"The God That Answers By Fire"

"The God That Answers By Fire"

"Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men.  Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves and cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under; and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under; And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God.  And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken." 

(I Kings 22-24) 

Elijah had himself a time that day!  The prophets of Baal called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, "O Baal, hear us."  But there was no voice, nor any that answered.  They leaped upon the altar that was made, crying out, cutting themselves until the blood gushed out, screaming for their god, Baal, to answer.  Then, Elijah mocked them, telling them to cry louder, because maybe their god was talking, pursuing, on a journey, or maybe he was asleep and need to be awakened. 

And when midday was past, and the prophets of Baal had no voice, nor answer from their god, the Prophet Elijah called the people unto him, and he took twelve stones, according to the number of the twelve tribes of Israel, and built an altar in the name of the Lord, and made a trench about the altar, laid wood upon it, cut the bullock in pieces and laid it upon the wood.  He called for four barrels of water and poured it upon the wood, the bullock, the altar, and the trench.  He ordered that the water be poured on a second time, and a third, until the water overflowed the altar and the trench.  Then, at the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah, the prophet, came near and said:

"Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it

be known this day that thou art God in Israel,

and that I am thy servant, and that I have done

all these things at thy word.  Hear me, O Lord,

hear me, that people may know that thou art the

Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart

back again.

                            Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the
                      burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and
                 the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

                     And when all the people saw it, they fell on their 
                   faces; and they said, The Lord, he is God; the Lord,
                                           the Lord, he is the God.

The Lord God of the universe IS a consuming "fire!"  Wood, water, a sacrifice, and not even stones, have a chance of surviving His "heat."  Hey, false gods, mockers, and deniers; there's a song that says, "Your arms are too short to box with God!"  He IS the Creator, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Holy One of Israel, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, and He still answers by fire.

John the Baptist said, "He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire." (Luke 3:16)  Almighty God likes Holy Fire.  The Holy Ghost was likened unto fire on the Day of Pentecost; "And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them." (Acts 2:3) There was a cleansing power of fire symbolized in Isaiah 6:6-7, "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 thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin is purged."  Hebrews 1:7. "And the angels He saith, Who maketh His angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire."  And  ... my personal favorite:

                             "..But His Word was in mine heart as a 

                                 burning fire shut up in my bones.."

                                                       (Jeremiah 20:9)

                                                 

"Fire" burns out impurities, gives light, and tames the most wicked member of our bodies: the tongue.  This is why people must be filled with the Holy Ghost and speak in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance, in order to be saved.  God always used fire to show that He accepted the sacrifice in the old testament.  The Holy Ghost and fire, today, is the sign to the believer, and the evidence that he/she has been filled with the Spirit of God.  

The Christian theologian, John Wesley, used to say, "I just set myself on fire and folks come to watch me as I burn."  He meant that when the Holy Spirit of God takes over in the power of God's anointing, the light of the Holy Word of God is manifested by "fire" in the Word preached, and in the hearts of men.  Ah, the Holy Ghost and fire  ...  something the angels desire to look into  ...

Elijah proving God

The fire on the altar still burns; the God who knows all, IS all, controls all, moves all, rules all, and reigns over all, still sends down His fire!  The Holy Ghost and fire has filled over 580 million people all over the world and the clock is still ticking away every minute that someone is filled with the Holy Ghost and speaks with tongues.  

We can't make it in this life by ourselves.  You say, "God is not in my life, and I'm doing just fine."  Really?  Who holds you when the storms seek to destroy your boat?  Who heals you when the diseases ravage your body?  Who eliminates the evil voices in your head, tormenting you day and night?  Who protects you from the car accidents, the trials and troubles of this world?  Yes, the rain falls on the just and the unjust, but there are multitudes of God's saved and sanctified witnesses to testify of the protection, grace, love, joy, and salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Dear friend, the Lord Jesus Christ can't calm your storm  ...  if He's not on your boat  ...

Clarke's Commentary gives explanation of Zechariah 4:6 to all of us in need of uplifting: "This was the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel - This prince was in a trying situation, and he needed some special encouragement from God, and here it is: Not by might, (of thy own), nor by power (authority from others), but by my Spirit saith the Lord - the providence, authority, power, and energy of the Most High."  Everything today, is by His Spirit.  "Whose Spirit?" you ask.  The Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Only God, the true God, the Omnipotent God, the God reaching out His hand to you now  ...  "The God That Answers By Fire!"

(Visit promiselandchurch.net and theexperience238.com.

PromiseLand Church, Austin, Texas, Pastor Kenneth Phillips)