The Fire (Part 2)

The Fire (Part 2)

We have seen the damage that natural fire can cause, most recently in California. Yet, when we speak of the "fire of God" we are not talking about natural fire. Jesus said in Luke 24:49: 

"I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?"
 

So what is the fire of God?  

When I speak of the "fire of God,” I am speaking of the fire of Pentecost which in the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit was actually visually demonstrated in Acts 2:3, 4: 

"And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them; And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."

The fire of God is the fire of the Pentecostal experience.  It is a fire that will loose your tongue to speak.  It is a fire that will empower you to fulfill the Great Commission:

Acts 1:8 "But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

Jesus said in Matthew 3:11:

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance; but He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I  am not worthy to bear, He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."

 

Here are some facts about this Pentecostal fire:

(1) God starts the fire.

God says repeatedly in the Word, "I will kindle a fire" in Jeremiah 21:14; 22:7; 49:27; 50:32; Amos 1:14; 2:2, 5.  The fire of God is not emotionalism.  It is not kindled by fast music or loud preaching.  It is kindled and set ablaze by God.  The fire of Pentecost is kindled by God Himself:

Acts 2:16-18 "But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass, in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit..."

(2) It doesn't need fuel.

Read the story of Moses and the burning bush in Exodus 3.  This was a natural example of a great spiritual truth. The fire of God ignored the fuel potential of the bush and continued to burn.  The miracle is not in the burning bush as much as it is in the fuel-less fire.

Moses knew from his  experience in killing the Egyptian that he could never trust his own emotions or power for the spiritual work to which God had called him.  In the burning bush God illustrated that His fire burns without natural fuel.  You may have tried and failed in the work of God, but the fire of God ignores the "fuel" of your natural talents and abilities.
 

(3) It is continual.

God gives the fire, but you have a responsibility for keeping it burning:

Leviticus 6:13 "The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out."

God wants you to fan the embers of your soul.  He wants you to be set ablaze for the Kingdom of God.

(4) The seven spirits of God are related to fire:

Revelation 4:5 "And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices; and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God."

The seven spirits of God are:
a. Truth-John 16:13  

b. Grace-Hebrews 10:29  

c. Life-Romans 8:2  

d. Adoption-Romans 8:15  

e. Holiness-Romans 1:4  

f. Wisdom and revelation-Ephesians 1:17  

g. Glory-1 Peter 4:14

When your life is touched by the fire of God, His spirit of adoption works in you.  His truth, grace, life, holiness, wisdom, and glory burn in your life.