Fire on the Altar — G.W. North

Solomon, David, and the Building of the Temple

You will be aware, of course, in this opening chapters of this book anyway, we have the record and I think it's why it is primarily recorded, of the building of the temple. It's a subject, you know, that has thrilled my heart over the years.

I can remember preaching over these things, or twenty or more years ago, and how thrilled my heart was with them then. And tonight I want to share with you something of the greatness and wonder of this man Solomon and his movement at this time.

You will remember, of course, that he is undoubtedly, historically, great David's greater son. He was greater than David in that David, as you know, just longed to build this temple for God and he was not allowed to do so.

The reason being given is that he was a man of blood. And because he was a man of blood, God would not let him handle anything to do with building the temple. And it had to be built by this man Solomon, who was a man of peace.

You will remember this. There was never a war in Solomon's day, when he was on the earth. God brought great and profound peace. As though to say, my temple can only be reared in an atmosphere of rest and of peace and of quietness.

And I want my residence to be there, and I want the worship to go on in that atmosphere. Doubtless, had he and all Israel with him continued as they should have done, that's what would have happened. Unfortunately, the temple worship had to continue under the stress and strains of war.

Later on, it didn't immediately collapse. It did in the end, of course, as you very well know, and the temple was destroyed. Now, I want to investigate with you something of the wonder of what was taking place in Solomon's time.

The Ark, the Glory, and the Filling of the Temple

I have an idea that at some time or another, we might have looked into the fifth chapter. You can remind me afterwards, if not, perhaps we'll do it together this weekend. But in this great fifth chapter, you will see quite clearly that Solomon brings up the Ark of the Covenant and the Tabernacle too, into the great temple.

And you will know that he took and placed the Ark in the holiest of all. And there, when the Ark was put there, and they withdrew themselves, we're told, if we read, say, at the verse 13 of chapter 5, it came to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord.

And when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music and praised the Lord, saying, For he is good, for his mercy endureth forever, that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God.

Amen. What a glorious thing. Here, then, is everything, it seems, in complete order. Well this, you may remember, is what happened when Moses and the children of Israel, in his day, had put together, rather than build it, of course, because as you will know it wasn't a building at all, the Tabernacle.

At that time also, God was pleased to come in all his glory and fill his house. Now let every one of us be assured about this, that since Jesus said, In John 2, destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it again.

And they mistook what he was saying for the outer building of Herod's temple, but he meant his own body, that when we read about the temple, we are to think about ourselves, our bodies. Now I don't know whether you have such an experience from God, that you've been glorified utterly glorified by the presence of the Lord within.

If I started, say, with you, and went round each one of you individually, and then you can all ask me individually yourselves afterwards, don't let's try and hide in the anonymity of a crowd, let's understand that we are individuals in the sight of God, and don't get running away from this personal application, losing yourself in the morass of theology and doctrines and just religion.

Experiencing the Glory of the Lord

But if I was to come round and ask you individually and say, have you ever known a time in your life when God came into you, in your body, now that's where you are. I'm not particularly thinking about a merely physical experience, but within this physique of ours, within these bodies of ours, here and now, where we are, on the earth.

Have you ever had an experience whereby God has come and absolutely glorified you within? Because if you haven't, you must know that you have missed what God wants you to have, and how in the world can we talk about that great last verse of 2 Corinthians 3, which talks about where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty, and we all ask with unbated faith, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed from glory to glory, even as by the spirit of the Lord, you can't talk about that unless you've had an initial experience of the great glorifying power, an entrance of the Lord that's glorified your being in such a way as this, not to get mixed up with the sort of pause of the ancient mystics, but to know this, that in verse 14 at the end of that chapter, the priest could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud, because of the glory of the Lord filling God's house.

Have you ever had an experience where you just couldn't stand to minister? Well if you couldn't stand to minister, I reckon you were on your face, that's where I was when God met me. That's the great tremendous thing, and know this whoever you are, this is why God has come to you in mercy and in grace and in forgiveness and cleansing and all the other things that may have happened to you, in order to bring you to this place where you will know the glory of the Lord, because who can know the presence of the Lord who hasn't known his glory?

Who can? That we are going to know more of his glory is wonderful, and of course we'll have to be out of these bodies for that, but blessed be the name of the Lord while we're here, down on this earth, God intends us to have somewhat of an experience of the incoming of the glory of the Lord, leaving us in awe and wonder whether we can't sing a chorus or speak a word or hardly breathe a breath, but know that God's come, he's come, hallelujah.

Have you ever done that? Have you ever known it? Have you ever lain in his presence, watched the glorious roll over and over your soul? Not a momentary glimpse, but something that comes and comes and comes, after a while you get used to it.

Solomon Refuses to Settle for One Experience

In its initial experience it's overwhelming. Well now, you might be excused, as anybody may, to think, well now this is it, this is the great consummating thing, it's happened, but you may also be surprised to know that this man Solomon, he wasn't satisfied with that.

This is the tragedy, that there are too many people settling down for an experience and being satisfied with that, that they can talk about it and put the finger on a date perhaps and be very sure and very clear and it could be so far ahead of other people's experience that they may be left with a mouth wide open saying, well I want that, show me how I can get there.

And beloved, if you've never come there, you keep going. But, hallelujah, it's so wonderful to know these glorious things, and don't be put off by people who talk about your peddling experiences. I was once talking to a, well he was one of, this man, I don't know whether there's anybody in the room as clever as him, he was one of the sort of boffin boys of the atoms research unit, and I don't know what he wasn't, and he was that clever, I don't know whether he was sort of up in the air or down on the floor, and we were talking one night, he'd come to a meeting where I was, this was years ago now, and when I was speaking about this great truth of being baptised in the Holy Ghost, and he stayed on afterwards drinking coffee, they were, and he said, you see, aren't you peddling experiences?

So it sounded so good, that's where I got the phrase from, by the way, I've remembered it ever since, and so he went on, and sort of, then I said to him, but you do believe in being converted to Jesus Christ, don't you, oh yes he said, I said do you ever talk about it, he said yes, I said well aren't you peddling an experience then, to Jay he said alright, the whole glorious thing is that we're not peddling experience, that's the word of the sinning, but there are experiences that God has for us, and without them you cannot come to what God has for you, and that is why the Lord has put them out for us in the book, so that we should see, so we find that contrary to what we might think, Solomon did not say, well now this is marvellous, just what we wanted of course, be seeking this, knew it would happen, you know that we, well at least he talks about it this way, I think we can read his own words, chapter 6 verse 1, then said Solomon, the Lord has said that he would dwell in the thick darkness, but I have built a house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling forever, blessed be the name of the Lord, he had accomplished it, and we can go right through this great truth, and find in it's parallel scripture in first Kings, how Solomon was so thrilled that it happened, but he knew better than to stop there, there are too many people are settling down for a full house, filled with God, that didn't satisfy Solomon, and he knew it wouldn't satisfy God either, and this again is why so many people do not seem to have a proper issue, from their experience of this mighty thing, because that seems to be all, and they are struggling from then on to sort of maintain their experience, sort of, let God do it, then watch your backslide and wait for Jesus to come, you know, this sort of thing, now God forbid that you and I should ever settle down into that perilous kind of thinking, Solomon didn't, you may be aware that in this great sixth chapter, he has come to a tremendous prayer position, in fact he could hardly believe the thing that had happened, you look at verse 18 of chapter 6, but will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth, he couldn't believe it when it had happened hardly, behold heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain it, how much less this house, which I have built, it seemed too great for him when it even did happen, I think that's good too, don't you, that we should ever be taken up with the majesty and the greatness and the glory of God, you know, this is what you will discover when you read the Old Testament, they had a marvellous view of the greatness of God, don't let's get carried away too much by this over-familiarity, that's taking place, you know, I've heard fellows walking around till I got a little bit sick of it saying, Daddy, Daddy, he calls him Daddy, I don't know what you think about it, you mustn't get over-familiar with God you know, you won't even find that Jesus walked about talking like that, if ever anybody had a right to, I suppose it would have been him, whatever you do keep saying, keep balanced, keep right, don't be so stiff upright that you're sort of afraid to move one way or another, but let God teach us something of his awe and of his majesty and his wonder, let him bring us into his greatness, praise the Lord, ever treat him as God almighty and eternal, ever remember that it's only his grace that brings you anywhere with him, ever remember that it's the astounding miracle of the ages that God should ever want someone like you, when I look at myself and I think that God ever wanted me and called me and loved me, it brings me down in awe and wonder and glory wherever I am, I want to pitch down on my face somewhere and start worshipping and magnifying the Lord, God take us out of this over-familiarity of this reactive age in which we are living, where all sense of majesty and awe and wonder is thrown aside by the world and it's seeping into the church, remember that the church isn't run by a parliament with a nominal head called the Queen, remember it's being run by God, his majesty, you keep that well in your heart and treasure him and know the proper relationship, amen, I read of the great ones in Isaiah with six wings and with twain they covered their faces, I read of Moses that great man of the Old Testament who was afraid to look upon God, you remember it and remember that Jesus now is not in a veil of flesh, so that you could look upon him in a veil of flesh, remember he's there in all his glory, blessed Lord doesn't it make the love and wonder rise in your heart and bring us out of this turgid stream that people are trying to sort of work up to enthuse us with the idea that we're children of God, not that we haven't a free access to him, not that the way isn't there, oh hallelujah, if you love him you treasure him even for the wonder that he's allowed you to love him, so may God bring us into reality, he said is it true will God really dwell on the earth, the heaven of heavens cannot contain much less this temple and that great building was filled with the glory of God, what if you'd have been there and you'd have seen the glory of God surging out as it did from the holiest place of all where to he had descended to take his seat between the cherubim upon the mercy seat stained with blood and then billowed right out through the temple where everything was engraved with the glory of God, can you imagine it, what would you have done, down on your face you'd have gone, wouldn't you, you'd have been struck with awe, wonder, you'd have been overpowered by it all, glory, glory, glory, we're not told how long elapsed between what happened in chapter 5 and Solomon took up his great prayer in chapter 6, I want you to notice something in verse 12 of the 6th chapter we read this, that he stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel and spread forth his hands for Solomon had made a brazen scaffold of five cubits long and five cubits broad and three cubits high and had set it in the midst of the court and upon it he stood and kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel and spread forth his hands toward heaven until this moment he'd been standing there with his hands outstretched to the people thrilled with what we would say was the crowning glory of his achievements then he sinks down on his knees and spread to heaven, what are you doing Solomon, aren't you satisfied no, what are you wanting now, can you have anything more than this, yes, and I'm going to have it praise the name of the Lord, and what was he seeking, we shall find out because, beloved, this is the thing that's missing in so many lives today.

Seeking God Through the Altar

I, as you know, am very privileged to move about in all companies, in lots and lots of countries of the world recently come back from Spain, Sicily, and I find it everywhere I go, I'm not making any wild guesses of this.

I'm in all sorts of companies, well they call themselves evangelical Pentecostal, or what it is all sorts of companies, and it's this that I find missing so often. Paul Solomon knew what he was after, supposing I came round to you and I said, what are you after you remember that when people started to follow Jesus on the earth, the first people that started to follow him and he turned around and he said, what are you seeking, what are you seeking, come on, what are you seeking is Jesus speaking, that's the thing, that was the first question.

Now, beloved, let's face this very very straightly, for God requires this of every one of us. I want you to notice where scaffold was, and you can interpret the word scaffold whichever way you like it at least has two meanings, scaffold is sort of a framework that you build in which you build something inside scaffold is also used for a death place, they hang people on scaffolds so you may interpret it which way you like, or they used to of course, they don't do it now but Solomon is standing on this thing and notice it's by the altar, not very far away from it and it's raised up, tells you it's there, and he gets down on his knees and he spreads his hand toward heaven, and he finishes up his prayer like this in the end of chapter 6, verse 40, now my God, let I beseech thee thine eyes be open and let thine ears be attentive to the prayer that is made in this place now therefore arise, O Lord God, into thy resting place, thou and the ark of thy strength.

Let thy priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation and let thy saints rejoice in goodness, O Lord God turn not away the face of thine anointed, remember the mercies of David thy servant. Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering, and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the house again.

Now that's it, so I've learned the secret of retaining the glory. I've learned the secret of repetitious fillings and glorifying in the inner man, from God you learned it, what is it? Not glory in the house, but fire on the altar.

If the fire is on the altar, the glory is in the house. If the fire isn't there, where it's visible, outside, then the glory isn't inside. Don't let anybody deceive themselves. This is one of the basic deceptions amongst people who talk about being baptised in the Holy Ghost.

God has put his finger right on it, hallelujah. I'm going to ask you then, where's the fire in your life? I'm pointing at you, where's the fire? Do you notice that Solomon had his, he had his scaffold built right out there where he could look down on the altar and notice that the altar was already filled.

Filled, you know why the fire doesn't fall, because the altar is not filled. God doesn't believe you. You see, God's got to be able to believe us. He's got eyes. He looked down and he saw that this man Solomon hadn't just been content with putting the ark in the house.

He was expecting something to happen. I suppose he'd been able to read Moses' writings or hear of them. How that when everything was put in order in the tabernacle the glory of the Lord filled the house.

Expect. So, this man, he knew that it needed more than that. He was expecting the fire as well. So it goes on there now, here then is the great secret of Solomon's life. He understood the altar. Do you understand the altar?

Did you know that before the temple could be built even and the house of God thought of, the temple had to be raised. The altar had to be raised. Go back with me. Chapter 2, verse 1. Solomon determined to build a house for the name of the Lord and a house for his kingdom.

Praise God. You ready? In verse 4 he says behold I build a house to the name of the Lord my God to dedicate it to him and to burn before him. To burn before him. Solomon knew that God would not dwell anywhere unless the fire was there.

Now he knew that to burn before him sweet incense and for the continual show bread. And for the burnt offering morning and evening on the Sabbath and on the new moons and on the sun feasts of the Lord our God.

This is an ordinance forever to Israel. And the house which I build is great. For great is our God above all gods. And who is able to build him a house seeing the heaven and heaven and heavens cannot contain him.

Who am I then that I should build him a house save only to burn sacrifice before him. There it is clear as anything. He knew exactly what it was all about. He got this altar principle in his heart. He knew.

Praise God. Listen. Go back with me into the first book of Chronicles into chapter 21 and 22. If you are familiar with scriptures and I hope you are you will know that in chapter 21 we have the account of one of David's major sins.

Now I hope you don't read this in order to pry into the sins that men or women commit. They are written for our learning and our instruction beloved. But I hope you see the grace of God too when you read David didn't commit a lot of sins if all your sins were recorded in a book.

I don't know whether you'd like us to stand up and read in it tonight. Here is a big thing for us to understand that David made one of his great big mistakes. It was over the numbering of the children of Israel and it was all wrong.

And God had to punish him because not only did he do it but when he did he did it wrongly. It was all away from God and God had to judge in Israel. And you will remember the story how David sees the angel of God.

Verse 16 of chapter 21. He lifts up his eyes. He sees the angel of the Lord between the earth and the heaven having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel who were clothed in sackcloth fell upon their faces.

Verse 18. Then the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say to David that David should go up and set up an altar unto the Lord in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. And that's what happened in verse 25.

David gave to Ornan for the place 600 shekels of gold by weight. And David built there an altar unto the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings and called upon the Lord. And he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of the burnt offering.

Solomon was young and tender at that time. And Solomon possibly had heard his father say Oh Lord God don't punish these people. Let thy judgment be upon me and my house. Solomon is standing there. He knew he knew that because God in mercy forgave.

And David built an altar there in the threshing floor of Ornan. And that Solomon was still alive. He knew it. He knew it. It was as clear as anything. God answered David by fire. These men of old you know they weren't content with some of the things that people are content with today.

He went up and built that altar there and he didn't put any light under. It had to come down from heaven. He wasn't going to work up anything from earth. He wasn't going to strike a match. Nothing it had got to come from heaven.

What a tremendous place these people reached. And it was so tremendous that time. Verse 28. When David saw that the Lord had answered him in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite that he sacrificed there for the tabernacle of the Lord which Moses made in the wilderness.

And the altar of the burnt offering were at that season in the high place of Gibeon. But David could not go before it to inquire of God for he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord. Then David said this is the house of the Lord God.

And this is the altar of the burnt offering for Israel. There it is there before the house the altar in the great threshing floor of Ornan. Solomon never got away from there. He'd seen something. God open your eyes.

You've seen something? Then you're responsible for it. Better be blind. Remember that when Jesus once this is Jesus not me I've not imagined it. I'll show you the exact place to find it. In John's Gospel chapter 9 last verse you may read it yourself.

Abraham, Moriah, and the Altar Before the Temple

Solomon thought this beloved this beloved wasn't new to David. It wasn't something new in Israel. Turn back with me to 2 Chronicles. And in 2 Chronicles chapter 3 you remember that David said now this is the house of God.

This is the altar. It's the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. Now we're going to see where it was. Solomon chapter 3 verse 1 began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem in Mount Moriah where the Lord appeared under David his father in the place that David had prepared in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

So Ornan the Jebusite had built his threshing floor or made his threshing floor on Mount Moriah. Genesis chapter 22. Oh it came to pass after these things that God did test Abraham and said unto him Abraham.

And he said behold here I am. And he said take now thy son thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest. God didn't let him off the hook. Whom thou lovest. And get thee into the land of Moriah. It was only the land of Moriah there.

No Jerusalem. Not there. Isn't it a marvelous thing. And offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. You know the rest of the story don't you. Abraham built the altar.

Abraham laid his son on the altar. Abraham was going to kill his son on the altar and God stopped him. But nevertheless in his heart he offered his son to God. And in faith he received him back from the dead.

Hebrews 11 would tell you. And you know that he called that place that altar Jehovah Jireh verse 14. As it is said to this day in the mount of the Lord it shall be seen. That's where David saw it. He saw it in the mount of the Lord.

That's where Solomon saw it in the mount of the Lord. David saw an altar. Solomon saw a temple. The the altar before the temple. My friend the altar before the temple. And the temple is only for the altar.

If you've been thinking the altar is for the temple you've got it the wrong way round. Don't know whether you've ever seen it. Turn with me into the last book of the Bible. And John now takes up the vision and the revelation.

In chapter 21. He sees the new heaven. He sees the new earth. He sees new Jerusalem. Verse 2. And in new Jerusalem there's a Moriah. In new Jerusalem there is a temple. At least we'll look and see. Verse 22.

I saw no temple therein. For the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. Hallelujah. Right there. God and His Lamb God and His Lamb God. And the altar. The building itself didn't especially matter the heart of the temple.

The secret of it all is the altar. First Abraham then David then Solomon. I can't rest until the fire is on the altar. That's Solomon. And neither can God. God wouldn't have stopped there unless there had been an altar.

That was the most important thing before ever. There was a temple built on the earth. There was an altar raised. Genesis 4 Abel. There was no temple before the temple was built. Starting from Acts chapter 2.

Calvary. The altar before there was any real baptism in the Holy Ghost. Before anything of this glory there had to be the fire. Oh Lord help us to see it. Where is the fire in your life. Solomon knew he only wanted to live to burn burn, that's all he wanted for.

Burn, burn, burn that's God. And here then is spelled out the secret and the open secret of failure. Where is the fire. Any fire in ready. Much talk about glory. Any talk about fire. Much talk about blessing.

Any talk about fire. I hear, I go around. Let's praise, everybody's jumping on this bandwagon of praise. They've read the right books. The whole tremendous thing was done. The fire, beloved in the name of the Lord.

Solomon’s Thousand Burnt Offerings

Once this grips your heart and gets hold of you, beloved you see what it's all about. Solomon had this temple this altar, just piled with his sacrifices. Let's do a little more reading, shall we pray God that his word will speak to our hearts.

So clearly go back to chapter 1 of 2nd Chronicles. Amen. He's speaking is Solomon. He's come to the throne. Let's start at verse 1, shall we. David said I can go on till 10 o 'clock. So if you're tired it's only just turned half past nine.

You can just relax or relax or whatever it is. Solomon, the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom and the Lord his God was with him and magnified him exceedingly. Then Solomon spake unto all Israel to the captains of thousands and of hundreds and to the judges and to every governor in all Israel and the chief of the fathers.

So Solomon and all the congregation with him went to the high place that was at Gibeon. For there was the tabernacle of the congregation of God which Moses the servant of the Lord had made in the wilderness.

But the ark of God had David brought up from Kirgis Deion to the place where David which David had prepared for it for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem. Moreover the brazen altar that Bezalel the son of Uri the son of her had made he put before the tabernacle of the Lord and Solomon and the congregation sought unto it.

And Solomon went up there to the brazen altar before the Lord which was at the tabernacle of the congregation and offered, listen a thousand burnt offerings upon it. A thousand a thousand a thousand a thousand.

Let it sink into your heart. See what this man did. See the kind of man he was at that time. He didn't particularly seek unto the ark he sought to the altar. Has that sunk into your hearts. Unto the altar.

Hallelujah. He got the vision straight. He didn't say now let's all go up and sing these marvellous songs. My father's. You know, he didn't say that, no. Let's go up there and put all these burnt offerings on the altar.

God doesn't want your songs. If the offerings aren't there God won't buy. He won't do it. Here is the great tragedy that overtaken the hearts of men and women. He didn't say let's all go up there and play all the marvellous instruments.

Let's go up and offer some sacrifices, shall we. Let's go up and get the altar. Camellia trumpet at home. Amen. I find him again. He got this thing absolutely straight. Let's go to chapter 7 when the great fire came down.

Verse 3. When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down. Have you seen how the fire comes down. Have you seen how it comes down. And the glory of the Lord upon the house. They bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement and worshipped and praised the Lord saying for his good for his mercy.

Endure it forever. Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices before the Lord and King Solomon, listen this one offered a sacrifice of 22 ,000 oxen and 120 ,000 sheep. That he was no liar. He said I only want to build this house to burn.

He showed God. He meant it. God was utterly persuaded of this man's genuineness. It's that that is the basis of answer from God. It's that this is the ground of true faith. God's persuasion that you mean it thousand oxen think of it.

He must have got everybody in on it. Have you got anyone, have you got one, Solomon. Have you got one soul to be an altar person. Just one soul. Tell me is it the one you're married to. Anybody else in the church.

Have you got one soul to love the altar. It is cold wet glittery jewels. All that rubbish. God doesn't believe. Here is the tragedy. That's where it lies. I don't know many people of fire. Hold your hand up.

Count on your fingers. How many do you know of people of fire.

People of niceness sweetness you can still keep tongues give messages and all this. Where's the fire.

Glory be to God he got everybody organised. Imagine he knew he got them all answered by fire and the only way to keep the fire going.

Was to come and feed it he knew.

He fed the fire. He was right up on that scaffold. He got it all there. Hallelujah. Go on. Bring those other oxen bring those sheep get to it. You Levites come on. You priests come on. All you other people feed the altar.

God's come to sing it all. And how many of us know and how the world languishes because there's no fire. It's the fire that made it live. Unless they were all dead. Carcasses the fire. God help us. Am I right or wrong.

The Fire of Sacrifice and the Glory of God

A wasted death lives laid down in vain. No fire.

That's what Jesus said.

He didn't say I've come to send glory on the earth. He said I've come to send the fire. If you can see the fire you know the man's got the glory. If you don't see the fire nobody's got the glory. Man hasn't got it.

Simple logical. The glory burst forth flooding the place and then receded. How did they know the glory was there afterwards. Of course the fire was there. That's all. The glory wasn't always gushing forth in clouds prostrating everybody.

That wasn't what the glory was for. The glory abode way back in the holiest of all. And God sat there in his majesty. It was when the fire was burning at the gate. That's right now. Hope you've seen this.

In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen. Glory glory glory. In David's day it was just a threshing floor. The sacred place of Abraham's offering had just become a common place. A Jebusite had it a Jebusite.

Whether he was a proselytite to what we'll call Judaism. Judaism had emerged then. Of course Israel was one complete nation. Or whether he was occupying a place never to have been in God's own land. But God insisted he said to Gad you tell David of God's own law.

Once the altar was there and the fire was there he said now Lord let me build your house.

Glory he saw it when the fire was there.

The Church’s Need for Fire and Total Consecration

Hallelujah. I trust that God has clarified things to your heart and mine beloved and I tell you the history of his church on earth will be marked by this preaching without fire is spreading death going through the right and the right of worship is another sort of death without fire.

It is too hot for the devil to handle.

But I don't know many people. As I say I move about in many places. Yes I see this and I see that and I see the other. Charismatic. These are sort of words like rubbing a magic lamp. Where's the fire.

Where's the fire into God. Burning. Burning that's it.

How do things decide how do things don't matter. Anything that hinders this is sin. That's the way you've got to regard it. God help us all. God's got a fire program for the earth. And how many of you are going to be in the fire.