“For
our God is a consuming fire.”-Hebrews 12:29
Despite
what the marketing gurus tell you, or the mainstream media outlets try to sell
you; everything that we consume, consumes us.
In America, we live in a culture of consumption. A steady stream of stuff bombards us every
minute, and infiltrates us in every way.
The cry is to buy, sell, and get gain.
Consume, discard, and repeat.
With the goal to get as much as you can with as little effort as
possible. We will consume and be
consumed, the only question that remains, is by what?
There
is just something absolutely magnetizing about a roaring fire in the fireplace. It just seems to draw you. The drama that unfolds is better than cable
television. The flames claim each log,
slowly consuming all in its wake; ultimately becoming only itself. The success or failure of a fire depends
totally on its architect. Like many
things in life, a good fire takes proper: preparation, materials, and
care. The construction and materials
working together are essential in providing key ingredients that are
consistently needed in order to produce a well burning fire. So many things are built, in the same manner
as a fire; families, businesses, churches, ourselves. The fire is started small, the flame is
fanned, and gradually the wood is added and consumed. It takes consistent, diligence and
maintenance. A steady diet of material,
added for the flame to consume, and transform into itself. In our lives (both spiritual and temporal)
the things we build, we build with consistency, diligence, maintenance, and
persistence. Words like convenience and
comfort, while welcomed in the temporal realm ought to be met with caution in
the spiritual. You cannot take a match
to a tree and expect it to catch fire. You
cannot throw a wet mass of leaves on hot coals and expect it to burn. You cannot leave a fire for a week and expect
to find it hot when you return. We like
to turn a knob and have heat to cook with, push a button to warm our homes,
flip a switch and the light comes on. We
want to own it, watch it, wear it, like it, consume it, and discard it; and we
want to do it all right now! This
philosophy does not stop at a church door, and the church has dutifully
responded to the demand of the masses.
Youth pastors scrambling to be on the cutting edge of the next big
thing. Worship looks more like a
halftime at the super bowl; sermons bare the feel of a comedy stand-up
routine. We want to write a tithe check
once a month, recite a prayer, give confession, breeze in “get blessed”, and
walk out. Find the minimal amount of
input for maximum results. The concept
of salvation has been marketed to the masses to be consumed, and therefore they
are conditioned to believe it should be.
In this artificial comfort, the lie of devil is propagated and the
people miss the joy of being consumed; instead of constantly consuming. The pleasure that is found in growing with
God and for God, is lost in the news feed or the media blitz. God wants to consume us, not the other way
around; he calls us daily to give our lives to his consuming flame so that he
can engulf us and light the world.
When
the Holy Ghost comes within it starts a fire in your heart that burns for
holiness. This holiness consumes us it
becomes our identity. Day by day the
“who we are”, “what we want”, “what we have”, and “who we wish to be, and be
with” is committed to the fire of holiness. We are consumed, and there is only
God. It is not always comfortable or
convenient, but it is good. It is
right. To be consumed by God in this
culture of consumption, is the principle calling of man and the greatest
privilege while here on earth. “Our God is a consuming fire.”
