Zeal for holiness

John 2:15-17 And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables; and to those who were selling the doves He said, “Take these things away; stop making My Father's house a place of business.” His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house will consume me.” If you missed yesterday’s podcast on the previous verse, I suggest you listen to it first. It sets the stage for what we read in these verses. We see Jesus’ zeal for His Father’s glory and His determination to love His elect from all peoples expressed. As I shared from Leviticus yesterday, Jesus fulfilled the Law and cleansed His Father’s house of a leprous mark, preparing the way for His Father’s condemnation and removal of the old covenant. A better covenant with a new house of prayer for the blessing of the nations was coming. The focus of these verses is to testify to Jesus’ zeal for His house. My encouragement today is that Jesus hasn’t changed, and He lives in us. That same zeal is present in our hearts if we abide in Him. His life becomes our life. His purpose becomes our purpose. His attitudes become our attitudes. His zeal becomes our zeal. His love becomes our love. The new house God constructed to replace the old, infected, and condemned house is His church. It’s all of us who believe in Christ for access and fellowship with God. One expression of the love of Christ is zeal for God’s house, which means zeal to love one another in holiness. Jesus has cleansed us forever. He has set us apart to Himself. We have been perfected in holiness for all time (Heb. 10:14). I take this to mean that if I see a sin or fleshliness in myself or my brother, I remove it from my sight, put it out, by faith in the blood of the Lamb who was sacrificed for us. The old house of flesh has been condemned and destroyed by His death, and a new house has been built through His resurrection and life. This zeal to love one another should consume us as Jesus’ zeal to cleanse His Father’s house consumed Him. They are the same because they are both in Jesus, who lives in us. May we be filled with His zeal and love for one another. May we remove those marks of flesh and sin which were condemned at the cross. Let us drive out all greed, hypocrisy, and carnal sacrifices so that His presence and love may fill His house today in zeal for God’s glory. I invite you to become a partner in our ministry. Would you pray about becoming a regular supporter of Elijah Ministries and the Live to Love with Jesus ministry? I hope you will receive the joy and benefit of “giving it forward,” so others may receive encouragement to turn their hearts to God and to live to love with Jesus. You may give online or send a check to the address listed at www.spiritofelijah.com/donate.