Keep the Fire Burning

Text: Leviticus 6:8-13 (KJV)

Introduction

Fire has always been symbolic in OT Scripture

representing God's presence, purification, passion, and power.

In Leviticus 6:8-13, God commands that the fire on the altar must never go out.

These verses provide a rich framework for understanding the significance of the fire on the altar which symbolizes God's presence

This perpetual fire seen here and others though out scripture also reflect God's unchanging nature and our need to remain faithful with continuous devotion

The instructions that we find here in these verses, highlight the seriousness with which God views worship and the responsibilities He entrusts to His servants.

My prayer this morning is that this message will push us to evaluate our own faithfulness and commitment to God’s calling.

It should encourage us to regularly assess how we cultivate our relationship with God and should urge us to respond actively to His call, ensuring worship and service are authentic and ongoing.

God desires unwavering faithfulness from His followers.

Faithfulness requires not just a moment of passion but a continuous commitment, thriving in the light of God’s presence that transforms us and fuels our devotion to Him day by day.

and the fire of our faith must be kept ablaze by submitting to His will and living each day seeking to please Him.

Too often, believers allow their fire to dwindle due to complacency, distractions, or sin and before to long the fire that they once had is out and their heart is cold.

Today, I want to examine three key aspects of this continual or perpetual fire as we preach on the thought keep the fire burning.

I. The Command for the Fire

(Lev. 6:9)

"Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering: It is the burnt offering, because of the burning upon the altar all night unto the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be burning in it."

God did not suggest that the fire should be kept burning—He commanded it.

The fire was an essential part of the sacrificial system,

just as spiritual fervency is essential in our walk with Christ.

John 14:15 – "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

So what do we see about this command...

A. A Divine Directive

– The command to keep the fire burning came from God Himself.

Obedience is the foundation of a strong spiritual life.

Faith that is fueled by obedience burns the brightest.

If we neglect the Lord’s instructions, our fire dims.

The Lord tells us to do we should do, He says dont and we shouldnt.

He tells us to go forth we should go forth

If we believe His Word is truth but refuse to follow His commands our fire will dim.

Obedience fuls our faith!!

A. A Divine Directive

B. A Daily Reminder

– It was commanded for a daily reminder

The fire was not to burn out. It was to burn all night and all day.

You know why all the tents faced toward the tabernacle?

So when they walked out of their tent every day they could see the smoke and it reminded them, and when they looked out their tent at night and saw the glow of the flames they were reminded.

Having this fire burn all day and night would remind the Children of Isreal of a few things...

a. The perpetual fire was a daily reminder of God’s presence

The Isrealites needed a daily reminder that God was with them

Seeing the flame every night and the smoke evey day would I am sure draw their minds back to their first leg of the Exodus.

*Explain*

Seeing this every day reminded them that God had not forgot them and He was still with them.

Keeping the fire burning in us is a daily reminder that God is with us.

God wants us to keep the fire burning so we are reminded of His eternal presence in our lives.

When we go through trials, God is with us.

In Isaiah 43:2 God says,

Isaiah 43:2 KJV 1900

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

God does not say He will meet us when we come out of suffering;

He tells us He will walk with us through suffering.

In fact, there will never be a time when we as born again saints of God don’t have the presence of God; Jesus said, “Lo I am with you alway, even to the end of the world” (Matt 28:20).

Whatever you are going through right now, remember God is with you.

Keep the fire burning!!

b. The perpetual fire was a reminder of the need of atonement

The purpose for the bronze alter was to provide a place where sacrifices for sin could be offered so atonement could be made.

The first five chapters of Leviticus describe God’s instructions concerning the five types of sacrifices.

God referred to atonement repeatedly in connection with sacrifice.

Because we have sinned, atonement is necessary for us to be reconciled to God and to come into His presence.

Because God is so perfectly holy, he cant look upon sin and sin is not allowed into His presence

God is so perfectly just that sin must be punished

The penalty for sin is death, but God in His grace allowed a sacrificial animal to die in the place of the person who sinned.

When the sacrificial animal was killed and burned on the altar in place of the sinner, atonement for there sin was accomplished.

Since the sacrificial animal had to be burned to accomplish atonement, fire had to be on the altar.

The fire was always burning, so atonement was always obtainable.

God was letting His people know that atonement was needed and forgiveness of sin was always available.

Hey can I tell you this morning sinner friends that He is still in the saving business.

His fire is still burning

The sacrifice has already been made

the atonement has already been applied

All you have to do is accept the sacrifice that has been made for you.

Believer dont ever think that you have sinned beyond forgiveness

God is always ready to take away our sin.

God is never “Closed for Business.”

Just as the fire was always burning, our Savior Jesus is always with us, and ready to forgive us and cleanse us 1 John 1:9

Praise God, His forgiveness is available!

Praise God the fire is still burning

II. The Care of the Fire

(Lev. 6:10-11)

"And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen breeches shall he put upon his flesh, and take up the ashes which the fire hath consumed with the burnt offering on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar."

Though the fire was continual, care had to be taken to be sure it stayed burning

If neglected, it would eventually burn out.

When the priests were caring for the fire there were some things that they had to do to be sure the fire kept burning.

Like the priests, we too must be sure we are doing what God says so we can keep our fire burning.

God shows us here some things that must be done to keep the fire burning in our lives.

A. Attire Must Be Right

– I am not talking about the way you dress, even though the way you dress says a lot about your heart.

The garments that the priest had to wear when tending the fire, were holy garments. (Ex.35:19)

We are instructed in a similar way...

1 Peter 1:16 – "Be ye holy; for I am holy."

Be ye perfect even has your Father in heaven is perfect

To keep the fires burning, there has to be a sense of holiness in your life

Many people try to serve God while still clinging to sin.

Jesus said you can not serve two masters, you will love one and hate the other.

Jonathon told the children of Isreal

Choose you this day whom you will serve.

A clean heart is necessary for a lasting fire.

Are you wondering why you cant seem to kindle the fire that was once in your heart?

Maybe you are trying to serve God with un-confessed sin?

So their attire had to be right, but they also had to keep the alter clear of the ashes

A. Attire Must Be Right

B. Altar Must Be Cleared

The fire cleared the altar of the offering but the priest had to be sure the ashes were cleared from around the alter

– The priest made room for new sacrifices to be burned.

Maybe the reason you are not growing in your walk with God is because there are to many ashes built up.

Remember when you got saved?

*talk about God clearing our lives and we dont want to clear the ashes because there are to many memories*

To many times we cant grow in our Christian life becasue we are to busy thinking about what was.

God told the priest to clear the ashes from the alter.

They had to be prepared for the next sacrifice

Romans 12:1 – "Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God."

If you are going to keep the fire burning, you must keep the alter clear of ashes so you are ready to lay the next sacrifice down on the alter.

They not only had to have their attire right, and the alter clear, but v.11 tells us they had to remove the ashes out of the camp.

A. Attire Must Be Right

B. Alter Must be Cleared

C. Ashes Must Be Removed

They could have just cleared the alter of the ashes and just set them to the side and forgot about them, but eventually those ashes would have gotten to deep and the priest would spend to much time removing them that the fire would go out.

You can clear the ashes for the alter, but if you dont remove them completely from your life they will get so deep that you will spend so much time battling against them that the fire will go out.

The end is closer today then yesterday why do you want to battle with the things that God has forgotten about?

To many believers allow their fires to go out because they cant get over their past.

The priest taking the ashes outside the camp is symbolic of God forgetting our past failures.

Micah 7:19 “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; He will subdue our iniquities; And thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”

Paul tells us in Philippians 3:13–14 “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

If you are going to keep the fire burning in your life, you must remove the ashes of the sacrifices that God has burnt up in your life

You must keep the alter clear, always ready for the next sacrifice God demands

you must remain holy in your daily service to God.

and you must let go of your past because God has!!

God gave a command for keeping the fire burning

God told them how to keep the fire burning

God is going to show the commitment that is needed to keep the fire burning.

III. The Commitment to the Fire

(Lev. 6:12-13)

"And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning… The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out."

The fire was a continual fire and so The priests service at the alter had to be consistent.

just as our faith must remain consistent.

The priest understood the command for the fire, they understood the care needed to keep it but this is were the rubber meets the road they had to have a commitment to see that the fire stayed burning.

to keep the fire burning, like the priest, we must have a commitment as well.

The Lord lays out three things that can help us be committed to the fire

A. Wood Must Be Added

–have you ever tried to keep a camp fire going with out wood?

Without fresh wood, the fire would die.

If the campfire was your only source of heat, you would be committed to keeping it burning

What makes your spiritual life any different?

The priests had to add wood daily to keep the fire going and so we must add wood to the fire daily to keep our fire burning.

Spiritual "wood" includes prayer, Scripture, worship, and fellowship.

Psalm 119:105 – "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

If you stop feeding your spirit, your fire will fade.

Proverbs 4:23 – "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life."

I have hid thy words in my heart that I might not sin against thee.

Pray

Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

1 Thessalonians 5:17 “Pray without ceasing.”

Worship

2 Kings 17:36 “But the Lord, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.”

2 Chronicles 29:28 “And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.”

Psalm 95:6 “O come, let us worship and bow down: Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.”

Wood must be added to keep the fire burning

A. Wood Must Be Added

B. Willingness Must Be Present

Not only did the priest have to add wood daily, he had to offer sacrifces daily as well.

No use in keeping the fire burning if you are not willing to lay a sacrifice on the alter to be burned

Romans 12:1 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

Being committed to seeing that the fire is always burning, involves having a willingness to present a sacrifice daily.

Are you willing to present your self as a sacrifice to God daily?

Are you willing to die to yourself everyday so God can live through you?

A. Wood Must Be Added

B. Willingness Must Be Present

C. Watchfulness Must Be Practiced

– The priests had to watch over the fire constantly.

If we are not always watching over the fire, someone or something could come through and try and extinguish it.

If we neglect our time with God we are not being watchful

A neglected fire will die

—guard your time with God and your passion for Him.

Guard your heart from the sin of this world

Guard your family men, from the sin of the world

Guard your testimony

If we dont guard if we dont be watchful, it wont be long before our fire goes out.

Conclusion

The fire on the altar was a commanded, cared-for, and there had to be a commitment to the fire.

Likewise, our spiritual fervor must be cultivated daily.

Are you being obedient to God’s commands?

Are you caring for the fire in the right ways?

Are you committed to keeping the fire burning?

Is your fire nothing more than a pie of hot ashes?

Do you even have a fire to begin with?

The fire on the altar represents our relationship with God.

maybe someone here knows that they have never had a real relationship with God. You know that any fire you may have had was a strange fire like that offered by Aarons sons in chap 10.

I have good news this morning, just like God showed grace to Aaron after his sons committed sin, God is offering you the same grace.

Jesus wants to lite the fire in your life

He wants to save you and live in you

You just have to accept Him

You Just have to open the door and let Him in.

In Revelation 3:20, Jesus says: "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior,

Then simply come this morning to the foot of the cross and confess that you have sinned and fallen short of the gloryof God.

Confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins and rose again, to give you a new life.

repent and ask Christ to come into your life, cleanse you, and ignite a fire within you.

Believer friend maybe you are here this morning and feel like your fire has gone out.

🔥 The good news is that Jesus is ready to rekindle the fire in your life! 🔥

simply come to the foot of the cross this morning and ask the Lord, to help you live for Him, and to walk in obedience, and to keep your fire burning for His glory.