One year before I became the Senior Pastor of my Church assembly, the LORD gave me a dream that rocked me to the core! Not only did it help me to take careful stock of my life, but it also helped me to prepare effectively for ministry.
The Dream
In the dream, I was in an old, abandoned building. It was dark and gloomy and I was walking through a main opening area, something like a hall way.
Then a voice thundered out of nowhere saying “Chad, many Christians are flirting with the flames of Hell….and you are one!”.
After hearing that I was filled with sorrow. “How could this be? How could I let this happen?” were the questions that I asked myself. Then, right there in the dream, in that abandoned building, found myself, repenting to God for all my wrong doings.
While still in the dream I found myself in my mother’s kitchen at her home. I was peering out the kitchen window when I saw a man approaching the front door of the house. I realized (somehow) that he was a demonic spirit trying to enter the house. I rebuked him and he turned around and snarled at me in an effort to dismiss or scare me off. However, my persistence made him realise that I wasn’t afraid of him, which made him snarl even louder. I rebuked him, one last time, in the name of Jesus, before waking up.
After waking up from that dream, in an effort to ensure that my repentance was genuine, I got on my knees before God, asking Him for His forgiveness. I did that because I did not know, at the time, if He considered prayers of repentance said in dreams as being “authentic prayers”! I just had to make sure.
A Wake-up call to the Flirtatious
We may be of the opinion that everything in our lives is alright, perfect even! However, when scripture encourages us to “work out” our “salvation with fear and trembling” (ref. Philippians 2:12), we must see why such a warning is given and the gravity of the consequences if this said warning is not adhered to.
Today, you may be a believer who is caught up with the things of this world, or you may be a non-believer who still needs to encounter and understand the saving grace of Jesus Christ. This call is for you; it is for all of us. We cannot continue “flirting with the flames of hell” and expect God to continually view us as “vessels of honour”. Flirters can become cheaters. They may enjoy the sensual feeling the flames would give, until the flames manifest themselves as their very destruction.
Learning from Samuel
1 Samuel 3:1-14 is an interesting passage of scripture to study in this regard. Here are some key points from it:
- Samuel was a young boy when God called him. His mother, who was barren, dedicated him to the service of Almighty God. Samuel then started serving at Shiloh under the guidance of Eli the priest.
- Chapter 3 verse 1 said that “In those days the Word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions”. Despite all the prophets and priests that were around, God seemed silent. Then, in verse 2, God calls not to Eli, nor to his sons, or to anyone else, but to the young boy Samuel.
- When God called Samuel, he thought it was Eli because verse 7 says that “Samuel did not know the LORD. The Word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him”. It wasn’t until Eli realised who was really calling Samuel, (resultantly instructing Samuel what to do), that Samuel heard the LORD.
- God’s message to Samuel was not a pretty one. He was going to kill Eli’s son for their sins and cut off Eli’s generations. Even scarier was what He declared in verse 14: “Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, the guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering”.
Eli’s sons grew up being exposed to the righteous requirements of priesthood. Yet they chose a sinful lifestyle, disregarding the LORD’s thoughts and commands. Eli himself, though committed to his priestly duties, would have forsaken giving attention to the spiritual health of his family, thereby placing the generations to come at risk of spiritual degradation. Both Eli and his sons “flirted”. Whether they had good intentions (Eli) or evil intentions (Eli’s sons), their flirtation with hell’s flames cost them their calling, their lives, and even the sustainability of their lineage. And, of course, everything else would pale in comparison to what would be the result of their lives after death.
What is Flirting?
Definition: “to behave as though sexually attracted to someone, but playfully, rather than with serious intentions.”
Synonyms: “toy with”, “tease”, “lead on”, “make romantic advances toward”, or “court with”.
When you flirt with someone, there would be an interest or desire on your part. Most of the times you would not want it to develop any further. What you cannot control is how the OTHER PARTY feels or views your actions. This, of course, can apply to our romantic advances. But how can we flirt with the flames of hell?
Flirting with sin is flirting with death and hell themselves. The more you flirt, the closer you draw yourself to the flames, even though that is not your intention.
Maybe you just want to have a little sex, or do a little cheating, tell a little gossip or do a little stealing, all just for the thrill of it. We don’t want to go to hell but the sin can be too sweet!
And sin seems sweet because it fulfills fleshy desires and interests. There are also various ways in which we can tap into these desires and interests.
“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
1 John 2:16
But just like the person you are flirting with, sin has its own agenda. It would even flirt back with you. But its intention is to drag you straight to Hell’s flames, from which there is no turning back.
“The wages of sin is death”
Romans 6:23
“If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”.
Genesis 4:7
Eli and his sons allowed sin to have them when it came crouching. Their lives and generations were cut as a result. And there was nothing that could be done to redeem them.
So, what must we consider in not flirting with Hell’s flames? Here are three (3) things:
#1: Our Nature
“…Born in sin and shaped in iniquity.” – Psalm 51:5”
Psalm 51:5
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Romans 3:23
Our nature is a sinful one. This resulted from Adam and Eve’s original sin in the garden. When they disobeyed God, a covenant of sin was created between them and the serpent. The covenant allowed them to do as they want.
The covenant also meant that they belonged to the serpent and would eventually join him. It also meant that they would die, both naturally and spiritually, since that is the wage of sin; death. That is the only thing that sin can lead to; death!
When we sinned we broke our original relationship with God; that was a broken covenant. We then entered a covenant with sin, which would apply to every human being that would ever exist. Of course, the only way out of a covenant is by (yep, you guessed it) death.
So since we broke our covenant with God and took on sin, someone has to die, and usually the person who dies is the one who broke the covenant; us!
Then, Christ stepped in and did the unthinkable; He paid the price for us by dying on the cross. When He died, a covenant was broken again, but this time it was the covenant of sin. Therefore, if a covenant is broken, once again, someone has to die. This time, the person who died was Jesus Christ.
Considering your nature helps you to be honest with yourself. You are prone to sin and mistakes naturally. Like Eli’s sons, the deeper you go into sin, the less you consider your nature and less you become honest with yourself. It would therefore lead to your heart becoming harder and things becoming more hopeless.
#2: Our Responsibility
“Everyone shall be put to death for his own sin.”
Deuteronomy 24:16
“So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.”
Romans 14:12
“But they will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.”
1 Peter 4:5
Eli’s sons had a responsibility to be priests and to be accountable. They were to serve God and help Israel get closer to Him. Instead, they flirted; both literally and figuratively.
Eli also had a responsibility. Besides being high priest and Israel’s judge, Eli was a father. He was to teach, instruct and rebuke them. But he didn’t. He may have been caught up in other roles and responsibilities but forgot his primary responsibilities.
He couldn’t hear from God because his relationship with Him had dwindled. And he didn’t do as he should have with his family.
Does all of this sound familiar? God punished them because of their lack of commitment to their TRUE responsibilities, not just any self-imposed actions.
#3: Our Spiritual Location/Position
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.”
1 Thessalonians 4:3
The scripture above speaks about God desiring us to be in a place, or location, of sanctification. That must be our place, position and state.
Chapter 3 verse 2 says that Eli was “blind” and he was lying down in his “usual place”. That was his state and place of comfort.
Samuel wasn’t lying down in his usual place. He was lying down in the temple of God where the Ark of the Covenant was and where the lamp of God was still lit.
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.”
Psalm 119:105
There are some situations we couldn’t and still can’t change; which country we were born in, who our family and relatives are, etc. But we must take care as to where we find ourselves spiritually.
If you need to get closer to God, position yourself to be receptive to His call. If you need to get out of sin, position yourself for repentance and deliverance.
Samuel slept near the very ark and lamp of God, where the LORD’s voice and will could be heard. Eli was in his comfortable position, so he couldn’t hear anything!
Don’t flirt with Hell’s flames
The flames of hell will always try to tantalise us with comfort and luxury, but it would seal our eyes from the coming destruction. We must position ourselves in the presence of God. Learn what it means to wait before Him in prayer. Learn to study His Word daily and “hide it” in your heart, so that you would not “sin against Him” (ref. Psalm 119:11). Learn to live a life of repentance and circumspect walk. This is the requirement for non-flirters who prefer righteousness over the trinkets of sin.
Beacon Of Flavor 