Zeal - Forcefulness

^Mat5:6�Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
      for they will be filled.� - words of Jesus

^Mat11:12�From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.� - words of Jesus

^Luk16:16�The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.�

 ⁴⁵�Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. ⁴⁶When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.� - words of Jesus

^Mat19:28Jesus said to them, �I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. ³⁰But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.�

^Joh2:13When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. ¹⁴In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. ¹⁵So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. ¹⁶To those who sold doves he said, �Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!�

 ¹⁷His disciples remembered that it is written: �Zeal for your house will consume me.� (Psa 69:9)

^Mat21:12Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ¹³�It is written,� he said to them, � 'My house will be called a house of prayer,' (Isa 56:7) but you are making it a 'den of robbers.' (Jer 7:11)�

^Mar11:15On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, ¹⁶and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. ¹⁷And as he taught them, he said, �Is it not written:

   � 'My house will be called
      a house of prayer for all nations' (Isa 56:7)? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.' (Jer. 7:11)�

 ¹⁸The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.

 ¹⁹When evening came, they went out of the city.

 

^Luk19:45Then he entered the temple area and began driving out those who were selling. ⁴⁶�It is written,� he said to them, � 'My house will be a house of prayer' (Isa 56:7) but you have made it 'a den of robbers.' (Jer. 7:11)� - words of Jesus

 ⁴⁷Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him. ⁴⁸Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words.

 

^Luk6:21�Blessed are you who hunger now,
      for you will be satisfied.� - words of Jesus

^Luk13:22Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. ²³Someone asked him, �Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?�

   He said to them, ²⁴�Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. ²⁵Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, 'Sir, open the door for us.'

    �But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where you come from.' �

 ²⁶�Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.' �

 ²⁷�But he will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!' �

 ²⁸�There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. ²⁹People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. ³⁰Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.�

^Mat7:13�Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.�

^Luk18:28Peter said to him, �We have left all we had to follow you!�

 ²⁹�I tell you the truth,� Jesus said to them, �no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God ³⁰will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.�

^Luk19:1Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. ²A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. ³He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. ⁴So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

 ⁵When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, �Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.� ⁶So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

 ⁷All the people saw this and began to mutter, �He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' �

 ⁸But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, �Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.�

 ⁹Jesus said to him, �Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.�

^Joh12:23Jesus replied, �The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ²⁵The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.�

 ²⁷�Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. ²⁸Father, glorify your name!�

   Then a voice came from heaven, �I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.� ²⁹The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

 ³⁰Jesus said, �This voice was for your benefit, not mine. ³¹Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. ³²But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.� ³³He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

^Act4:18Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹But Peter and John replied, �Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. ²⁰For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.�

^Rom12:9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹²Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

^2Cor8:1And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. ²Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. ³For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, ⁴they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. ⁵And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will. ⁶So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. ⁷But just as you excel in everything�in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us�see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

 ⁸I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. ⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

 ¹⁰And here is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. ¹¹Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. ¹²For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

 ..... ²²In addition, we are sending with them our brother who has often proved to us in many ways that he is zealous, and now even more so because of his great confidence in you.

^Gal4:17Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them. ¹⁸It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always and not just when I am with you.

^Gal5:5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. ..... ⁶ ..... The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

^1Tim4:9This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance ¹⁰(and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.

 ¹¹Command and teach these things. ¹²Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. ¹³Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. ¹⁴Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.

 ¹⁵Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. ¹⁶Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

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Scripture quotations are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION�. NIV�. Copyright�1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.