BYM ONLINE DESK January 2017 | Page 10

CONSUMING FIRE
EsmeRobina R .
Fire has been there from the beginning of civilization … ( Boring history Class ) No , no , no wait , I ' m arriving at my point . I ' m talking about an army . ( Not Interesting ). Wait … what about “ Fire Army ”. Curious ? ( Hmm ) Okey-dokey . Here we go then .
Believe it or not we have a fire army about us . You must think I ' m crazy , but yes , we do . “ How ?”, you ask . The word of the Lord says , “ Our God is a consuming fire ” ( Heb 12 : 29 ). In this context it hints on the fact that we should Revere God . In Revelation , John says about his vision of Christ that His eyes were like ' flame of fire ' ( Rev 1 : 14 ). Moses met God in a Burning bush ( which did not literally burn ). Daniel ' s friends walked in fire and when they came out all stood in marvel at how not a single hair of them was singed . Cool ! Well , I could go on . Remember how the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples as tongues of fire . It looks like fire is as indispensible as water . I guess God ' s army is consumed by fire to shine upon the dark lanes and make it shimmer . So , as I was kind of trying to discern the fire , I came across these three things . Go over .
The Wonderful Fire
Seriously , how can fire be wonderful ? It destroys stuffs . How do you know ? What about the fact that it gives light in the dark and keeps one warm in winter ? Not to mention the delicious food we cook .
Okay , so do you know the prophet Elijah ? He did not die but was magically taken into Heaven by a chariot of fire . ( 2 Kin 2 : 11-12 ). Like awesome , huh ? And do you know that the Israelites were led in the desert at night by a pillar of fire . “ By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light , so that they could travel by day or night ” ( Exo 13 : 21 ). Like this , many marvellous things has occurred .
Check out 2 Kings 6 : 8-23 . It is about the story of Elisha and the Syrians . The King of Syria was at war with the Israelites and he wanted to invade their land but Elisha , the prophet warned the King of Israel to be careful of such places where the Syrians camped . Furious , the Syrian king , sent an army against Elisha . Elisha ' s servant shuddered with fear but Elisha said , “ Those who are with us are more than those who are with them .” Then Elisha prayed and the eyes of the servant were opened and he saw an army full of horses and chariots of fire . Super cool , na ? God ' s army is powerful and matchless against any army in this world . So be not afraid , when trouble comes your way , just know that the Fire Army is with you …
The Winning Fire
If you feel that the world ' s burdens are pushing you to the ground , don ' t give up , cause the triumphant fire is with you .
Now Israel was without rain and there was a great famine there and the King of Israel blamed Elijah , the prophet , for this . He presented before the King in the third year and on Mount Carmel , a great contest was put up by Elijah . There were four hundred and fifty prophets of baal , while Elijah was only one prophet of the most High God . Two altars were prepared but it was not set on fire . Elijah

youth page

| PAGE 10 |