Lesson 12…Consuming Fire
It is kind of ironic that endurance is a major theme in Hebrews 12. Endurance – I need a big old dose of it to get me through these last two chapters of Hebrews.
Not that I don’t love them because I do LOVE the Word. I need endurance to finish the writing of the lessons. So apologies that these last two lessons are a little late.
I am crazy about how the writer ended Hebrews 12 – “for our God is a consuming fire.” No one asked me, but I think that sentence deserves an exclamation point! We will look at that more closely at the end of this lesson.
So here are some things to do in Hebrews 12.
- Keep on marking key words. Start marking “endure” or “patience” in this chapter – it is repeated several times.
- Look up the Greek word for “endure” or “patience”, as some versions use, in Hebrews 12. The Bible uses two forms of the word: hypomenō and makrothymia. Hypomeno refers to enduring or having patience with circumstances. Makrothymia is patience or endurance in working with people. Lord knows we need both, but which form is used specifically in this chapter? How does knowing the difference in those two meanings shed new light on this chapter?
- Consider the “therefore” in verse 1. We have been marking this as a term of conclusion with 3 red dots. What is the “therefore” drawing a conclusion to…in other words…who is the great cloud of witnesses? Hint: refer back to chapter 11.
- Verse 1 also talks about a race. What does it tell us to do so we can run that race with endurance?
- List some ways Jesus exhibited endurance in vv. 2-4.
- Verses 5-13 all have the common of theme of discipline. Make a list of what you learn about discipline from these verses.
- Verses 14-16 contains a warning. Look up the phrase “see to it” in a Greek lexicon (like www.blueletterbible.org). When we spurn God’s favor and grace like Esau, we often think that we can just come back to God when we feel like it. He is a merciful God, but look at verse 16-17 concerning Esau. What do you learn about his repentance?
- Verses 18-24 compare Mt. Sinai (the mountain that is blazing with fire) to Mt. Zion (city of the living God). Make a chart and list what you learn about both. Read Exodus 19:20-25 for background information.
- Verse 25 is another warning…what is it?
- The rest of this chapter deals with the UNSHAKEABLE kingdom. Think about your life…what are some things that can be shaken away…what are somethings that are unshakeable?
- Verse 29 says our God is a “consuming fire”. Many times, God presense was identified with fire. Look up these references and record what you learn about God’s consuming fire.
- Exodus 19:20-25
- Leviticus 9:24 & Leviticus 10:1-3
- Deuteronomy 4:24
- 1 Kings 18:38
- Acts 2:3
