The Missing Ingredient: Zeal

The Missing Ingredient: Zeal

By Apostle Felix

16  And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.

17  And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

18  Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?

19  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

John 2: 16 – 19

Zeal is an intense feeling of eagerness, passion, and active dedication that drives an individual to work fervently toward a goal. It is an unmatched energy and internal drive that can operate in pursuit of either a righteous or an evil cause. Because zeal can be entirely unstoppable, zeal without knowledge is incredibly dangerous. A truly zealous man or woman is capable of accomplishing monumental feats. For instance, the people at the Tower of Babel possessed an immense collective zeal, ready to complete a massive project that was fundamentally anti-God. God Himself acknowledged their fierce determination, recognising that whatever they imagined to do, nothing would restrain them from finishing it. The only way God could halt their progress was to bring about total confusion in their speech. Once they could no longer communicate their vision to one another, cooperation became impossible, and the project collapsed.

6  And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.

7  Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.

Genesis 11: 6, 7

God has called us to be far more than just “good Christians” who attend weekly services, maintain moral uprightness, and volunteer within the church walls – He wants us to be active witnesses. Jesus explicitly promised the coming of the Holy Spirit to empower believers to bear witness to His truth. Unfortunately, many empowered believers sit passively in the pews today, remaining idle despite having the entire power of God residing within them. In contrast, the moment Jesus was anointed, and the Holy Spirit came upon Him, He immediately began actively preaching the Kingdom of God.

38  How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

Acts 10: 38

When Jesus was anointed, He went about doing good. He did not merely remain good in isolation; rather, He actively went about doing good, healing the sick and casting out demons. The very same anointing at work within us is intended for both becoming good and doing good. If your goodness is not actively impacting and rubbing off on those around you, then that goodness is counterfeit. The goodness of God is tangible, and it is impossible to walk closely with Him while remaining completely docile.

Every Spirit-filled believer should possess a fierce zeal for their Master. True biblical zeal is ultimately measured by one’s capacity and desire to win souls. It is not measured by your dancing in church or your engagement in internal activities like ushering, singing in the choir, or running church media. While all of those responsibilities are commendable, they can never replace soul winning.

Unfortunately, zeal can easily be misplaced in these secondary, less productive things. The primary purpose of the Church is soul winning, and every other internal ministry department simply exists to aid that central mission. Therefore, we must never pour all of our energy into the tools that merely support evangelism while completely neglecting the main purpose itself.