Zeal, Love Ablaze!

by Leonard Ravenhill

Enoch had prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones." If Jesus had entered history like that, or had come on a dark night over Jerusalem in a blazing chariot of fire (like Elijah went up to heaven), then the clamoring crowds would have accepted and adored Him. But as the poet once said, "They were looking for a king, to bring salvation nigh, He came a little infant thing, that made a woman cry."

Cleansing the Temple

The local folk knew Jesus well, He was the best carpenter in the nation. But now He had stepped out of bounds, He accepted the nomination of that wild preacher John the Baptist as the Lamb of God. He had agreed to let the people mount Him on an ass and enter the city amid cries of "Hosanna." Now He had stirred the city by routing the moneychangers and cattle dealers from the temple. For almost thirty years He had watched men desecrate the place. He was outraged at their insolence and greed. He was disgusted that they had carpeted the temple courts with animal excrement, and polluted the place with the stench of urine.

Each of the Gospels tells of the whipping Christ. But Luke makes a very valuable difference as he records the events in the life of Jesus. He says that before Jesus had entered the temple, while He was still entering Jerusalem, He had stopped to weep over the great city. So we have the weeping Christ before we had the whipping Christ. Since He was about His Father's business at twelve years of age, Jesus had trod the temple courts and had always been grieved and outraged that they were defiled not just with animal dung, but with red-eyed extortioners, cheating moneychangers, and cattle dealers. For thirty years He had been growing in grace and in the knowledge of His Father - now He knew His mission! And His explanation for this one-man attack on the sacrilege and defilement of the house of God is summed up in these words: "Zeal for Thy house will consume me."

Zeal! What a baptism of this same zeal the weak and wilting Church of this day needs. Zeal in this context is love ablaze. Zeal without reason becomes fanaticism. Jesus was not a fanatic. Yes, His love was blind to all the possible dangers of His mission. This love ignores personal safety, disregards the odds against it, drops "sacrifice" from its vocabulary, requires no crutches, ignores all danger, is intolerant of sin, but not fanatical.

His was no sudden burst of anger; He had contemplated it all His life, but now the hour had come and men fled before His whip and holy anger.

Spiritual Ecology

"Pollution! Pollution!" cry the ecologists about our food, air, waters, and our auto emissions. But where, O where are the preachers crying out against the pollution in the churches? The heart of Jesus was broken over a nation that had the elect prophets of the Lord as its advisors. But who had heeded these prophets? They had not dined at kings' tables; they, like their Master, were despised and rejected of men. Some were men with scorching tongues, but they were also men with weeping eyes. Ah! but tell me if you can, where are the weeping preachers today?

The cattle dealers in the temple were more interested in selling sacrifices than in offering them. And so today there are Christians at this very hour fighting feverishly for some political cause, and yet they are never heated over the wretched filth in their own church.

Will we crusade against uncleanness in the "Church"? If not, better tell the sleepy saints again to eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall be raptured. But Jesus will not rapture a ruptured Church!

The Worst Thing In the World

There are some frightful tragedies in the world at this moment. When wise men swept aside the Bible, they told us that we would move into a new freedom for men. These wise men have proved that they are otherwise. Other smart men put their brains together to make a bomb so that we can turn a living city crisp in seconds. Then think of the implication of Afghanistan and Iran, the daily bleeding of millions in Kampuchea, and the masses waiting to leave Cuba. These are horrible things to contemplate, and yet I think there is one thing infinitely worse. It is a sick Church in a dying world.

Never has the great U.S. ever been more broken than today. Broken marriages, leaving millions of broken homes. Thousands and thousands of teenagers whose minds are broken with drugs. The people's confidence and trust in the government is broken. The economy is broken - the once-mighty dollar is broken. All is broken except the hearts of the believers.

We need broken hearts to face this colossal mess. Weeping is not only in order in the pulpit it is commanded! "Let the priests weep between the porch and the a/tar . . . let them howl." (Joel 2:17, 1:13) Jeremiah wept over the sin of Israel. David wept. Paul wept. John wept. Shall we remain dry-eyed in the most crucial chapter in world history and in our own?

Counterfeit Zeal

The present lethargy in the Church is almost unpardonable. The Jehovah's Witnesses have zeal. The Mormons claim they are gaining more people from the evangelicals than we are gaining from them. The cultists zealously persist in getting a hearing in the streets.

Saul of Tarsus had fanatical zeal. He threw men and women in prison and broke up their families, persecuting them from city to city. Miraculously God cleansed him, baptized him with fire, and made him a model zealot for His Kingdom.

It is not enough in these days of such vast worldliness in the Church to say that we are fundamental or uncompromising in "doctrine." We must be ablaze with Holy Spirit-born anger. ("Be angry, and yet do not sin." Eph. 4:26) We must feel the hurt of God over the devil's domination of this age. We must apologize to the Almighty that we have turned to our own way, and have been more loyal to a manmade theology than to the exceedingly sober words of our Master. Like Paul, we must be able to say in His holy presence, This one thing I do..." I bear a broken heart over the coldness in the Church (including my own!). True, the zealous man of God lives for one thing only: to please God. He is impervious to the opinions of others about his zeal. He cares not what it costs him to burn out for God. In sickness or in health, in poverty or in wealth, whether he is esteemed or despised, flattered or flattened, considered a fool or a philosopher, through evil report or good report, kisses or curses, he is set to do the will of God!

This man sees the Church today fouled with showmanship, bingo and bake sales, dances, tinsel and trivia, "holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power. (II Tim. 3:5) He sees the ministers condoning divorce in high places. Maybe his minister is divorced and remarried himself.

Jesus today sees His Church unclean with disobedience by a watered-down gospel. We do not obey His commandments to "love one another," or rejoice to act out Matthew 23:11 "But the greatest among you shall be your servant." If there comes a man into the assembly with a gold ring, we do give him honor (James 2:2). If he has great wealth but little spirituality, he is still welcomed as a member of the board. We do not insist that our young preacher boys tarry (until they get a seminary diploma? No!) until they are endued with power from on high!

The Pharisee's Prayer

The Pharisee who prayed in the temple said, "God, I thank Thee that I am not like other people; swindlers, unjust, adulterers." There are many so-called Spirit-filled men today, who cannot even pray that prayer! Unjust they are for sure, they pay low wages and tell their workers that they are "doing this sacrifice for Jesus." Adulterers-there are famous preachers in this awful category. They, of course, have an explanation for their infidelity, yet many are accepted at conferences as keynote speakers. Extortioners - the radio preachers almost have this as a monopoly. A $25 Bible (God's Holy Word) is offered for a $100 gift! Other books are offered at five times their cost. "You are judging!" someone will say. Correct, I am told to judge (John 7:24). Jesus says, "Judge with righteous judgment." Also I, along with other true preachers of the Gospel, am a watchman and so have to warn others. Also, "judgment must begin at the house of the Lord." This bait to get money is an abomination. Preachers whine for money over the radio and television. "For this ministry" they say, and yet much of it is to sustain their extravagant lifestyle, costly airplanes, and fixing up luxury Bible conference grounds. And now they have joined the Pharisees who "rob widows' houses. After emptying your pockets while you live, they ask for your house and estate after you die. What next?

Stealing the Glory

This is a day of the personality cult. Men on TV gospel shows are presented as having given up so much for the Lord. All they gave up with their retirement from stardom was hell and eternal punishment. Let it be shouted from the housetops that no man does God a favor. Elegant living, etc. for the rich evangelists proves nothing except that they have not left all to follow Him. The Spirit-filled need no status symbols.

The flattering introduction for gospel preachers is another great piece of blockage to revival. John 5:41 and 44 need soul-searching consideration. My heart is burdened and burning. God's house is polluted. The sinners scoff and say of the rich preachers, "Their creed is greed and their god is gold." We need a baptism of holy zeal to get us back to holy indignation that the money grabbers are back in the temple, and that God's heart is hurting.

The Church began in the Spirit, now She is operating in the flesh. There is no pillar of fire over the sanctuary. There are no preachers who can hold the hell-bound spell-bound. I am not sure that it can be proved that Nero fiddled while Rome burned. It can be proved that the Church is fiddling while the world is burning! The one reason that we do not have revival today is that we are content to live without it.

O for a generation of believers who can honestly say ,"Zeal for Thy house will consume Me."

Leonard Ravenhill, 2/22/2007

Feedback: (page 1 2)

	Bing Garcia (Guest)	11/13/2008 22:27
This article touched me like no other. Bro. Leonard Ravenhill along with Keith and Melody were some of the few special people whom the Lord has given the gift to inspire and bless others through simple stories like this one. I shared this to my dear friend Sis. Loida Vasquez who now spends more of her time in Dubai sharing the saving grace of our Lord.
	Donna Blauw	01/17/2009 15:00
All I can say is II Chronicals 7:14 and its context! Revival is about me humbling myself, seeking His face, praying and turning from my wicked way so He can hear from heaven and heal my land! This brother has so hit the nail right on the head! Thank you for this message! My eyes are so wide open and I cannot get them to close to a normal size! So many today only speak of prosperity and how good it is going to be. The word says my you prosper as your soul prospers. If my soul is sin sick how can I be enriched by the Word! I first must live II Chronicles 7:14 and then keep short accounts with Father and not try to remove anyones speck with an entire tree in my own eye! God help me be open to allow Your light to sign inside of me to reveal my true heart. I am not a gloom and doomer, but I know a zeal for Him and His house is necessary! Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things shall be added to you! Just what does precede these words? Not much! I believe food and clothes! I see no Cadillacs, Mecezedes, BMWs, or even a Toyota Camrys! Just a change of clothes and my walking stick! What a concept! Trust and obey! Father help me find my place in this! Once again thank you Melody!
	Donna (Guest)	07/24/2009 17:19
I thank you for posting this tract. I have been sadden about the condition of the TV evangelist and pastors who make you feel like your a sinner or your going to hell if you don't help them out by buying there book. I myself need to get the zeal back in my life. I have gotten discouraged lately. I find myself asking " if this pracher/evangelist is telling me that I need to buy his book he is selling so I would know when or how near the end times is here, There are some that said not to use credit cards because you will help usher in the masrk, and the same ones want you to by a book of there's with the credit card. I need that zeal basck in my life again.
	Tom (Guest)	07/24/2009 17:51
We as the body of Christ need to seek His face shut off the world at any cost. Shut off these tv wolves and get into the Word ourselves. Jesus is no respector of any person you can hear from the Lord yourself. Just shut off that tv and anything else that spews out that devils message and open Jesus message. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of the God. It is time for the church to be the church!!!! We have sold our Lord for cheap entertainment. It's time we hit our knees again and submit ourselves to Christ as James 4:7,8 says. Love in Christ, Tom
	john riggs (Guest)	07/25/2009 16:09
I caught myself reading this, and then it hit me. I, am taking the Lord too lightly. What an eye opener. Living by Grace alone is putting us to sleep.
	CB (Guest)	07/25/2009 20:59
Great article. I read Melody's book on her life with Keith and it's titled "No compromise". The Word of God is SHARPER than any two edged sword. It does not compromise. What we have is a sword that must be put to use. Every Christian has a responsibility to follow Jesus and be led by the Spirit just like Keith Green was. Anthing less than full surrender to the Lord is just not enough. We must be willing to lose all in order to inherit eternal life. Thanks for sharing this article.
	Cindy (Guest)	07/28/2009 22:14
"The one reason that we do not have revival today is that we are content to live without it." This says it all. We must fall on the Mercy Seat confess our sins, then face our dying world and bring it hope. We need the power of the Holy Spirit and we can only get it on our knees. We will see revival when we seek it and share it.
	Ah this is brilliant! (Guest)	08/12/2009 11:46
Ah this is brilliant!
	rick .... theknifeguy2@shaw.ca (Guest)	04/19/2010 18:25
You have excellent tracts ! Just wish that the King James Bible was quoted for extra power .
	MERCYCHURCHPAKISTAN@GMAIL.COM (Guest)	06/10/2010 06:46
GREETINGS FROM PAKSITAN IN THE WONDERFUL NAME OF OUR LROD JESUS CHRIST

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