~~ Baptism of Fire ~~

To understand the Baptism of Fire, we must see what the difference in the Holy Ghost and the Fire of God is. John the Baptist said, Mt 3:10 And now also the ax is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Mt 3:11 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: Mt 3:12 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.

Notice here, that John was baptizing with water, unto repentance. This is the start of our life with God. We must repent of sin and be water baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ, to get these sins remitted. After we have received this remission of sins, by the repentance and baptism, then we must go on to perfection. Next we need to receive the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. Jesus is the one who gives us this baptism. Everyone who is water baptized does NOT receive the Holy Ghost. Most of them simply do not believe in this Baptism of the Holy Ghost, so they never receive it. They bring forth no fruit to perfection.

Jesus said he would send us a comforter. John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

So we see that this Holy Ghost is the Comforter. His job is to teach us all things and to lead and guide us into all truth.

Lu 9:54 And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? Lu 9:55 But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. Lu 9:56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village

The disciples had wanted to call down fire from heaven and consume those men who did not wish to receive Jesus. They mentioned doing as Elias had done, when fire came from heaven and consumed those Baal prophets. But Jesus rebuked them for this and said, Ye know not WHAT MANNER OF SPIRIT YOU ARE OF. See, the Holy Ghost is the spirit to save lives. But the Fire is the Spirit to destroy men’s lives. They are of a total different nature, opposites. Yet both Spirits of from God.

Jesus was showing here that these disciples did not have the spirit of FIRE, at this time. They had the spirit of Grace or saving men’s lives. The Holy Ghost is the Comforter, not the destroyer. Both spirits come from God. But the destroyer will not come until men have refused to obey God and receive the Spirit of the Holy Ghost and obey God. Notice how John shows this, when he said, the AX is laid to the Root of the trees and they are cut down and cast into the FIRE. Which trees were cut down and burned? He said, those which did not bear FRUIT.

So, we see that John did both a baptizing ministry and also a burning ministry. He brought in the people and made them ready for the Christ, or the NT Salvation, by baptizing them unto repentance. But at the same time, he was performing a judgment ministry against those of the old covenant, which would NOT turn from the law unto Grace. He laid his ‘spiritual ax�?to the root of their trees, which were bearing no fruit unto righteousness, and cut them down and cast them into the fire of God’s wrath and destruction. That old covenant of law and prophets, was cut off with the ministry of John the Baptist. All the law and prophets were until John. Since then, the kingdom of heaven is preached.

Now those who repented and accepted John’s baptizing ministry came into the New Covenant, receiving the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. This brought them into the new heavens and earth, the City of God. Those who received the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost were the ministers to bring in the new covenant and to translate the people out of that old law covenant, into the New Covenant of Grace. They laid the foundation of this New City of God, the NT Salvation. All who refuse to come into this New Covenant, obeying the message of the Apostles of Jesus, will be cut off and burned, at the end of this age. All who have refused this Grace Salvation, by obeying the Acts 2 message, will be cut down and thrown into the FIRE of God’s wrath, which will burn them and destroy them. Someone has to perform this ministry, as John did to that old law covenant people. These people are the ones who receive the Baptism of FIRE.

They must FIRST be water baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of their sins. Then they must receive the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, by which they are now ministers of the New Covenant and have the wonderful Comforter in themselves. Those who go on to bear fruit for the Kingdom of God, will then be given the Baptism of Fire, for the purpose of cutting down the trees of this old dead church and casting them into the FIRE.

So now, let’s see what the prophets told us about this ministry. First, Joel two.

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;

Joe 2:2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

See, the TRUMPET is always associated with the judgments. Sound an ALARM. Why an ALARM? See this also has to do with judgments striking. Let the inhabitants tremble. Why? For the DAY OF THE LORD is nigh or near.

So what is this DAY OF THE LORD? Most people think it is the coming of Jesus to earth. But no, that is not the answer. The Day of the LORD is when He brings his wrath on the land for there sins and rebellion.

Who is he telling to sound this alarm? It is the ones who have the BAPTISM OF FIRE. It is the FIRE coming out of their mouths. See, they have to have the Baptism of FIRE for FIRE to come out of their mouth. So how does it come out of their mouth? It is the WORDS THEY SPEAK.

Verse two, see that he associates this day of the LORD with this great strong people. Who are they? Those who receive the Baptism of Fire. And who is that? Watch and see.

Joel 2:10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:

See the above? That is the SIXTH Seal. Re 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

See. Compare those two verses. The earth quake before them�?lo, there was a great earthquake �?same earthquake. See the proof�?sun darkened.. moon dark, turned to blood.

Re 11:3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. Re 11:4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. Re 11:5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. Re 11:6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. [Compare this with Psalm 149].

See here is showing the ministry of his Two witnesses. These two witnesses are the people of God, who had both the Baptism of the Holy Ghost and the Baptism of Fire. Only those who first obeyed Acts 2:38, then received the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, will be given the power of the baptism of Fire. Fire is for judgment and destruction. So no one who is not fully able to listen to God and obey him, discerning spirits, and knowing the Word of God, will be given this power of Fire to speak wrath and destruction to the rebels against God. These are the same people who are in Joel two. They are the ‘locusts�?of Rev. nine. It is all the very same judgment ministry.

These people will bring the wrath of the Lamb on this evil whore church, just as John and the Apostles did upon that old whore of the OT, those who claimed to be followers of Moses.

Joel 2:3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.

Joel 2:4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.

Nothing shall escape this great group of people, who are sounding those trumpets. Notice that they make the land a desolate wilderness. Some wildernesses are exploring new territory. But this is not the case here. It is making them DESOLATE.

Where is that prominent in Scripture? When Jesus pronounced Jerusalem desolate. So Jesus was taking part here, in the judgment ministry. But who was it too? It was to the OLD COVENANT. See, something most people do not understand, all Scripture is for the past, the present and the future. It is always. It is eternal. It always true, no matter when you read it. It must be rightly DIVIDED.

Jesus had a dual ministry. He was bringing the OT to a close, or making them desolate. He was bringing in the New Covenant, or giving them life. One is the Baptism of the Holy Ghost (life). The other is the baptism of Fire (death or judgment). He was life to the NT and death to the OT.

Noah was death to the old world, but he was life to the new world. It always works this way. Now this is an important principal to learn, if you are to fully understand what I am teaching here about the two different baptisms, or ministries.

Verse four is the horsemen in Rev. nine. It is the saints of God equipped with the baptism of Fire. Re 9:16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. Re 9:17 "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. " Re 9:18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

See, the fire coming out of these horsemen’s mouths? This is the same group of people in Joel two. Now I want to show you something. This is not only for the end time, which we are now approaching. It was also back in the days of Jesus Christ.

See, Jesus first, spoke desolation, to that old law covenant, or the OT. Then he sent his anointed witnesses, the apostle and that early church, with both the baptism of the Holy Ghost and the baptism of fire.

Only those who received the Holy Ghost, were eligible to receive the Fire. Now those Apostles did as Jesus. They bought life to the NT saints, via the Holy Ghost. But they also were those horsemen coming against that OT law. John had laid the AX to the root of their trees. But the Apostles chopped them down.

They did this with the FIRE coming out of their mouths. If they rejected the Holy Ghost and the baptism in the name of Jesus Christ, they were set to destruction. So they did the dual ministry as did Jesus. It will be the same with the witnesses today.

We see evidence of this ministry of FIRE when Peter spoke and judgment struck Ananias, and Sapphira his wife, and they immediately died. Then we See Paul manifesting this judgment and destruction ministry as he stuck a man blind and other such occurrences.

We will do a dual ministry. We will be bringing life to those who listen and obey the GOSPEL. But we will be given the FIRE, to speak desolation to this evil church of our day. They will be desolate, because they have rejected the GRACE message, as the Jews did in the days of the Apostles.

Joel 2:5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.

Chariots in Scripture, are God’s angels. So these people are acting in capacity as the power of angels. What is the tops of the mountains? Mountains mean nations, or literally, churches, in our age. In Peter’s day, it was those old Jews and their priests and synagogues. This flame of fire is again the judgment ministry, or spirit of Fire, in these witnesses�?mouths.

Flame is said by Strong’s to be feminine. It shows fire to be the masculine. Rev. nine also shows these ministers to have hair like a woman (meaning the daughters of God) and face like a man, showing both male and female in this powerful ministry.

So, what is this flame of fire doing? Devouring stubble. What is stubble? It is the people who try to serve God by the works of the law, instead of faith/grace.

In Isa. 47, we see mystery Babylon being made desolate. This is that old covenant, for Jesus told them, those Jews of his day, you are guilty of all the righteous blood shed on earth. Same words are said to Babylon in Rev. 18. So they are one and the same. There are many more proofs in the Word, but I will not take that in now. Have shown it many times.

But see that she says I am and none beside me. That is those JEWS who think they are God’s only and chosen people. But they worshipped idols and are the very ones God is destroying. Isa 47:11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.

See that here she is made DESOLATE. This is the very same one we are showing that Jesus and John made to be DESOLATE. And now the ministers of fire are carrying out that command, to make them desolate.

Now here is the proof that they are the STUBBLE: Isa 47:14 Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it.

Here is more proof that the wicked are the stubble.

Ob 1:18 And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.

[cont.]