Zealous

Hello again!

Mike and I read through the Bible every year and have done so for....WOW about 15 years or so now.  I love reading Scripture and I love how sometimes the Lord will take things that we've read time after time and just jump them out at us.

We were recently, actually this week, reading through Numbers 25.  This is the story of Israel joining themselves to Baal-peor and Jehovah's anger was kindled against all Israel.  So He told Moses to kill all of the  heads of the people.  And as Moses is saying, "Slay every man who has joined himself to Baal-peor" one of the men of Israel brings a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the children of Israel as they are weeping before the Tabernacle.  I imagine Moses standing there with this conversation bubble still over his head saying...slay everyone who has done this...and here's this brilliant man who just brazenly brings this woman into the camp.  (In case you've not figured it out yet, I'm saying brilliant in a very sarcastic way.)

When Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw what this guy had done, he takes a javelin, goes into the guy's tent and runs them both through with it.  And so the plague, which had already claimed 24,000, was stayed.  

 ¹⁰ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

¹¹ “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.

¹² Therefore say: ‘Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace.

¹³ And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel.’” Numbers 25:10-13 (21st Century King James Version)

Let's look at the word ZEALOUS for a moment...the dictionary defines the word as:

adjective

ardently active, devoted, or diligent; full of, characterized by, or due to zeal. Synonyms: enthusiastic,eager, fervid, fervent, intense, passionate, warm. Antonyms: apathetic; lackadaisical.

Phinehas was so devoted, eager, enthusiastic, ZEALOUS for the Lord's sake that he thought nothing of taking that javelin and putting the business end of it to work.  As a result, he is granted a covenant of peace from God.  This struck me this week.  

What kind of zealousness do we have for the Lord? Please understand that I'm not saying take the javelin and get rid of people that you think are not doing as the Lord intended.  The covenant of Grace in which we live is different than the covenant in which Phinehas lived.  However, the Lord is the same.  Did you catch that??  The Lord is the SAME!  The Lord that inspired such zealousness in Phinehas is the same Lord that you serve (if indeed you do).

Are you more zealous for the work than for the Lord?  Are you more zealous for your own agenda, social issues, political issues, or what have you than you are for the sovereign God of the universe? Israel got into trouble in the reference passage because they sought Baal-peor rather than Jehovah.  Are we truly seeking what the Lord has for us or are we only seeking what we want Him to have for us?

I love food for thought.  This one is a biggie.  My prayer for myself, Mike and, indeed, for all of you is that we would always put the Lord's will above our own; that we would be zealous for Him above all things.  

Until the next time...CHEERS!!

Blessings in Christ,

Mike and Tina Hook
Missionaries to the children of Scotland