Photo by Ron Dicianna

When the refining fire of the Lord inches near us, our first instinct seems to be to shy away from the intensity. I did this for many years. It feels so wrong, until you come to see that it is actually quite right.

It’s not in comfort that growth happens, but in adversity. The fire of God, the chastisement of God, it is very good. It is what increases faith and sets crooked paths straight. Both are expected of children of God. Yet all to often we stop at the Good News of Jesus death in our stead. We stop at hearing of HIS resurrection and don’t fully comprehend that He fully intends to resurrect IN us too. His fire makes a way.

John the Baptist said “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, who’s sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.’ Mat 3:11.

In Revelation 1:14-15  His appearance is said to have eyes likes flames of fire and skin that’s bronze as though it were refined in a furnace. Jesus went through the fire too. The fire brings suffering. It does. Yet what does scripture tell us?

That Jesus learned obedience by the things He suffered (Hebrews 5:8).. And so do we.

We learn to obey Him and not what we feel or think, by these fiery trials. We learn to walk by faith and not sight. There indeed is suffering involved. Putting your will aside by denying instant gratification to your flesh that doesn’t give up the throne of God easily, that the Lords will may have it’s way in us, it’s a deep hard lesson to endure.

After Jesus was baptized in water, he was immediately led by the Holy Spirit, into the wilderness (Matthew 4:1). Here He faced great temptation from Satan. Here He suffered. It’s our lot too. But rejoice! Our lot doesn’t end there. For “just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, He will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.” Rom 8:11 This suffering leads to resurrection.

The wilderness is a real place in the spirit. “God led you all the way these 40 years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.” Deut 8:2.  Canaan is also real, the land of all His promises brought to fruition by a walk of faith. We can actually cross over Jordan with the Lord going before us.

Don’t stop at the blood over the door post. Don’t stop as soon as your foot hits the shores sand after crossing the parted Red Sea. Allow God to make straight the crooked paths so you’re not walking circles around Mt Sanai your whole Christian life. Don’t shy away from the Refiners fire, for just as in Daniel 3:19-25, three men may have been cast into a fiery furnace, yet; “Look! he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God!” His fiery baptism will not hurt you, but will heal you. His fire is how He accomplishes what He was sent to do; heal the broken hearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, opening of the prison to those who are bound, to comfort all who mourn, to make beauty from ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the Spirit of heaviness.

Go on all the way with the Lord. Lose your life that you might find it. So He can turn your fruit of the flesh, into the fruit of the Spirit. So you can operate from the New Man and less and less from the old man and his carnal tendencies.