Message Summary
John Edmund Haggai spoke on the qualities of servanthood. His focus was on David and how he overcame certain obstacles in order to be the kind of servant God uses. Using real-life illustrations to portray the qualities of servants, he pointed out that David overcame the obstacles of inadequacy, iniquity and impediments.
David was inadequate in the eyes of his family, being overlooked as his other brothers were presented to Samuel when he came looking for a king. David was not considered of the same quality as his brothers and certainly not material for a king. He was also burdened by the sin he committed by lusting after Bathsheba, having an affair with her and then plotting the murder of her husband. Another obstacle for David to overcome was Saul's hostility toward him. God had used David to comfort Saul, but then Saul turned on him and David had to flee for his life.
Haggai's main point was that David served his generation, and we need to do the same, overcoming whatever obstacles we feel are in the way. These obstacles may be physical, mental or even spiritual. But our mandate is to evangelize our generation, meaning we need to be servants to the world.
Student Response
John Haggai was an endearing speaker, bringing the audience alive with laughter yet making his points quite clearly. His attitude of the need for servanthood in evangelism was apparent. The message was simple: that we need to serve our generation regardless of our hesitations or hindrances. Yet many of us struggle with making excuses or becoming discouraged by past sin or experiences, and neglect to realize the importance of doing our part in God's plan for mankind. The message was encouraging and straightforward.
—Amanda J. Harris, Senior, Communications/Print Media major