My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
| 86 |
| CONSUMING FIRE |
| Deuteronomy 4:24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. |
| A consuming fire. Moses wrote this by inspiration in relation to the topic of idolatry in the life of the faithful Israelite. Moses recounts to the faithful, in verse 15, that the nation “saw no form” when God spoke to them at Horeb. There was no reason to resort to idolatry, for they had no form to duplicate. Of course they had the influence of their national neighbors, and of course a darkened heart that would expose itself as they sought to obey the law. These times of idolatry were inevitable without the faith that God was looking for. Out of an idolatrous life, God would appear to be the consuming fire Moses warns them of. The author of Hebrews resorts to this phrase, describing our God in relation to our refusing to hear Him who speaks (Hebrews 12:25). In both of these verses, for the faithful Israelite and for the faithful believer, God is described as a consuming fire. Once in relation to idolatry, and once in relation to refusing to hear Him. Might I suggest that idolatry, evil as it is in many forms, has one effect on the believer. A decision to elevate one authority over another. In this context, when a believer falls into idolatry, he is considering that which he worships (the idol) to be more authoritative than God Himself. This is a logical thought toward idolatry. The fuller and more powerful thought regarding idolatry comes down to one thing. Who ya gonna love? Who will you choose to love? In the culture I live in, 21st century America, there are multitudes of idols seeking my attention. I would hope my reader would agree that this culture is no friend to the sole worship of our God. It is a battle of the mind to decide to worship Him. This is the warfare we sometimes do not recognize being in the midst of. Let us remember that our allegiance, our loyalty, our attention and our devotion is to be directed to the Lord Himself. It is also important to recognize this does not demand we generate a warm fuzzy feeling all the time, for even when we are not “feeling it”, to express our love and gratitude to Him, and to act in obedience to Him because we want to no matter the feelings – that my friend is a very real expression of rejecting idolatry. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. |
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
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7 responses to “Names of God – CONSUMING FIRE – 86”
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Amazing paintings!
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Thank you!
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For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard in treated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
(For they could not harden that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)
Hebrews 12:18-21
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