A Challenge to Worship Leaders

These few paragraphs are a general challenge to worship leaders, song leaders, pastors, hymn writers, and anyone else involved in the congregational worship in song that is a staple on Sunday mornings in Christian churches of all denominational affiliation.

A common theme in many worship songs and hymns (I’m not sure of the difference really), is to call down for fire from heaven to ignite worship or something to that effect.

I would like to ask all of you to earnestly study the Bible to find a place in which fire coming down from God, or coming down from heaven, is ever a thing that we are to pray upon ourselves. I would like to ask why it would ever be something we would want to happen to us.

The only time I ever find fire from heaven as a positive thing is when the burnt offering is consumed by it, such as in 1 Chronicles 21:26 and 2 Chronicles 7:1, and at that time it is good for the offerer, not so much for the offering.

Here are a few to think about:

• Genesis 19:24
• 2 Kings 1:10–14
• Job 1:16
• Luke 9:54
• Luke 17:29
• 2 Thessalonians 1:8
• Hebrews 12:29/Deuteronomy 4:24
• Revelation 13:13
• Revelation 20:9

This I think to be a situation in which we should thankful that God does not answer our requests with the affirmative, but rather makes intercession for us (Romans 8:26), and graciously denies our request.

Just something to think about as you make your song selections for this Sunday.