When is a man truly zealous in Christianity?
If zeal is true, it will be a zeal according to knowledge. It must not be a blind, ignorant zeal. It must be a calm, reasonable, intelligent principle, which can show the warrant of Scripture for every step it takes. The unconverted Jews had zeal. Paul says, “I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge” (Romans 10:2). Saul had zeal when he was a persecuting Pharisee. He says himself, in one of his addresses to the Jews, “I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today” (Acts 22:3). Were they not sincere? Let us do them justice. They were zealous, though it was for a false religion.
The members of the Roman Catholic Inquisition in Spain had zeal when they tortured men, and put them to horrible deaths because they would not forsake the Gospel. Yes! they marched men and women to the stake in solemn procession and called it “An Act of Faith,” and believed they were doing a service for God. The Saracens, the Crusaders, the Jesuits, the Anabaptists of Munster, did they not all have zeal? Yes! Yes! I do not deny it. All these groups had zeal beyond question. They were all zealous. They were all very fervent. But their zeal was not the zeal that God approves-it was not a zeal based on knowledge.
If zeal is true, it will be a zeal generated from true motives.
Such is the subtlety of the heart that men will often do right things from wrong motives. Amaziah and Joash, kings of Judah, are striking proofs of this. In the same way a man may have zeal about things that are good and right but from second-rate motives, and not from a desire to please God. And such zeal is worth nothing. It is impure silver. It is utterly inadequate when placed in the balance of God. Man looks only at the action: God looks at the motive. Man only thinks of the quantity of work done: God considers the doer’s heart.
There is such a thing as zeal from party spirit. It is quite possible for a man to be tireless in promoting the interest of his own Church or denomination, and yet to have no grace in his own heart; to be ready to die for the distinctive opinions of his brand of Christianity, and yet have no real love to Christ. Such was the zeal of the Pharisees. They “travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, they make him twice as much a son of hell as they are” (Matthew 23:15). This zeal is not true.i
There is such a thing as zeal from mere selfishness. There are times when it is in men’s interest to be zealous in their Christianity. Power and influence are sometimes given to godly men. The good things of the world are sometimes attained by wearing a cloak of religion. And whenever this is the case there is no lack of false zeal. Such was the zeal of Joab, when he served David.
There is such a thing as zeal from the love of praise. Such was the zeal of Jehu, when he was putting down the worship of Baal. Remember how he met Jonadab the son of Rechab, and said, “Come with me and see my zeal for the LORD” (2 Kings 10:16). Such is the zeal that John Bunyan refers to in “Pilgrims Progress,” when he speaks of some who went “for praise” to mount Zion. Some people feed on the praise of their fellow-creatures. They would rather have it from Christians than have none at all.
It is a sad and humbling proof of man’s corruption that there is no degree of self-denial and self-sacrifice to which men may not go from false motives. It does not follow that a man’s religion is true because he “gives his body to be burned,” or because he “gives his goods to feed the poor.” The Apostle Paul tells us that a man may do this and yet not have true love. (1 Corinthians 13:1, etc.)
It does not follow because men go into a wilderness and become hermits, that therefore they know what true self-denial is.
It does not follow because people enclose themselves in monasteries and nunneries, or become “sisters of charity” and “sisters of mercy,” that therefore they know what true crucifixion of the flesh and self-sacrifice is in the sight of God.
All these things people may do on wrong principle. They may do them from wrong motives-to satisfy a secret pride and love of notoriety-but not from the true motive of zeal for the glory of God. All such zeal, let us understand, is false. It is of the earth, and not of heaven.
—Christian Zeal, by J. C. Ryle (1816-1900)
“It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good.” (Galatians 4:18)
Read the rest of this Christ exalting work on the Biblical nature of Christian Zeal here, it’s proper place in the Christian life and how downplayed and omitted it is in Moralistic-Therapeutic Religion today. This work has done a great kindling in my heart. It is my sincere hope and prayer that, by His grace, I would be that man that dear J.C. Ryle describes here. O, that we may all be single-minded in our occupation of living for Christ, and Christ alone!
Footnotes
- I am convinced that this false zeal is one that is prevalent in our society today. They give themselves for their own “brand of Christianity” and their own “brand of Christ” yet in the same time repudiate the true Christ of Scripture and true Christian Religion! Is this not what we see in today’s modern churches? In men’s so called desire to “honor and glorify God”, they change and mold him so people would find him interesting and acceptable. Surely if there is not a person offended by the God we preach and the gospel we preach, we then must be gravely mistaken with what we proclaim! [↩]
