In The Batman, the Riddler harbors a manifesto he believes is rational. His goal is to reveal corruption within Gotham’s police and wealthy elite, which contributed to orphans dying due to a lack of funding. While his ideals are coherent and his sense of justice straightforward, his violent and genocidal actions categorize him as a villain who must be stopped.

The name of God excites people. That excitement makes people act out. The body of faith needs that excitement and energy to thrive, but there is a big “but.”

When excitement turns static, picking up bits of dander and dust from the world, it damages the original message. When excitement seeks to make others feel fear and anger to get its point across, it becomes more manipulative than helpful. As Paul explained, Israel was zealous for the law, but their understanding failed to recognize Jesus as the savior. They push their followers to work hard on obedience, fearing that Jesus isn’t enough.

More modern examples of zeal without the proper understanding:
1. William Miller was so zealous to know Jesus’ return that they told everyone the rapture would happen in 1884.
2. Harold Camping guessed that the rapture would happen on May 21st, 2011.
3. A Chinese church movement in the 1920s called Local Churches believed that God only wanted one church in each city.
4. The Flirty Fishes movement in the 70s encouraged their congregation to use their sexuality to win over new converts.

Check your zeal. You can be jumping up and down for your faith (as everyone should), but when you start to forget the fruit of the Spirit and remember only myths or traditions, zeal becomes your worst obstacle. Zeal can become confused and stubborn.

Our knowledge of Christ needs to be refreshed and renewed as we dive into scripture. If we let it challenge our beliefs and work on our attitude, our zeal can become a powerful sign of Jesus’ love.

Figure it Out:

Desire without knowledge is not good— how much more will hasty feet miss the way? Proverbs 19:2

Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. Romans 10:1

Perfect love casts out all fear. 1 John 4:18

  • Circle any key words or phrases you find significant. What makes them meaningful to you?
  • What are some messages that we “accidentally” add to our zeal for God?
  • What are the core beliefs every Christian should have when following Jesus?