It only takes one, it only takes you!

2 Timothy 1:6-7 (NIV), "For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline." We all know the qualities of fire. We know that fire is bright, it's contagious, it destroys, and that it burns until it's source is exhausted, whether it be oxygen or material, or until it's extinguished. Paul is telling Timothy, and really all of us who are filled by the Holy Spirit of God, to "fan into flame the gift of God." Our lives as Christians should resemble a bright, burning fire at all times.
Have you ever lit a fire only to find that the fire isn't bright? Of course not, fire is bright! So how do we shine like a fire for the Lord? Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:14-16 that we are the light of the world! Have you ever lit a lamp, or turned on a light just to cover it? Of course not! Lights shine to dispel darkness! Darkness is even defined as the absence of light. When we live our lives so others see Christ through us, the forces of darkness have no choice but to flee! So how do we shine for Christ? Well Jesus answers that in Matthew 5:14-16 and Luke 12:35-48. In both passages the Lord says that by our good works (Matthew 5:16; Luke 12:35, 43) will we shine for Him. So if you feel overwhelmed by darkness lately, step out and do a good deed for someone in the name of the Lord Jesus. As your light begins to shine brighter and brighter, the darkness will get farther and farther away.
Have you ever noticed how when you light a fire it consumes all materials that it touches? For instance, if you set a fire on the floor in a building, that building will burn down right? So how do we become as contagious as fire? We follow the example the early church set out in Acts. Talk about a group of Christians that were contagious. How do I know they were contagious? Look at the statistics, they don't lie. When Jesus ascended to Heaven there were about 120 in the "church". We find that in Acts chapter 1. Well in Acts 2 we see the church becoming contagious for Christ. Thousands upon thousands believe in Christ and as a result, in roughly 30 years, from 30 A.D. to 60 A.D. the church grows from just over 100 believers to well into the thousands, maybe even eclipsing a million. All we know for certain is, the church in 30 A.D. was just a handful of people in Jerusalem, but by the time Acts comes to a close around 60 A.D. the church has spread to Africa and Europe, and even the Roman Emperor himself has heard about this new religious movement, known as Christianity. The church in Acts was a church led by and filled with the Holy Spirit. Everything they did was directed and controlled by the Holy Spirit of God. They were united, they shared the same doctrine, they prayed, they hung out with each other (Acts 2:41-47, 4:32-35) How can we ever expect unbelievers to want what we have as Christians if we are always gossiping about each other? Stabbing each other in the back when the opportunity arises? Instead of being jealous when God exalts a brother or sister, let us praise Him for lifting them up and seek to assist them in their work. We are all commanded and exhorted to do everything in the spirit of love (John 13:34; Romans 12:10; 1 Corinthians 16:14) Go out of your way today to tell someone you love them and mean it.

Not only tell them, show them because words without actions are just empty promises (1 John 3:18)
Have you ever seen a piece of wood after it had been lit on fire? It is destroyed, good for nothing but ashes. Well we as Christians should allow the fire God placed within us to destroy the deeds of our flesh. As we see in Galatians 5:16-25, as we walk by the Spirit we will cease to live in the flesh. Our former life and it's desires are crucified with Christ and we no longer will resemble what we used to be. Instead God recreates you in His image and you are born again. That is really all that term means anyway. You come to Christ in repentance and belief, you nail your old life to the cross and allow God to give you new life through His Son. 2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 2:20, 5:24 As a result of this new birth, you have destroyed your flesh and should never again live or walk according to its desire.
Have you ever noticed how hot a fire burns? Hopefully you've never experienced a fire on your bare flesh, but we all know that fire will burn you. The saying, If you play with fire you're going to get burned, is very true. If you have been burnt by fire, you know it leaves a mark on your skin to remind you of the damage done and pain inflicted. Well as Christians we need to burn so brightly for Jesus that we leave a mark on our society! In Acts 17:6, we see that the early church had left such a mark on the community they had the reputation for being world changers! What did those people say about Paul and his companions? These men who have turned the world upside down! Wow, what a tremendous thing to be said about a person or group. Have you been known as someone who turns your world upside down? Or has your church been known as a church that has turned it's world upside for Christ? As you continue in the basics of the Christian faith: Bible study (Joshua 1:8; Hosea 4:6, 6:3, 6; 2 Timothy 2:15) Prayer (1 Samuel 12:23; Matthew 6:5-15; Luke 18:1-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17) Good works (Matthew 5:16, 6:1-4; 1 Timothy 6:18; Titus 3:14; James 2:14-26) Fasting (Isaiah 58; Matthew 6:16-18, 9:14-17) Worship Attendance (Hebrews 10:25) You will begin to see others around you impacted, and very surely your fire will burn into the hearts of those around you and you will then be able to say, you flipped your world upside for Christ.
But, we must be careful in how we handle our fire. We all know that if dinner catches fire on the stove, we put a lid over the pot to put the fire out. Or you can grab a fire extinguisher. Well we can as Christians extinguish our fire, or put it out deliberately as well. Also, fire will die out if it is not continually fed.
So how does someone put out, or extinguish their fire? Well quite simply by rejecting the call and/or commands of God. Paul warns us all in Ephesians 4:30, not to grieve the Holy Spirit. Are there examples of this in scripture? I believe there is. King Saul was the man chosen as the first king of Israel. He was filled with the Holy Spirit, but repeatedly chose to do what he felt was best instead of what God had commanded of him. As a result, in 1 Samuel 16:14 we see that the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul. So disobedience is one way for the Spirit of God to be grieved. *One thing to note about this though is that King Saul didn't just disobey one time. He had a habit of disobeying God's commands. So do not think that one act of disobedience will constitute a punishment like what Saul received.* Sin is also a way to grieve the Holy Spirit. We see this through King David. We know that King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, then to cover up his sin he had Uriah killed. Well if you read David's prayer of repentance (Psalm 51, noting v11) David prays that God would not take His Holy Spirit from him. Also Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5, sinned against God by lying to Him about the money they had received from selling their possessions. So we see from scripture 2 ways of grieving, or upsetting, the Holy Spirit are continual disobedience and sinning.
In addition to extinguishing your fire, you can let your fire die out. How? Well simply by not continuing in the basics of the Christian faith as noted above: Prayer, Fasting, Good deeds, Bible study, and Worship Attendance. How do I know this? Well I'll use myself as an example. When I was weaker in my faith (although I'm not strong by any means) anytime I would miss one church service, for whatever reason, it was always easier to make an excuse to miss the next. Before I knew it, 1 missed service turned into 2, then 2 turned into 4, etc. When I miss reading my Bible and study time, it's so easy for me to come up with reasons to miss it again, same thing with prayer, with fasting and ministering/doing good deeds for others. All of these things if you miss once can be used by Satan to become a habitual problem. So over time, my once sharp axe of faith has now turned into a dull butter knife. I hope you understand where I'm going with this. All of us need a recharge. We are all commanded in Ephesians 5:18 to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Be filled meaning to be continually filled. I can not expect a one time encounter/Baptism/filling in the Holy Spirit to linger and be enough for me to be victorious in my Christian walk. I need to constantly build on the foundations of my faith to become stronger. Just like the athlete who trains daily in all aspects of his sport to become better, I must work on my faith and be in my faith daily in order to stay sharp and effective in the Lord's service. And so must we all.
What is the conclusion of all of this? Well as the theme of this blog is fire, I want to ask a question. How many matches does it take to start a fire? Well it could take many, but it can be done with one. So just as one match can start a fire that can burn down any structure or field and leave a noticeable impact on the landscape, so too does it only one Christian to start a revival where the LORD God Almighty is honored, praised, and worshiped as the Lord and Savior, as He so rightly deserves. You can be that one that the Lord uses to start His next great revival with, if you allow Him too, because it only takes one match to start a fire!