Glad to have this opportunity to be in your home, to be in your life, to inject into your heart the infallible riches of God’s eternal Word. The message that we’re going to share today really riveted our church. The message is called “My Feet, but His Fire”. It speaks about combining your efforts with God’s direction. It doesn’t matter how much effort you put into it. If God is not in it, it means absolutely nothing at all. His fire with your feet won’t work either, because if you have his direction but you won’t walk it out, it will never come to pass.
Nadab and Abihu have gone on their assignment, their first assignment, to go in to offer up a sacrifice for the children of Israel. Now I have to set all of this up. This is going to take a minute, but it’s gonna be good. There were three parts to the tabernacle. There is the outer court. There is the inner court. And there is the Holy of Holies. What you see out there, that’s the outer court, with the brazen altar and the brazen laver. It was in the yard. There was no tent covering it. There were drapes around it, indicated by the dotted diagram.
Behind the purple line, you didn’t go across that line but once a year. That was on the Day of Atonement. And on the Day of Atonement, once a year, the high priest himself was able to enter in and offer up sacrifice and prayers before God. He carried in his hand a censer, which was taken from the altar of incense and it put off a smoke. That’s where we get your prayers going up as a sweet-smelling savor before God. It put off a smoke, and it enabled him to go into the Holy of Holies without death.
God said, “I am a Holy God. I am represented by a Holy Fire, and now you are causing me to reap a strange fire. And I reject it because it didn’t come from me. It can’t come back to me. I will not receive it”. And not only did he reject it, he rejected the ones who brought it, and Nadab and Abihu fell dead. They fell dead, because they were bringing that foolishness in the house of God. I believe that they fell dead in part because God wanted to set up a standard that says, “When I give a directive, you do it the way I said do it. Don’t bring your personal opinion, your personal ideas, your personal philosophy, or your personal preference into my presence. I said what I meant, and I meant what I said. And until you do it like I said it, I will not receive it, and I won’t receive you”.
They fell dead. They could have at least gotten the fire from the brazen altar, the place where the lamb was slain. They could have gotten it from the altar of incense, but they didn’t. There were various elements. There were five different elements that were a fire in the tabernacle. The first one was the brazen altar. That was the place where the lambs were slain, where they were tied to the altar and they were gutted and all the blood was caught. The entrails were laid aside, and then they were set afire. It was a burnt offering, a burnt offering.
The fire that was at the brazen altar is a picture of judgment. It is God’s judgment against sin, but he executes that judgment on an innocent lamb who stands in proxy for the one who did the sin. The lamb pays the price. The fire consumes the lamb so that the man can live only through the sacrifice of the lamb. See, this is God in the Old Testament teaching you of his master plan for Jesus, who would stand in proxy for us and take our judgment that we might be made whole.
So there they are about to go into the Holy of Holies with a fire that did not come from a holy place, and the Lord struck them dead. “You are mine. The tabernacle is mine. You belong to me. You do it the way I say do it. You are not your own, Nadab and Abihu. You were bought with a price. You belong to me. You do it the way I say do it”.
We have lost all discipline. We have lost all structure, and we’re wondering why we’re not prospering. You can’t prosper in disobedience. We’ve lost it everywhere. We’ve lost it in the church. We’ve lost it in the family. We’ve lost it everywhere. You don’t have people parenting children anymore. There you are counseling the kid, negotiating with the kid, “Come on now, Johnny. Come on now, Johnny. Now you know that’s not nice, Johnny. Come on now. I know you don’t like blue, but can you just wear red for mommy just this one day? If you wear a red shirt, mommy is gonna give you a cookie”. Shut up. Put that red shirt on.
Now to anybody else, fire is just fire. But God looks at the origin of the fire to determine its holiness. It is not just what it is, it is where it came from. It is not the idea, it is the intent behind the idea.
What you’re trying to do, is it a God thing, or is it a flesh thing? Are you trying to get God to bless something so you can prove to your sister that you got just as much as she does? Strange fire. If you’re trying to get even with your ex-husband, and trying to get God to be a part of the plot: strange fire. God said, “I will only bless that that I started. If I started it, I’ll finish it. I am Alpha. I am Omega. I am the beginning. I am the end. I am the first. I am the last”. Everybody who had something that God started, you need to shout right now. Because if God started it, he’ll finish it.
You’re trying to prove something to me? Strange fire. Trying to get even? Strange fire. Trying to be important? Strange fire. Need to be recognized? Strange fire. Wanna be seen? Strange fire. I have never seen God bless a preacher who thought they needed to be heard. It’s always somebody who says, “O God, not me. I’m not ready. I’m not ready yet, Lord. I can’t do it. O God, if you don’t do this, it can’t be done. I’m scared to do this without you. I can’t walk without you. I can’t talk without you. I can’t think without you. I don’t speak good enough. I’m not smart enough. I’m not holy enough. I’m not righteous”. When it is not of you, it is all of God. And when it is all of you, it is not of God.
Touch ten people, and say, “I want his fire”. I want his fire in my house. I want his fire in my marriage. I want his fire in my finances. I want his fire in my body. I want his fire in my future. I want his fire. I don’t care what you want. Maybe you came to church ’cause you’re looking for a girlfriend. Somebody came to church ’cause they’re looking for a good man. But the rest of us came to church because we want his fire. Give me his fire.
When I came to Dallas and I walked into that old building that we just tore down, and I was talking to W. V. Grant about it, I said, “Can you leave me alone in the building”? They left me alone in the building. I asked God one question. Not, “How much does it cost”? Not, “Where is the money going to come from”? Not, “Where are the people going to come from”? Not, “Will they like me in Dallas”? Not, “Will they take me out to dinner”? I don’t care about none of that. I asked him, “Lord, is it meant to be mine? I don’t want anything that’s not mine”. Because if God says it’s mine, he’ll send the people. He’ll send the money. He’ll send the favor. He’ll open the door. He’ll make the way.
I wish I had some witness in this place. Give God a praise. Slap three people, and say, “It’s gotta be his fire”. If it’s God fire, the money is coming. If it’s God’s fire, the provision is coming. If it’s God’s fire, the favor is coming. Stop just a minute and give him a praise. I feel glory. Give me the fire. It’s gotta be his fire. It can’t be my fire. It’s gotta be his fire. Throw your hands up, and say, “Give me the fire”. It cannot be willpower. It cannot be intellect. It cannot be because I have a degree in it. It cannot be because people say I got a preacher’s head. It cannot be because somebody wants me to go into business. It has got to be his fire. Somebody give God praise for fire. I’m through offering up my own fire.
How many of you have ever been burned by your fire, your decision, your choice, your person? That’s why your heart is broken. That’s why your head is down. That’s why you can’t get the business together. That’s why it’s driving you crazy. If you start it, you got to finish it. But if God started it, I don’t care how many witches try to hex you, I don’t care how many haters try to kill you, I don’t care how many neighbors try to destroy you. If God be for you… whoever that was for, give God a crazy praise.
I never will forget. God took me from being in a storefront preaching, literally in a storefront, to preaching on national TV. It happened so fast, that before I knew it I was on national TV. Didn’t own a camera. Had two people on the staff, pastoring in a church that seats 200 people, and there I am on national television. Didn’t even know what in the world was going on. Everybody congratulating me. Everybody excited. My mama is glad. My sister is glad. My brother is glad. My wife is glad. The kids are dancing and doing cartwheels.
I came to the house one day, and all of them were gone. I fell down on the bed and started crying. I started crying because I was so afraid. How in the world did I go from cooking chicken dinners to being on national television? I called my spiritual father on the phone. When he picked up the phone, I couldn’t even talk. I couldn’t even talk. And he said to me, he said, “It just hit you, didn’t it”? Have you ever had God shift you so fast, that before you knew anything, you were in a situation that was so big, too big for you? It was too big for me.
He said, “Don’t worry about it”. He said, “You didn’t give Paul Crouch your business card. You didn’t ask him to let you preach. You didn’t send him a tape, or a video”. He said, “If you would have started it, you would have had to finish it”. He said, “But since God started it…” And I want Mr. Watkins to know that was almost 26 years ago, and I’m still doing what God called me to do. I did it when I had money. I did it when I had no money. I did it when I had staff. I did it when I didn’t have staff, because God is not blessing me because of me, or because of them. He’s blessing me because he lit the fire. And if God lights the fire, no devil in hell… oh, my God.
He’s coming in the fire. He’s coming in the smoke in the fire. I dare you to pray ’til the devil turns you loose. I dare you to open your mouth. The only thing I need to tell you: God made the fire, but the priest had to provide the feet. Some people think that all they need to be is anointed, and they think that if they have enough fire they can get the job done. But it’s gonna take my feet, you’re all gonna hear how pretty this is. It’s gonna take his fire, but it’s gonna take my feet. Stomp your foot.
God told Joshua, “I’ve given you the land to possess it. It’s already yours. But everywhere your feet trod, I’ll give it to you”. Somebody stomp your foot. God said he’s got the fire. If you’ve got the feet, let me tell them God said he’s got the fire. If you’ve got the feet, I want every believer that’s got some faith in your feet to take a step somewhere. God said, “If you step on it, I’ll give it to you. If you walk in it, I’ll give it to you. If you step on it…” My feet. My feet, his fire.
We’re out of time. I’ve got to stop there, but it’s been a real joy to share the Word of the Lord with you. I believe that God is giving you specific direction of how you are to proceed going forward. If you’ve got his fire, all he needs is your feet. Take the Word of God and run with it.