Hebrews 12:28-29 (NIV)
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire!
It’s storm season. This spring we’ve seen inches and inches of snowfall. We’ve seen nor’easters and snowmaggedons. The estimated damage in the Northeastern United States is well into the millions. It’s remarkable what wind and snow can do to powerlines, trees, and airline flights.
Life’s storms are usually just on the horizon. We may have some warning signs. However, we often don’t see the storms coming, or we think they’ll skip us. To the outside observer, Christians may seem to avoid the storms in this broken world, but that’s a misconception. Christians get hit with storms and suffering just like all of mankind. But the difference is that they don’t erase us.
What’s the foundation of this difference?
Our focus Scripture tells us: “We receive a Kingdom which cannot be shaken” (Hebrews 12:28).
Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is our foundation. We have been given a gift of the unshakable Kingdom of God. Its foundation is in His power. The power of God makes YOU unshakable in the face of the storm. Here are four reasons why:
1. God’s power is unstoppable. Our focus passage calls God a “consuming fire.” Ephesians 1:19-20 (NIV) says God’s power is “incomparably great for us who believe” and the same “power as the mighty strength that raised Christ from the dead.”
2. God’s power is LIVING in you. You are strong in your foundation of faith in Jesus Christ because that unstoppable power lives in you. “Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20, NIV).
3. God’s power is for the living. You are ALIVE. You may be storming, but you are alive. That’s something to be thankful for and it’s often the power we need to overcome the storms—when we pray, when we worship. When we stand at the foot of the cross in awe, God’s power strengthens us from within and gives us the power to live for His glory and purposes. The Kingdom LIVES in you: “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power” (I Corinthians 4:20, NIV).
4. God’s power is eternal. Isn’t the Word of God always fitting? When we talk about the storms of life, we picture a life that’s potentially sliding off the cliff. But the Word promises us that our faith secures us a foundation on the rock of salvation—an unshakable, eternal foundation in the Lord Jesus Christ. “For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:10-11, NIV).
Application: Are you stuck in one of life’s storms? Remember, you are unshakable because you have Christ in you. Lean into thanksgiving and worship and you can access that power that raised Jesus from the grave.
