A CONSUMING FIRE

A CONSUMING FIRE

I am curious about the phrase in the concluding verse in the Book of Hebrews 12:29…”for our God is a consuming fire.”

Fire is an element of nature which when harnessed can be beneficial or destructive.

God is a consuming fire, says the writer of Hebrews.

All the more that we should fear Him, because He is awesome in  power.

I try to review the sermons in my home church, and it is remarkable that mostly the preaching dwells on the love of God, the loving kindness and compassion of God, God’s faithfulness, the grace of God,  the forgiving God.  Hardly is there a subject on the fear of God.

Though our Creator has all the wonderful attributes mentioned, we are also reminded, even warned, that  the  God Abraham, is an awesome, supremely powerful God, whom we should fear. He is a consuming fire. We who are merely fashioned by Him should not take Him lightly.

I believe there would be less evil or wickedness in this world if mankind has this fear of the Lord, instilled in their hearts. Like fire that consumes anything in its way, God can destroy anything. Like a raging fire that burns and eats up everything in its path, lest we forget,  this is another side of God. He is a God of justice and we need to fear Him, with reverence and awe. It is dreadful to fall into the hands of the Living God.

The  Biblical account of the ancient cities Sodom and Gomorrah, describes, how,  the people who lived there were  destroyed by God, because of their evil ways.

 “Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and He overthrew those cities and all the valley and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.”(Genesis 19:24-25)

This is a fearful description of God and when He rained fire and brimstone upon these two apostate cities, whose inhabitants lived in wanton carnality and sin, the writer of Hebrews aptly described in no uncertain words that “our God is a consuming fire”.

It is obvious from this account in the Scripture that God is an awesome, supremely powerful God whom we should fear and give reverence. We should not take Him lightly by calling Him “Bro” or whatever condescending terms of familiarity careless people call Him nowadays.