Send the Fire
Yesterday I began talking about a dream Holy Spirit recently gave to a friend and prophet, Greg Hood. The dream is about revivals of the past, represented in the dream by oil wells. The wells were no longer pumping or producing, having been neglected and abandoned. They were called “orphaned wells,” a term used in the industry to describe abandoned oil wells. Throughout the dream, God reveals His desire to rejuvenate past wells of revival and release their fruit once again.
The first revival well mentioned in the dream was the 1857 Fulton Street prayer revival in New York. Daily prayer spread across the country to tens of thousands of people and resulted in hundreds of thousands coming to Christ. God’s instruction of how to restart the well was for water - the river of life - found in Holy Spirit to be poured on it once again. If you did not see or hear the post, please do so. Today we will look at the second well in Greg’s dream and what it represents.
TENNENT’S WELL
We ran to another well. Again Dutch began rubbing the engraved plate with his handkerchief to wipe away the years of accumulated grime. The plate read, “Tennent’s Well of Fire.” Inscribed underneath this was, “Ministers Must be Born Again!” (We could still hear the rumbling of the Fulton Street Well! It was getting louder and louder.)
Gabriel, the Archangel, stepped out from behind this well as Dutch and I were pondering its design and said to us, “If you prime this well you will make many enemies among the religious. But, if you do prime this well, many will catch fire!”
Dutch looked at me, turned and looked at Gabriel, then once more turned and looked at me. He then said, “To hell with the consequences! We are priming this well! Hood, give me the other bottle.”
I reached into my bag and pulled from it another bottle. This bottle was oil, labeled “Hebrews 1:7.” [”And regarding the angels He says, ‘He makes His angels winds, And His ministers a flame of fire.’”]
I handed it to Dutch. He took the cork out of the bottle and began pouring the oil into a hole in the side of the well. This hole looked like a spout where you would put gas into your car. It had a sticker on it that said, “oil reservoir.” We could hear the oil Dutch was pouring from the bottle hitting the bottom of the reservoir. It had been completely empty! Dutch kept pouring from the bottle till the reservoir was full and overflowed.
Gabriel said to Dutch, “Ignite it!” Hearing this, Dutch took a step forward toward the well and shouted at it with a voice of authority, “FIVE-FOLD, BE BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND FIRE!” As soon as he declared this, the Tennent Well shot a flame of fire out the top of it that seemed to reach the sky.
As this well started to burn, people began running to it with pieces of wood in their hands, which they ignited with the fire coming from the well. As soon as their wood was lit they would turn and run away from the well, carrying the fire back to where they came from. I knew in the dream that the wood they brought to the burning well was wood from their pulpits, which they had broken up. (The final part of the dream will be shared in tomorrow’s post.)
Gilbert Tennent, a revivalist preacher, was a leader in the First Great Awakening along with George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards. Whitefield called him “a son of thunder.” He became very controversial and even divisive through his emphasis on the need for a new birth. One of his sermons, entitled “The Danger of An Unconverted Ministry,” was especially offensive to some.
“Tennent was unsparing in the sermon, calling opposing ministers ‘Pharisee-teachers’ who had ‘no experience of a special work of the Holy Ghost upon their own souls’ and comparing them to Satan transformed into an angel of light. Tennent argued that ministers who had not experienced conversion could not preach the gospel, and that Christians who had been converted were free to leave their churches and seek other ministers. Tennent had a point: many ministers had not experienced a new birth.”(1) Thus the phrase in the dream under the well’s name: “Ministers Must Be Born Again.”
Knowing this challenge from Tennent to the clergy of his day, it is easy to discern what God is saying to us through this well. He is showing us that after the prayer revival (which was becoming louder and louder in the dream) there must be a revival that impacts leaders in the church. Gabriel warned us in the dream that if we primed this well we would make many enemies among the religious. But also, many would catch fire.
We decided to prime the well. The bottle of oil, labeled Hebrews 1:7, refers to God making “His ministers a flame of fire.” Although I have shared it before on one of our posts, the following quote from Alex de Tocqueville is appropriate here.
Frenchman Alex de Tocqueville came to America in 1831 to study our nation:
I sought for the key to the greatness and genius of America in her harbors; in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast world commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning. I sought for it in her democratic Congress and in her matchless Constitution.
Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.(2) America’s pulpits were on fire - the key to America’s greatness!
Gabriel told me to ignite the oil! In the dream, I commanded, “Five-fold, be baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire!” A flame exploded from the well. As it burned, ministers brought pieces of wood from their busted-up pulpits and lit them with Tennent’s fire. They then took this fire back to their congregations.
It is impossible to miss the symbolism here! We ministers must become flames of fire once again, and our pulpits must be ablaze.
I am reminded of the great song Send the Fire, written by William booth, founder and leader of the Salvation Army.
Verse 1
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!
Verse 2
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!
Verse 3
‘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 the world in white,
Send the fire!
Verse 4
To make our weak hearts strong and brave,
Send the fire!
To live a dying world to save,
Send the fire!
O see us on thy altar lay
Our lives, our all, this very day,
To crown the offering now we pray,
Send the fire! (3)
I am not throwing stones or making accusations against the spiritual leaders in our nation. I am simply saying that if we want to see the great revival God is offering us now, we must ask Him for His fire and receive it unconditionally, with nothing held back. May our pulpits become kindling that light the flames of holy fire in America.
Pray with me:
Father, we ask You to forgive us as leaders in the church for allowing the fire within us to wane at times. Like those to whom we minister, we sometimes allow busyness, the cares of life, problems, and other circumstances to dampen the flame of our passion. We ask You to re-open the well of Tennent’s revival. It’s fire we want, it’s fire we need. Please, send the fire.
You said in the dream that if we would prime this well, many would catch fire. We ask You for this now. Make Your ministers a flame of fire! We say to the leaders of Your church, “Five-fold, be baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire! May your pulpits become kindling, used by Holy Spirit to light fires in those who follow you.”
We thank You, Father, for doing this. We confidently ask in the name of the Lord Jesus, declaring America shall be saved!
Our decree:
We decree that the pulpits of America will once again burn with holy fire, and will light the flames of revival among the masses.
You can find out more about Dr. Greg Hood here.
Click on the link below to watch the full prayer.
http://greatawakeningdocumentary.com/exhibits/show/biographies/gilbert-tennent
Though not a quote from Alex de Tocqueville’s books, this statement is routinely and widely attributed to him and has been used by U.S. Presidents ad leaders as such.
Send the Fire by William Booth, copyright: Public Domain. The Songbook of the Salvation Army #203. https://hymnary.org/hymn/SBSA1986/203