Christ's Zeal for the Father's House

13 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. 15 When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. 16 And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” 17 Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.”

Title - Christ’s Zeal for the Father’s House

Definition

Zeal - Grk. ZELOS, excessive fervor to do or accomplsih something

Background

When He was on earth, Christ demonstrated zeal for the house of God.

in His cleansing of the temple - 2 times

first occasion - took place early in His ministry

second occasion - towards the end of His ministry, at the time of the triumphal entry

Matthew 21:12–13 NKJV

12 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ”

even before His ministry He already showed this zeal

Luke 2.49 - my Father’s house (NASB)

Christ’s zeal for the temple was a mark of the Messiah

the disciples knew about this messianic utterance from the Psalms

Psalm 69:9 NKJV

9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.

Christ’s had a unique characteristic in His life - He had a strong passion towards the house of God

the old temple had 2 significant typology -

it was a foreshadow of Christ Himself, His earthly body, the dwellingplace of the fulness of the Godhead

hence, John 2.18-21 - destroy this temple and I will raise it up in 3 days

it was a foreshadow of the Church, the temple of God in the Spirit, the spiritual habitation of God

1 Corinthians 3:16–17 NKJV

16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NKJV

19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

1 Peter 2:4–5 NKJV

4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

The Main Point

The Spirit of Christ in us should create that same zeal, that excessive fervor, towards the welfare of the church - both the congregation and the ministry!

Why?

because that house of God are you, yourselves!

because that house of God represents Christ on earth and before the eyes of the world!

Key Questions

How can we manifest that zeal of Christ for His temple?

Different manifestations of the zeal of Christ

The zeal of Christ for the house of God was demonstrated in a number of biuble characters

The zeal of Christ in King David

Psalm 69 shows David’s passion for the house of God since his childhood

Psalm 69:7–9 NKJV

7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face. 8 I have become a stranger to my brothers, And an alien to my mother’s children; 9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.

Psalm 27:4–5 NKJV

4 One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple. 5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

Psalm 84:1–4 NKJV

1 How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lord of hosts! 2 My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. 3 Even the sparrow has found a home, And the swallow a nest for herself, Where she may lay her young— Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts, My King and my God. 4 Blessed are those who dwell in Your house; They will still be praising You. Selah

Psalm 84:10 NKJV

10 For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

WHAT’S THE POINT?

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A PRIEST TO LEARN TO LOVE THE HOUSE OF GOD!

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A PASTOR/PREACHER, OR A DAMILY OF THE PREACHER, TO LEARN TO LOVE THE HOUSE OF GOD - THE CHURCH!

EVEN AN ORDINARY SHEPHERD SHOULD LOVE THE HOUSE OF GOD!

In his old age, King David desired to build a house of the LORD

2 Samuel 7:1–2 NKJV

1 Now it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies all around, 2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.”

even when God said that he will not build the house because he has shed much blood, his zeal did not wane! He prepared the materials for the construction

1 Chronicles 22:1–5 NKJV

1 Then David said, “This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.” 2 So David commanded to gather the aliens who were in the land of Israel; and he appointed masons to cut hewn stones to build the house of God. 3 And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails of the doors of the gates and for the joints, and bronze in abundance beyond measure, 4 and cedar trees in abundance; for the Sidonians and those from Tyre brought much cedar wood to David. 5 Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death.

WHAT’S THE POINT?

GENUINE ZEAL FOR THE HOUSE OF GOD WILL NOT WAVER, EVEN IF YOU DO NOT GET TO SEE ITS FUTURE PROSPERITY!

THE ZEAL OF CHRIST IN YOU WILL WORK TOWARDS THE FUTURE SUCCESS OF THE CHURCH!

The zeal of Christ in Haggai the prophet

Haggai was a contemporary of Ezra and Nehemiah.

Haggai saw the Jews’ neglect of the house of God despite their being able to return to Judah after the 70 years exile.

Haggai 1:1–8 NKJV

1 In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying, 2 “Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, saying: ‘This people says, “The time has not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.” ’ ” 3 Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet, saying, 4 “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?” 5 Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! 6 “You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.” 7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! 8 Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord.

WHAT’S THE POINT?

THE ZEAL OF CHRIST IN US WILL NOT SET ASIDE THE NEEDS OF THE HOUSE OF GOD!

IT IS ALWAYS THE RIGHT TIME TO ATTEND TO THE NEEDS OF THE CHURCH, REGARDLESS OF OUR SITUATIONS IN LIFE.

BECAUSE THE CHURCH WORK IS THE CENTER OF OUR CHRISTIAN LIFE.

The zeal of Christ in Nehemiah the king’s cupbearer

Nehemiah was heartbroken when he heard of the dismal condition of Jerusalem.

Note - Nehemiah’s concern was the city itself, not the temple. Jerusalem was also a type of the church.

Nehemiah 1:1–4 NKJV

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the citadel, 2 that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.” 4 So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

WHAT’S THE POINT?

THE ZEAL OF CHRIST IN YOU WILL NOT SIT COMFORTABLY WHEN YOU KNOW THAT THE WALLS OF THE CHURCH NEEDS REPAIR!

WALLS - PROTECTION

THE ZEAL OF CHRIST CAN BE IGNITED IN THE HEART OF ORDINARY PEOPLE

The zeal of Christ in Paul the apostle to the Gentiles

Paul was jealous for the church!

Jealous - the grk word was the same with zeal

2 Corinthians 11:1–4 NKJV

1 Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly—and indeed you do bear with me. 2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!

WHAT’S THE POINT?

THE ZEAL OF CHRIST IN US WILL NOT KEEP QUIET WHILE THE CHURCH IS BEING INVADED BY NEW AND STRANGE DOCTRINES!

THIS IS NOT A WORK RESERVED FOR THE MINISTER - IT IS EVERYONE’S RESPONSIBILITY TO “CONTEND FOR THE FAITH”!

behind the pulpit

in our homes

in our workplaces

Conclusion

Do you have the zeal of Christ in you today?

We need to rekindle our passion for the house of God this new year.

rekindle - because it is already in us, since we all believe we have Christ in us, and we are in Christ!

FIND IT IN YOUR HEART - LOOK FOR A REASON THAT WILL HELP IGNITE THE FIRE OF THAT ZEAL!

your healing

your restoration

your salvation

your family’s welfare

our time is running out!

We need to ignite the zeal of Christ in ALL of us!

the work calls for the participation of all of us

the work is both in the natural and spiritual realms of life

natural realm - church property, equipment and maintenance

spiritual realm - spiritual welfare of every child of God; salvation of our loved ones and friends; defense against another gospel and a different Jesus ; etc.

SONGS

Consume Me, Lord

This is Your House

May Your Presence Go with Us

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