05.15.2022 | FIRE FROM HEAVEN
FIRE FROM HEAVEN
1. The Fire Brings Consecration
Exodus 3:1-2 – “Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So, he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.”
Exodus 3:3-4 – “Then Moses said, ‘I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.’ So, when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’”
Exodus 3:5 – “Then He said, ‘Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.’”
1 Kings 18:20-21 – “So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people, and said, ‘How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.’ But the people answered him not a word.”
1 Kings 18:22-23 – “Then Elijah said to the people, ‘I alone am left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Therefore, let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it.’”
1 Kings 18:24 – “‘Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the Name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.’ So, all the people answered and said, ‘It is well spoken.’”
1 Kings 18:38-39 – “Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, ‘The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!’”
1 Kings 18:40 – “And Elijah said to them, ‘Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!’ So, they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and executed them there.”
2. The Fire Brings Purification
Exodus 19:16-17 – “Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.”
Exodus 19:18-19 – “Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice.”
Exodus 19:20 – “Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.”
Exodus 32:1-2 – “Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, ‘Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ And Aaron said to them, ‘Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.’”
Exodus 32:3-4 – “So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’”
Exodus 32:26-27 – “Then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, ‘Whoever is on the Lord’s side—come to me!’ And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. And he said to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Let every man put his sword on his side and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.”’”
Exodus 32:28 – “So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.”
Luke 3:15-16 – “Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, John answered, saying to all, ‘I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’”
Luke 3:17 – “His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
Luke 3:16-17 (MSG) – “But John intervened: ‘I'm baptizing you here in the river. The main Character in this drama, to whom I'm a mere stagehand, will ignite the Kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He's going to clean house—make a clean sweep of your lives. He'll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false He'll put out with the trash to be burned.’"
3. The Fire Brings Unification – With God, His Mission, His Heart and His People
Hebrews 12:29 – “For our God is a consuming fire.”
Hebrews 12:28-29 (TPT) – “Since we are receiving our rights to an unshakable Kingdom, we should be extremely thankful and offer God the purest worship that delights His heart as we lay down our lives in absolute surrender, filled with awe. For our God is a holy, devouring fire!”
2 Chronicles 7:1-2 – “When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord’s house.”
2 Chronicles 7:3 – “When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: ‘For He is good, for His mercy endures forever.’”
Discussion Questions:
1. What aspects of your life need to be set apart for the purposes and destiny of heaven on your life? What needs to be consecrated to God?
2. Moses had to make some major life shifts after his first encounter with the fire of God! Are you ready to shift into alignment with His will and direction for your life?
3. The Levites responded to the call to separate themselves and kill what they loved but knew was evil! What needs to die in your life? What do you need to separate from?
4. What might be holding you back from all God has for you? What might become a problem later in your walk that you can identify and eliminate now?
5. Will you yield your tongue to the purifying fire of heaven?
6. As the fire of God burns things out of your life, it sets you ablaze for Him! What does it look like to burn with the passion of God for people around you?