THE HOLY SPIRIT AS FIRE

The Holy Spirit has been symbolized as fire, river or water, dove, wind, seal and oil, depending on His activities at a particular time. In Jesus' baptism, we see the Holy Spirit as Dove, representing His gentleness and peaceful nature. In the Old Testament, we see the Holy Spirit as oil being poured on chosen men. In Leviticus 10:2, we see the Holy Spirit as consuming fire. But in Acts 2, we see the Holy Spirit as a mighty rushing wind and a fire that does not consume but brings power. They show the various dimensions of the activities of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. This tells you that although the Holy Spirit is gentle and peaceful, He can also behave like a mighty rushing wind that carries everything along its path. Although He is a peaceful fire in you, He is also a consuming fire of judgement. When Christ was leaving the earth, He told His disciples that He would give them another Helper, who is the Holy Spirit. He is the one who helps us to live the Christian life. But strangely enough, the emphasis on the Holy Spirit is becoming lesser and lesser in the body of Christ. And Christians know so little about the ac-tivities of the Holy Spirit. No wonder we keep on struggling and struggling to live the Christian life. Jesus saw the power of the Holy Spirit as so critical to the min-istry of the disciples that He warned them not to leave Jerusalem until they have re-ceived Power from on High. And in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit appeared on their heads like divided tongues of fire. And we want to look at the Holy Spirit as fire in the life of a believer.

When the disciples received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, they became men of power, men of influence, men of signs and wonders, courageous men who were ready to storm the ends of the earth with the good news. Pentecost lit a flame in their hearts which forever kept burning. Anybody who calls Himself a Christian cannot accomplish much without keeping the Spirit of Pentecost, which is the fire. The Apostles caught that flame in their hearts and in their Ministry and they con-quered the world. Persecution could not quench their fire, it only served to fan the flames.

The fiery ministry of the Holy Spirit1. Fire Reveals Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.” 1 Corinthians 3:13.

2. Fire Consumes

Let us note Ezekiel's striking parable of the boiling pot, symbolic of Jerusalem: “Then set it empty upon the coals thereof, that the brass of it way be hot, and may burn, and that the filthiness of it may be molten in it, that the scum of it may be consumed.” Ezekiel 24:11.

3. “He is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap [soap for the outside, fire for within] and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver. And He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them an gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” Malachi 3:2,3.

4. Fire Purifies Water cleanses, but not as fire. Fire is pre-eminently the cleansing element. It puri-fies internally and intrinsically, filling every fiber and particle of matter with its own, element. The filth on the outside of the gold, water can remove. But that which is on the in-side must be cleansed by fire. A nearsighted man was industriously engaged in washing a window. He rubbed and rubbed, and washed at the windowpane, but he could not get it clean. A friend, passing by, saw the situation, and said to him, “It is dirty on the inside!” That is the trouble with us. We are unclean on the inside, in the heart.

It is the fire of the Holy Spirit that separates the precious from the vile. We cannot get sin out of the heart with the hammer and chisel of our own endeavor. The fire of God alone will do it. When that holy fire burns, it will consume the dross of our pride and vanity; the rags of our self-righteousness will perish, the leaves of empty profes-sion will be consumed; the stubble of our questioning doubts will pass; the sham of unprofitable labor will go. The thorns of our prickly tempers will be taken away; the roots of bitterness, the straw of pretentious unreality, and the refuse of unprof-itable talk will be devoured. All these unlovely things will be consumed by the Spirit of God, until the great Refiner can see His own image reflected in us, as the earthly refiner sees his own face in the glowing metal. We must go through the fire, either now or when He comes as a “consuming fire.” “I will . . . refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on My name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is My people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.”

Zechariah 13:9. Fire purifies by consuming. Hear it in these words: “Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean Ups: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: and he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips. And your iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.” Isaiah 6: 5-7. The sin of which Isaiah was conscious was lip sin. And, oh, my sin, too, and the sin of my people, is too often lip sin! You will note that in the reference to the translated company of Revelation 14:5, who shall follow the Lamb as His body-guard through eternity, emphasis is placed upon the mouth: “In their mouth was found no guile.” May God cleanse and purify us from lip sin. For there is no mem-ber that sins so readily, and needs to be purified so completely, as the tongue. There is the thoughtless tongue of hasty speech. There is the proud tongue of self-inflation. There is the gossipy tongue of unholy exaggeration, and the unclean tongue of filthy allusion; the unkind tongue of unjust reflection, and the malicious tongue of prejudice and passion. All around us we can see the effect of lip sin. We need to have our lips cauterized, as were Isaiah's. “You shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean,” we are told in Num-bers 31:23.

5. Fire gives energy. Fire empowers.

Romans 12:11 urges, "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor." The RSV states, "Be aglow with the Spirit." and the Message Bible says Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. The fiery Ministry of the Holy Spirit re-vives your spirit, fills you with abundance of life, love and zeal, and sets you aglow so that you manifest the vibrant, radiant life of God. His fiery ministry will revive your devotion, keep your prayer life alive, accelerate your obedience, and fan your zeal. The need for this spiritual glow and zeal is emphasized by the condi-tion of the church in Laodicea which had grown lukewarm (Rev. 3:15-16).General Booth urged his people, "The tendency of fire is to go out; watch the fire on the al-tar of your heart." Our constant danger is to cool off spiritually, to lose our fervor, and to slow down in zeal. Personal revival comes through renewed commitment and reaffirmed consecration. Everyone needs such personal revival again and again.We have the great gift of God, the Holy Spirit, but we need to hunger more for the manifestation of His presence, and open our hearts constantly in faith's expectancy

for His working, His empowerings and constant enablings in our life. God gives us capacity and the Spirit wants to imbue our whole being with His reality, making us His channels of expression that His holy fire may be constantly visible in us. We must choose whether we will neglect the Spirit, quench the Spirit, or fan into flame the Spirit's presence.

We are spiritually most blessed, most victorious, most usable when we are ablaze. We are most Godlike when we glow with holy flame--the flame of the indwelling Spirit. The fire of God gives an unforgettable attraction to the personality of God's messenger and to the content of his message. It imparts a sacred authority that can-not be counterfeited by human efforts. Whatever the cost, we must keep the flame of the Spirit burning on the altar of our hearts. Our cooperation with the Spirit is essential to consistency of flowing ardor, spiritual radiance, and flaming zeal. Our constant danger is to cool off spiritually, to lose our fervor, and to slow down in zeal. Everyone therefore needs personal revival again and again. Personal revival comes through renewed commitment and reaffirmed consecration. We have the great gift of God, the Holy Spirit, but we need to hunger more for the manifestation of His presence, and open our hearts constantly in faith's expectancy for His work-ing, His empowerings and constant enablings in our life. God gives us capacity and the Spirit wants to imbue our whole being with His reality, making us His channels of expression that His holy fire may be constantly visible in us. We must choose whether we will neglect the Spirit, quench the Spirit, or fan into flame the Spirit's presence.

The Holy Spirit as Wind

Like the wind, which is invisible, yet the effects of which are plainly seen and felt, is the Spirit of God in its work upon the human heart (John3:5-8)The operation of the Spirit caused Job to say, “I am vile” (Job 40:4), and David to cry, “I am a worm.” Psalm 22:6. It led Isaiah to protest, “I am a man of unclean lips” (13:5), and Paul to say, “I am carnal” (Romans 7:14), and Peter to, confess, “I am a sinful man.” Luke 5:8. But it blights and withers only that it may bless and ennoble. It humbles that it may exalt, and brings low that it may ultimately lift high.

We do so many things that later brings judgement upon us. The Bible says that the Lord is a consuming fire. But we are crying that even in judgement, Lord have mercy.

We praying for the fire of His presence.

The River of God.a. Ezekiel 47.b. Revelation 22.1. Notice that the river life brought forth the tree of life which yielded fruit.2. Are you barren? (un-fruitful)a. A barren church is a dry church.b. A barren church is a boring church.

d. A barren church is in need of an interruption. c. Revelationd. The river flows for you and this church.e. The river flows to you and this church.f. The river can flow from you and his church.

III. The Fire of God.a. Ezekiel 38.b. The Spirit, like fire, melts the heart, burns up the dross, and kindles pious and devout affections in the soul; in which, as in the fire on the altar, the spiritual sacrifices are offered up.c. Fire is the presence of God.d. Fire gets you moving.e. Fire gets you motivated.f. Fire gives you manifestations.1. Read 1 Corinthians 12:7-11.