Zeal for the Lord
(Exhortation - December 1999)
Jesus rebuked the believers at Laodicea for this very thing: "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth…As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent" (Rev. 3:15,16,19). Zeal is what the Lord looks for in His followers.
The example of Phinehas
Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, certainly had the quality of zeal. When one of the
Israelites defiantly took a Midianitish woman into a tent, obviously with an immoral
motive, everyone was horrified. They stood outside the tabernacle wringing their hands
with indecisiveness, weeping but doing nothing. Here was a real problem indeed; for
although the man was committing a blatant sin, he was an important individual -- the son
of Salu, one the chief princes of the Simeonites.
But, Phinehas was not a respecter of persons; he had no such inhibitions. Realizing that the whole congregation was in danger of divine retribution if such gross behavior was left uncondemned, he solved the problem with one swift thrust of a javelin, thus turning away the wrath of God. "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy. Wherefore say, Behold I give unto him my covenant of peace: and he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel" (Num. 25:10-13).
The everlasting reward was well deserved. Phinehas had acted with zeal, while the rest of the congregation just looked on.
The example of Saul
Approximately 1500 years later, Saul of Tarsus "looked on,"
witnessing the stoning of Stephen; the Israelites of his day "had a zeal for God,
but not according to knowledge" (Rom. 10:2). It was this ignorance and fanatical
religious fervor, not to mention envy of him, that had resulted in the death of the Son of
God. Paul, reflecting on his past actions as a young and ardent Pharisee, wrote
"for ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how
that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: and profited the
Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly
zealous of the traditions of my fathers…Concerning zeal, persecuting the church"
(Gal. 1:13, Phil. 3:6).
When making his defense before an enraged Jewish mob, Paul touches on the same theme: "And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women. As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished" (Acts 22:4,5). Sadly, and with profound regret, he now recognized the danger of misguided ardor. Unquestionably, although ill-advised, his zeal was toward his God. The Lord, who knows the hearts of all men, recognized this. He could do something with a man like that.
To the astonishment of Ananias, Saul was chosen to be an ambassador for Christ. "Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. But the Lord said unto him, go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel" (Acts 9:13).
Perhaps we should stop and consider the application of the lesson to ourselves. It is so easy to fall into the trap of nodding in agreement to points made from scripture during an exhortation while, at some point, perhaps subconsciously distancing ourselves. How do we fare when it comes to ministering to our brothers and sisters? Whether it is on a monetary or a physical basis, do we show fervor and vigor? We should, because, as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, zeal is catching: "For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: 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 Cor. 9:1,2). So zeal is catching.
Praying with zeal
Then there is the aspect of prayer. Are we praying with enthusiasm, not only for those
we know intimately, but also for the brotherhood worldwide? Our missionaries and the
believers struggling to keep the Truth in third world countries need us to petition our
Heavenly Father for their welfare: "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous
man availeth much" (Jam. 5:16).
Two thousand years ago, a faithful disciple was found to be so doing: "Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them, that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis" (Col. 4:12,13). Even though he was absent from them, Epaphras prayed with all his might for those of like precious faith at Colosse. Whatever our situation, however old or infirm, we can all pray thus!
Our supreme example
As always, our ultimate example is Christ. The cleansing of the temple was achieved
with tremendous energy derived from a single-minded determination and zeal for the things
of God. The incident made such an impact upon the disciples (usually rather slow at
grasping the outworking of prophecy) that it was said of them, "And his disciples
remembered that it was written, the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up" (Jn.
3:17). Paradoxically, the ongoing zeal of our Lord Jesus Christ to fulfil his
Father’s purpose led to the retributive destruction of the temple by the Roman forces
in A.D. 70: "…and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the
city and the sanctuary" (Dan. 9:26).
The destruction of the physical temple led to the building of a spiritual house, of which, in God’s mercy, we are an integral part: "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?…for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are" (II Cor. 3:16,17). It is apt that we take to heart the instructions which Paul gave to the stalwart Titus: "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." Then with sublime brevity, the apostle captures the essence of the redemptive work of Jesus, "Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Tit. 2:11-14).
This really is incredible. The Son of God willingly died on the cross to cleanse us from our sins and to take us as his own personal possession (the meaning of "peculiar").
With this in mind, how can we fail to respond zealously in our work for him?
In common with the apostles, we should be caught up with enthusiasm and joy for the kingdom, its king and its righteous government: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this" (Is. 9:7).
Zeal for the Lord of Hosts was that which filled His Son even to the laying down of his life. His zeal in turn filled the apostles, whose zeal in turn filled the believers and should fill us. We in turn may then infuse others by our zeal for the things of the Lord.
As we take the emblems of his love, let us marvel at his zeal and resolve to be more zealous for him.
Peter Banford