What Does the Bible Say About Wildfires In the End Times?
Our Sunday message for 12/15/24 from the Social Gospel Worship & Learning Center, Minister Paul J. Bern, pastor
Why Are They Are a Harbinger of Fires Yet to Come?
by Minister Paul J. Bern
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The 2024 California wildfire season is an ongoing series of wildfires that have been burning throughout the U.S. state of California. As of December 13, 2024, a total of 7,934 wildfires have burned a cumulative 1,049,452 acres. Year-to-date, the number of wildfires and the number of acres burned are higher than the five-year average. Wildfires have destroyed 1,680 structures and killed one person in the state in 2024. This season has had the most burned acres since the 2021 season.
The Irony of It All
Isn’t ironic that, in the middle of the annual Christmas shopping melee, we have wealthy Hollywood celebrities who are getting burned out of their palatial dwellings, such as TV star Dick van Dyke, among many others? Some of the wealthiest among us have now become homeless. By the same token, there are homeless people who are very rich in the eyes of God. Pause for a moment as you contemplate on that.
What God Has Said Through His Prophets
This year has been a year of devastation and disaster as we see not only economic, social, and political disaster, but also man-made and natural disaster. We see wildfires all across the Western United States, huge massive fires endangering lives, causing mass evacuations and consuming property. If it’s not a sign, then it should at least be a wake up call. Things in the world are just not right, as if the whole world is on fire! Don’t take my word for it, read the holy scriptures, the Bible, see for yourself what the Lord says regarding the end times and fires.
A Few Relevant Quotes From Scripture
Isaiah 30 verse 27 says, “See, the name of the Lord comes from afar, with burning anger and dense clouds of smoke; his lips are full of wrath, and his tongue is a consuming fire.” One of the things that impresses me most about the west coast wildfires is they can spread faster than a human can run. That is, they can overtake and consume someone who is trying to flee without a vehicle. God's Word, the Bible in whatever format or version you choose, is a “consuming fire” that spares nothing and no one, even to the very soul.
In Danger of Eternal Fire
The fires of hell are just as real as those wildfires you've been watching on the news, or preferably on Alternative Media. Jesus said as much in Matthew 5 verse 22: “....I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca', is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'you fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.” “Raca” is an Arabic gesture of contempt, like calling someone an expletive or talking down to them as if they are worthless. That person may well seem worthless to their accuser, but the accuser forgets that God made them both.
Still More Applicable Scripture Verses
In Mark's gospel chapter 9, verse 43 mentions the fires of hell too. “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell, where the fire never goes out.” Wildfires, no matter how out of control they may become, are all eventually put out. Not so with the fires of hell. If Jesus tells us that hell is a real place, you had best believe it is because Jesus cannot lie – it's just not possible for the Son of God to do that.
Jesus cannot lie any more than a house cat can transform itself into a leopard. So hell is real, and any person who says otherwise is in a state of denial. No apologies here. None at all. The apostle Paul wrote about what occurs in instances like the California wildfires, or the huge hurricanes we had earlier this year, when people put their faith into the wrong things. “....his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to the light. It will be revealed with fire, and fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.”
Having Been Destroyed With Water, the Earth Will Soon Be Destroyed by Fire
“The Day” is a reference to the Biblical return of Jesus to reign forever here on earth. The “Day of the Lord”, as the Bible calls it, will be marked by the wholesale destruction of everything man-made. Just as God destroyed the earth once before by the Great Flood, he will soon destroy again with fire. Our legacies cannot be consumed by fire, only our material goods, together with ourselves in a worst case scenario. “If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.” Just as those who made it through the ferocious fires out in California escaped with only the clothes on their backs, so those who hoard possessions and wealth in this life will have the least in the next, if they make it to be with the Lord at all. You materialistic people – you know who you are – are living your lives all wrong! Some don't realize it and others just don't care. As a famous preacher once said, “People who don't care leave holes in time.”
The Only Thing That Matters In the End
Everything in the world is in a state of agitation. The signs of the times are ominous. Coming events cast their shadows long before their arrival. The Spirit of God is withdrawing from the earth, and calamity follows calamity by sea and by land. There are hurricanes, tornado's, earthquakes, deadly wildfires, floods, mass shootings and murders of every description. Who can read the future? Where is security? There is assurance in nothing that is human or earthly. The only true security can be found in Jesus Christ. When our lives are over and our bodies inevitably wear out and die, we can't take any of our stuff with us, including our money. Too many people live their lives to see how much they can accumulate while they're still here. What we should be doing instead is to live our lives to see how much of a legacy we leave behind when we're dead and gone.
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