Dear sister,
In the Christian faith the symbol for the Holy Spirit, which is imparted to the believer as a guarantee of their inheritance, is a flame. This is so because the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection was when God poured out His Spirit on the believers in Jerusalem (Acts 2). As the Scriptures tell us; “When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit …”.
Jesus had promised the disciples who followed him that when He returned to His Father in heaven that a helper (paraclete), would come. (John 17) This helper, who would lead them into God’s Truth, is the third person of the Trinity. He would sanctify God’s people while on earth, so that when, in God’s appointed time, they were received into heaven they would be just like Jesus (2 Cor. 3:12). The sanctifying process by way of God’s Spirit is meant to make us holy in two ways. First, holy as in the sense of setting us apart from the rest of the world. Second, holy as in the sense of purifying us.
Basically, God’s plan in saving us is to change us, and God being God, the Creator and Sustainer of all things, has decided that this process is the best means to that end. Very much like the flame of a fire, our sanctification can involve a lot of heat. I like to call it a Holy Heat. As with most heat though, depending on the situation, it can make us extremely uncomfortable. As I write to you, the country I live in is recovering from a deadly heat wave which swept across much of the central to northeastern United States. Temperature wise, things seemed upside down. The upper region of the country was hotter than the lower region. Of course, it is summer right? Some of this is to be expected at this time of year no matter where you live in the States. I live in Florida which is famously known for its unbearable heat. It’s furnace like intensity can literally wear you out, especially if there is not an air- conditioned space to retreat to. There is no mystery to Florida’s heat. Those of us who live here know to brace ourselves come mid- April and to hang on until mid -November.
However, there is mystery involved with Holy Heat. I call it that because it is often unexplainable and also many times we cannot see where the heat is coming from until we are completely in it. It is as though we have walked into a furnace that had no caution signs alerting us to it when we entered in. Other times we enter into a furnace (situation) knowingly, yet we expect to feel no heat at all. It seems strange doesn’t it, but we humans are really good at rationalizing. In fact, we have been perfecting it since the Garden of Eden. Nonetheless, God in His infinite wisdom knows everything. He knows the motives of our hearts, He knows the facts surrounding the time and place we will walk into our personal furnace. He knows what will happen in the furnace and what we will be when we walk out of that furnace. He knows all the same things for those who are in our lives and how it will affect them. There are times in our sanctification where we might cry out to God in the midst of a personal furnace, “Why Lord? This heat is too much to bear! I can’t do this!”
The beautiful Truth which permeates all of this is that God is Holy, and His holiness and goodness are intricately intertwined (Romans 8:28-29). It may be difficult to see at the time, but God’s goodness is always, always, yes, always involved with our personal furnaces. His goodness and mercy direct the temperature so that it does not consume us, but it preserves us while melting away the dross (garbage) from our souls. Yet, God does not stop there! Holy Heat is meant to refine us and then revive us. Meaning, the end result is refreshment for our souls. Looking back at some of my personal furnaces I am able to see that it was the only way to refine my soul! And that my dear sister is like a refreshing splash of cool water on my red- hot face.
What does your personal furnace look like? When did you notice the temperature rising? Are you looking for God in the midst of the flames or are you just looking for a way out? What dross is God’s Holy Heat melting away? The temptation is to look away or run away from the source of heat. Sweet sister in Christ, don’t do it! Fix your eyes on Him who is the perfecter of your faith. Like the flaming tongues to the first converts of the Christian church were, look at the flame with its Holy Heat as a gift from above with a purpose. When you are delivered from your furnace pause, and be thankful to God who cares for you and directs His goodness and mercy to follow you all the days of your life (Psalm 23:6). Be refreshed by this truth!
Refined by His Holy Heat and Refreshed by His Good Pleasure,
Susan