Managing the Gift of Zeal (Taiming Extremism) | Romans 12:11
By Apostle Joshua Selman
When the word of God is served, many things should be expected:
Transference of light, grace, a re-calibration of your understanding, the building of your faith… these and many more.
Micah 4:2
There are 3 levels of ignorance that you must with on your journey to becoming a victorious believers
- The ignorance of not knowing that you do not know Matthew 4:16
- Those who know that they ignorant, but do not know how and where to find useful knowledge Ecclesiastes 10:15
- The ignorance of limited/incomplete knowledge 1 Corinthians 8:2, 2 Timothy 3:7
The ministry of the word addresses these 3 levels of ignorance
The fullness of Christ revealed in a man captures 3 areas
The nature, power, and the wisdom of Christ
Romans 12:11, 1 Kings 19:9 - 18
The word zeal means dedication, enthusiasm, energy, passion, fervency that is invested in the pursuit of a cause or an objective Titus 2:13 - 14
Genuine zeal is founded upon convictions and convictions are founded upon ideology.
Zeal is a double edged sword, on the one hand, it is the energy that drives creativity, it is the energy that drives creativity, it is the energy that drives advancement or achievement - but on the other hand can also produce extremism and anarchy.
Numbers 13:25 - 30, Joshua 14:7 - 12, 2 Kings 7:1 - 8, Nehemiah 2:5 - 16, John 2:13 - 14
The dangers of mis-managed zeal
Exodus 2:10 - 15, Exodus 32:1 - 14, Luke 9:51 - 54, Acts 8:1 - 3, Acts 9:1 - 6
2 Major factors that affect the outcome of zeal
- The mentality and believe system that empowers the zeal 1 Kings 19:10,14-15,18
If it must violate the law of the spirit particularly the law of love, it is not of God
- the approach. The approach/the way you exercise your zeal is as important as the motive John 4:20
The kind of people God is raising are people who are flexible, malleable, open hearted
One of the ways to manage your zeal is to understand the ideology/belief system that power your zeal.
Zeal can be a blessing or a curse depending on how it is used. Once the zeal for God especially with respect to dealing with believers violates the law of love, it becomes an instrument for destruction.
Luke 19:10
Love Jesus passionately but not fanatically