HEAVEN'S FIRE

God often acts in the context of faithfulness.  Historically, 70 million faithful Christians have been martyred since the time of Christ.  Well over half of those were killed in the 20th century alone, over 20 million in Soviet prison camps.  Down through history the blood of faithful martyrs was spilt. Early church father, Tertullian, is known to say “The blood of martyrs is the seed of the church.”  The same is true today.  Where the church is persecuted, it grows. God acts in the context of that faithfulness. 

Nearly every major revival and mission movement in the past two hundred years in North America began on college campuses and was preceded by a season of student prayer.  Faithful young people who have a vision for revival often occasion this.  This was true in the First and Second Great Awakenings and more recently in the Asbury revival of 1970 and Wheaton revival of 1995.  Where followers of Jesus Christ are faithful in prayer, the reading of scripture, and other means of grace, God acts in the context of that faithfulness.

God strikes a fire in hearts of the faithful.  Those hearts come together to listen to the whisper of God in the reading a scripture and to pray for the outpouring of God’s Spirit upon the people.  Out of the embers of the faithfulness of a relatively few comes heaven's blazing fire of the Holy Spirit.  The songwriter captures this impulse of the faithful heart when he writes,

Make me a blazing fire where’er I go,

That to a dying world Thee may I show

How Thou hast bled and died

That none may be denied,

But in Thy bleeding side

A refuge find.

(Anon)

It is not uncommon that such a blazing fire takes time to build and burn, and to rise in temperature.  In the meanwhile faithfulness can lead to suffering, ridicule and discrimination, persecution and death.  Faithfulness is not merely a matter of perseverance in prayer alone.  It may also occasion rebuke, disparagement, abuse and martyrdom.  Nevertheless, the faithful carry on.  The same songwriter speaks to this as well,

So shall my moments flow

In praising Thee,

For thou hast never failed

To strengthen me.

Filled with the Holy Ghost,

Saved to the Uttermost,

In Christ alone I’ll boast

And forward go.

(SASB #521)

John Fletcher (1729-1875), a close friend and co-laborer with John Wesley, understood how the Holy Spirit works in the context of faithfulness when he wrote,

An eager attention to the doctrines of the Holy Spirit made me in some degree overlook the medium by which that Spirit works; I mean the word of truth, by which that heavenly fire warms us. I rather expected lightening, than a steady fire by means of fuel.

We might think that God strikes revival with his Holy Spirit like lightning strikes the rod on a farmer’s barn.  BAMMM!  History says otherwise.  God more often waits for a faithful remnant to catch the vision of heaven's fire, to bring the God-given vision back to God in prayer, in prayers of petition and supplication with thanksgiving and praise.  God has his timing. His prevenient grace is at work in the hearts of those who respond to the fire of revival and renewal.

Wanted, hearts baptized with fire,

Hearts completely cleansed from sin,

Hearts that will go to the mire,

Hearts that dare to aught for him,

Hearts that will be firmer, braver,

Hearts like heroes gone before,

Hearts enjoying God’s full favor,

Hearts to love him more and more.

John Lawley (1859-1922) SASB 3704