TRUE SONS OF GOD ARE MEN OF ZEAL - 23

True sons of God are zealous for purity and holiness. David exclaimed, "The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." This Scripture was also prophetic of Christ.

Zeal is a very powerful force that motivates us to action in order to accomplish large and difficult tasks. Zeal is ardor in the pursuit of what God puts on our heart. Zeal is fervent enthusiasm. May God save us from this insipid, saltless, flavorless thing we call Christianity today. It has no semblance to the life of Christ or the early church. And God does not own it.

John 2;14-17 tells the story of Jesus who "found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house a house of merchandise. And the disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up."

Would to God that we would be as zealous for the purity and holiness of God's house as Jesus was. Men, there are a lot of things that have made their way into God's house that will take nothing less than the same zeal that Jesus had to eradicate them. Merchandise, and the love of things, have once again taken over God's house.

Jesus said, "It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves" (Matthew 21:13). Sad to say, I think that the "den of thieves" could aptly be applied to much of God's house today. The prayer meetings have been stolen by the thieves of entertainment. Honestly, do people think of prayer when they think of church these days? Prayer leads to holiness and there will be no true holiness without prayer.

The same goes for our homes which in a sense are a mini church within the church. The same goes for our own personal bodies for we are the spiritual house that God is building now (1 Peter 2:5).

Men, let us all pray that the zeal of God will once again consume us so that we will be zealous enough to drive out the thieves.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell