Fire is Free

Fire is Free

I hear alot of talk these days about finances and obtaining wealth in order to impact society. There are many preachers who put a whole ministry focus on getting people to see that God wants them materially rich. Sure spiritually and physically rich also, but I see the focus on material wealth.

One of the reasons why it is ok to chase, yes pursue after and focus on the bigger house or bently or rolls royce, is to better win the lost and impact society for the kingdom. That is what many of these preachers will tell you is the reason why it is God’s will to have more and more and more. 

But fire is free. You cannot buy it, sell it or make a genuine imitation. Fire is fire and fire does not cost a thing, materially speaking. Look at the lives of the apostles of the early Church. 

Acts 2:2-4 “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Now there is a cost when it comes to fire, but it is not a cost that has anything to do with money. It is the cost of death to self, the cost of being consumed by the fire of God that when you come out, you are burned beyond recognition. You will not look the same anymore, people will wonder what happened to you, when you truly encounter the fire of pentecost!

This Holy Ghost fire in the heart of a man is more powerful than an army, more dangerous to the devil than 1000 years of seminary, more life-giving than other thing on Earth. And this Holy Ghost fire, when it begins to burn within men needs no advertisement! I always enjoy hearing about how during the Azuza Street revival observers would call the fire department because they saw flames on top of the building where God’s presence had come in such a marvelous way. I love reading about John Wesley and the mighty impact his preaching had in England. He said “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” People being swept into the kingdom of God happen through the hand of God, not the intelligence, whit, business savy, or material wealth of man. 

You see a man filled with the fire of the Holy Ghost knows that he has all he has need of to reach a dying world for Jesus Christ. Look at what a difference the fire of the Holy Ghost made to Peter. Peter, the one who was always quick to have outbursts, who actually was called the devil by Jesus, Peter who cursed and rejected Christ 3 times; this same Peter, when set on fire by God, was a totally different man. Peter was the first new testament street preacher and boldly preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ so that 3,000 Jews that day were wonderfully saved! When it came down to it, did Peter need anything more? If we have the fire of the Holy Ghost burning within our hearts, is there really anything greater that could add something to our lives anyway?

Do we need money? Of course, we have to eat and live and get from place to place. But when money becomes our focus for evangelism and ministry, and not holy spirit preaching of the Gospel, we have gone way off the deep end. We must see that one man filled with the holy ghost and fire is 1000 times a greater threat to the devil than the man who is a material millionaire, but compromised! “When you’re born in fire, smoke will never do.” Leonard Ravenhill These early apostles had nothing in their mind about overtaking Roman government in order to reach the people for Christ. They had no thought of obtaining wealth in order to show the world how blessed they were! No they had a whole other passion of their heart. They knew they only hope for the world, was that they themselves be filled with the holy ghost and fire! 

As they sat in the upper room and God came down, surely did they remember the words of Jesus. Acts 1:8 “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” What should the focus of the great commission be? Obtaining wealth and worldly stature? Or should are focus be on being filled with the fire of God, and to go forth in power preaching the gospel to every creature? Focus is the key. When we begin to focus on the means, rather than the end, destruction and error are sure to follow. 

Let us see that though money is useful to advancing God’s kingdom. It is not necessary! Yes, that is right! I don’t need a rolls royce, a mansion and $100,000 in my bank account to go preach the Gospel and see sinners saved. All the miracles ever done in the book of Acts, all the times people were supernaturally delivered and set free from the powers of darkness, all of them did not cost a dime. Fire is free. Fire burning within the hearts of men is what is needed today. That is non-negotiable. Resources that come from the Lord, will follow the man who’s heart is set on fire to see the lost be found, not on those who seek to be rich in this life.  

Day 12 A.W. Pink

“We have no basis to believe that we can come casually and sprightly to the Lord Jesus and say, "I have come for some help, Lord Jesus. I understand that you are the Savior so I am going to believe and be saved and then I am going to turn away and think about the other matters of lordship and allegiance and obedience at some time in the future."

I warn you - you will not get help from Him in that way for the Lord will not save those whom He cannot command!

He will not divide His offices. You cannot believe on a half-Christ. We take Him for what He is - the anointed Savior and Lord who is King of kings and Lord of lords! He would not be who He is if He saved us and called us and chose us without the understanding that He can also guide and control our lives.

If we believe the New Testament we must surely believe that the new birth is a major miracle, as truly a miracle of God as was the first creation, for the new birth is actually the creating of another man in the heart where another man had been.

I believe this is the kind of genuine Christian conversion that we are talking about - the putting of a new man in the old man's place, so that we are born "anew."  AW Pink

I believe this is one of the biggest problems of the church in America.  So many believe in half a Christ.  He is good enough to save us all from hell, and we gladly take him for that.  But to say He must also be the Lord of ones life is something all together different it seems.  So we have many people in our churches here, with no real passion for Christ, no dying to ones self, no taking up of the cross of persecution or reproach for Christ’s sake, no real personal devotional lives, no inward heart obedience to Jesus Christ, and yet we called them saved.  

The church as a whole has done exactly what AW Pink said he saw in his day; dividing the offices of Christ.  Would it make any sense to say that I can have Jesus as my prince of peace, but at the same time I will not have Him as my joy and satisfaction?  Would make any sense if I tell you that I have my wife and I am married only to the parts of her that I like and choose?  So when she does something that I don't like, I just say, well I am not married to the part of her that has a temper.  Does that make any sense to you?  It makes none to me!  If we will have Jesus Christ, we will have either all of Him or none of Him!  He cannot be savior of ones soul if He is not Lord of ones heart.  He is both Lord and Savior.  “Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”  2 Peter 1:10-12

Dividing the offices of Christ as if they are all optional is a very dangerous thing.  This false idea does three very terrible things.  

1. It leaves sinners in their sin.  It says the adulterer; adultery is bad and you shouldn't do it, but regardless if you ever allow Jesus to be Lord over your life and change your actions, if you have Him as your savior, you will go to Heaven.  Actual obedience to scripture and to not commit adultery and Christ’s words becomes merely a nice thing to be encouraged.  It says to drunkard and alcoholic; being drunk is a bad thing and you shouldn't be drunk, but regardless if you ever allow Jesus to be Lord over your life and change your actions, if you have Him as your savior, you will go to Heaven.   Actual obedience to scripture and to Christ's words to not be a drunkard becomes merely a nice thing to be encouraged.  And so with any sin or vice a man is involved in, if we believe in a half Jesus that can save ones soul, but not change their heart, it excuses sinners to continue living in sin, thus they stay unconverted in the heart, but think in their head that Jesus is their savior from hell.

1. It causes complacency in the body of Christ.  For those who are truly converted and do have a desire to see others saved, this false idea creates a false security in the people around them.  If we believe that the offices of Christ can be split: that a person can have Jesus as Savior, but not Lord, than when we see someone in our church fellowship is consistently living a life of sin and rebellion, we will come to the conclusion that they have Christ as Savior, but are yet to make Him their Lord.  And so they do not make an attempt to intercede in prayer that God would change their heart and save them.  Though maybe they confront the person of negative consequences of their behavior, they do not share the Gospel with them, thinking they already have accepted the Gospel.  So they pat  them on the back and tell them to start acting like a Christian, instead of telling them they could be in danger of hell.  Instead of telling them they might not have had a genuine conversion experience with the risen one and pleading with them to come to Jesus to be saved.  

1. It turns the new birth into a mental ascent to Jesus and the Gospel, rather than a total transformation that brings them from death unto life.  If we believe that the offices of Christ can be split up and some can have parts of Christ, and some other parts; then it makes God’s word a lie.  If one can have Christ as Savior and not Lord, than we are only new creatures in our minds, and not in actuality!  But no, that is not the word of God!  When we are born again and put on trust in Jesus Christ we take Him as Lord, as King, as Ruler, as guide, as our all in all!  We are infused with Gods very nature and we do pass from death to life.  Being born again is Gods power in us driving out the sinful nature of Adam and putting within us His very nature and likeness.  It is a changing of allegiances.  From following self and sin, to following Christ and holiness!

Scripture of the Day:

"Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:11