Col 3:23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Webster defines the word 'Zeal' as 1. Eagerness and ardent interest in pursuit of something. 2. Two synonyms are Fervor or Passion. In our text this evening the apostle Paul uses the word 'heartily'. The word "heartily" literally means "from the soul."
People are passionate or zealous about many things. We are passionate about work, striving to succeed. We are passionate about possessions, striving to have more. We are passionate about hobbies and interests. We are passionate about our sports teams. Think of this… We always have enough time, energy and money for those things about which we are passionate.
The real question is: are we passionate about that which is most important? Are we passionate about God? The Bible has much to say about our 'zeal' for God.
In Num.25:11, God speaks of "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."
God describes Himself as passionate and zealous. Several times in the OT we read, "The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this."
Jesus is described as zealous. Is.59:17 prophesied of Him, "For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke."
The disciples understood Ps.69:9 spoke of Him, "For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me."
Jesus' passion was His Father's will. He said in John 4:34, "Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work."
The Bible also encourages believers to pursue a passionate or zealous relationship with God.
Pr 13:4 The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.
Ec 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
Ga 4:18 But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. 1Co 14:12 Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church.
Paul speaks of his own passion in Col.1:29, "Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily."
Titus 2:14 speaks 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."
Paul said to Timothy in 2 Tim.1:6, "Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands."
Our spiritual passion or zeal is like a fire. As long as we pile on the wood, the wind of the Spirit will fan the flames and the fire will be so hot even a rainstorm of adversity won't douse it. However, when we don't feed the fire it will smolder.
John Wesley was once asked why so many people came to hear him preach. He said, "I just set myself on fire and the people come to watch me burn!"
Are we 'on fire' for God? If not, why not? Get on fire for God and men will come to see you burn. If there is something missing in our relationship and our service to God, chances are it is our passion...our zeal!
I. Why We Lack Zeal for God.
A. Some Do Not Know God.
1. If a person has never been saved, they will never have a passion for prayer, Bible study, worship, ministry, witnessing, giving…
2. The zeal for these things comes from the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
3. Do you remember the zeal that you had when you were first saved?
4. You couldn't wait to get to church; to read the Bible, to pray, to talk about God...
B. That which should be Precious has become too Familiar.
1. We are all familiar with the phrase, "Familiarity breeds contempt."
2. Our enemy can't steal our salvation; he'll just make us forget what it was like to be lost.
3. We'll grow accustomed to prayer and thereby not pray.
4. Worship will become commonplace and Bible study optional.
5. What about us? Have we become so familiar with the things of God that we have allowed the 'precious' to become 'common'?
C. We live in a "Me-First" Society.
1. We want what we want when we want it!
2. Many view every facet of life - work, school, home, play, church - as a means to satisfy themselves!
3. Because everyone around us is so self-involved it is easy to get sucked into their lifestyle and let the fire of our passion cool.
D. We grow more Apathetic with Age.
1. For many, the older we get the less our zeal.
2. We adopt an attitude that says, "Let someone else do it…I have put in my time."
3. Caleb was one of the 12 spies who wanted to take the Promised Land.
4. He was 40 years old then. When he was 80, Israel marched across the Jordan.
5. When the land was divided he was 85.
6. Listen to the zeal in his words from Josh.14:11-12a.
"As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. Now therefore give me this mountain…"
E. We want Acceptance and Approval.
1. Sometimes our desire for popularity pours water on our zeal.
2. We don't want to be considered a fanatic (a nut).
3. So we try to keep things on the 'down low' when it comes to our faith in God.
4. The danger is in becoming like the Laodicean believers, "lukewarm… neither hot or cold?"
II. Why Zeal for God should be Our Priority.
A. God Desires Passionate Believers.
1. Look at Titus 2:14.
Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
2. Look at Rom.12:11.
Ro 12:11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
3. Some people think Christianity is some inward journey, that it should be seen and not heard.
4. Our faith should be "fervent" or boiling over for God.
5. Some think church should be a place for quietness. [shhhhhh]
6. But God admonishes us to be fervent in Spirit, serving the Lord.
B. Zeal is the First Step toward accomplishment.
1. We accomplish that which motivates us.
2. Whatever we are passionate about we will 'make it happen'.
3. The question again is, what drives us?
4. We will accomplish what drives us.
5. If we develop zeal for God, we will grow spiritually.
6. If we become a church with a zeal for God, we will grow!
7. A passionate church that reaches its goals for God is a church made up of passionate individuals.
8. We are a link in this chain! How's our zeal?
C. Zeal changes People.
1. First, it will change me.
a. It changes how I think, how I feel about myself, how I preach, how I care, how I love…
b. Example: Rhonda c. Example: Randy
2. Second, it will change others.
a. People can see the difference.
b. Your family, co-workers, neighbors, etc
c. Fellow believers will see it.
d. And lost people will see it!
e. If we become passionate for God, people will be saved… every time!
D. Zeal for God protects me from sin.
1. When did David get into trouble…when he decided to sit out the battle.
2. The same is true for us.
3. I have seen it countless times in the lives of believers…
4. They begin to lose their zeal for God…things become routine…before long they aren't as involved as they once were…
5. Next thing you know they are out of church and their life is no different from someone who is lost.
III. How to Regain Our Zeal for God.
A. Be filled with the Holy Spirit.
1. Zeal comes from within, from the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
2. We must be filled with His power daily.
3. Paul challenges us in Ephesians 5:18
Eph 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
B. Pray for Passion.
Col 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;
Jas 5:16b "…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
C. Return to Our First Love.
1. In Rev. 2:1-7, we read Jesus' message to the church at Ephesus.
a. He had many praises for them but in v4 He said, "…I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love."
b. It seems that the Ephesians had the fire once, but they had let it go cold.
c. They left their "first love"
2. Jesus told them, "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first work…"
3. Apathy is not a condition of the mind, but of the heart.
D. Associate with Passionate People.
1. People will effect you.
2. A poker gets hot when it is put in the fire.
3. If we will build relationships with people who have a zeal for God…it will cause us to desire the same.
E. We must make this a priority in our lives.
1. Be Passionate about our Walk with God.
2. Be Passionate about our Witness for God.
3. Be Passionate about our Church.