FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN

                                              FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN

“Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the back or west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb or Sinai, the mountain of God.  The Angel of the Lord appeared to him (Moses) in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, yet was not consumed.” (Exodus 3:1-2)  Amp. Bible

“For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.”  (Deuteronomy 4:24) NIV

Fire is a very powerful element.  When the Lord appeared to Moses to speak to him, He appeared in a fiery bush.  This caught Moses’ attention.  He was drawn to a bush that was burning but not consumed.  The Lord spoke to Moses about the plan He had for him and what He wanted him to accomplish.  God told him Who He is, “I AM WHO I AM” in Genesis 3 and He would deliver His people through Moses.

God also said in Deuteronomy that He is a “consuming fire.” 

Fire consumes.  What does consume mean?  It the case of fire it means to destroy totally.  But when we think of God as a consuming fire, we think of His passion for us.  He is a jealous God because I believe that He loves us so much that He cannot accept any other worship of someone or something else.  

In Acts 2:1-13 it speaks about the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon the Apostles in the upper room.  Tongues of fire appeared above their heads which was a sign of the Holy Spirit.  When John the Baptist baptized people he said that Jesus would baptize with fire.  

Fire also consumed the altar of Baal “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.”  1 Kings 18:38   KJV   The fire on the altar was a sign from God that He is the one true God and not Baal because the fire consumed the offering.

Not only does fire consume but it also gives off light.  It purifies and gives off heat and it changes things. Some people say first the physical and then the spiritual.  Here in Arizona where I live, we have many fires burning.  I did not receive this from the Lord, but I believe that the fire on the mountain by our city, and the other fires, might possibly be a sign from the Lord that He is going to set this area on fire with the Holy Spirit.  By the way, the largest fire in the area is called the “Bush” fire!

Let’s try to always live on fire for the Lord.  When we receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit we are “set on fire” just like the Apostles on the day of Pentecost.  They were no longer afraid to go out and preach the Gospel. 

Here is a quote from a famous preacher:

“I set myself on fire and people come to watch me burn.”

― John Wesley

 

Let’s burn with the Gospel in our hearts, on our lips and in our actions!!