Day 220 -FOUNDATION STONES IN A YEAR
Reading: 1 Kings 18; 2 Chronicles 7
Once you pay attention to this ‘God as fire’ theme, you’ll find it throughout the Bible story. No demon can stroll into God’s presence in Heaven, without being consumed by the fire emanating from the Throne and the Almighty God’s presence.
Fire, naturally is combustive and has many positive and negative effects. Fire is destructive; destroying valuables and properties, and at the end, God will use fire to renovate the Earth and judge His enemies. The positive effect of fire is that it helps in the production manufacturing chain, in cooking and in the generating of heat and energy. It is also a purifying substance.
One of the remarkable attributes of God in Scripture is that He is often portrayed at the God who answers prayers by fire. When God does answer by fire, the result is immediate. There is rapid response, speed, quick intervention, deliverance and results. The fire of the Lord is a Divine, spiritual fire that is not found anywhere else. It is a holy, pure fire from the Lord that cannot be extinguished by any natural substance – and that achieves instant and immediate purification, cleansing and deliverance.
The Lord’s fire is very intense both in the physical and spiritual realms. It is important to note that when the fire of the Lord fell, it consumed burnt sacrifices, the wood, the stones, the dust, and it then licked up the water that was in the trench. Nothing can withstand the Lord’s fire as it has the tremendous capacity to consume everything. On the other hand, it is not a blind force of destruction. When Moses observed the fire of the Lord in the burning bush, it did not consume the bush. It does not need other substances in order to exist – but it can destroy anything it wants to.
And this is where the baptism of fire comes in. There are many ways that the Lord has instituted for the purification, cleansing, sanctification and consecration of His people – His Word, His Church – and then there is the instant solution – the baptism of fire.
No problem, no sickness, no disease, demonic attachment in your life can stand the Lord’s fire.
Prayer
Lord I find your fire both terrifying and fascinating. I desperately want to experience You in this way.