 “As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it.” Ezekiel 22:22 Recently God led me to watch one of my favorite classic movies, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Narnia was under a curse, released by an evil queen. It was always winter; everything was cold or frozen, and there was very little life on the land. But as soon as Aslan the lion, who represents God, stepped onto the land of Narnia, the curse of winter was broken. The snow and ice began to melt, flowers began to bloom, and fresh green grass began to grow. There was new life in Narnia. Similarly, there is a lion, the Lion of Judah, who is walking the earth, and breaking curses off the land and people. He is melting the hearts of nations and their peoples, in the hope that hearts will turn to Him and be saved, and lukewarm hearts will burn with love for Him. God desires that our hearts not be hardened and rebellious. He desires that our hearts be like water in His hand, yielded to His will and purposes for our lives. In Proverbs, we read, “Like a stream is the heart of the king in the hand of the Lord. Wherever it pleases Him, He directs it” (Proverbs 21:1). God doesn’t only desire this of kings, but of all people. Throughout the Bible we learn that God is not pleased when we harden our hearts. One such verse states, "Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion" (Hebrews 3:14). It is Satan’s desire that our hearts be cold and hard-filled with hatred for God and for one another-and that Christ-followers be resistant to God's will or complacent. What melts things that are frozen? Heat. Fire. The hearts of nations have been frozen; hardened toward God. How does God melt frozen hearts? By releasing His fire. Nations are being melted by fire. In America, there are antisemitic protests and murders of Jews. We are seeing actual fire in America’s streets, where there are riots filled with people who are rebelling against the laws of the government and of God, including violent acts committed against civil authorities. There have been violent acts committed against lawmakers and their families, including murder. Even in these circumstances, there was actual fire, in the context of a handgun being fired. There are active wars in Europe and Asia, with actual fire seen in the streets of Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Iran. Israel was violently attacked by Hamas and is currently at war to destroy nuclear capabilities in Iran. Christians are being martyred regularly in many nations, including Mozambique, Nigeria and Kenya. I am not suggesting that God sent these circumstances, as God gives His people freewill, but I believe He has allowed them, and I understand it to be His “merciful judgement.” The author Dr. James Marocco of “Hawaii’s Great Awakening” tells of how a tidal wave hit Hawaii in 1837 which led 99% of the people to receive salvation; and prior to the tidal wave, the missionaries there were having little to no effect. Dr. Marocco states, “People realized their need for God when coming so suddenly close to death. The revival increased in intensity because God’s third part of the Great Awakening, His merciful judgement, had taken place.”¹ Likewise, related to the Asuza Street Revival in California, an earthquake occurred just after the Holy Spirit fell, causing a desperate people to turn towards God, and this led to a mighty harvest of souls for Jesus. Most recently, I have observed in the past 5 years a great harvest of souls in America, since the Covid outbreak. I've witnessed God's merciful judgement in my own life when my 81-year-old mother turned to Jesus while battling cancer, a lukewarm family member became on fire for God when diagnosed with a disease, and a young trafficked woman got free from her abusive trafficker when her mother turned her into the police for committing theft. This led the young woman to call out to Jesus and she received salvation. The Lord told the prophet Malachi, “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord” (Malachi 4:5). The great and terrible day is now. Great, because God’s fire melts hearts and causes them to turn to Him to receive salvation, and it also causes lukewarm Christians to cling to God at a greater level. Terrible, because God’s judgement is being released. God’s judgement is symbolized by fire and I believe it is being released over the whole earth. “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and evildoers will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze,’ says the Lord of armies, ‘so that it will leave them neither root nor branch’” (Malachi 4:1). God is a consuming fire and His fire cleanses and purifies. “For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderer’s soap…He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings of righteousness” (Malachi 3:2-3). God desires to burn up all wickedness, right down to its root. Then holiness and purity can grow in the hearts of nations and their peoples. I decree God’s fire is melting the hearts of America, Israel, the whole earth. The hearts of nations and their peoples will turn toward Him and be saved.  1. Hawaii's Great Awakening by Dr. James Maracco, Bartimaeus Publishing, Kahulu, Hawaii.  |
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