SUNDAY NIGHT WITH EKURWE
14 August 2022
“Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them. 18 It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always and not just when I am with you.” (Galatians 4:17-18 NIV)
The Bible requires all Christian to be zealous. Christians are to display energy and enthusiasm when it is connected with obedience to the will of God. The gospel we receive in this generation results from the zeal and sacrifice displayed by old saints in obedience to God’s will.
Our love for God is displayed in how much we are willing to give up because of Him. Christian zeal is a burning desire to please God whatever the cost, to do His will, defile the murmur of self-will, and advance His glory in a world full of unrighteousness’, even when it is convenient or not convenient.
We may not have a correct desire to be zealous about the things of God by our natural mind, no one feels this desire by nature, but at the new birth, a passion is implanted by the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit initiated and water an extraordinary yearning to do the will of God in the heart of the regenerate at conversion. This zeal is devoid of self, not influenced by the power of recognition or reputation, but is sold up entirely to Christ and His glory alone. When your willingness to serve in any capacity in the work of the kingdom is motivated by the love and glory of Christ, then is Christian zeal.
In Revelation 3:19, the scriptures talk about the demand of Christ to the church in Laodicea, “Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love, I tell their faults and convict and convince and reprove and chasten [I discipline and instruct them]. So be enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent [changing your mind and attitude].” (AMP). A zealous person lives for one thing alone; his whole life is given over to one pursuit: to please God. It does not matter to him what the personal consequences or what men may think; his zeal will always show itself whatever his circumstances. We are not talking of seasonal or zeal associated with certain activities. If he cannot be outwardly active in serving Christ, he will give himself to fervent prayers and give the Lord no rest until God raise someone to do the work. They are typically selfless. We all know the mental attitude which makes men great in the world; they put aside everything except what they are striving for and constantly aim at one thing. When the same mental outlook is consecrated to Christ, that is what a Christian’s zeal means.
Zeal was characteristic of all the apostles. Consider apostle Paul when he spoke to the elders at Ephesus for the last time, he said, “but none of these things moves me, nor do I count my life dear to myself” (Acts 20:24). He wrote to the Philippians, “one thing I do… I press towards the goal” (Philippians 3:13-14). From the days of his conversion, he gave up all his earthly prospects, left everything for Christ’s sake and went throughout the world preaching the Christ he had once despised. Apostle Paul suffered hardship, persecution, oppression, imprisonment and death for Christ’s sake. That was true Christian zeal, that is how far the zeal could push one.
Zeal was one characteristic of the early Christians; they forfeited everything in the world for Christ’s sake. It has been the characteristic of men of God throughout history.
What are the characteristics of this Christian zeal?
Keep a date with us next Sunday.
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