Introduction
I imagine that it was on a beautiful fall day that Solomon and the people of Israel came together to dedicate the temple. They had worked long and hard to build a permanent and magnificent structure to house the Ark of the Covenant. Finally, the day had arrived for the temple dedication. The people gathered and Solomon prayed. "When Solomon finished praying fire descended from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple" (2 Chron. 7:1).
I don't know about him, but if I were in his shoes, this would have been an unforgettable experience. I would have been his "foxhole" experience. I understand that in war when the bullets are flying and the bombs are exploding all around and a soldier feels that any breath will be the last, there are no atheists. Everyone gets right with God. If Solomon wasn't right with God before this manifestation of God, he would have been afterwards.
It boggles my mind at the thought of fire falling and filling a place. In my wildest dreams I cannot imagine the result of God igniting a place. I do know that I would be shaking in my boots and doing everything in my power to get right with God.
This encounter teaches us what happens when a person gets right with God.
I. When a person get rights with God
A. The purifying fire of God's presence makes them holy like God
God has always used fire to identifying his presence and purify his people. To Moses, God spoke through a burning bush, saying the place you are standing is holy ground. To Elijah, God consumed the altar with fire from heaven, proclaiming, among other things, that this was a holy man. To the first few believers in Jerusalem, God visited them in a violent blowing wind and tongues of fire, announcing that these were a holy people. To Solomon and the worshipers at the Temple, God came as a fire from heaven consuming the temple, stating that this was a holy place.
People who are right with God are separated from the world. They are holy. Jesus prayed that all his followers would be separated from the world, "I am not praying that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. I sanctify Myself for them, so they also may be sanctified by the truth" (John 17:15-19). Jesus used the word sanctify three times. It means to set apart for sacred use or make holy. Remember what Peter wrote, "but, as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy" (1 Peter1:15-16).
A person who is right with God is a holy person. They have separated themselves from the world. They have distanced themselves from sin. They have detached themselves from evil. It shows up in how they live, how they talk, and how they think.
A law of physics states that two object can't occupy the same space. That is true regarding our hearts. God and sin can't occupy the same space. A person who is right with God has confessed their sin so that only God resides in their heart.
Are you holy? Are you separated from the world? Have you distanced yourself from sin?
B. The consuming fire of God compels them to worship God
Notice what the people of Israel did. "All the Israelites were watching when the fire descended and the glory of the LORD came on the temple. They bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement. They worshiped and praised the LORD: For He is good, for His faithful love endures forever" (2 Chron. 7:3). Worship is a response to God's presence, his all-consuming holiness, and his glory. Worship is expressing our love to God for who he is, what he's said, and what he's doing. In genuine worship the warmth of God's presence is felt, the cleansing of God's pardon is offered, the burning of God's purposes are revealed, and the flame of God's power is displayed.
People who are right with God have fallen in love with the God of the universe meet him in his consuming glory. They long to meet God in worship. They know that worship does not lead to an encounter with God; it is an encounter with God.
Do you long to encounter God in worship? Does your heart seek to respond to God's glory, greatness, and goodness?
C. The spreading fire of God leads them to witness of God
The nature of fire is to purify and to consume. Its nature is also to spread. God not only wants his presence to consume us resulting in our worship; he also wants his fire to spread into the hearts of others. An intimate connection exists between worship and witnessing. The goal of our witnessing produces worshipers of God. And at the same time, worship provides the motivation for witnessing. Worship produces a desire in us to tell others about Christ.
God said to Solomon, "and [If] My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land" (2 Chron. 7:14). If is the biggest two-letter word in the English language. The destiny of persons, families, and nations hinges on that one little word. This statement was a word from God to Solomon following the temple dedication ceremony. The temple symbolized commitment to worship and partnership with God. If suggests responsibility on the hearer's part. God was saying to Solomon, "You are the man to carry my flame into the world." And, to the nation of Israel, "You are the people. The responsibility of proclaiming my forgiveness and healing is yours."
The responsibility for spreading the flame of God's forgiveness and healing rests squarely on the hearer's shoulders. Just as God was saying to Solomon you are the man, he is saying to you and me, "You are the man! You are the woman!" Just as God was saying to the people of Israel you are the people, he is saying to every Christian Church, "You are the people." When the fire falls on us we are compelled to burn for others. If the fire would fall on others, our hearts have to burn.
When one is right with God they can't help but tell others about the glory, greatness, and goodness of God. Witness of God is a natural outgrowth of one who is in love with God.
We used to speak of those Christ-followers passionate about sharing their faith as being on fire. Could it be that we don't say that phrase today because so few are on fire? Are you on fire for God? A person right with God has a passion for God and compassion for others. They tell others about him.
Let's conduct a spiritual audit. Are you separated from the world? Are you responding to God in worship? Are you a faithful witness for Christ?
II. What will it take for us to be set on fire?
What will it take for us to be set on fire? Fire cannot be ignited when it is in an environment that is hostile to combustion. We, to be on fire, must be composed of combustible material. We must find a way to create a kind of spiritual reaction that creates both heat and light. And that way is no secret. God gives us the formula for starting a fire in our hearts. Actually it is as simple as striking a match and lighting a pile of dried cornhusks. The way for God to get a grip on us is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14. If . . . humble themselves . . . pray . . . seek my face. . turn from their evil ways . . . .
A. Take personal responsibility
If shows our responsibility. Getting right with God is your responsibility. It is not the pastor's responsibility, your deacon's responsibility, your parent's responsibility, your Sunday school teacher's responsibility. It is your responsibility.
B. Humble yourself before God
Humble themselves is a statement of position. Last week we talked about Jacob humbling himself to be reconciled with his brother Esau. That same position is needed in reconciling our relationship with God. When we humble ourselves we bend low; we prostrate; we fall to the ground. Jacob fell on the ground seven times before he met his brother. It is worth remembering the root of the words humiliation and humility is humus, meaning dirt or soil. We meet God on our knees. Like two sides of the same coin, a humble person not only sees himself or herself as they are - lowly and desperate; they see God as he really is - majestic, sovereign, omnipotent, and gracious. We see a God who, too, humbled himself on a cross, so that he could be in relationship with us.
C. Spend time with God
Pray indicates a relationship between the Creator and us, the created. It is hard to get right with God if you aren't spending time with God. Statistics reveal that most evangelical Christians spend less than ten minutes a day in prayer and Bible reading. How can we be right with God if we aren't in conversation with God?
D. Long for God's presence
Seek my face shows the intent of our desire to be with God. Notice, it does not say "seek my hand." Too often we seek God's hand - what he can do for us; rather than seek God's face - who he is. If you want to get right with God, don't just seek what God can do for you, seek God. Peter Lord said, "If we only seek God for what he can do for us, rather than seeking him for him, we are spiritual idolaters."
E. Walk toward God
Turn from their evil ways shows the direction of our walk - toward God. The theological word for turning from our wicked, sinful, unholy lifestyle and walking toward God is repentance. Repentance means to turn around. It is to say I'm going in the wrong direction; I need to turn from my wicked way. The practical word repent is useful to describe a moral and spiritual act of getting right with God. Repentance does not mean to feel sorry, or to cry over, or to blame someone else for the wrongs in one's life. Repentance is the act of changing the direction in which the heart is inclined. It is a spiritual "about-face." It is a change of mind that calls for a change of way. The Greek word for repentance metanoeo means "to change one's mind; to think differently; to turn one's heart away from sin and toward God." Repentance is an act of the will. A volitional choice on our part to turn around.
Conclusion
Those are the steps that it will take to get right with God. Are you ready and willing to take those steps?
One of the saddest scenes is the burning embers of churches that have been burnt to the ground. What if we saw similar headlines, "Church on Fire," because it members demonstrated a purity of holiness, an intensity in worship, and a passion for witness? Wouldn't it be awe-inspiring if the fire of God's presence fell on people in extraordinary measure? Wouldn't it be attractive if our churches caught on fire spreading God's message to their communities and beyond?
You know what would happen, don't you? People would come and watch us burn.
As a young boy in that small Alabama town, I remember hearing the fire siren atop the town's water tower. I would wait for the sound of the fire truck seeing which direction it would speed off toward a blaze. And, then something interesting would happen. A parade of cars would follow in hot pursuit of the fire truck, some to help the volunteers, but most to watch the fire.
Church buildings will not attract many people, but fire in the hearts of holy people who worship and witness in them will. Christians who carry large Bibles will not attract many people, but people who are right with God will.
Is your heart aglow? Are you on fire? What steps do you need to take to get right with God?