Refiners Fire - Baptism of Fire (3/5/23)

Jesus is going to come and minister through His messengers as the refiners fire. Just as the Lord sent forth His messenger John the baptist before His first coming, He will send forth a company of messengers to prepare a way for His second coming. We are in this time. While I understood the Lord would come in a refiners fire to prepare His people, on 2/23/23 the Lord revealed to me that He would be coming through His messengers in this way. Their message will carry the fire of the Spirit, and the atmosphere will be filled with the fire of Heaven.

““Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will prepare and clear the way before Me. And the Lord [the Messiah], whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts. “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderer’s soap [which removes impurities and uncleanness]. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi [the priests], and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord [grain] offerings in righteousness.” (Malachi 3:1-3 AMP)

The wicked will be burned up with the physical return of Christ to the earth (Malachi 4:1). Before Jesus physically returns, His presence and fire will appear through His messengers who are functioning in the spirit and power of Elijah. The Lord’s appearing in His vessels will bring forth the ministry of the ‘refiners fire’ to His church. The refiners fire is necessary for the bride to be made pure:

“so that He might sanctify the church, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word [of God], so that [in turn] He might present the church to Himself in glorious splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy [set apart for God] and blameless.” (Ephesians 5:26-27 AMP)

“Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;” (II Peter 3:14 NKJV)

We cannot cleanse ourselves from stains and blemishes of this evil world, but we can agree with the Holy Spirit and desire the refiners fire to come and burn in our hearts. We must partner with the Holy Spirit as He functions as a ‘launderer’s soap’ and cleanses our hearts from the enemy’s poison, and the dirt we picked up during the battles of the journey. Jesus is now coming to His church as the One with feet of burnished bronze:

“His feet were like burnished [white-hot] bronze, refined in a furnace, and His voice was [powerful] like the sound of many waters.” (Revelation 1:15 AMP)

The David Guzik Commentary states:

“His feet were like fine brass: Since fire is connected with judgment, these feet like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace speak of someone who has been through the fires of judgment and has come forth with a refined purity. Jesus has been through the “Refiner’s Fire.” Brass is a metal connected with judgment and sacrifice.”

The fiery burning judgment of the Lord is coming through His messengers to the church. If we welcome the Lord’s judgment and embrace His fire, it will consume the dross and bring us to a level of purification that we have desired. The Lord loves His people and wants to burn away the impurities. We will feel free and pure if we allow the cleansing fire of the Lord to come upon us in the days ahead. As the fire is burning in our hearts it may hurt a bit, but it will be a good ‘hurt’ and we will be set free. 

The messengers have been undergoing a purification process so that the Lord can speak His words of fire through them:

“The oracles of the Lord are pure oracles; as silver tried in the fire, proved in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” (Psalm 12:6 Brenton LXX)

An oracle is defined as: “a person who delivers authoritative communication or divine revelation.” Christ will speak through these oracles or messengers with words of fire that purify the listeners. The church will receive the revealing of Christ inwardly when these burning ones preach Christ. The words of fire from these messengers will purify those in the church who desire to become the Royal Priesthood:

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;” (I Peter 2:9 NKJV)

Once purified, the Royal Priesthood will be ready to present offerings of righteousness to the Lord. Offerings are only righteous if they are the ‘right’ offerings. Offerings of our own will, thoughts, plans, and desires are not offerings of righteousness, but of ‘self.’ The Royal Priesthood will present prayers of the Father’s will, intent, plans, purposes, and desires. These are the offerings of righteousness that will be accepted. Our self-life and self-will must be burned away so we can offer to the Lord what He desires.

The Royal Priesthood will be worshipers and live lives of holiness and purity before the Lord. They will demonstrate the character and nature of Christ as they are refined into His image. The Royal Priesthood will worship the Lord in Spirit and truth. They will burn with holy passion for the Lamb and want to be near Him by the Spirit. This Royal Priesthood will be discerned by their “presenting themselves as a living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1-2). 

The Baptism of Fire 

I first experienced the baptism of fire in Montana at a meeting conducted by Leif Hetland on February 22, 2009. After the message, many of us responded to the altar for prayer. As Leif prayed for people, the fire of God fell. A burning of the Holy Spirit went through my body that can only be described as a “spiritual fire.” I yelled and wept as the holy refiners fire burned through me. The experience was so intense that human words fail to do it justice. 

The baptism of fire changed me which shows the experience brought forth fruit. After that baptism, my mind was more focused on the Lord. Holiness become a way of life for me to a greater degree. The dross of my former life of sin was burned out of me. I needed this encounter with the Lord’s refiners fire in order to be consecrated to the Lord and to enter the next phase of my journey with Him. It was His perfect timing.

There is now a whole new generation that has never experienced the Lord’s cleansing fire. Many in the church are still struggling with the pollution from their past sins and need to be set free by the Lord manifesting His ‘refiners fire.’ It’s time to seek the Lord for this encounter so that we can go on with Him to fullness. May the Lord release the baptism of fire on the younger generation to set them on the right course of following Him. May the Lord release His angels to carry burning coals from the altar of Heaven and touch all who cry out for this refining experience:

“Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, “Listen carefully, this has touched your lips; your wickedness [your sin, your injustice, your wrongdoing] is taken away and your sin atoned for and forgiven.”” (Isaiah 6:6-7 AMP)

Throughout the years I have had various encounters with the Holy Spirit manifesting as the ‘refiners fire.’ In private prayer, every so often He comes and burns me with His fire. Purifying and cleansing can be a process and He knows what He is doing. Every encounter with His fire has led to a greater level of holiness and consecration. It is simply the grace of the Lord to empower us to do what we cannot do ourselves. I share this only to create spiritual hunger and understanding.

Some use Luke 3:16-17 as the scriptural reference for the ‘baptism of fire,’ but this scripture is referring to the wicked being baptized in the Hell-fire. The context is very clear if we seek to know the truth. Malachi Chapter 3 is the true reference for the baptism of fire or experience of the refiners fire. Just because someone has been baptized in the Holy Spirit does not mean they have been baptized in fire. The Holy Spirit can make it two separate experiences or He can do it all at once. For me it was two separate and distinct experiences, and there was a notable difference between the two.

If you are not sure if you have been baptized in fire then it means you have not, because you would clearly know if you had. I did feel fire on my head when I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues as a prayer language. But the baptism of fire was a tenfold increase in the fire of God. I could hear audible screams and cries (in the meeting) as the Holy Spirit burned like a ‘refiners fire’ through the people of God. The Lord could only move on us for a short time in that refiners fire because our physical bodies could not take that manifestation of His glory fire for long.

The baptism of fire releases an inward revealing of the fear of the Lord that transcends head knowledge. The fear of the Lord is necessary to walk in purity and truth so that we can journey onward to the fullness that Christ has for us. This inward revealing cleanses our souls and gives us an appreciation for the righteous judgments of the Lord:

“The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” (Psalms 19:9 NKJV)

The Final Trials

The final sufferings and trials of this age are upon us. If we will ask for the baptism of fire and stay open to the manifestation of the refiners fire through the Lord’s messengers, we will be prepared for the final years of this age. Once the bride is close to being made ready, the final trials of the age will bring her to the full measure of the stature of Christ. The Lord will use the darkest of times and the greatest evil to refine and purify His bride so that she does not have any spots or wrinkles:

“Many will be purged, purified (made white) and refined, but the wicked will behave wickedly. None of the wicked shall understand, but those who are [spiritually] wise will understand.” (Daniel 12:10 AMP)

“It will come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy (set apart for God)—everyone who is recorded for [eternal] life in Jerusalem. When the Lord has washed away the [moral] filth of the daughters of Zion and has cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning,” (Isaiah 4:3-4 AMP)

“And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.” (Daniel 11:33-35 NKJV)

Conclusion

The refiners fire is necessary so that our heart motives can be pure. When our heart motives are pure we will seek the will of the Father and live for Him. If we are not refined by the Lord’s burning fire, we are at risk of doing things to be seen by man or to be recognized (among other things). If we do not conduct our lives and ministries with pure motives, everything we do on this earth will be judged and burned up before the throne of God. We will lose our Heavenly reward.

Let us seek the Lord and ask for His messengers to be sent who carry the refiners fire of the Lord. This fire will help the bride to be made ready and therefore its release is important for the Lord’s eternal will to be accomplished. We do need the purifying fire of the Lord to cleanse us so we can be the Royal Priesthood that the Lord desires. Send your fire Lord! Let it burn in us!

-Ty Unruh (2023)