Text: Psalms 119:83
(83) For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; yet do I not forget thy statutes.
Job 32:19-20
(19) Behold, my belly is as wine which hath no vent; it is ready to burst like new bottles.
(20) I will speak, that I may be refreshed: I will open my lips and answer.
Bottles in that day were made of sheep or goat skins.
Jesus told us that you don’t put new wine into old wineskins.
So, they would put the new wine in the fresh new skins to ferment the wine on the inside.
Many homes in that day didn’t have chimneys and so the smoke would fill the air above their heads
The bottle was hung high and there the soot from the smoke and fire would cover it…even begin to dry out the skin and make it tough at times.
In addition, the smoke mellowed the wine.
As the wine fermented on the inside it would stretch the bottle of skin.
It the skin dried too quickly the bottle would burst and its contents would be spilled.
So, every so often, the bottle would be opened to allow the gases created by the chemical reaction of the fermentation process to escape and make room for the wine to continue to ferment.
Additionally, some of the wine inside would be spilled and rubbed onto the outside of the drying skin to keep it flexible enough to stretch appropriately.[1]
You have faced a similar situation and some of what God is bringing to perfection inside of you needs to be relieved and allowed to vent and spill out onto the outside.
Daily pressures and spiritual warfare can sometimes ferment inside you to the point where you are about to burst because you are becoming hardened like an old eastern wine bottle and need to be renewed in the power of the Holy Ghost.
It is a process, the psalmist wrote, “I am become like a bottle in the smoke.”
Your growth and maturity in God doesn’t just happen. Knowing Him isn’t a passive thing.
You must remain pliable and workable in the Hand of the wine skin master. Let Him renew you and allow the healing touch of the Spirit to soften your rough places.
It takes both the inner and outer experiences, the internal and external pressures of life, to perfect you. Otherwise, you will crack and break under stress, heat, and pressure.
It takes what is on the inside being released and rubbed onto the outside that brings balance and enables you to mature.
The new wine that is inside must also be allowed to saturate the outside in order for you to be perfected
I’ve come to tell you that God is not just in the fire…He is also in the smoke.
“He [Jesus] shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.”
Exodus 19:18, “And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.”
Fire represents the power of God.
Smoke represents the glory of God.
Revelation 15:8, “And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.”
Isaiah 4:5, “And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.
Isaiah 6:4, “And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.”
It is the weight of Gory that I now address:
The sufferings, the pressures, the trials, the turbulent battle in your spirit, soul and body,
The attempt of satan – your adversary the devil – to try to get you to burst and explode and come to ruin because you have allowed present circumstances to DISTRACT you from eternal reward.
“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:17-18).
Philippians 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings…”
Power of His resurrection = Holy Ghost fire
Fellowship of His sufferings (plural) = The glory of God.
Why plural? “…In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (Jn. 16:33).
You may feel like David of old today. His was a pressure cooker of life’s troubles, but he knew how to get relief.
He would enter the presence of the Lord in praise and worship.
He would sing a song, pray a prayer, write a psalm, and then the sweet balm of the Lord’s Spirit would come to him.
That was why he could cry out with such passion:
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit” (Psalms 51:10-12)
Saint of God, if you need that relief tonight then you simply need to be renewed in the Holy Ghost:
- Acts 3:19, “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;”
- Let’s all repent together.
- Ephesians 4:23, “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;”
Perhaps you are here tonight and you want that Holy Ghost. You have repented and are now a new wine skin ready to be filled and made …A Bottle In the Smoke:
- Close your eyes and think about Jesus and how much He loves you. Right now all that matters is talking to Jesus. This is time just for Jesus. Just think about Him and begin to talk to Him like you would talk to your best friend. Use simple words that tell Him how much you love Him.
- Pray out loud, because Jesus likes to hear your voice.
- Now, lift your hands and reach to Jesus. Show Him you want Him to fill your heart by raising your hands to Him and showing Him you are open to Him.
- Keep talking to Jesus and telling Him what you want. If you want the Holy Ghost, ask Him for it. It’s like asking someone for a gift. Jesus wants to give you His gift.
- Talk to Jesus in your outside voice. As you talk to Him, you may feel something very special start to happen. You may begin to feel like you are saying words you can’t understand. That is OK, because those words are Jesus talking with your voice. Just let those words pour out of your mouth as you let Jesus come live in your heart.
[1] SOURCE (paraphrased Dr. Fred Childs. http://www.wordshare.us/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=35157. Accessed: 1-13-10
The Pillar and Ground of Truth 