Today we continue our series where we are looking at the question, “Who is God?” The answer to this question has endless ramifications. We should not approach it as if we are looking to define God so we can have a nice, neat, end all description of Him. That won’t happen! Any phrase we come up with is only a starting point for greater discovery of our infinite Father.
What I do encourage all of us to do is to pursue Him relationally. Connection, relationships, love, and trust will take us where our limited understanding won’t. Proverbs 4:7 Tells us to, “Get wisdom and get understanding.” Therefore, we will pursue wisdom and understanding while we will pursue our relationship with Him.
Today let’s look a little further at the concept that God is a consuming fire. This phrase comes from Hebrews 12:29. If we take any aspect of God’s essence and character out of context it can lead us to some wrong conclusions. In Malachi 3:2 it says, “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap.”
If we haven’t experienced the love of God, we could read this and think that God is out to get us. However, He is not out to get us. He is out to get that which harms us. He loves us and is for us and wants to be intimate with us. He knows that sin and impurities harm us and keep us from fully experiencing all He has for us. He comes to remove them out of love.
Just like a little kid that is getting bathed by his or her mom or dad, we still complain at times that, “You are scrubbing too hard. That hurts.” But as we get older we are called to mature and realize how much our dirt stinks and delight when He is doing His cleansing work.
About 10 years ago the Lord told me He wanted to remove everything in my life that hindered my relationship with Him. That is a process that will still be ongoing until I step into His presence someday. Out of that time He gave me a poem/prayer. The following stanza comes from that.
Undo me Lord, undo me Lord, undo me by your grace.
Undo me Lord, undo me Lord, don’t even leave a trace.
Fire of God burn through me. Purify my soul.
Cleanse the dirt that is my heart, take root there and grow.
This week trust God with me to. Ask Him to burn up the things in your life that get in the way of your relationship with Him.
