“Fire goes before him,” sings the psalmist of God, “and consumes his foes on every side” (Psalm 97:3). Fire, as the recurrent symbol of God’s presence in Scripture, denotes the holiness of God which consumes all imperfection in its path. Sodom and Gomorrah were consumed by fire (Genesis 19:24). The Sons of Aaron were consumed by fire when they transgressed God’s instructions (Leviticus 10:1-2). Peter tells us that “the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgement” (2 Peter 3:7). And of course, the final destination for rebellious creatures is the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15). In the time of Malachi, the Jews were longing for God to return to their rebuilt temple, but Malachi warns them to prepare their hearts for this wonderful event saying, “He will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap”. In other words, repentance and cleansing from sin must accompany our meeting with God lest we be destroyed. The first work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus explained, is to “convict the world concerning sin” (John 16:8). When he comes into your heart, he will ignite your conscience so that the sins you are retaining begin to burn inwardly, igniting a kind of hell-torment which forgiveness douses and extinguishes. This is the path to redemption, characterised by the pain of penitence. And so, those who sow in tears, reap with joy (Psalm 126:5), because, for the repentant, the fire of God is not a fire of final judgement, but a purifying, sanctifying fire, unto final salvation.
Confess your sins to God as he brings them to light. Receive his forgiveness.
Read Malachi 3:1-4 and Hebrews 12:25-29.
