Deuteronomy 4:24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

The fire is burning, the consuming fire of God, because the world is burning and we’re too busy to notice. Preoccupied with worldliness, money, fame, lust, greed, power…Eyes we have, but don’t see, ears, but can’t hear, hear and see what’s really going on. Have we drifted so far that the Lord who is tapping us on our shoulders metaphorically, to get our attention, we no longer feels his touch? So we don’t see, hear or feel God anymore? While our spirit is crying out to our Lord, who’s answering. We are walking around heavy burden with worries about our future and our present should be with the Lord to carry us through to our future.

The consuming fire is purification for sin in the world. The world is bleeding because we’re being cut, pruned. Whatever that’s going on in our world God has to cut, trim, so the new can come in. “Why fight it?” “Don’t you know bleeding is good!” We speak of the blood, the blood! It’s been poured out and now has a demand for reciprocity. We sing, dance praise and worship on the victory of the blood (Jesus crucified) and what a privilege and honour we are blessed with for our salvation. Now what sacrifice can we now offer in return? We don’t have time to think about it. The plague (Covid) is our pruning. Blood for blood, life for life. So many for one life, Jesus’s life he give for the lives of the world.

Our greed, our lust for the worldly things has taken over for what was once our true desire, God, Him and him alone, first in our lives. God who can deliver us from the burdens of sin, sickness, trials and tribulations, fears, doubts…death. Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. We shall not want or desire anything, our God shall provide. But today power, authority and control, pride, fame, wealth…has crept into us unknowingly. We believe we’re going about life normally, but we are far from normalcy.

The fire is here to consume the worldly desires. The Lord needs for us to be focused on our life everlasting. The world is temporary, but his kingdom is everlasting and with no suffering and pain. We must stand our grounds and don’t lose sight, continue to build it up and be prepared for the return of Jesus. And the blood, the bleeding is the reminder of what’s more important for our salvation to be free from the bondage of sin, sickness, fears, hopeless, doubts…death, knowing from where comes our help when all else has failed us.

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things God works for good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.