Today I’d like to look at three "Elijah" prophets in Scripture. You probably knew there was at least one Hebrew prophet Elijah, who lived on the earth and served God during the reign of King Ahab. He is the Elijah whom the three disciples saw with Moses there on the Mount of Transfiguration, talking with Jesus (Mt 17:3). In addition, many of you are aware that a second Elijah has already come. But I want to show you that there is still another Elijah.
“And He [Jesus] answered and said, ‘Elijah is coming and will restore all things; but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.’ Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.” (Mat 17:11-13)
Note that Jesus said, “Elijah already came,” and “Elijah is coming.” By this He showed that there are two prophets. In addition to the original prophet Elijah, there are two prophets who come in the spirit of Elijah, but do not necessarily have his name. He acknowledged that Elijah had come, which the disciples understood that He meant John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah (see Lk 1:17). But He also said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things.” Since Herod had already beheaded John the Baptist (Mt 14:8), who did Jesus mean when He said that Elijah is coming to restore all things?
This is what the prophet Malachi spoke of when he said, “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,’ says the LORD of hosts.” (Mal 3:1). This is a double prophecy, referring to both the first and second coming of Jesus Christ. There is yet to come in the spirit of Elijah a prophet who will prepare the way for the Lord before He returns.
Malachi prophesied for the Lord: "Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse." (Mal 4:5-6). That was the end of Malachi's book of prophecy and the final portion of Scripture written before Christ. I believe this final Elijah will restore the hearts of God’s children to the Heavenly Father before Jesus come.
I believe that just as the first Elijah had a holy fire ministry, as did John the Baptist, so will the final Elijah have such a ministry. Elijah called down holy fire upon the sacrifice on top of Mt Carmel (1Ki 18:37-38), when he prayed, “'Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that You, O LORD, are God, and that You have turned their heart back again.' Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench." Later on another occasion, he also called down fire upon the captains and their fifties (2 King 1:10).
John the Baptist was a fiery preacher like that, who said, "The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." (Mat 3:10-12)
So we know that the final Elijah will also have a holy fire ministry. Just take a look at the coming ministry of the two, last-days witnesses in Revelation. “And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.” (Rev 11:5).
As we look at the prophets Elijah and John the Baptist, we can see that the only people who were hurt by them were the wicked and the ungodly. The poor, the humble, and those who repented of their sin were not harmed in any way. The same can be said of the last-days witnesses. The only people who will be harmed are the ones who want to harm them.
My wife and I have pondered whether there will be just two such witnesses, or a whole company of people who will move in the spirit and power of Elijah. We tend to believe that while these two witnesses in Revelation 11 will operate in Jerusalem, there will be many others operating like that around the world.
An Important "After-Word"
I originally posted this article on September 13, 2013, when the Lord gave me this message. However, today on October 30, 2013, I received further revelation, as I read the book of Revelation. I had just read the verse that says, "Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, 'Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!'" (Rev 8:13)
Amazingly, this interview was conducted on September 3, 2013, and covers the same subject that I have covered in this article. They discussed the coming days along with the subject of Elijah and the Bride of Christ.
From 4:00 to 5:10 in the video, Terry Bennett mentions that Elijah has appeared to him in person on numerous occasions. At 7:45 he says that in at least one instance, Elijah appeared to him with the Lord and the angel Gabriel. He was told that the Bride must be made ready for the Lamb, and that Elijah is being released. This means the actual, original prophet Elijah is being released by the Lord to carry out his end time ministry. In a recent conference, brother Terry said he has seen Elijah return to earth in a chariot of fire. This explains why he has been appearing to brother Terry and others.
Brother Terry was also told by Gabriel that the time for the release of the Spirit and power of Elijah has arrived. It was explained to him that this Spirit and power will be upon a worldwide company of men and women, whom God has invited to operate in the Spirit and power of Elijah.
He said that God's invitation to be the Bride extends to all, but it requires total consecration. As James says, the double-minded man must not expect to receive anything
from the Lord. Note that the Scripture says the Bride must make herself ready, and one primary reason the Holy Spirit has been given to the Church is to enable this. "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready." (Rev 19:7)
The ministry that will occur in connection with the the Spirit and power of Elijah, and the Bride making herself ready will be a very atypical (unusual) time for the Church in most arenas. This is not going to look like business as usual in the Church.
The Lord did give a warning to brother Terry that this ministry is not about drawing attention to Elijah or any man. There must be great humility in all of this, just as Elijah had during his original ministry. The Lord said that if the message is not about pointing people to the Lamb who is coming, it's going to be judged. The message must direct people to the Lord.
Brother Paul Keith said at around 16:00 in the video that he believes it's not OK not to believe the Word regarding fullness. I agree completely. Some have rejected what the Word says about fullness in Christ, which includes healing and holiness, as well as the baptism with the Holy Spiritandwith fire. The Lord paid a great price at Calvary to make these possible, and it's not OK with Him if people reject these.
The Lord said to Neville, “The day has now come when you will see great anointings come to the earth. Tell my people they are the sent ones to this generation. I am about to release my true apostolic anointing. Many angels are about to come to the earth. They will come and bring this anointing.” Truth will come like never before.
The prophet Elijah said to Neville, “The Spirit that was upon me when I was on the earth will be upon men once again, and He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse." He quoted Malachi 4:6 about this. The church is to reveal the heart of the Father to this generation and show them what God is like." He spoke about redemptive judgments coming to the earth. When God’s judgments are in the earth it will bring righteousness.
God showed him some of the terrible things coming to the earth, and Neville emphasized that we must be there to tell people why they are happening. Neville said the foundations have been eroded: holiness and the baptism of fire. When a person is baptized in fire, there is an absolute change in their life. The old is burned right out. They need a baptism of Holy Spiritandfire. This is exactly the same message the Lord has been speaking to me and my wife, and which I have been preaching, so this bears witness to my spirit.
Putting it All Together
My friends, it’s time to seek the Lord. Consecrate yourself wholeheartedly to Him. Let the holy, Refiner's fire do its perfect work in you. Ask the Lord to purify you from everything that will not pass through the fire as purely from Him. Love the fire of God! Ask the Lord to baptize you with the Holy Spiritandwith fire, as John the Baptist said He would do (Mt 3:8).
If there is anything in your life that is not right with God, get it right with Him. Clear the way for the Lord, because He is about to return in the glory of His Father with His angels, and he is coming for a Bride without spot or wrinkle. He will reward every person for his own deeds (Mt 16:27). Without holiness no one will see the Lord (Heb 12:14)
Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Boris Vallejo Elijah Oil Painting Original Art (1981). Boris Vallejo presents this stunning vision of Elijah, the prophet of Israel during the ninth century B. C.
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you
repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible
says?
“Jesus
came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in
the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and
believe.
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as
well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who
multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of
planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United
States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
Charles and Frances Hunter, the Happy Hunters, were known around the world as the most anointed and energetic healing evangelists during their generation. They ministered in 49 nations around the world. In one service they saw 100 people get out of wheelchairs! They had an incredible anointing for healing and the baptism with the Holy Spirit.
On October 16, 1984, the Happy Hunters ministered at a church in Rotterdam, Holland, called Kom en Zie. On the final day of the conference, they ministered the baptism with fire. Here are some excerpts:
Charles said that the baptism with fire “burns sin out of people’s lives…Only the holy will see God. Jesus said He would be back for a Bride without spot or blemish…God is again sending fire upon the earth. Many scores of times in the past two years, God has sent fire in. When people begin to say, ‘I want to be perfect like Jesus is. I want to be crucified with Christ. I want to live a holy life. I want only to please Jesus. When people come to do that, many times God has let the people see fire in the spirit realm.”
He went on to cite some examples from Hawaii. He said, “On the island of Maui, a woman ran forward and said, ‘I’m frightened!’ So they asked, ‘Why are you frightened?’ She replied, ‘Laying over the whole audience there is an orange flame of fire about two inches thick!’ God sent His fire down to burn the sin out of people’s lives.”
He continued, “On the island of Oahu, in a church, the glory cloud came in…it looks like smoke, and fills the room.” The smoke was up in the balcony, and the Lord told Charles that He was healing the people in the balcony first. So Charles began to point to the people in the balcony and command healing upon them. Afterward some people said that they could see lightning come out of his hands when he did that. He said that this was fire of God. Frances then read from Habakkuk, “His radiance is like the sunlight; He has rays flashing from His hand, And there is the hiding of His power.” (Hab 3:4)
She said, “There are many who speak in tongues, but do not have any fire in them.”
Charles said, “In a congregation in Florida, when we asked Jesus to baptize everyone with fire, we saw that there was an angel for each person.” He said that the angels each had a wire of fire that was screwed into each person’s head. Jesus told Charles that He was “electrocuting everybody and burning out self.”
Charles said, “The baptism of fire sends fire through every part of your body. It gives you a love for God and a hatred for evil like you never have before.” After he imparted the baptism of fire to the congregation in Rotterdam, he said, “God said, ‘I am a consuming fire.’ And because God lives in you, expect fire to come forth from within you. If you have been baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire, then not only will you have power, you will have fire to burn the sin out of people.”
Then he said that while they were all singing in the Spirit and he prayed for the Lord to baptize them with fire, he saw little flames coming off their fingertips, and something like “raindrops” of fire coming down upon them. Frances said she felt like her whole body was on fire.
Putting it All Together
In these last days right before the Lord returns, He is baptizing His people with fire once again. Let me encourage you to pray, "I want to be perfect like Jesus is. I want to be crucified with Christ.
I want to live a holy life. I want only to please Jesus." Pray, “No matter what it takes, Lord, I need the baptism of fire. Just do it." Then expect Him to do it!
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years,
making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making
disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal
of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States
with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
I was first introduced to the holy fire baptism through a book by brother Yong-Doo Kim, called Baptize by Blazing Fire. I encourage you to read all five books, as I have described in another blog (see here). There you will see from one church's experience how we receive it, why it is so important, and some of the practical aspects of it in the life of the disciple of Christ.
I have personally experienced this and it has changed my life. But sometimes I meet people who say that the holy fire is not found in the Bible. I realize this is controversial, but I want to ask you to be very careful not to deny the Holy Spirit's work. Consider this matter reverently in fervent prayer to the Lord, searching the Scriptures and seeking to know whether it is truly from God.
In order to help you, I would like to first show you the Scriptures about God's holy fire. And then I would like to share some people other than brother Kim, who have had divine revelations regarding the holy fire that further corroborate this teaching, and confirm my own experiences. Lastly, I would like to explain what usually happens when a person receives the holy fire.
Jesus Baptizes in Holy Blazing Fire
John the Baptist said, "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. (Mat 3:11)
John answered and said to them all, "As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. (Luk 3:16)
Some people make the mistake in thinking that when you are baptized in water, you simultaneously receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit. This is an incorrect belief. There is a second experience in which the Lord baptizes the believer with the Holy Spirit. Those who refuse to acknowledge this are missing one of the greatest blessings God has for His people. For more about the Holy Spirit baptism, you can read my blog about that (see here).
However, some people who have received both water baptism and the baptism with the Holy Spirit also fail to realize that the Lord has a third baptism. They assume that the fire baptism is one and the same as the Holy Spirit baptism. This too is error. The Lord truly has a third baptism for us. And John the Baptist made that clear when he said, "He [Jesus] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
God a consuming fire
For our God is a consuming fire. (Heb 12:29) Therefore it should not surprise you that the Lord is able to baptize His people with fire. In this same passage, He says that He is once again going to shake both the heavens and the earth, so that everything which can be shaken will be shaken.
Since God is holy, we know that He is a holy fire, as well. And when He baptizes you in fire, it is a holy fire.
Refiner's Fire
The Lord says that before He comes, He will send His messenger to
prepare His people. We know that He did this through John the Baptist
before His first coming, and He is doing it again now right before His
second coming. "He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He
will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so
that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness." (Mal 3:3; cf., Zech 13:9)
When a refiner purifies gold or silver, he places it in a vessel and
then puts intensely hot fire beneath it. The precious metal melts, and the
worthless material inside of it comes to the surface, where it is
scooped off and removed. Then the metal is cooled, and the process is
repeated again later as many times as necessary until the gold or silver
is pure.
I, for one, desire the refiner's fire to burn up all the worthless dross within me. I hope you do also.
A Burning Coal Purified the Prophet Isaiah
Then I said, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of
unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes
have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." Then one of the seraphim flew
to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the
altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, "Behold, this
has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven." (Isa 6:5-7)
When
the prophet Isaiah saw the Lord, he was ruined. He sensed his own
uncleanness. But when he cried out in repentance, a seraphim took a
burning coal in his hand and touched Isaiah's lips with it. When this
flaming coal touched his lips, it purified him. The holy fire has a
purifying effect, because it is from heaven where Jesus serves as our
Great High Priest.
Now for
a moment, I would like to share some extra-biblical testimonies that
further corroborate this Biblical teaching. These are people who have
had divine revelations. If you believe the Lord gives divine
revelations like dreams, visions, prophecies, and visitations, according
to Joel 2 and Acts 2, then you must acknowledge that this is one of the
works of the Holy Spirit. Of course, we need to test these
experiences. But if they are genuine, then we need to heed their
message.
Holy Fire of God – from Anna Rountree’s books
The first one I will share is that of Anna Rountree. In the mid-1990's she visited heaven. During one visit, the Father said to her:
"The fire of My holiness, the fire of My love, the fire of My compassion, the fire of My wisdom, the fire of My understanding, the fire of My knowledge, the fire of My zeal, the fire of My purity, the fire of My mercy."
This fire will burn all that is wood, hay, and stubble in the lives of His children (1 Co 3:15). They must desire the fire and long for His holiness. His heart is turned toward them, and the fire of His love will reveal this. The hearts of the children will long to turn toward Him, to walk through the fire of purification, and to rest in His arms. As the enemy hates the fire, so must God’s children love it, for in and through the fire, they will see God. She went on to say that we must learn to live in the fire by allowing it to burn away all that will not pass through it as purely of the Lord. Learn to love the fire of God.
In her vision of judgment, she saw a plumb line being let down to earth. "As the plumb line reached earth, great rejoicing began in heaven. It was as though every created being there was singing, and the sound began to shake the celestial realms: 'His righteousness is from everlasting to everlasting. His judgments are sure and will be withheld no longer.' As the thunderous rejoicing increased, fire came out of heaven and traveled the plumb line, passing before us and sweeping down the line to the earth. Suddenly the whole world was aflame."
Her books are available online (see here and here).
Holy Fire -- from Yong-Doo Kim’s books
As I mentioned earlier, I first heard about the holy fire through brother Yong-Doo Kim in his books called Baptized by Blazing Fire.
In his book, he and other learned the following lessons:
Shout, “Holy Fire” whenever unnecessary or hindering thoughts come to you during prayer.
If you are having a bad day, feeling sick, or anxious, then shout out, “Holy Fire!”
The Fire that you long to receive is the power that the evil forces are most afraid of and fear. Therefore, once you receive it, you have to continuously accumulate it daily. Charge it up everyday!
One of the most powerful weapons used in Spiritual Warfare is Blazing Fire. When this gift is granted to a saint, their entire Spiritual Body is fully engulfed in holy fire, with a blazing intensity. The fire is so intense, that a mere touch of a demonic spirit will incinerate it to ashes.
The Holy Blazing Fire is enormously, unimaginably powerful and can be used as offensive weapons.
The Fire that the Lord grants us can completely devastate the forces of evil. In fact, it is more than just fire. The fire is a powerful layer of light that can burn up all kinds of diseases on earth, which can heal.
Any person who prays diligently and persistently will receive the power of fire.
The fire ministry is a ministry that has the greatest reward in heaven, as well as on earth, but also the trials and testings are highest.
Even though we once confessed and accepted the Lord as our Savior -- even though we believed in Him -- if we cannot get out from our sinful habitual lives, then our lives are not completely holy. The only way to save ourselves is to repent. If you repent and shout out, "Holy Fire," the evil spirits will have to leave and healing will come.
Holy Fire – from Howard Pittman’s testimony
Then there is a pastor named Howard Pittman, who was raised from the dead. You can listen to his complete testimony online (see here). But one of his conclusions is this. He says, "He’s going to shake this world one more time. These things He did, you will do greater than these. But the church must be without spot or wrinkle or blemish. He’s getting ready to cleanse the church. How will He do it? He will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire, according to Matt 3:11. You’ve been baptized in water. You’ve been baptized in the Holy Ghost. But now He’s going to baptize you with fire. Get ready. Yonder comes the fire! The third and final baptism with which He’s going to clean up His church is the baptism of fire. He’s going to take a blow torch! He’s going to scorch us up one side and down the other to make us ready to turn loose this world. But if you think God can do this with carnal-minded Christians, you’re mistaken. God’s got enough fire to get rid of all the chaff. If you don’t want the fire, get rid of the chaff."
Holy Fire – from James Agboola
In my article, James Agboola Revelation of Heaven and Hell, I wrote about how this brother was shown the international conference of the kingdom of darkness, presided over by the devil himself.
James was shown that one force for the devil and his demons to contend with on the earth in these last days is God’s end-time evangelists who are just appearing. They are clothed with clothes of fire, and the demons find it difficult to talk to them. Therefore, the devil has sent out his own demons into the earth to appear as humans, and clothed them with a garment of fire, so that he will be able to contend. This is his strategy to enable his demons to be able to stand and fight those end-time evangelists.
Holy Fire – from a woman named CJ
A woman named CJ, who saw Jesus in person and was born again, testifies to her experience in an interview online (see here). It's a very powerful testimony.
She had searched for the Lord all her life. And on the night she saw the Lord in her friend's living room, He spoke the
following things to her: “Unless you repent, you will all likewise
perish” (Lk 13:5); “You must keep the commandments” (Mt 19:17; Jn 14:15;
15:10); and “I will not share My temple with idols” (2 Co 6:16). She then repented and gave her life to Jesus.
In 1981, after she saw Jesus and had become born again, she had another experience where she had about 40 days of tests and trials. At the end of that time, Christ was really pleased with her obedience. He came and laid His hands on her and His fire went all through her. This is consistent with the experiences of many others who have received the holy fire.
She also gave warnings the Lord has given her in 2008 or 2009 about coming judgment against the United States (video 33:39). The Lord also gave her two Scriptures from Ezekiel and Jeremiah to confirm this: And say to the land of Israel, 'Thus says the LORD, "Behold, I am against you; and I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off from you the righteous and the wicked. "Because I will cut off from you the righteous and the wicked, therefore My sword will go forth from its sheath against all flesh from south to north. "Thus all flesh will know that I, the LORD, have drawn My sword out of its sheath. It will not return to its sheath again."' (Eze 21:3-5) "Perhaps their supplication will come before the LORD, and everyone will turn from his evil way, for great is the anger and the wrath that the LORD has pronounced against this people." (Jer 36:7)
Holy Fire in the Arctic
Pond Inlet is a small, predominantly Inuit community in the Qikiqtaaluk
Region of Nunavut, Canada and is located at the top of Baffin Island. On February 28, 1999, in Pond Inlet, believers had gathered for a week of revival meetings at the Anglican church, hungry for God and troubled by new reports of community drug use. They decided to add a special Sunday afternoon youth service. An invitation was offered for youth who wanted to come closer to God. The worship leader was praying over youth who had gathered around the altar.
Something started to happen that was out of their control. A sound like a jet started softly and gradually became very loud. It was so strong! The whole place was shaking and everything in it. The youth leader says that fire went right through him and he started to shake. He began to shout, "Fire!! Fire!! Fire!! Hallelujah!"
All of this was recorded on a dual cassette deck used to record the service. In fact, it continued to record the event, even after the sound board was turned off. You can watch and listen to a short, three-minute video about this event, which includes the original recording of it (see here).
Holy Fire - from Charles and Frances Hunter
Charles and Frances Hunter "spent nearly forty years leading 'healing explosions,' where they prayed for the sick and taught Christians about the ministry of healing. Known as the Happy Hunters for their ready smiles and quick humor, the couple wrote more than 50 books about divine healing, including the best-seller How to Heal the Sick." -- Charisma Magazine, July 14, 2009. "Charles and Frances Hunter were the most effective couple I ever saw among healing evangelists," said Pentecostal historian Vinson Synan, dean emeritus of the Regent University School of Divinity.
In their video series, "How to Heal the Sick," Frances talked about the time when she saw liquid fire coming forth from the hands of her husband Charles in a meeting. It appeared like blue flames about four inches long, coming off his finger tips. Although the flames were not visible to him, she could see it. He prayed for the sick at that meeting, and they were powerfully healed. Many of them fell under the power of God. You can watch the three-minute section of that video (31:30 - 34:15), where she shares this wonderful testimony (see here).
On October 16, 1984, the Happy Hunters ministered at a church in
Rotterdam, Holland, called Kom en Zie. On the final day of the
conference, they ministered the baptism with fire. Let me encourage you to read what they said at that meeting on my other post called The Happy Hunters on Fire (see here).
Holy Fire - from Neville Johnson A minister from Australia by the name of Neville Johnson, who has gone to be with the Lord, has an excellent testimony about being baptized in fire in the audio clip below:
If you would like to read more of Neville's preaching on the baptism of fire, you can find it on my post called "The Burning Ones."
Experiential Evidence
When people receive the holy fire, they usually sense some sort of tangible evidence. I have personally experienced this and witnessed it in others. It is not the same for everyone. Some people feel warmth or heat in their hands. It sometimes feels like heavy fireballs in their hands. Others get a stinging feeling in their hands, as if they have just clapped them together. Still others feel the fire on their lower back and a tingling sensation over their entire body. Others feel the presence of the Lord or a peace that passes all understanding. Still others find it difficult to stand straight. Some find it difficult to hold out their arms or even to stand. Some are completely unable to stand under the glory of God. Others begin to shake beneath the power of God. Some people begin sweating. Others feel the great joy of the Lord inside. The glory of God falls upon many who receive the fire. Most people have wonderful experiences receiving the holy fire.
It should be noted that if the person has any demons in their life, they cannot stand the holy fire and sometimes manifest themselves, so sometimes there can be demonic manifestations when the holy fire is imparted. Once the demons are cast out of their life, they will experience a wonderful freedom they did not know before.
Other Scriptures:
Now let's continue with more Scriptures about the holy fire.
Fire from on High in My Bones
Jeremiah said, "From on high He sent fire into my bones, And it prevailed over them." (Lam 1:13a). This verse makes it very clear that the Lord is able to send fire into His people, which prevails over their enemies.
Fire will devour Your enemies
Isaiah
said, "O LORD, Your hand is lifted up yet they do not see it. They see
Your zeal for the people and are put to shame; Indeed, fire will devour Your enemies."
(Isa 26:11). So we know that God's holy fire will consume His
enemies. It does not consume His people though. But in warfare
against spiritual forces of wickedness, the holy fire certainly consumes
God's enemies.
Fire consumed the 250 rebels
Fire also came forth from the LORD and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense. (Num 16:35)
The holy fire of God consumed the 250 rebels that came against Moses and Aaron. They are an example to us not to rebel against the Lord.
Fire consumes Sabbath breakers
"But
if you do not listen to Me to keep the sabbath day holy by not carrying
a load and coming in through the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day,
then I will kindle a fire in its gates and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem and not be quenched."'" (Jer 17:27)
The
Lord hates it when His people don’t listen to Him and make money on
Sundays. In doing so, they fail to keep the Sabbath day (now Sundays)
holy. So He will kindle a fire in the gates of their city that will not
be quenched. It’s the judgment of God against the disobedient. You
can read more about keeping Sundays holy at my blog on the topic (see here).
Elijah commanded holy fire to consume the captain and his fifty
Then
the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up
to him, and behold, he was sitting on the top of the hill. And he said
to him, "O man of God, the king says, 'Come down.'" Elijah replied to
the captain of fifty, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty." Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
So he again sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he
said to him, "O man of God, thus says the king, 'Come down quickly.'"
Elijah replied to them, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from
heaven and consume you and your fifty." Then the fire of God came down
from heaven and consumed him and his fifty. (2Ki 1:9-12)
In
this passage, we learn that the holy prophet of God was able to command
holy fire to come down out of heaven and consume the enemies of God,
which in this case were soldiers.
Shouting, "holy fire!"
The
disciples of Jesus knew that Elijah had called down fire on the Lord's
enemies, and they were ready to do the same. When His disciples James
and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them
(even as Elijah did)?" (Luk 9:54). The Lord did not tell them that
this is impossible. He simply told them that they were operating in a
wrong spirit to think they should do such a thing to people.
Yet
this is something we can do to our invisible, spiritual enemies. When
we have genuine faith and desire a weapon against the enemy (demons), we can call for it aloud and it will be given to us. We simply shout “Holy fire!” or "Fire of the Holy Spirit!"
How
is that possible? The word is near you, even in your mouth. I
believed therefore I spoke. When you speak what you believe, and you do
it in genuine faith, there is spiritual power.
Your fire or God’s holy fire
“Who
is among you that fears the LORD, That obeys the Word of His servant,
That walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of
the LORD and rely on his God. Behold, all you who kindle a fire, Who
encircle yourselves with firebrands, Walk in the light of your fire And
among the brands you have set ablaze. This you will have from My hand:
You will lie down in torment.” (Isa 50:10-11)
If
you fear the Lord and obey His Word, you must trust in the name of
Jesus, rely on Him, and walk in His Light. But if you kindle your own
fire and surround yourself with it, then the Lord says to go ahead and
walk in the light of your own fire. He will let you do that, if you
choose your own light, your own fire instead of His holy fire. Here is
what you will receive from His hand: in the end, you will lie down in
torment.
God’s holy fire or strange fire
And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not. (Lev 10:1)
And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD. (Num 26:61)
The
punishment upon these two newly inaugurated priests was very severe.
Their sin was that they offered unauthorized incense with fire that was
not holy. This is why we must be very careful that we receive God's
holy fire and do not operate with strange fire.
Fire to consume gates of Nineveh, the bloody city of lies
Behold, your people are women in your midst! The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies; Fire consumes your gate bars. (Nah 3:13)
This verse speaks of the gates of the city of lies consumed by holy fire. Lying spirits cannot stand before the holy fire of God. They are consumed by it just as the gates of the city of lies were.
Fire to burn and devour God’s enemies
Therefore the Lord, the GOD of hosts, will send a wasting disease among his stout warriors; And under his glory a fire will be kindled like a burning flame. And the light of Israel will become a fire and his Holy One a flame, And it will burn and devour his thorns and his briars in a single day. (Isa 10:16-17).
His holy fire terrifies the sinners in Zion. As the Holy Spirit said through Isaiah: "The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: 'Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?' Those who walk righteously and speak what is right, who reject gain from extortion and keep their hands from accepting bribes, who stop their ears against plots of murder and shut their eyes against contemplating evil..." (Is 33:14-15).
One commentator says, “The same God that is a rejoicing Light to those that serve him faithfully will be a consuming fire to those that trifle with him or rebel against him.” Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning? The righteous who serve Him faithfully.
"Fire goes before Him And burns up His adversaries round about." (Psa 97:3)
God will repay our enemies with flaming fire when Jesus returns
"For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire," (2Th 1:6-7)
We know that when the Lord returns, he will be revealed from heaven with His angels in flaming fire.
Fire from the mouths of the two witnesses
And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. (Rev 11:5)
This is how the two end-time witnesses will function. They will have a gift to be able to devour their enemies with holy fire that comes forth from their mouths. Notice there are only two who will do so against human enemies. But the idea is the same when dealing with evil spirits. This should not seem strange to anyone acquainted with the Word of God and spiritual warfare.
The Lord appeared as a fire
At the burning bush. “The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed.” (Exo 3:2)
The angel of Lord appeared to Moses in a blazing fire. Just as the bush was on fire but was not consumed, when a child of God is baptized with holy fire, they are not consumed. Only the chaff in their lives and the demons are consumed by it.
The Lord's Fire is in Zion
The Holy Spirit spoke through the prophet Isaiah, saying that the Lord is the One "whose fire is in Zion" (see Is 31:9b).
Putting it All Together
The Lord is going to shake this world one last time. He is coming right away. Only the ones who are truly seeking the Lord with all their heart will be spared from the coming judgment. The Lord is coming only for a holy people, ready, without blemish, without wrinkle and without defilement. He is not coming for those who have walked away from Him.
The only way we can have purity in our lives in these last and evil days is through repentance and the holy fire. The third and final baptism with which He’s going to clean up His church is the baptism of fire. He’s going to make us ready to turn loose this world.
It is a holy fire, because it is not produced by man. It is produced by the one, true, holy God. It is a promise for the believer, according to Mt 3:11.
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you
repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible
says?
“Jesus
came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in
the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and
believe.
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as
well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who
multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of
planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United
States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
