Fire question.

[Marky Mark]

Does fire in Scripture always represent a purging or a consuming fire always, as in the sense of having to go through trails and testing? Or can fire also be used to describe the purity of the Holy Spirit.

Elaboration needed, thank you.


Peace...Mark

[mharrell08]

Or can fire also be used to describe the purity of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the Father's spirit...and our God is a 'consuming fire' [Heb 12:29]. God IS the fire...the fire doesn't describe Him, it is Him.

Excerpt from Lake of Fire #16-D4 (http://bible-truths.com/lake16-D4.htm):

Gehenna fire is first and foremost for Christ's disciples (the Elect), and is first taught by Jesus on the sermon on the mount to His disciples. It is therefore not literal fire, nor is it everlasting fire. "Gehenna fire" (Matt. 18:9 is also called "eonian [NOT 'everlasting'] fire" in Matt. 18:8, and also in Matt. 25:41 where this eonian fire prepared for the devil and his ministers will be judged in the resurrection to Judgment in "The Lake of Fire" (Rev. 20:15 & 21:8 ). The Gehenna fire, eonian fire, lake of fire, are all the Judgment of God. These fires are all the same ONE fire that come from the same ONE God, and "Our [One] God is a consuming FIRE" (Heb. 12:29).


Hope this helps,

Marques

P.S. Let us know more if this does not answer your question directly.

[Marky Mark]

Marques,thank-you for the response. God is P U R E ,that I understand .

  So the word fire can be used to say what God is and at the same time be used to describe judgement? Because He judges?


Peace...Mark

[mharrell08]

Marques,thank-you for the response. God is P U R E ,that I understand .

  So the word fire can be used to say what God is and at the same time be used to describe judgement? Because He judges?


Peace...Mark

I think I understand what you're asking...our judgment is with/by fire to thoroughly purge our carnality...as with the wicked & unbelieving in the Great White Throne Judgment.

Is that what you're asking?


Marques

[aqrinc]

Hi Mark,

If you have seen and read this already, sorry for the repetition. If not, i think you will find the answers here in the sum of the paper. It is not a simple yes or no answer which is why i would suggest rereading the entire paper.

After several readings i still find huge mines of untapped information that someone keeps hiding and then showing me.

Excerpt From: The Lake of Fire PART III

JUDGMENT BY FIRE MUST BEGIN AT THE HOUSE OF GOD

http://bible-truths.com/lake3.html

"And I saw a great white throne ... And I saw the dead... and the dead were JUDGED... according to their WORKS... and they were judged EVERY MAN according to their WORKS" (Rev. 20:11-13).

And are these non-believers judged differently from believers who are "revealed, tried, salted and baptized IN FIRE?" Just HOW are these non-believers judged in the book of Revelation? How are the "...fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars..." JUDGED? Answer: "...In the lake WHICH BURNS WITH FIRE..." (Rev. 21:!

Is this "fire" in the book of Revelation DIFFERENT from the fire that tries the works of believers in the book of I Corinthians? NO. The word "fire" used in the four examples above concerning believers, is the SAME word "fire" used in the book of Revelation concerning non-believers:

STRONG's Greek Dictionary of the New Testament, page 219, #4442, pur; a primary word; "fire" (literally OR FIGURATIVELY. Pur is used (besides its ordinary natural significance):

(1) of the holiness of God, which consumes all that is inconsistent therewith, Heb. 10:27; 12:29; cf. Rev. 1:14; 2:18; 10:1; 15:2; 19:12;

(1a) similarly of the holy angels as His ministers, Heb. 1:7;

(1b) in Rev. 3:18 it is SYMBOLIC of that which tries the faith of saints, PRODUCING WHAT WILL GLORIFY THE LORD;

(2) of the divine judgment, testing the deeds of believers, at the judgment seat of Christ I Cor. 3:13 and 15;

(3) of the fire of DIVINE JUDGMENT upon the REJECTERS of Christ, Matt. 3:11 (where a distinction is to be made between the baptism of the holy Spirit at Pentecost and the "fire" of divine retribution; Acts 2:3 could not refer to baptism); Lk. 3:16."

End of quotation, (All CAPS emphasis are mine).

I was quite amazed to see this broadened definition in Strong's Concordance. In my Strong's Exhaustive Concordance that I purchased over forty years ago, it has but one line after the Greek word pur. It states that pur is "fire" either (literal or figurative), fiery, lightning. That's it. So when I purchased the NEW Strong's Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible last week, I was pleasantly surprised to see the expanded definitions, especially with reference to this word "pur" -- FIRE. I learned the use of the word "fire" in Scripture the hard way -- I had to research.

We could easily spend twenty pages just commenting on the examples used in this expanded version of Strong's. I won't do that, but let's take a brief look at a few enlightening items: First, we learn that this word can be, and is, used "figuratively." And in fact, the first five examples given in Strong's ARE examples of figurative usage of the word fire. And of the 500+ times the word 'fire' is used in the Bible, hundreds of times the word 'fire' is used in a figurative or symbolic sense.

george.

[Marky Mark]

Marques,thank-you for the response. God is P U R E ,that I understand .

 So the word fire can be used to say what God is and at the same time be used to describe judgement? Because He judges?


Peace...Mark

I think I understand what you're asking...our judgment is with/by fire to thoroughly purge our carnality...as with the wicked & unbelieving in the Great White Throne Judgment.

Is that what you're asking?


Marques

No,but point taken.

 I guess what I'm asking is when the word fire,God and judgement are used in Scripture can I then assume that all of these words can be used to describe the Father interchangeably in a general way because they are all of Him.

Mark

[mharrell08]

No,but point taken.

 I guess what I'm asking is when the word fire,God and judgement are used in Scripture can I then assume that all of these words can be used to describe the Father interchangeably in a general way because they are all of Him.

Mark

Oh, okay...I get you now.

I guess it depends...in 2 Kings Chapter 17, we read about pagans sacrificing their own children in fire. So there, that fire has nothing to do with righteous judgment but rather false and sick worship of idols.

Remember from the 12 Truths paper, 'Comparing Spiritual with Spiritual' (#7  http://bible-truths.com/twelve.htm)...compare the fire being talked about in whatever scripture you're reading to other scriptures that we have learned to be about God and His righteous judgment.

Let me know if that helps or is still off base,

Marques

[Marky Mark]

George,thank-you for the post,it is a great read on fire .

Marques,

So as long as we match Spiritual with Spiritual concerning the words God, judgement and fire,we can then understand the interchangeably of the words in question to be used to describe God?


Mark

[mharrell08]

So as long as we match Spiritual with Spiritual concerning the words God, judgement and fire,we can then understand the interchangeably of the words in question to be used to describe God?

We are to compare spiritual to spiritual to come to a spiritual match...not just comparing one word to one another. This principle goes hand and hand with 2-3 witnesses to establish a spiritual truth.

This thread started with a question about 'fire'...you asked, 'does fire always represent a purging or consuming fire?' That is only true when the fire being spoken of in the scripture is a spiritual match to purging and purifying.

This was your original question, correct?

Marques

[Marky Mark]

So as long as we match Spiritual with Spiritual concerning the words God, judgement and fire,we can then understand the interchangeably of the words in question to be used to describe God?

We are to compare spiritual to spiritual to come to a spiritual match...not just comparing one word to one another. This principle goes hand and hand with 2-3 witnesses to establish a spiritual truth.

This thread started with a question about 'fire'...you asked, 'does fire always represent a purging or consuming fire?' That is only true when the fire being spoken of in the scripture is a spiritual match to purging and purifying.

This was your original question, correct?

Marques

Correct and BINGO . Question answered. Thanks Marques and George.


Peace...Mark