“The Burning Bush”
Christ appeared unto God’s chosen many times before taking on the form of a natural man. One of the occasions was when Moses saw the burning bush. Keep in mind that all of man’s experiences with God are spiritual. Even if God blesses us carnally then know that His Spirit is doing it. The world wants to be preferred over the spirit but, remember, God made the flesh. Our Father made the spirit first, not the flesh.
“And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him, Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold. Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground. I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.” (Acts 7: 30 - 34).
Moses did not see the burning bush with his natural sight because the experience was a spiritual revelation. In other words, he saw this thing in his mind as anyone does when a vision occurs. All such experiences happen in the mind. A revelation may seem to be outside of the body but actually it occurs within. “It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord. I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.” If you are in God then you will see and understand what He shows you.
The bush was Jesus Christ, the first church in the wilderness. The burning bush showed, in a pattern, the Word of God burning up the evil ways of a man while leaving his life unharmed. The vision was showing Moses how he would be made, too. The visitation was a frightful experience for the flesh as is God’s Truth at any time. You stand there before His absolute power. Immediately, you see how small and weak that you are in His presence.
Many times, God commanded Moses to go before Pharaoh and demand that His people be released. Pharaoh had ruled over the Hebrews as a cruel taskmaster and treated them mercilessly with no reward or relief. God heard the cries and groanings of the people and sent a rescuer to them. Most believe that God sent Moses to save the flesh but His purpose was about much more. The cries and groanings of the spirit had God’s attention more than anything else but He would see to the matters of the flesh as well.
Pharaoh had no intention of releasing the Hebrews and rejected every demand by Moses. Pharaoh’s actions were like those of the devil who relishes having souls in subjection and works to keep them that way. Pharaoh acted that way because the devil was in him.
The way that Pharaoh treated the Hebrews is the same way the flesh treats the spirit. Pharaoh was to the Hebrews like the flesh has always been to the spirit. Pharaoh was living ‘high on the hog’ while his slaves struggled to live in misery. God sent salvation for both the spirit and flesh. Moses was the deliverer for the Hebrews according to the flesh but could not bring them to the true promised land. He foretold of the Branch of David who would usher God’s people into glory. Jesus came to finish the work but the flesh would not follow Him either. Consequently, God turned His attention to the spirit exclusively. Of the spirit, He would build for Himself a people.
I find some amusement at those who utter stout words against the Almighty. They do so because they think that they can afford to. They think that way because they have yet to receive a ‘teaching’ from Him. Everybody (and I mean everybody) fears God whether they know it. Even the devils tremble before Him. The devils wait until they think that it is safe to challenge Him. The time when they tempt you into defying God is when they believe that it is safe to challenge Him. I, personally, have felt the anger of God. I do not mess with Him. Be stupid if you want to but I stay in my place. I know who I answer to. I know what He can do.
The world works to make light of anything relating to God but this is so serious. Regrettably, there are no words that are available to me to show you how serious. You will simply have to believe God at His Word. If you do believe then you will be saved.
When God told Moses that the ground he stood on was Holy, He was speaking of His Spirit and not the earth. The vision was entirely spiritual. He did not want Moses or anybody else for that matter to look upon Him in any other way. God came down from Heaven in Moses to help His people.
“This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush. He brought them out, after that he had showed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.” (Acts 7: 35 - 36).
God made Moses a ruler and judge through the same angel that was the burning bush, Jesus Christ. God makes rulers and judges of men by His hand, the Word. Jesus was showing Moses what He would mean to the world. Moses knew Jesus then and prophesied of His coming as the Branch of David.
In the Book of 1st Corinthians, Chapter 3 - The Apostle Paul explained the impact that the Word of God would have on the world which is to set a man on fire and yet leave him alive and saved. Like the refinery process, iron ore is heated to the point where it liquifies. In the process, all the unwanted impurities are separated and removed. Pure steel is what you are left with.
With a man, only God can do such a thing. What God burns up is the world in a man’s mind; leaving him clean and without sin. The fire and brimstone are God’s Word preached. The Word burns up all desires of evil in a man and leaves him with a mind of Jesus. This is how a soul comes out of the world.
The people’s understanding about the end of the world is completely false. Their notion of the world’s end is from a carnal point of view only. Little do they know that the world’s end came when Jesus was on the cross. When you let the Word clean you then you see through the untruths of the world and understand according to the Will of God. Being cleaned by God puts you in His Spirit where you see life as it is truly. That being said - There are many who, seeing God’s Truth, still want the flesh to be right.
The world does not accept the workings of God’s Word because it means giving up the flesh to be burned. The flesh is the iniquity that gets between God and your mind. Instead, the world fights to save the flesh and uses lies and hatred as weapons. The great tragedy in life is that Jesus came to save the world in the only way which they could be saved and the world has fought fiercely to stop Him. The world is trying to cut down the tree that is keeping the shade over their heads.
“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” (Revelation 12: 1 - 6).
These scriptures seem to describe the events surrounding the birth of Jesus but actually go much deeper. With Jesus’ birth, church was being delivered to the world. Again, this is the work that God gave the flesh to do who would not. Our Mother in Heaven which is Church was laboring to deliver unto us church in earth. Here - The Word of God was being preached by Jesus into our souls. Our acceptance of the Word builds church in us. Ultimately, we become church. “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” On the other hand, Satan was trying to stop Jesus as soon as He was born to prevent church from being delivered for our salvation.
The Apostle Paul saying, “My little children of whom I travailed in birth again until Christ be formed in you”, carries a much greater meaning than most would think. The labor was the work being done to get the world out of and the Word into the minds of the people. The people had to deny their flesh to come to God. In other words, they had to overcome evil with good.
Church is critical for our salvation and the life of the world. God knew as much which is why He gave Church to us. Church is our spiritual help meet and Mother. As the woman was commanded to be a help for her husband, Church is the help for our spirits. Jesus gave us Church out of Himself. He built Church in us by the Word. Unknown to the world, Church drives life on and in earth. “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” The Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are so many things to us because God is all in all.
When Jesus finished the work then He returned to Heaven, leaving church with us to keep. If you remember, the Disciples went into hiding while the church was under intense persecution. Much evil was done to the church which prevailed nonetheless. Even still, we have it easier now than those saints.
The great dragon is Satan. He is the mind of the world. Satan is what the world produced through their disobedience to God. He and his devils sought to destroy Jesus as soon as He was born. His tail is the lies that he tells. The third part of the stars in the heavens, which the dragon drew with him, is the flesh. The carnal soul, spiritual soul, and mind are the parts that make every man. The flesh obeyed the devil’s lies and allowed the dragon to enter his soul. Being unclean, both the devil and flesh were cast out of heaven. The flesh has lost its God-given place in life.
When the woman fled into the wilderness, this was the Spirit of God finding a home within us despite the flesh. The woman is church, New Jerusalem. God rests in us while our work here is being done. When finished - We will find ourselves before God, being in the likeness and image of His Son. The Word has been planted in us and we allow it to grow. At the end of this life, we will present to the Father the Spirit of Jesus Christ in our souls. As members, we make up the body of church.
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” (Revelation 12: 7 - 11).
The Archangel Michael and his angels are Jesus Christ and His saints. We wage war against Satan and his followers, the flesh. They fight with hatred. We fight with love, the good fight. Good defeated evil then, now, and forever through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We fight against evil by living the Truth until the flesh draws its last breath. We claim the victory then, now, and forever. “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” All things have been accomplished which are no more pain, suffering, sorrow, death, or any other torment to the soul. The former things are passed away. We are the children of God in His kingdom forever.
The flesh was in heaven but allowed the devil to enter in, causing both to be cast out. The case is the same today. You are rejected by God if you let the impurities of life, which are the devil’s lies, in your soul. I do not mean to say, ‘In your flesh’, because there is where the devil dwells for everybody. The carnal soul will hear the devil. Through the flesh, the devil works to gain access to your mind. There, the devil works to steal your very life. The devil believes that if he can get in you then he can go to Heaven. Wrong. The only thing that will happen is God’s rejection of you and the devil. “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”
We spend our time in this life fighting evil. In other words, we sacrifice our flesh for the Will of God in anticipation of eternal life. Without forsaking God, we get to enjoy this life as much as we can while looking ahead to the perfect life. The world prefers the pleasures of the flesh now while rejecting eternal redemption.
Once victory over death had been secured then salvation was sealed. The world refuses to see the children of God in the true light. Instead, the devil seeks to dirty God’s people with his lies but does not prevail. The righteousness of the elect burns away all the impurities of the world. Our exceedingly bright, shiny, white robes are the righteousness of our spirits. The world may not want to see us as righteous but God does which is the only opinion that matters.
“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” (1 Corinthians 7: 11 - 15).
‘Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground’ The Lord was not referring to the ground. Moses was standing before the glory of God.
Our God is a consuming fire. His Word is Heaven to the righteous and hell to the unrighteous. His Truth burns the liars and evil-doers. God’s Truth causes the workers of evil to flee from before His face. The evil workers claim to be decent and good, without God, but any Truth will have them gnashing their teeth.
Man has always tried to mix the flesh with the Spirit; a work that is still quite impossible to do. “And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved.” The flesh has always sought to bring the Spirit of God down rather than rising to Him. Doing so means denying oneself which is something the flesh does not want to do. Even though the flesh may do for itself, it will not do for the spirit.
Whenever the flesh tries to make God’s Spirit carnal then its work is rejected and burned by the Truth. Remember that the Spirit of God made the flesh and not the other way. God cannot be defiled because any time a flammable object is exposed to fire then it is burned. The world is the flammable object. The Word of God is the fire. The world seeks to defile God but cannot get too close to the flame. Any man will be burned when he brings the world before God. “But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.” He is rebuked to be shown the error of his ways and, at the same time, instructed to separate himself from such work to save his soul.
The fire and brimstone are the Word of God preached. When any man is rebuked for his sinful ways then his soul is burned. His flesh hates it but a man must allow himself to be cleansed so that his spirit can be saved. Paul wrote to rebuke, reprove, and exhort with all long suffering. The flesh, by any means, will work to be free of God’s Will. To have a chance, a man must remain rooted in his devotion to God regardless of how he feels. Such a spirit is of high value to God.
“Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man’s brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed. And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise. And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also. In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife. And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven. And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.” (Mark 12: 18 - 27).
In the world, we learned how to die but not how to live. The flesh showed us the way to death. Jesus Christ came to show us the way back to life. Before Jesus, we did not see ourselves living. Instead, we saw ourselves dying only. Our every opinion of life would always lead to the inevitable death. The Sadducees saw their existence in that mind only. Jesus worked to pull our minds up out of the grave (which is the flesh) and into life.
Notice that Jesus said, ‘When they shall rise from the dead.’ The first life has no place in the second. The first was of the flesh but the second is of the spirit. God is Spirit, not flesh. Consequently, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were not of the flesh but God’s Spirit. They were of His Spirit because they obeyed Him. When Abraham believed then it was accounted to him for righteousness. Abraham’s works were of God.
The Sadducees (and anybody else that thinks like them) spoke of the flesh but Jesus responded with the Truth. Life in earth is patterned after that in Heaven and not the other way. How can the flesh go to Heaven when it is dead? Jesus’ Spirit rose from the cross as His flesh died. “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.” The ghost is the flesh. Jesus saved what He could by keeping His Spirit but letting the flesh die. After three days and nights, Jesus’ Spirit returned to the flesh, re-entered, and resurrected it which is the only time that will ever happen for the flesh. Our resurrection will be in Jesus’ Spirit only. Without the spirit, it is impossible for the flesh to have life. Therefore - The life is of the spirit, not the flesh.
Nothing dead can be in Heaven, only life. We are resurrected with Jesus Christ because only the living can be with God. Again - Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are alive and not dead. The flesh cannot go to Heaven on any terms because it is dead to God. The Spirit of God is the life which allows the flesh to have its meager existence even now. The breath of life comes from God. The breath of life is God. The breath for your spirit is Jesus Christ. “And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” The breath for the flesh is the air. The foundation of all life is God’s Spirit. Without the Spirit of God, there can be no life.
When God’s Spirit is taken away then the flesh’s death is certain. Since the flesh chooses to separate itself from God, death cannot be avoided. The flesh’s disobedience causes it to weaken, diminish, and deteriorate until it is no more. The door has closed on any hope of salvation. Just look at any flesh that is aging and you can see what I mean, including myself.
With the flesh being dead to God then why do the people still believe that they can serve Him with it? “The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” The flesh does not, will not, and cannot obey God. Life’s greatest challenge for man is to overcome the weaknesses of the flesh with God’s strength and power. The devils persist in getting you to believe that you cannot beat them but you do when you obey God. The good conscience is your obedience to His Word. Through obedience, you show your love for God rather than self. We have freedom in God by living the Truth. We separate ourselves from the world by obeying.
Believing the flesh can be saved is a sad mistake because such a mind presumes God to be carnal. When God spoke to Moses in the burning bush, He was showing him true life. True life does not die. True love does not die. Those who love God are passed from death to life. God is of the living. “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.”
“Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?” (Luke 24: 25 - 32).
There are two kinds of people in life; those that love God’s Truth and those that hate it. To both, the Truth burns. One welcomes the burning while the other resists it. The two disciples loved the Word and rejoiced in hearing it. When Jesus taught them about all things concerning His coming, arrival, and departure they reveled in the glory of it. As the Lord taught them, they were refreshed in the Spirit of God. The refreshing pulls your mind out of the flesh and into God’s glory.
God’s Word is water to the righteous yet burns the unrighteous. The Word burns to the glorifying of the few and the condemnation of the others. The greatest and most intense love affair ever is between God and the righteous. Through Jesus Christ, this love affair does not grow old or becomes stale; it remains new and powerful forever. Only in the Spirit of God are these things possible.
“For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12: 18 - 29).
We worship the Father in the physical sense no longer. We worship Him as He is, in Spirit and Truth. If we are to worship God then we must ascend to where He is. Otherwise, our efforts will be in vain. God sets a pattern by which the flesh must serve Him who refuses steadfastly. Regardless, the pattern does not change. We are to reverence God in great wonder and awe through our spirits. Seeing all that He has done for us then how can we not love Him?
God is absolute power. Forget the earthquakes, tornados, tidal waves, and such. I am talking about the great wonder that He is in my soul. His commandments shake the heavens. The son that God sends to the people is to be revered as much as He is. When the people become too complacent then He will act to remind everybody of their respective places. Sending His messenger before the people is no small matter. You are warned through him accordingly. The devil has lied to the extent that the world thinks going to hell is not so bad. I say again that, without question, losing your soul is the worst thing to happen to you.
If living righteously seems to be a small matter to man then it is not to God. Water washes the flesh but the Holy Ghost fire cleanses the soul. The fire and brimstone are the Word of God preached. God’s Word can be preached only by the son that He sends. Otherwise, it is not His Word at all. “Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” When the Word is received as God gives then it is the power of Heaven.
We are tried and saved by fire. While the world is destroyed by fire, the soul is saved by it. As the fire purifies, the sheep are separated from the goats and the wheat from the tares. Those who abide by the fire are the sheep. Those who do not are the goats. Those driven away by the preaching are the same that love the flesh more than God.
Moses said that he exceedingly feared and quaked when he witnessed God unleash His great power before the people. The flesh of Moses feared as much but the soul had great confidence in his relationship with God. The flesh has every reason to fear God because its fate is in His hands. Still, the flesh will not obey Him.
God shook Heaven and the earth when He abolished the first and established the second covenant; fulfilling His Word. The first fulfillment cast down the flesh from his high seat. The second re-established the spirit as first forever. Both actions fulfilled God’s promises of death to the disobedient and life to the obedient. The kingdom that Christ delivered is perfect and will never be removed. God did these things through His Word which is a consuming fire.
“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” (Matthew 3: 11 - 12).
Jesus Christ does indeed baptize us with the Holy Ghost and fire through the preaching of the Word. The Word burns up the works of evil-doers and their damnation continues forever. Just look at the state of the flesh during its lifetime and you can see the power of God’s Word. The flesh starts out full of life but at the end bows in utter submission and defeat.
Get this - The Word of God burns up the works of evil-doers but the life is spared. This fact remains while the person lives. But, if he goes to his grave as an evil-doer then the same will wake up in hell permanently. The man that sees the error of his ways and repents will save his soul. This life is the time that God has given a man the chance to save his soul. The chance is a continuing gift from God. The world chooses not to embrace this opportunity of a lifetime but instead to hate it and those who love it.
As much as the world is determined to destroy the children of God, the Holy Ghost is here to keep us. The Holy Ghost is here to stay forever. We have the help that we need now. As Jesus taught and preached the Word, the Holy Ghost was being given. On the Day of Pentecost, He empowered us to continue this great work by spreading it throughout all the world for those that He had not yet reached.
The Word preached is the unquenchable fire because God is forever. The world is in torment because they resist the Truth. Their deeds are evil so their works are burned. They are burned also because they will not repent of their wickedness.
The Word of God is Heaven and hell. God has willed that there be a remnant of all which He has made to serve Him. We, the remnant, give rise to the Word in the world. We walk, talk, live, and keep the fire lit which is why the world seeks to stop us. They think that by stopping us then they put an end to the Truth. But, God has established Righteousness in the earth forever. In other words, we are here to stay.
“This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” (2 Peter 3: 1 - 10).
Putting it plainly, the scoffers are the flesh. According to them, nothing has changed concerning the promises of God. Nothing has changed because the new promise of hope does not pertain to the flesh. The first promise is in force because the flesh will not obey. The second promise cannot be fulfilled, for the flesh, for the same reason. Even though Jesus changed the world on the cross, the flesh is still ignorant to the fact.
The Word was fulfilled by promise. The Word, being the water, overflows the old world and washes it away. Here is the reason for baptism. “For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” The baptism by the natural water is in the plan of salvation but that by the Word cleans true. As the children of God pass through the sea (which is the washing of the water by the Word) to the promised land, they are purified. Before, we were baptized unto Moses. Now, we are baptized into Jesus Christ.
We are saved by baptism: first, by water; then, by fire. The first baptism is the hearing of the Word. As Jesus told the woman, “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” The second baptism is the Holy Ghost when you accept God’s Truth and repent of your wrongs. At the same time, the Truth burns away the world in your soul. First, you hear the Word. Then, your spirit comes into it. Through your acceptance, the same Word establishes a new Heaven and earth in your heart. Those who commit themselves to unrighteousness receive the judgment of the unforgiven.
The Holy Ghost burns away the lies that people would have led you to believe and exposes their souls. People will either love or hate what has been done. The Word preached is Judgment Day and all know it. God’s Word judges and the world fears it. The remnant responds to the call of Jesus Christ but the others seek a hiding place. There is no place to hide or rest in the world because the flesh has melted away; leaving its lovers exposed. The world’s rest was not true from the start. Even that lie has been burned up.
God chastises all because He loves and does not wish that any be lost. He chastises and purifies us with His fire. There is no other way. God wants us to come to Him. We must walk in the fiery furnace too but will find that we are not alone, like the three Hebrew men. Thereby, our ways of the world are destroyed but we receive an amazing opportunity of life.
The Truth spoken may hurt and burn but is the only way to a pure heart. God wants His Will preached before the great congregation with power and fire. He wants us to bless and praise Him for His wonderful works and to do so with all our hearts. He is very deserving and worthy so why not honor Him? His Will is that somebody serve Him and here we are. He did this! He chose us! He picked us! He selected us! We are numbered among the true, elite, elect, precious, and special. This is the Lord’s doing. Is it not marvelous in our eyes? Somebody ought to say, ‘Thank You, Jesus!’
Often when Jesus was questioned by the world, He would not respond directly but would address their state of mind. Paul wrote, ‘To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.’ Jesus taught in parables for the same reason.
The scoffers saw things remaining the same. The Apostle Peter addressed them according to their state of mind. “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” Time applies to the natural man only and is irrelevant to God. Peter did not address the fact that God had already fulfilled His promise because it would have been harder for them to accept. Therefore, he focused on their state of mind which was the easier way.
The Apostle John wrote, ‘I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.’ The Lord’s day is the appearing of the Spirit of Jesus Christ in your soul, period. Peter wrote, ‘The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.’ Again, the Spirit of God comes to us according to His Will. Paul wrote, ‘I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.’ We do not command the Spirit of God but, rather, are commanded of Him. The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night because no one can ever predict His appearing. Whenever the Spirit of God rises in our souls then the flesh goes down. In this situation, you will find the elements of the earth having melted away under the intense heat of the Word preached. The flesh and its works are passed away too.
Why do you think the world tries so hard to deny the Word? They do so in every effort to stop the Spirit of God but cannot. Our God is a consuming fire. The impact of the Truth on evil is as fire to anything flammable. To save yourself, you must be like God because His fire does not burn His people. We know what can be saved and what is lost. The burning bush is Jesus Christ in my soul.