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His breath kindles
coals, And a flame goes out of his mouth. Job 41:21
During your life’s journey, you might experience your spiritual fire going
out. Things are not exciting as they use to be. Church services are
dry and not moving. The real test is the condition of your spiritual
flame.
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 being" (Genesis
2:6-7, NKJV)
God holds the title of being the Alpha and Omega. All the elements of
the universe are present in His breath. But above all we know for
sure that oxygen must have been one of the most important components of
this breath. Oxygen appears to be the giver of life. It is an
explosive element, spontaneous, volatile and unstable. It is never
stationary. It penetrates everything.
Here is a little school lesson!
Oxygen enhances life. It generates heat and promotes growth.
Oxygen fosters radiant health. With high oxygen intake, the arteries
become elastic, the heart is active and agile, the pulse grows stronger,
the skin is healthy and the mind is extraordinarily positive. Fire is
a chemical process. Three things are needed for this process: oxygen,
heat and fuel. Without one of these elements a fire cannot start or
continue. So we need to have three things in our life to keep our
spiritual flames burning bright:
1. Oxygen
(The infilling of the spirit) One of the things that you learn early
on in campfires is that when a fire is going out – You need to blow on the
coals. What our generation needs is for God to breath on us to revive
our spiritual fire! In Acts 2 tells a story about the upper room
infilling experience. “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven,
as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting.” The mighty wind was the breath of God. Let’s clear up
a few things - Number one = Being filled with the Spirit is not the same as
being indwelled by the Spirit. Why? Because every believer
receives the indwelled by the Spirit from the moment of his conversion. We
are commanded in Ephesians to be filled with the Spirit!!. This
literally means “being kept filled by the Spirit”. Every day
though the process of life’s events we lose spiritual oxygen. God and
God alone is the only one who can provide the spiritual oxygen we so
desperately need. You can’t get it from your pastor, spouse, family,
and friends, - It only comes from God!
2. Heat
(His ongoing presence in your life). When God created the man
and women, one reason was to have continual fellowship with them. God
is a gentlemen and he only resides were He is welcomed. People
decided to kick God out of our schools, courtrooms, and our government
foundation and look at what is happening! To keep your spiritual fire
burning – Keep the warmth of His presence near you. This second
element of fire is important. It is my choice on how powerful my
flame will be. If I chose to live my life at a distance from His
presence and serve Him when it’s covenant – My spiritual flame will not be
strong. Are you taking or giving ground? Ephesians 4:27 "Nor
give place to the devil."
Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. Romans 15:17
- If I’m serving him – I now I’m close to Him
3. Fuel
(The written word of God) Nothing can operate without fuel:
1. Humans need food
2. Vegetation needs sunlight
3. Automobiles need gas or electricity.
Proverbs 4 "My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to
my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in
the midst of your heart; For they are life (Or fuel) to those who
find them, And health to all their flesh."
Just as a gas station – the gas station does not come to us – But we must
go to the station! When was the last time, you went to God’s filling
station? As I said earlier “ being kept filled by the Spirit”
You were never designed to run on empty. Eph 3:19 "To know the love
of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the
fullness of God. "
Your spiritual engine can only run on the words found in the bible and on
nothing else!
II Timothy 3:16 "Every Scripture is God-breathed (given by His
inspiration) and profitable for instruction. If God breathed these
scriptures then they are true, alive, and eternal!
Pastor Richard Reed
http://www.sermoncentral.com/contributors/richard-reid-sermons-13742.asp
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