Wildfires are rampant across Texas right now. The drought our poor land has gone through has been terrible these past months, and now fires are burning us to the ground. Wildfires are extremely tricky and difficult to put out. As I've watched the news the past few weeks talk about the devastation they are doing to people's homes and land, I remembered this description of God:
"For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God." Deut. 4:24
God describes himself this way when he is forbiding the Israelites to worship idols. He meant what he said too.....the Israelities were punished severely for going against the covenant they made with God. Our God is not to be trifled with. I think this upsets many people. They think they want a God who is like a grandfather. You sit on his lap, he tells you stories, maybe scolds you a little about not telling a lie, and then doesn't really interfere with your personal life. They certainly don't want a jealous God. That kind of God is frightening.
But God knew that. He knew that we could not possibly contain Him, or approach Him, or conceive Him, or understand Him. He knew that as the Creator of the entire universe, our minds could only comprehend His majesty and glory so much. He knew that even if we tried our very hardest, we would still fall short. He knew the Israelities would not keep their covenant with Him that day. He knew.
And that is why he also knew he had to do something. He knew we could not be in His presence, so he had to send someone to save us. He didn't just send anyone either. God's unfathomable love for us compelled Him to send His son. Hallelujah....what a Savior!
Now- we are all conquerers! Christ's blood was the bridge over the Great Divide between us and God. We can approach him and be forgiven of all our sins. He loves us more than we could ever ask Him to.
The question remaining is: what about the God of the Old Testament? What happened to Him when Christ came?
The answer is that the God of the Old Testament is still very much alive. He is still Holy, and he is still reigning supreme over all life. He is still a Consuming Fire. The people that want the "grandfather God" are missing out. They are putting God in a box and presenting him as something human-like. I do not want to worship a God that I can fully describe or fathom. I want a God who is looking out for my best interests, even if it goes against what I want. If I am going to place my entire life in the hands of a God- I want a God who is feared and a God that is eternal.
