The Fire of the Spirit

Because of the intense desert heat, some bushes probably burst into flames, but this bush burned and was not consumed. Something worth checking out.

I was recently reading II Corinthians 2:19-22 in the NLT. Jesus is “the divine Yes!” to us, and “that is why we say, ‘Amen!'” God has “placed the Holy Spirit within our hearts as the first installment of everything He will give us.” I thought about the summer of 1977, when I said, “Amen!” to God’s “Yes!”

Shortly thereafter, I found myself full of the Holy Spirit. I said to God, “If this is what Heaven is like, you can take me now!” God replied, “Not yet, I have important things for you to do. This is just a foretaste.” Or we might say, “My experience with the Spirit is just a glimpse of the awesome glory of God.” Hard to describe it, but I can say that the fire of the Spirit is to the soul what God’s presence was to the burning bush that Moses saw. It was ablaze but was not destroyed.

Moses Gets a Glimpse

“He lives in unapproachable light.”

“Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The Lord,  the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving kindness and truth.”  Exodus 34:6

No man can see God and live. Moses got as much of a glimpse of God as God thought he could handle. He got a glimpse of His backside as He passed by  proclaiming who He is.  He is the Lord God The Master‑Creator, the Eternal “I am”.  He says, “I am compassionate. I am gracious. I am slow to anger. I am abounding in loving kindness and truth.” This is an authoritative description of God given by God Himself. These are “major qualities” in His character.

According to God, it takes a long time to bring Him to anger, but we seem to do a good  job of it because we are so persistent.  When God is angry with humanity, humanity deserves whatever He sends. On the other hand, He describes Himself as patient, compassionate, loving, and kind.  If these did not predominate in His character, we would be in some serious trouble. Thank God, “Mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13).

Who is like You, O Lord?

God will make a way where there seems to be no way.

The children of Israel saw a big problem: They  were “between the devil and the deep blue sea,” in this case, the Red Sea. Before them was a huge expanse of water, and they had no ships (no Noah’s ark here). Behind them were Pharaoh’s chariots in fast pursuit. For some, it was time to cry; for others, a time to complain; for still others, a time to call on the only true God. Moses trusted Yahweh, but let’s face it, if God did not act swiftly, he would be stoned, and Israel  would be lost. Uh, no pressure…

But God came through in a big way, as He always does, reminding us that there is no one like our God. There is only one true God, and we can trust Him. There is none higher than our Sovereign Lord, and He towers over all. He is awesome, holy, and majestic, a miracle-working God.  All other “gods,” like those funky Egyptian gods, are impotent, inferior, and unimpressive. On the other side of redemption, Moses sings: “Who is like The among the gods, O Lord?  Who is like Thee, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders?”  Exodus 15:11.

Delivered from the most powerful army in the known world, without weapons.

“Hey, God, what’s Your Name?” “I am.”

Charlton Heston will always be Moses to me.

“And God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM;’ and He said, “This you  shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.'” Exodus 3:14

God is.  This would seem to be an incomplete sentence.  “AM” is a link verb.  Normally it links two concepts together for identification and description. When someone asks me, “Who are you?”  I answer, “I am Michael  Thomas,” or “I am a Christian,” or “I am a professor.” Only God knows how many Michaels there are in the world, and how many Christians,  and how many professors.  I need to “complete the blank”:  I am  {Who?}. Distinguishing me from billions of other like human beings requires a considerable amount of information.

God simply is.  Here, He is not saying His name, but rather He is showing Moses and us that He has no name, at least not as human beings have them.  He is.  No one named Him.  He needs no name.  He cannot be confused with anyone else.  He is the only Person Who can say, “I AM THAT I AM.” This means that He is the self-existent One, the eternal One, and the only Uncreated One.

Although God has no need of a name, He has graciously given us a name that is above every other name, the name of Jesus, (lit. “Jehovah is salvation”).  The name is for our benefit, not for His.  This name did not change His nature or any aspect of His Person but became an emblem of His saving grace.