Olympic Fire

Fire.

Stolen from the gods by Prometheus. Brought down from Mount Olympus and given to the land of mortals, against the wishes of the enraged deities.

Or so the old Grecian myth goes.

The Olympic flame is traditionally carried in a relay from runner to runner to the site of the Olympic games—a nod to the fanciful legend of Greece, where the Olympics originated.

Today, when the last runner enters the stadium in Vancouver to light the Olympic cauldron, the flame will have completed a 106-day journey across Canada. The fire that remains burning for the duration of the games will trace its beginning all the way back to Greece, where it was ignited at the site of what was once the temple of Hera.

One continuous fire, burning across different torches, different countries, different continents. Though subjected to an ever-changing array of new vistas and environments, the fire, where it began and where it is going remain the same.

Two thousand years ago, another fire ignited. In the city of Jerusalem, one hundred and twenty disciples of Jesus Christ were gathered together on the Day of Pentecost when a mighty rushing wind filled the house and tongues of fire descended upon the heads of those there.

Not stolen from the gods, but given freely by the one true God, this fire—God's Holy Spirit—started burning in the hearts of Christ's servants two millennia ago and has remained burning in His Church ever since.

Before His crucifixion and resurrection, Christ promised, "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades [the grave] shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18

, NKJV). True to His word, that Church has survived until our present day, and continues to function under His guidance.

Like the Olympic flame, God's Spirit has spread from individual to individual, country to country, continent to continent. It burns without interruption, without change, on its way to a sure and established goal. But unlike the Olympic flame, it enables those who carry it to have a direct, personal connection with their Creator, and to share His character. The Olympic flame is temporary; God's Spirit is eternal. The Olympic flame represents something stolen; God's Spirit represents a gift available to all who truly want it. The flame symbolizes all that is human nature; the Spirit contains all that is God.

Today, the cauldron will be lit, and the games will be underway. In a few more days, they will be finished, along with the Olympic flame. But the Spirit of the living God, carried for centuries by His people, will never be extinguished. They will continue marching toward their ultimate goal—a goal far greater than any Olympic cauldron.