HOW TO SUSTAIN YOUR ZEAL FOR THE LORD
Hebrews 12:3 AMP "Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds."
All it would have taken God to remedy the confusion caused by sin and evil on earth was to annihilate Satan and humanity and start the process of creation afresh but then he would have no justifiable reason to speak of the virtue of tolerance, patience and self-control. These are virtues of the spirit given that the earth was not created perfect but with room for improvements. When God created man and the earth, the scriptures says He looked and saw that it was good, the scriptures did not say perfect. Perfection is that state of conclusion as in death , it leaves no room for improvement.
It is against the backdrop of the imperfections in man that the Lord Jesus had to go through what He went through to save us.He had to identify with our imperfections . The scriptures says in Hebrews 5:8 "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;" The word 'learned' is the Greek word 'manthano' meaning to 'learn in any way,understand'. In other words, to be spiritually informed one has to overcome stereotypes and be open to relevant information from other sources other than what one is familiar with. Truth can't be established until analyzed from all perspectives. Therefore ,in other to be grounded in scriptures and be stable in the things of the lord, one shouldn't be afraid to ask questions with regards to doctrinal beliefs.
In other to sustain one's zeal in the lord ,the word of God (truth) should be our most treasured asset. What a man treasures mostly dominates his mind and determines his behavior and one cannot prefer the world’s system above the lord and expect to be zealous for Him, the reverse should be the case (Matthew 6:21,24). Our affection should be for heavenly virtues such as righteousness, peace and joy in the presence of God , this is what makes the lord worth serving. Man's achievement is aimed at the attainment of peace which is illusive in the world but freely given by the lord to those whose heart are set on Him. Isaiah 26:3 says "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee"
Serving God isn't a fruitless venture, it comes with rewards here and in the afterlife. Therefore, we shouldn't lose our confidence of the great reward that comes from serving Christ ( Hebrews 10:35) there is a crown of life to be given to those who have endured temptations for Christ sake (James 1:12) .It is our sincere love and faith in Him that keeps us from falling into temptation. Jude1:24 says "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy," God is able to keep us from falling.
His word in our hearts has the capacity to destroy evil appetites, therefore, we should daily memorize and meditate on God's word :by so doing ,the power of righteousness in the word of God soon overwhelms our thinking and behavior leading us away from sin ( Psalm119:9,11)for example, a couple struggling with insecurities in their marriage could both meditate on Galatians 5:21 and 1Cor.13:4-8 , these scriptures if well thought on for at least forty days have the capacity to break down whatever wall the enemy has built in that marriage.The enemy goes after our minds and our thoughts determine our actions: for as a man thinks so is he,therefore we should consciously avoid vain thoughts (Psalm119:113,2cor10:5) and imaginations which exalt themselves against God’s word, For example, whenever satan,demons witches are made to seem so powerful through the testimonies of ignorant christians, we should quickly declare 'greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world and God has given me power to trample upon the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt me nor my family ' and when the media speaks of tough times ahead, we should declare" the lord is my shepherd, I have no need and He shall supply my need according to His riches in glory and i am not moved by what I see " and when tempted to sin declare "I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus and my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. " this process is what is known as spiritual warfare. It involves using the scriptures as a shield against Satan's attacks on our minds. Refusal to speak the word of God when under such attacks out of laziness or ignorance is what leads to the loss of zeal for the lord and indulgence in sin.
We must hold on to a strong conviction about Jesus' trustworthiness and not oscillate between religious doctrines, truth is singular not pluralistic therefore there can't be other options to salvation (1Kings 18:21,John6:67-68). Make up your mind to serve Jesus regardless of the circumstances.None of the world's religious leaders ever demonstrated the magnitude of love for us shown by Jesus and none came to take away sins because they were all sinners but Jesus was without sin. Building a strong conviction requires separating oneself from persons who may want to entice us into a life of error ( Psalm 1:1-2 Proverbs 13:20) especially those who profess christ but live contrary to the dictate of scriptures (2Thess 3:6) this will require a strong resolve to endure hardship especially if these persons were a source of assistance (Hebrews 11:24-25,2Tim2:3) whenever you remember how God saw you through a hard time, such a tough but necessary decision becomes easy to make ( Galatians.3:4,Heb.10:32) considering the fact that no present pleasure by sinners can be compared to eternal punishment and a life of misery that lies ahead in their future (2pet 2:20) .
Choose to live a godly and contented life and you will stand in the midst of temptation (phil4:11). As long as you aren't in competition with any worldly person regardless of their temporal achievements, you'll be at peace with God for friendliness with the world's system is enmity with God. As you read this now receive grace for increase in your zeal for the house of the lord in Jesus name.
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