"Zealots"

During the time of Christ, the name "Zealots" was not a good name to be associated with, for they were a party among the Jews which were half religious and half political; which undertook to punish without trial those guilty of violating Jewish practices. Even today, some would refer to those that might seem overly religious as "Zealots". However, the word 'zealous' that Paul was using in his letter to Titus was just a slightly different version of the word 'zeloo' which means to be zealous, filled with zeal, or zealously affected; because it was the word 'zelotes' which means a zealot, one zealous for or eagerly desirous of something. This word Paul uses again in reference of the desire of someone to speak in tongues, which we can find in 1 Corinthians 14:12, "Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel in the edifying of the church." Just as those which are eagerly desirous for the gift of speaking in tongues, which may or may not verify the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon a person's life, are zealous for this gift because there is conformation of His presence; so too, those that are zealous of good works, are eagerly desirous of them so that there is conformation that we are of Christ's peculiar people. It is not just that we are doing good works, but that those good works that we do, are done because the grace that has been given unto us teaches us to desire to do them. This again goes back to the parable of the 'talents' and how it is the value of what we have been given which makes us not only a steward of what we have been given, but wanting to please the Giver of such an amazing gift. In this manner of our life in Christ, it is not that works provide the proof of our relationship, but rather the desire to perform them unto the Lord that is the proof of our love for Him... "Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." (Titus 2:14)