There is a Fire in the House!

This is a song that I cannot get out of my head today. If I recall it correctly it goes a little bit like this (I did say little for those of you who know it…:))

“There’s a fire, fire, fire in the house,
Fire, Fire in the house,
There is an all consuming fire!”

     The Holy Spirit is compared and represented in the Bible as “a fire”. In Acts 2:3 ESV it says of the Holy Spirit “And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.” The Holy Spirit fell upon them and they began to speak with other tongues. When the Holy Spirit fills us when we are born again, He brings power to overcome! He brings ‘fire’ to our prayer lives that makes a huge difference. It says when He prays through us and He prays the perfect will of God for us! It is a language that is heavenly and that satan cannot understand. That is why satan cannot thwart the great things God has in store for us! He literally edifies us, or builds us up as we pray in the Spirit! This is one form of fire that is spoken of in the Bible, but there are other forms, too.
     It says in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15 that the fire is represented in this way, “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” Fire is always significant of great POWER! Fire can either destroy as we see here in the latter part of this verse or it can bring great power and force as we saw when fire was compared to the Holy Spirit in Acts. On the day of judgement, Christians will not be judged of sin because we have been cleansed from it. But, our “works” or what we have or have not done for God will be judged! If it was truly for Him and not for our own gain and recognition, it will stand the fire of judgement and we will gain eternal reward in Heaven. If what we did was for our own ambitions and purposes, no matter how good it seemed, we will lose reward in Heaven! Check your heart’s motives and be sure it is for God and God alone!
     He is also likened to a refiner’s fire. In Zechariah 13:19 it says, “And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”
     It is very interesting about a person who refines gold. They put the gold in what is called a ”crucible”. That sounds familiar doesn’t it? They have to watch over that gold diligently because the fire has to be a certain temperature for the dross to surface to the top. Dross is defined as that which is “worthless, commonplace, or trivial matter” according to AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY. As the heat is applied the dross rises. The refiner then skims off the dross and leaves the pure gold. As the refiner is purifying the precious gold he must watch the temperature carefully! If the fire gets too hot, the gold itself will be damaged in the process!
     This is how God is with us. He watches diligently over us, teaching us, leading us, and giving us wisdom along our way. He shows us the common things in our lives, that don’t edify us, but simply hinder us from being the best we can be in Him. He is taking us through a process and the end result of that process will be of extreme value in our lives.
     Notice, I don’t say He is PUTTING us through, but TAKING us through. God is not an abuser! He does not put hardships on us or some form of sickness or disease to “teach us a lesson”. Remember, the Holy Spirit is our teacher, and God is good and can only give good things! It is the enemy who “roams about as a lion seeking whom he can kill, steal, and destroy.” As a Christian we will encounter challenges! BUT, God is bringing us through and without being marred in the process.
     Let me give you an example of this. Years ago, I wore just a plain gold wedding band. I still have it, but my husband bought me an “eternity” band on our 25th wedding anniversary and that is what I wear now. Back then I had lost over fifty pounds and my fingers had become so small my band no longer fit. I took it to a jeweler and she sized it down for me. I asked her, because I love my wedding ring and wanted to keep it looking perfect, if the mark would show where she would take out the excess gold to make it a perfect fit for me again. She assured me it would not and sure enough when I got it back, the fit was perfect and I could not tell where they had done anything to it at all!
God is like that with us! He takes away what is unnecessary and you are not marred by it. In fact, whatever the situation, your life becomes better due to it! Thank God there is a “fire in the house” because I know that fire is bringing about a tremendous blessing my life or God would not be “singing” that song to me! There is a fire in your house as well, dear reader, if you are a born again Christian! Look forward for the better fits, the common to be removed, and for you and your loved ones to come through unmarred!
     If you are not a born again Christian and would like to be, please say this simple prayer with me. Father, I admit to you I am a sinner. I believe according to John 3:16 you sent your son to die for me and by calling on His name, believing he died and rose again I will not perish, but have everlasting life. According to Romans 10:9-10 I acknowledge and confess with my lips that JESUS IS LORD and in my heart I believe that God raised Him from the dead, therefore I am now SAVED! Thank you Jesus for saving me and cleansing me from all sin to remember it against me no more! Congratulations and welcome to the body of Christ!! You are now on your way to Heaven. Your next step is to find a good Bible believing church, pray everyday, and study God’s word for yourself.
     I appreciate you dear reader for taking your precious time to read my blog today. God bless you today, and everyday!!