For zeal for Thy house has consumed me. And the reproaches of those who reproach Thee have fallen on me. –– Psalm 69:9 (NASB)

Zeal has always been the hallmark of the true servant of God. It was zeal that motivated Noah to build an ark and warn of an impending flood when there had been, as yet no rain on the earth. It was zeal that stirred the Old

Testament prophets to give their stern messages despite the opposition of those in authority. It was zeal that prompted Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem in just fifty-two days. It was zeal that moved the Apostle Paul to endure a litany of hardships to preach the gospel of Christ. And the highest example of zeal was Jesus himself who, as the Son of God, yet without a place to lay his head, was so completely consumed in just three and a half years that he had not strength to carry his own cross.

All true Christians hold these and other examples before them as an ideal for developing their own personal zeal. Many start out as red-hot flames, only to cool down in a short time. How does one obtain this kind of zeal? How is it maintained? Can it be regained once it has slackened? These are the questions we want to probe in this lesson.

The Origin of Zeal

Zeal begins with a deep love of the cause to which one is devoted. The prophet Jeremiah illustrates this well in verse nine of chapter twenty, “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.”

Such zeal arises spontaneously, as in the case of Isaiah, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me” (6:8). It is the instinctive reaction of a grateful heart for what it has seen or heard. The “good news” of the Gospel is too good to keep to oneself. It must be shared. As one popular Christian song puts it, “We want to pass it on.”

In concluding his Divine Plan of the Ages, Charles T. Russell wrote, “Who- ever comes in contact with truth, realizing its character, has thereby a responsibility with reference to it. It must be either received and acted upon or rejected and despised. To ignore it does not release from responsibility. If we accept it ourselves, we have a responsibility toward it also, because it is for all the household of faith; and each one receiving it becomes its debtor, and, if a faithful steward, must dispense it to the other members of the family of God. Let your light shine! If it again becomes darkness, how great will be the darkness. Lift up the light! Lift up a standard for the people!” (p. 349).

It is one thing to have a knowledge of truth; it is still another thing to acknowledge it. “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22). In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23) Jesus describes four different reactions that would come to those hearing his words. Some, like seeds sown by the wayside, would never take root and truth always remains an interesting curiosity. Others, like seeds in stony ground, would quickly take root and just as quickly cool. Still a third group, like a seed cast among thorns, would soon find their love for the truth giving way to the cares and allurements of this world. Only that sown in good ground would eventually produce fruitage. But even here the fruitage would vary, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundredfold.

The Foes of Zeal

This parable well illustrates three of the greatest foes of zeal — idle curiosity, lack of personal application, and love for the things of this world. There is that mind that is curious about anything new but relishes it only for the intellectual stimulation it provides. Such never find true zeal. These are like those on Mars’ Hill who, after hearing Paul, said, “We will hear thee again of this matter” (Acts 17:32). Such are “ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 3:7).

Still, others are content with a surface knowledge of the Lord. They thrill to know that he has a plan for all and to learn of the resurrection of the dead. Here the zeal is quenched by a lack of resolution to take truth in a personal way, applying it to a change of heart and lifestyle. The adage, “use it or lose it,” applies to things of the spirit also.

The third enemy of zeal is the dilution of the hot waters of truth with the pleasures of this world. Often these earthly enjoyments are harmless and may even be educational but do little to build up the spiritual man. Christianity grew so rapidly during the time of the apostles largely because they were totally involved. They had a cause that blotted out all other interests. “I am determined,” exclaims Paul, “not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). Again, “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

Single-mindedness is, then, the key to the building of zeal in the Christian character. This singleness of purpose is born out of true belief. This belief is not only the acknowledgment of the truth of a fact but the burning desire that it be accom- plished and as quickly as possible. Such was the mindset of the apostles and prophets of old and such must be the mindset of all true Christians today.

Maintaining Zeal

“Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord” (Romans 12:11 RSV). The Moffatt translation of the middle phrase words it, “maintain the spiritual glow.” Maintaining fervor for any cause over the long haul is always difficult, even more so when the cause is as ephemeral and faith-based as is the Christian cause. One must believe, really believe, wholeheartedly believe in the truths of the Scripture to maintain their early zeal.

The early Christian church started out with a large amount of zeal. But as time went on and friction developed in their midst, the zeal began to flag. The message to the church at Ephesus pinpointed this weakness, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Revelation 2:4).

Unto the next church, the church in Smyrna is a similar warning: “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). How true to the Christian are the words of King Ahab to Ben-Hadad of Syria: “And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off ” (1 Kings 20:11).

As a fire is only maintained by feeding it new fuel, so the Christian must continually study and restudy the basis for his hopes, the Word of God. Constant vigilance in proclaiming the truth helps one maintain one’s zeal in desiring its consummation. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house” (Matthew 5:15). Not only does the bushel restrict the circle of the light, but it also deprives the fire of necessary oxygen and soon the flame dies out. If we speak of the things we believe only within our innermost circle, we will not only be refusing to spread the word but we will soon find what light we did have flickering dimmer and dimmer until it is extinguished.

One hot coal, left alone, soon cools. It is only when coals are grouped that they retain their heat, each warming the other. This is the lesson the apostle communicates to us in Hebrews 10:25, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Regular attendance at meetings for fellowship, study, and testifying to the Lord’s dealings in our lives is an excellent stimulant to zeal. Even controversial discussions, when one is rightly exercised by them, stimulate zeal by creating a desire to search more and more deeply into the Word of God to find the answers to troubling questions. Hebrews 10:24 gives the reason for our constant assembling together: “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.”

At no time are the temptations to a lessening of zeal more prevalent than in the last stages of the Christian church. It is for this phase, the church at Laodicea, that the Revelator reserved his sharpest criticism. The main weakness he finds in this church is the spirit of “lukewarmness” (Revelation 3:16). It would be far better if their zeal were “hot” in his service. It would even be better if he were “cold,” not even professing himself as a Christian than to claim to be “hot” and act “cold,” thus becoming “lukewarm.” Now, as never before, we need to seek to obtain and hold on to the consuming zeal that Jesus experienced.

Regaining Zeal

Despite our best efforts, most of us at one time or another feel a loss of zeal. It may be the routine of life or some disappointment with self or others, but for whatever reason we are not as enthused about the Lord and his truth as we used to be. Is there a solution?

Memory can be a great help in regaining zeal. Many times, marriage counselors, when approached by a couple falling out of love, will suggest that they go back in their minds and remember what it was about each other that made them fall in love in the first place. Paul suggested a similar remedy for the slackening of a Christian’s zeal, “But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used” (Hebrews 10:32,33).

Most who have made a consecration will recall a certain euphoria that went with that decision. They were thrilled with what the Lord had done for them, and they wanted to show their appreciation by doing something in return. They were not trying to buy God’s favor but merely showing a response for the goodness they had received. Perhaps that is why Peter calls baptism “the answer of a good conscience toward God” (1 Peter 3:21).

A second remedy is diagnosing the cause of lack of zeal. It may be the long wait for Kingdom hopes. As the wise man says, “hope deferred maketh the heart sick” (Proverbs 13:12). It is this cause that produces the great skepticism amongst some over the Lord’s return. Peter describes them as scoffers, saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (2 Peter 3:4). If that is the case, let us seek to estimate time as God estimates time: “one day is with the Lord as a thousand years” (v. 8). When we were children, we had the same problem. Days of waiting seemed so long. As we age time rushes by faster and faster. Spiritually we are still children and need to adapt to God’s standard of timekeeping.

Another cause of flagging zeal is the burden of day-to-day responsibilities. As Martha of old, we are “cumbered with much serving” (Luke 10:40,41). The responsibilities of a spouse, family, a home, and a job, are all taxing. They were no less so for those of the early church. We need to constantly “redeem the time” (Ephesians 5:16), to buy back minutes and hours from earthly cares to serve the Lord. The secret, much easier said than done, lies in the setting of priorities and the establishment of specific habits of laying aside sacred time for the Lord.

Still, another cause of loss of fervor is disappointments we may have with ourselves or with others. If we are discouraged over our inability, we can be comforted with the thought that the Lord will judge us, not upon our works alone, but on our sincere intentions to do right. “For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not” (2 Corinthians 8:12). If our disappointment is with others, or with conflict between brethren, we need to develop trust that the Lord is the one in command. Our responsibility lies with how we live our lives. We must be content to let others be responsible for how they live their lives, leaving the final judgment of both in the hands of a loving and all-knowing God.

At times we sing the words of a familiar Christian hymn:

With calm and tempered zeal,
Let me proclaim thy plan;
And vindicate thy gracious will
Which offers life to man.

Zeal is often equated with a wild fanaticism. It need not be. As the hymnist writes, our zeal can be “calm and tempered.” These terms speak of a discipline behind zeal. One that speaks not from an emotional outburst but from a settled conviction. Iron only becomes tempered when it is submitted to cold water after being heated. So, we need to have our zeal tempered by constantly exposing it to use, both “in season” and “out of season” (2 Timothy 4:2).

With such disciplined zeal, we can valiantly serve the Lord both now, and if faithful, as zealous servants throughout eternity.

Who could faint while such a prospect
Urges on to faithfulness. 

–– The Herald of Christ’s Kingdom 1996/1