Lecture 2
What is Zeal?
Proverbs 4:7 NASB
7 The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom;
And with all your possessions, acquire understanding.
Let’s start this lesson by acquiring understanding.
Define Zeal
Right before going to the Garden of Gethsemane for the last time before his death, Jesus again tries to prepare His disciples for his departure.
Read Luke 22:35-38
So, Jesus told His disciples to take their cloak (their zeal/passion) and buy a sword.
What is the Sword?
Remember the Mel Gibson movie, “Passion of Christ”.
Now we know that this movie was showing us the zeal that Jesus had toward us.
Read 1 Peter 2:21
What were we called to do?
As Ambassadors of Christ, what should be our passion?
Read Titus 2:11-14
When we become Christians we are saying that we belong to Christ as His own special people. At that point, what should our passion be?
In the process of looking up the definition of zeal for further understanding, I came across this amazing article written in 2021 by Clifton Angel called “Difference in Zeal and Knowledge.”
In his attempt to explain the difference between zeal and knowledge, he answered the question that I had been pondering regarding Jesus’ telling his disciples to sell their cloaks to purchase a sword. (The highlights and the font color changes I added on the points that stood out to me.)
DIFFERENCE IN ZEAL & KNOWLEDGE
By CLIFTON R. ANGEL Sun,05/09/21-8:51 AM, https://www.taterecord.com/difference-zeal-knowledge
Zeal is “great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective” (Oxford Dictionary.). Christians must be zealous (Titus 2:14), but as with any part of our Christianity and our lives, there has to be a balance.
Christians must avoid being like enthusiastic Israel. Paul said they had zeal without knowledge.
“Brethren, my heart’s desire, and prayer, to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge” (Romans 10:1–2).
They wanted to be followers of God, but they did not want to listen to God. They wanted to appear godly, but they did not want to be truly godly. They were extremely zealous, so much so, that they would kill those who followed Christ because they considered Christ to be a blasphemer. Paul personally knew the zeal they were experiencing (cf. Acts 22:3–4; Philippians 3:6). However, as Jesus said to them,
“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39).
Christians also must avoid being like lukewarm Laodicea. Jesus said they had knowledge without zeal.
“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 spew thee out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:15–16).
What caused them to lose their zeal? Fear? Discouragement? Complacency? Apathy? Complacency and apathy may be the greatest contributing factors (cf. Revelation 3:17–18). Complacency and apathy are two of the most dangerous threats also facing the church in America, today. We have our large buildings, large memberships, and fancy facilities, and we are spiritually living like the rich farmer, who said to himself: “Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry” (Luke 12:19). Jesus urged the Laodicean church: “Be zealous … and repent” (Revelation 3:19).
Conclusively, Christians must have knowledge AND zeal.
(Let’s consider this closely because we are getting ready to see why the disciples of Jesus were told to sell their cloaks and buy a sword.)
- In Proverbs 2:6, we are told that all wisdom, knowledge, and understanding come from the Lord.
- The Apostle John opened his Gospel by saying, “In the beginning was the word. The Word was with God. The Word was God.”
- The Apostle Paul told us in Ephesians 6:17 that “the Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God”.
- In the quote we just read, from Mr. Clifton Angel, Romans 10:1-2 was referenced where the Apostle Paul said that the Israelites had zeal (a cloak) but no knowledge.
- In Galatians 1:14, the Apostle Paul spoke of the Israelites having a zeal for the traditions of men and not for the things of God.
Jeremiah 9:13-14 New International Version
13 The Lord said, “It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law. 14 Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts; they have followed the Baals, as their ancestors taught them.”
Matthew 15:1-8 New International Version
That Which Defiles
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ 5 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ 6 they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8 “‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
As Christians, we need to be balanced. We need to have both zeal and truth.
Please proceed to Module 9 Lecture 3 – Worshipping God with Zeal and Truth
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