Fire – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl
Good morning! We had a great time last night. Most went on the hayride, a few went through the corn maze, but I was content to sit on a bale of hay with Camille. It was very relaxing. We were just sitting there talking, and watching the fire. It’s really beautiful to look at, the warm glow, and the sparks flying upward into the night. And the fire was nice too. Fire gives us light to see. Fire gives us heat to keep us warm in the cold night air. Do you know what else fire is good for? COOKING! I keep looking in the flea markets for an inexpensive cast-iron pot. I want to try making a batch of chili, cooked in an open fire. Chili cooked in an open fire is supposed to taste very good. Anything cooked by an open fire is good. Toasted marshmallows, hot dogs, and S’mores. There are many good uses for fire. And as with any good uses there are also many bad uses.
Smokers who smoke while they drive. They take their finished cigarette, and flip it out the window. The sparks fly as it bounces to the edge of the road still burning. The next thing you know, millions of acres are destroyed across America.
A cow had knocking over a lantern was blamed for the Great Chicago Fire.
300 people died, and 100,000 were left homeless.
Christians, who would not deny Jesus as their Saviour, were chained to a stake and burned alive by unbelievers.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, tried to burn three Hebrew men in a firey furnace because they would not bow down to the golden idol he had set up. He even made the fire as hot as he could get it. The flames of that furnace were so hot, that it killed the men who were going to throw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the flames. But Jesus was looking out for His 3 children here. Daniel chapter 3 says: “And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.” (Daniel 3:23-27)
Whenever you are around fire, your clothes are going to smell like smoke. The clothes that the 3 Hebrew men were wearing did not smell like smoke. Jesus protected them 100%.
I mentioned earlier, the Great Chicago Fire in which 300 people died. How many of those 300 are still burning today, because they did not have the protection of Jesus? The fire started around 9 PM on Sunday, October 8th, 1871. D. L. Moody had finished preaching for the day. There was one thing he forgot to do at the end of his service. It was something he would always regret, and he would never neglect to do it in any of his future services. What did he not do?
He did not give the people an invitation to receive Jesus as Saviour.
How many of those 300 were at his church service that night and did not hear the Gospel? How many of those 300 died in the flames, only to open their eyes in the flames of hell? We are not guaranteed tomorrow. Our end here on earth could come tonight. Our only hope for protection from the fire is the Lord Jesus Christ.
2000 years ago, He left His home in heaven and came to earth.
2000 years ago, He shed His blood to pay for our sins: the sins of the world.
2000 years ago, He was buried then 3 days later He rose from the dead, proving that He was who He said He was: God the Son.
John the Baptist had introduced Jesus as the Lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the world. It doesn’t matter what you have done, the shed blood of Jesus cleanses us from from all sin. Ever tell a lie? It doesn’t matter if it was a big lie, or a little white lie. If it isn’t the truth, then it’s a lie. Jesus said, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8)
Twice in Ezekiel chapter 18, God warns: the soul that sinneth, it shall die. The Bible also tells us that there is none righteous, no not one, and for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We are all sinners: we have all done wrong. And the wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Just be honest with God. He already knows what sins you have committed yesterday, and today. He also already knows what sins you will commit tomorrow. Be honest with Him, and tell Him you have done wrong. Ask Him to forgive you and He will. The Bible also says for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. You can survive the fire and come out smelling smoke-free as Sadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did.
Peace! (John 6:37-40)
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