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Blood and Fire. Do We Really Have
Both?
by Lieutenant Jimmy Taylor
As the
Assistant Corps Officer at The Atlanta Temple Corps,
Lieutenant Jimmy Taylor leads Light on the Hill,
a contemporary expression of Salvation Army worship. We sing
the song and pray the prayer;
Jimmy imagines what it would be like if it happened.
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Emblazoned on our flag are the words “Blood and Fire.” The
blood of Jesus frees us and the fire of the Holy Spirit
sanctifies us. But is it truly happening? Is the fire of the
Spirit present in the Army today? Maybe at your corps you can
say, “Absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt,” but what about
the corps around the corner and the one in the adjacent city
and the one on the other side of the world. If we are going to
be so bold as to stitch it on our standard shouldn’t it ring
true throughout the ranks? So I ask what would happen to The
Salvation Army as a whole; our corps; the communities that we
live and work in, if God really did send His Spirit’s fire?
This is a question that I have asked myself a lot recently.
How would our ministry and mission change; or would it? Would
our Army change or would it continue in the vein that it has
for decades?
The Holy Spirit arrived at Pentecost as a rushing wind that
exploded into tongues of fire. It filled the disciples and
everyone else in the room. It filled them so intensely that
they couldn’t hold it in. They had to tell someone. This drove
them into streets where they proclaimed the Gospel to anyone
that would listen. Wow, what an amazing experience! But, if
the same Holy Spirit is here with us today and the same fire
fills us, are we seeing the same results? Are we content
sitting in our pews, reading our Bibles, singing our hymns and
remaining virtually unchanged and uncharged? Do we have the
same burning in our gut that the disciples had that Pentecost
morning? If the Spirit’s fire fell on us right now or entered
a room in which we were gathered for worship would it make a
bit of difference? Would we even notice or care? As at
Pentecost, would we run to the streets and tell people about
our experience? How would the communities that we live and
work in change if we became so consumed by this holy fire that
we could not stay silent?
I have been to corps where when you walk in there just seems
to be something missing and I have been to corps that have
been set ablaze. Which one is your’s? Does your corps burn
with the Blood and Fire spirit we are to be charged up with?
Are your services bland and your soldiers lifeless? Perhaps
the Holy Spirit is chomping at the bit waiting for you to
allow Him to wreck your service in a holy, chaotic blitz.
Again this is not every corps, officer or soldier in the
Salvation Army world. However, if we are all going to say we
are one Army then we need to think as one army, for armies are
only as strong as their most vulnerable soldier, which brings
me to our personal lives.
What if the Holy Spirit’s fire REALLY ignited the lives of our
officers and soldiers? What if Salvationists lived lives that
were so blazingly passionate for the Gospel of Jesus Christ
that everything else was consumed by its flame?
In far too many places, in my opinion, we have lost our
mission and drive to serve those hurting both physically and
spiritually. I believe this grieves the Spirit. When we do not
carry out the mission that we have been tasked with both
spiritually and socially, we little by little begin to
extinguish the fire that the Spirit has ignited.
Imagine what God could do with this Army if we allowed the
Holy Spirit to take over. Imagine the lives that could be
changed. Imagine how our corps would explode with people with
an unquenchable fervor for the cause of reaching the least,
the last and the lost. In places where complacency had once
reigned, Christ would rule. Our Officers whose hearts may have
cooled would burn with a passion to save souls and grow them
spiritually. Our buildings would become places of spiritual
refuge. Our uniforms would be recognized as symbols of hope.
Our congregations would become unified. Our people would love
without discrimination. The possibilities are limitless!
The Holy Spirit must take hold of us and thrust us into the
fray. We are an Army and armies fight. The Holy Spirit,
according to our doctrine, regenerates us into new creations.
Oh, Holy Spirit come. Regenerate this Army into the fighting
force that You raised us up to be. Renew us and fill Your
people, Your soldiers and Your officers. Reclaim us for Your
purposes. Remove our contentment for the status quo. Restore
to us the Fire of Your Holy Spirit. Inspire us to reach out
beyond our walls. Inspire us to intervene in people’s lives.
Cause us to hurt for those who are
hurting; weep with those in mourning; and fight for those who
can not defend themselves. Holy Spirit come and renew Your
Salvation Army. May our motto of “Blood and Fire” become
something we truly possess and are willing to fight and die
for.
Consider the words of our founder:
Send the Fire
Gen. William Booth
Thou Christ of burning, cleansing flame, Send the fire!
Thy blood - bought gift today we claim, Send the fire!
Look down and see this waiting host,
Give us the promised Holy Ghost,
We want another Pentecost,
Send the Fire!
God of Elijah hear our cry: Send the fire!
To make us fit to live or die, Send the fire!
To burn up every trace of sin, to bring the light and glory
in,
The revolution now begin, Send the fire!
‘Tis fire we want, for fire we plead, Send the fire!
The fire will meet our every need, Send the fire!
For strength to ever do the right,
For grace to conquer in the fight,
For power to walk this world in white, Send the Fire!
To make our weak hearts strong and brave, Send the fire!
To live a dying world to save, Send the fire!
Oh see us on Thy altar lay
Our lives, our all, this very day,
To crown the offering now we pray, Send the fire!
General William Booth
Send the Fire
Send the Fire
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