Quiet Zeal

Tony Hauck
Church on the Rock - Melbourne

What does zeal look like? We all know the story of Jesus turning over the tables of the money changers in the temple, and His disciples remembering that it was written, “zeal for Your house has consumed me”. Don’t forget that whole incident was about the importance of prayer. Jesus spent a lot more time in prayer, not quarreling or crying out, not breaking bruised reeds or quenching smoking wicks (Mt 12:19-20), than he did in flamboyant displays of zeal. Yet I believe He was zealous all the time. So what did His zeal look like most of the time?

"But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, 'Son, go, work today in my vineyard.' He answered and said, 'I will not,' but afterward he regretted it and went. Then he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, 'I go, sir,' but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?" (Mat 21:28-31)

I don’t know about you, but too often I’ve sung on Sunday, “Lord I want You, I want to do Your will, yes Lord”, and then, ignored Him on Monday. I really appreciate demonstrative worship, passionate prayer and stirring preaching, but I’m not sure these things are accurate indicators of zeal. Maybe true zeal is seen in daily disciplines, long faithfulness to a task, simple obedience. Maybe it’s less about emotion and more about making decisions in spite of how we feel. Maybe we’re most zealous when we’re dry and tired, but we’re doing it anyway.

Have you ever wanted more passion in your praying?

Pastor Larry Booth
Our Father's House
June 28, 2010


One of the best inspirations I’ve ever found to dial up my own passion for the things of the LORD is to see HIS passion at work!!!

Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘I am zealous for Zion with great zeal; with great fervor I am zealous for her.’ (Zechariah 8:2)

GOD gets excited about things!!! The very language used in this text of the Bible speaks of white hot passion and zeal. The word for zeal literally means “to turn red in the face”. Imagine that…GOD gets so excited about Zion and about the city of Jerusalem that HE gets red in the face talking about it.

This is the same zeal that HE has for us. We hear it in HIS cry for Adam in the Garden of Eden. We hear it when Jesus cries out on the last day of the great feast and asks if any one is thirsty. We hear it in the last great invitation of the Bible in Revelation 22:17, And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.

So…the next time you’re a little low on passion for the things of GOD, ask HIM to give you a download of HIS zeal.