Keep the Fire Burning
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - It is mind blowing how God will use a situation or a scenario to get your attention and impart spiritual truth in you. This week He used a situation that literally blew my mind. In my backyard I have a 55-gallon barrel that I burn yard waste in. Recently I had a lot of limbs from an apple tree in our yard cut down and about 120 feet of bushes that had been trimmed piled in the yard, so I started burning it early in the morning. The fire had been burning all day long because I kept putting more and more brush in the barrel, it was a really good fire, the barrel was really hot and as I sprayed water on the ground around the barrel to make sure the grass was wet and would not catch fire, when the water hit the barrel, it would just sizzle, so this was a real hot fire.
Around 5:30 or 6:00 p.m. we had several rain showers come through. My wife and I were sitting on the patio under the gazebo and for about 10 minutes it just poured hard. It rained so hard in that little period that in the driveway it even puddled. My wife said Well that rain will put the fire out. As we sat there and watched the rain the barrel just smoked but the rain kept coming and the smoke was almost gone. When the rain stopped, we looked at the barrel and there was hardly a glimmer of smoke coming out of the barrel. After a few minutes the smoke began to billow out of the barrel and then all the sudden there was a poof sound, and the fire was once again raging in the barrel. Although the rain came and made the top layer of the stuff in the barrel wet, deep inside the barrel the embers were still hot, the brush was still dry, and when the oxygen connected with the heat and the fuel the fire began to rage again.
As I watched the fire burn God began to deal with me on this topic “Keep the fire burn”. So, I want to deal today with the perpetual fire of our hearts and encourage you to “Keep the fire burning”.
PRAYER: -
SCRIPTURE: - Leviticus 6:9-13 “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering: It is the burnt offering, because of the burning upon the altar all night unto the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be burning in it. And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen breeches shall he put upon his flesh, and take up the ashes which the fire hath consumed with the burnt offering on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar. And he shall put off his garments, and put on other garments, and carry forth the ashes without the camp unto a clean place. And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out”.
Keep the fire burning.
There is a story of a church in a small town that was struck by lightning and caught on fire. As the church burned people from the small town stood around and watched in amazement. When the pastor of the church arrived, he looked around at the people and began to console the members of the church saying God will provider and we will rebuild the church but while he was talking he noticed a few people that he hadn’t seen at the church in a long while. He approached them and began to talk saying it has been a while since we have seen you in church and we have been missing you, but the question I have is why you are here tonight. One of the people said I had to see for myself because this church hasn’t been on fire for a long time.
Some might say wow and others may find that story funny. However, the problem here is not that the church building was burning but the one who said they hadn’t seen this church on fire for a long time failed to realize the building is not the church we are. So, if the church hasn’t been on fire for a long time and we are the church not the building the question is who let the fire go out. Keep the fire burning.
Most people are familiar with the 3 elements of a fire called the Tetrahedron or Fire Triangle. 3 is the number of fullness and completeness, Past Present Future is the fullness of time, there are 3 righteous patriarchs before the flood were Abel, Enoch and Noah. After the flood, there were the three righteous "fathers" of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Joseph had 3 coats, the 1st one his father gave him, the 2nd Potiphar gave him, the 3rd one Pharaoh gave him. David was anointed 3 times 1st time to be King, 2nd time to be King of Judah, 3rd time King of all Israel. Jesus prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane before being arrested. He took 3 disciples with him Peter, James, and John. He was hung on the cross at the 3rd hour of the day and died at the 9th hour. There were 3 hours of darkness that covered the land while Jesus was suffering on the cross from the 6th hour to the 9th hour. There were 3 deaths on Calvary one died in sin, 1 died to sin, and 1 died for sin. Jesus was in the grave 3 days and 3 nights and rose on the 3rd day. In our text today the fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out is mentioned three times in verses 9, 12, and 13.
Naturally to have a fire there must be the 3 elements of the Tetrahedron/Fire Triangle Oxygen, Heat, and Fuel, if you remove any of these you will not have a fire. Spiritually there must be 3 elements or the Tetrahedron / Fire Triangle to have Spiritual fire.
1st there is the Spirit of God which is (represents) the oxygen, (Genesis 2:7 says, And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.) the breath of God is the Spirit of God, the Pneuma, the Oxygen.
2nd there is the Power & Word of God, this is the heat source (Jeremiah 20:9 says, Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay). The Word of God has the power to produce or ignite the spark the heat source in you that’s why it’s the Power & Word of God, you can’t separate them. WATCH THIS: - Then God said - that’s the Word of God the Logos and it was so that’s the Power of God.
3rd there is the Fuel, (the wood, the sacrifice, the fat) that is you and I (Romans 12:1 says, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service).
WATCH THIS: - I said to have spiritual fire all 3 of these elements must be present, well the Spirit of God and the Power & Word of God are always present, the fuel, which is you and I is our responsibility to provide. Like the man in the story about the church burning said he hadn’t seen this church on fire for a long time, the reason he didn’t see it on fire is because he failed to provide the fuel by being a sacrifice unto the Lord. If we provide ourselves the fuel the fire will never go out because the heat source and the oxygen are always present. Keep the fire burning.
TEXT: - Verse 9 says, “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering: Understand that Aaron and his sons were priest. This shows that keeping the altar fire always burning was an important duty and the sole responsibility of the priests. This Law was given to the priest to uphold, but in the New Testament the Bible says in 1 Peter 2:9 “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light”. Since we are a Royal Priesthood, it is our responsibility, it is our duty to ensure that the fire is always burning. It is not the Pastor’s responsibility to keep your fire burning, it is not the Praise Teams responsibility, it is not your mother’s or father’s duty or responsibility to keep your fire burning, it is your duty and your sole responsibility the Bible in Philippians 2:12 says, “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”.
It is the burnt offering, because of the burning upon the altar all night unto the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be burning in it”. Let me suggest to you that in the Old Testament when this Law was given it was dealing with the Altar of Burnt Offerings, which was part of the Tabernacle and was set up in the outer court, but in the New Testament altar represents our hearts, that inner most part of us the seat of our will, intellect, and emotions. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 states “What know ye not that your body is the Temple of the Holy Ghost”. Our hearts should be burning for the Lord all night and day. The NIRV Bible says in Romans 12:11 “Never let the fire in your heart go out. Keep it alive. Serve the Lord”. NIRV stands for New International Readers Version.
The continuously burning, divine fire at the altar of burnt offering helped remind the Israelites of the reality of God’s presence and of their need for God. The fire burning in our hearts reminds us of God’s presence in our lives and our need for God always.
Verses 10-11 says, “And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen breeches shall he put upon his flesh, and take up the ashes which the fire hath consumed with the burnt offering on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar. And he shall put off his garments, and put on other garments, and carry forth the ashes without the camp unto a clean place”. Every day the ashes had to be removed. The reason was because the ash was the residue of things that had been burnt up and if the ashes were not removed, they would build up and could eventually snuff out the fire, so the ashes must be removed daily. So many times, God will burn up stuff in us, heart break, hurts, disappointments, past relationships, habits, desires, sins, and we will refuse to dump the ashes holding on to them, refusing to remove them and then some place down the road we find ourselves struggling with the same old issue because we failed to remove the ashes.
WATCH THIS: - The priest (what are we – a Royal Priesthood) the priest was responsible for removing the ash, the fire consumed it, the fire destroyed it, but if the priest didn’t remove it would be devasting. To Keep the Fire Burning we must make sure to remove the ash. Make sure every day we remove the ashes of life that affect the fire. When sin has been burned but the ashes are left there is a possibility open to indulge again in the sin. A hurtful or abusive relationship was burnt up, but you held on to the ashes of emotion now you find yourself going back and ending up in the same old mess again because you failed to remove the ashes. A desire was burnt up, but you didn’t remove the ashes and now the taste began to rise in your again trying to quench the fire. When the fire of God burns it up don’t hold on to the ashes of it you have to let it go, throw the ashes into the wind, and say bye and good riddance if not it could become devastating. Somebody may be holding on to ashes throw away the ashes and keep the fire burning! (Example: - you pray God take away this desire to smoke but you keep a pack of cigarettes on your night stand just in case remove the ashes).
Verse 12 says, “And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings”. WATCH THIS: - There are 3 words that you need to catch in these verses, remember 3 is the number of fullness and completeness, they are wood, burnt offering, and fat. These are the fuel of the fire remember oxygen, heat, fuel completes the fire triangle. Wood, sacrifice, and fat are the fuels that burn. Romans 12:1 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service”. When we give ourselves as living sacrifice we give our Will, our Intellect, and our Emotions, this is the fuel that completes the Tetrahedron/Fire Triangle and produces the Spiritual Fire. Remember the Spirit of God is the Oxygen, the Power & Word of God is the heat source and the fuel we supply our will, intellect, and emotions. The work of giving ourselves completely to God as a living sacrifice is a total commitment, it is not a quick work, and we must endure the heat of the fire.
I am reminded of a story my father would say about the chicken and the pig. A chicken and a pig were walking down the street and passed a restaurant that had a sign in the window that said Bacon and Eggs Special for only $3.99. The chicken turned to the pig and said, “Aren’t you glad we have a part in that special. The pig said I don’t know about you but for me it is a total commitment”. To keep the fire burning it is going to take a total commitment. Lord here’s my hands, my mind, my feet, my heart, my tongue, my will, my intellect, my emotions use me Lord all of me for I am totally committed to you and want to keep the fire burning.
Verse 13 says, “The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out”. The perpetual fire burning on the altar of your heart must never go out. We must continually strive looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. Just as God’s love and desire for us will never go out, our love for God, our faith in God, our desire should never go out. Song of Solomon 8:6-7 says, “Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned”. Our love for God must be a perpetual fire, water should not extinguish the fire of our hearts, ash should never smother it. Just like the barrel in my back yard that was burning yard waste all day. When the rain came, it seemed like the fire was going to be put out. However, we must do like Paul instructed Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:6 “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands”.
We must Keep the Fire Burning.
Why must we Keep the Fire Burning.
One reason is that it was started directly by God. Leviticus 9:24 “Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown”. The fire of the Altar of Burnt Offerings was started by God Himself. It was this fire that was used on the altar of incense before the veil in the inner court. When Nadab and Abihu took their censers and put fire in them and tried to offer up incense unto the Lord, He killed them immediately because it was strange fire it wasn’t the fire the Lord started.
On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Ghost came with Tongues of Fire Acts 2:3-4 says, “And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance”. These are fires that came from God, they represent His presence, therefore we must keep the fire burning. We can’t try to replace it with strange fire, desires that are contrary to God’s will and Word Deuteronomy 4:24 says, “For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God”.
Another reason we should keep the fire burning is because of how the dictionary defines fire. 1) the active principle of burning, characterized by the heat and combustion; 2) a strong feeling and excitement; 3) to become excited or aroused. Fire in its most common use is used to heat things up, to burn things up, and to kill germs.
Now let us transfer these everyday uses of fire to our spiritual lives, we would discover that the fire of the Holy Ghost burning in our hearts does the same thing for our will, intellect, and emotions the completeness and fullness of mankind.
The fire of the Holy Ghost burning in our hearts sanctifies, satisfies, justifies and purifies us completely. We are contaminated by the germs of sin and the pollution of life that try to extinguish the fire in us daily. The only way to cleanse us thoroughly and combat sin is to keep the fire burning and burn it with the fire of the Holy Ghost on the inside.
SUMMARY: - It is dangerous and even deadly both spiritually and naturally to live in this world without the fire of the Holy Ghost burning deep within our hearts. We need to keep the fire burning on the altar of our hearts so we will know what do to when life’s troubles come our way.
Many things will try to extinguish the fire and we must guard our heart with all diligence according to Proverbs 4:23. The rain of sin will try to quench the fire; problems will try to snuff it out and the pressures of life will try to destroy it. We must be aware that trouble, trials, heartache, pain, despair, depression, dilemmas, circumstances, setbacks, stress, sickness, afflictions, satanic influences, pressure, tragedies, and turmoil are just the rains designed to put the fire out, but we must keep our lamps trimmed and burning for time is drawing nigh.
If your fire is getting low or even if it has gone out, we must pray like David prayed in Psalm 51:9 -12 “Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit”.
Please God forgive the slothfulness we may have had in our desire to please you. We ask that you bind any hint of lukewarmness in our lives as we stir up the flame of desire in us. Just like you did when you sent fire down and consumed the sacrifice, we pray that you send the fire down and consume the sacrifice I present to you today, consume my will, my intellect, and my emotions. I am totally committed unto you and desire that you have your way in me for I want to keep the fire burning in Jesus’s name. Amen.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
