ZEAL
“For the zeal of thine
house hath eaten me up; and the reproach of them that reproached thee are
fallen upon me.” Psalm 69:9
And his disciples remembered that
it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.” John 2:17
While
these verses are linked by the fact that one is a quotation of the other, there
is a bit of variation between the two definitions probably due to the fact that
one is Hebrew and the other Greek.
In
Psalm 69 the word means ardour, zeal or jealousy, especially that of a jealous
husband. In John, the definition means
more an excitement of mind, fervour of spirit in embracing, pursuing or
defending anything. It also indicates a
fierceness of indignation, or an envious and contentious rivalry.
Jesus’
zeal for the house of God was demonstrated as he made a scourge of small cords
and drove out those that sold sacrifices and the moneychangers from the
temple. Upon seeing his zealous actions,
the disciples remembered the verse from Psalm 69.
It
is this same sort of zeal that drives men to serve the Lord and to stand for
righteous causes. David rejoiced in the
streets as the Ark of the Covenant was returned. John the Baptist preached and stood against
sin. Steven was stoned. Paul cast aside all earthly reward counting
it all but dung for the reward of knowing Christ. The Book of Hebrews records those who with
fervent zeal embraced and pursued a higher call. All these were “eaten up” with fervent
passion and contended for the faith.
As
we face a New Year, maybe it is time to examine our own level of zeal. Just how defensive or jealous are we for the
things of God? Are our churches filled
with things that Jesus would chase out?
Do we rejoice when we see God’s greatness? Do we boldly stand against sin? Do we endure rejection and persecution with
our eyes upon the Lord? Do we count
Christ a worthy reward? Are we “eaten
up” with fervent passion about the things of God? Are we fiercely contending for the faith?
ZEAL
“For I know the forwardness of your mind, for
which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago;
and your zeal hath provoked very many.”
II Corinthians 9:2
The
thing about zeal is that it is contagious!
When
I started Bible College the Shah of Iran had just fallen. This sent missionary Ken Liles back to America. God opened the doors for him to be my mission
teacher. His zeal for the ministry was
fresh and fervent. He wasn’t afraid to
challenge my thinking and he excited my mind with increased faith and a deeper
devotion. His zeal provoked in me a fervour
to pray for the peoples of the Middle East that continues to this day.
Over
the years there have been so many blessed ones God has used to provoke me to
greater zeal in other areas as well.
Some have been Sunday school teachers who challenged me to hold my Bible
is high regard. Some have been men and
women who encouraged me to not lose hope in parenting. Some have been pastors who have opened God’s
Word with great wisdom and directness.
And others have been friends who have walked alongside with words of
instruction and kindness. All of these
exhibited a level of zealousness and compassion that prompted me to have
greater strength, determination or devotion.
I am so thankful for each one who influenced me by their zeal and
compassion.
As
we look at our own lives we must wonder - upon whom have I had an influence? Have I passed my zeal on to others? Am I living a contagious Christian life?
ZEAL
“….that he that a great zeal for you…” Colossians 4:13
Epaphras
was one of those faithful men who served alongside the Apostle Paul. The Bible records that he was a fervent
laborer that kept people in prayer and who genuinely cared. The use of the word zeal means that his
concern was not casual. He passionately
wanted to see those around him growing in the Lord and inside God’s will.
Christian
zeal for others can be displayed by various means and is usually done in
relation to our spiritual gifts. Givers
give. Exhorters exhort. Mercy givers give mercy, etc. All are valid means of exhibiting our zeal
and care toward others. The thing is
that if we are not exhibiting care toward others, then we are obviously without
zeal toward them. Without zeal we can be
assured that we will affect very few to any positive results.
Giving
and caring characterized the Christians of the New Testament. They sold possessions in order to feed the
others in the church. They opened their
homes for daily meetings and meals. Even
the words used to describe their activities reveal that their social economy was
different than that of those around them.
When
defining brotherly kindness Berg writes, “What is most interesting is that in
the secular Greek world…the word was reserved only for blood relatives. The early church extended its use to those
outside the natural family because they considered anyone in the body of Christ
a “brother” or “sister” in Christ….the unbelievers despised the Christian use
of this term outside the natural family lines….the New Testament is the only
place where the word has been found outside the context of the home. A first-century reader would therefore come
across it here with a sense of shock.”
Would
zealous compassion be a word used to describe your relationships? Would brotherly kindness be a term in your
vocabulary? Does your compassion extend
beyond your family boundaries? Do you
have a zeal for others or is our life self focused?
ZEAL
“Of the increase of his government and peace
there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order
and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for
ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will
perform this.” Isaiah 9:7
We
live in a time between the establishment of Israel and the total restoration of
Israel. This verse is a promise of
completion. There will be an eternal
government of peace, judgment, and justice that reflects the character of
God. It will be ordered with prudence
and equality.
And
how will this happen? God will make it
happen. He will undertake to bring to
pass. He has all power in his hand and
all creation at his beckoning. God’s
zeal – his ardour, passion, and determined will for good – means that He will
not do less than everything to accomplish His plan for the ages.
This
zeal is what we see in Christ’s spiritual victory over Satan at his first
coming and is the same zeal that accompanies the judgments on the Antichrist,
Satan, and every enemy at the second coming.
God
will perform it. Here is a place for us
to rest, a place of solid assurance and confidence. A place where we have nothing more to do than
believe. God didn’t just write the Bible
down for us to read. He wrote it to
affirm to us His plan. To help us to
look beyond today to the realization of His truth – His plan – His will.
He
is zealous. We might not see how all of
the cogs fit. We might think that time
is ticking by and no progress is being made.
But nothing could be further from the truth. God is always working to bring about the
fulfillment of His Word and will. He is
not stagnant, nor has He forgotten. This
you can believe.
One
day every knee shall bow and every tongue confess...until that day, we also
need to be zealously living for this future.
Are we?
ZEAL
“For he put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of
vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.” Isaiah 59:17
I
don’t know if I can adequately describe the image I see in my mind about this
verse. Let me start by backing up in
Isaiah 59 to show you what is happening.
Words like, iniquity, evil, destruction, crooked, groping, lying,
falsehood and truth that has failed bring us to the phrase in verse 15, “…and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him
that there was no judgment.”
Then,
in verse 16 it states that, “there was no
man, and wondered that there was no intercessor…” God saw that man’s state was one of
hopelessness. So, “….therefore his arm brought salvation unto
him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.” God chose to do something about it!
As
a mighty warrior and a victorious king he donned his robes – a breastplate of
righteousness, a helmet of salvation, battle gear and cloaked it all in zeal.
I
see him standing at the gateway to heaven with the crown upon His head, His
garments blowing in the wind and ready to step out into battle. As he makes his initial step he takes the
train of his royal robe and casts one side over his shoulder. He is clothed in zeal, ready for battle and
not to be deterred. This is our God – a
God jealous of his children, ready to defend.
He is the man. He is the intercessor.
“So shall they fear the name of the
LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood,
the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.” Isaiah 59:19
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