“Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”-Acts 2:47
A fire,
like a church, starts with a match or small spark. Then you add some kindling for it to catch, followed
by some fuel logs, and it soon grows into a bright burning blaze. This catches the eye, but the heart of the
fire has yet to fully develop, because the wood has not been consumed.
Last
week while observing the fire in my fireplace it came to me that in many ways a
fire is like a church. The needs of a fire
are simple: fuel, air, ignition. Yet, in the beginning stages a fire is vulnerable
and easily influenced. However, once the
wood catches and it goes up in a blaze (dramatic as it may be), the longevity
of the fire is still not ensured, because the heart of the fire has not been
formed. The hot coals are not there yet. The whole of logs and their purpose is to be
consumed. Once consumed the wood will
fall to the ground to form a bed of hot coals.
This is the heart of a fire. That
hot bed of coals that are at the base of the fire is almost indistinguishable in
the sense that you cannot tell if they are fire or wood. It is a perfect union of the two. This is holiness, this is God’s plan for the
people of God, and His church. You that
are in perfect union with Christ are at the heart of the church because you are
at the heart of God. A hot bed of coals can
convert into fire the wettest or greenest wood you lay to it. The coldest heart, and the most burdened soul
can come in amongst the church and feel the burning love of God, and/or conviction
of sin. You can pour water over a bed of
coals, and by simply turning it over and breathing a fresh wind, the coals will
ignite. No amount of doubt or deception will prevail upon holiness of heart and
life. The fire burns too deep and can
withstand the downpour of Satan’s might.
You can’t hardly kill a fire with a big bed of coals, because they are
steadily burning, with a fervent heat.
That heat is strong enough to ignite the coldest timber you can
add. The coals sit at the bottom of the
fire, burning in obscurity. They don’t draw
the attention of the outsider but work to set new members ablaze. It is not them per say but the fire that they
have become, set ablaze by God, and burning for the Lord. Their desire is not to garner all the
attention, but to grow the fire! To
convert the sinner! So is their
purpose.
The Lords
adds to the church when the church is prepared to receive. A young or underdeveloped fire cannot convert
green, wet, or cold wood. It will only become
overburdened and return to a cold, lifeless state. The Lord added to a church that is set to the
heart of Himself. This is vital, so that
new members so added are set ablaze. For
no other reasons than they need to be consumed and find refuge at the heart of
the fire. The whole of the church
consumed in love for God and taking refuge in holiness.
