Sat., Apr. 21, 2018

Hebrews 12:29 –For our God is a consuming fire.

Hubby Rick started a fire in the chimenea tonight. When he has smaller boards or branches, he often starts a fire in our backyard. As you can see, the old oak boards burned brightly tonight!

Fires are interesting. They never stay the same, constantly moving and changing. When our grandkids are visiting, they love to have a fired in the backyard. Often, we roast hot dogs or marshmallows. It’s easy to sit around a fire for extended periods of time, with or without conversation. Who bores when watching a fire?

Fire is a common concept in scripture. Fire is used to eliminate sinful and challenging people in the Old Testament. The alter becomes a place where sacrifices and offerings are burned and dedicated to God.

In the New Testament, this changes. For Christians, Christ becomes and sacrifice that takes on our sinful nature. Jesus deals with it once and for all. No more sacrifices are needed. Believe in God’s redeeming work through Christ becomes the focus.

Look at this verse from Hebrews: For our God is a consuming fire. This sentence can sound daunting. Most often, we think of fire as eliminating the awful and bad. Yet, after a fire, new growth can happen. This is why people burn fields and road ditches in the spring. Eliminate the old so the new can poke through and experience new life.

Maybe this is what the Hebrew scripture is referring to when it says, “God is a consuming fire.” The reference here is to worshipping God. Through worshipping God, we can see our hearts can become overjoyed with a God who longs to consume us fully.

It is hard to maintain ourselves spiritually so that we feel God’s consuming presence in our lives. Having little things that re-direct me back towards God and God’s saving grace makes recognizing God’s presence in my life much easier. Something as simple as a fire in the chimenea.

For this, I am grateful.

Lord God – Thank you for being in my daily live. Thank you for simple things, such as a fire, to help us see you. May we desire to let our worship of you be such that we find new birth in you. Amen.

Blessings –

Dianne

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