Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”
The final words of this chapter merge the warnings given earlier with the hope expressed in ch. 11. The proper response to give to God’s promises is worship with reverence and awe. In the Old Testament, this is described as “fear of the Lord.” The author is challenging the readers to wake up to the seriousness of what he has written in this letter, and particularly in this chapter. God is holy and requires those in relationship with him be holy. This holiness comes only by believing in the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross. It is by his shed blood that we are made holy and are able to enter into the heavenly Holy of Holies and be in God’s presence. This is a bedrock core concept in the Old Testament law, particularly Leviticus. This was vividly illustrated with Israel’s experience with the tabernacle. Without holiness no one can see the Lord and stand in his presence. The image of kingdom is used here to highlight God’s sovereign reign. God sits on the throne as the Almighty King of creation. Jesus came preaching that this kingdom had come upon the earth through him. We become part of God’s kingdom through faith in Jesus. This kingdom is eternal and is not dependent upon anything on earth or creation. It is eternal. It is characterized first and foremost as being in God’s presence and experiencing the new eternal life in Jesus in this lifetime. The closer we get to God, the more we experience his kingdom, until one day we will stand in his presence and experience the full kingdom. Our proper response to this should be to fall down in worship and dedication of ourselves to him. God as “a consuming fire” is the last warning in this section. God consumes all that is not holy. We can experience God as sovereign king and savior or as judge. The bottom line is what we will do with God’s promises in the Son, Jesus.
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