Tag Archives: The Refiner’s Fire

Pause for Poetry — The Refiner’s Fire

Posted on by
2

meadow lake courtesy pixabayThe following poem, The Refiner’s Fire, was written by James M. Gray and comes from Streams in the Desert.

The Refiner’s Fire

He sat by the fire of seven-fold heat,As He watched by the precious ore.And closer He bent with a searching gazeAs He heated it more and more.

He knew He had ore that could stand the test
And He wanted the finest gold,
To mold as a crown for the King to wear,
Set with gems of price untold.

So He laid our gold in the burning fire,
Though we fain would have said Him, “Nay.”
And He watched the dross that we had not seen,
As it melted and passed away.

And the gold grew brighter, and yet more bright
And our eyes were so dim with tears,
As we saw the fire, not the Master’s hand,
And questioned with anxious fear.

Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow,
As it mirrored a Form above
That bent o’er the fire, though unseen by us
With a look of infinite love.

Can we think that it pleases His loving heart
To cause a moment of pain?
Ah, no, but He saw through the present cross
The bliss of eternal gain.

So He waited there with a watchful eye,
With a love that is strong and sure,
And His gold did not suffer a bit more heat
Than was needed to make it pure!

James M. Gray

Leave a comment below to share your thoughts on the subject. If you think others would appreciate reading this, please share it through the social media buttons.

I wish you well.

Sandy

Please enter your email address on the form located on the right sidebar to sign up to receive posts every Tuesday and Thursday. Thanks!

The Refiner’s Fire

Posted on by

by Sandy Kirby Quandt

Okay. I realize this is another post about fire, but believe me…I’m not a pyromaniac, or anything.

During a recent study of the Old Testament book of the prophet Malachi, I rediscovered something I’d learned long ago.

Malachi told the people the Day of the Lord would come. It would be a time when God would judge the sin of unbelievers, he would cleanse his people’s lives, and he would save his people.

In the process, God would refine and purify them like silver and gold.

His judgement against sin would be swift and impartial.

Those who did not fear God and filled their lives with wickedness would receive their just punishment.

Malachi also mentioned God would send his messenger, John the Baptist, to prepare the way of the Lord, Jesus.

Among the fascinating things I relearned during my study were the following:

  • The melting point of silver is about 1,760 degrees Fahrenheit
  • As molten silver is stirred, the lighter impurities rise to the top
  • The refiner scraps the impurities away
  • Not until the refiner sees his reflection in the molten metal is the metal pure and ready for his purposes

For those of us taught about God’s holy refining fire, we understand the illustration to represent our lives which God tests to a very significant degree to remove our impurities.

Jesus is the one who scrapes our impurities away by the power of his sacrificial blood shed on the cross of Calvary, when we accept his gift and claim him as Lord.

 

The part of this lesson which I’d forgotten is the last phase of the refiner’s process…the refiner doesn’t quit refining until he can see his own reflection in the molten silver of our lives shining back at him.

Wow.

Jesus loves us so much he will not leave us partially refined. He is going to keep working on us, stirring us up, removing our impurities until we reflect his image right back at him.

As I prepared to write the word dross, I looked up its definition. Here’s what I found:

1. Waste or impure matter.

2. The scum that forms on the surface of molten metal as a result of oxidation.

3. Worthless, commonplace, or trivial matter.

That’s what Jesus removes from us…our dross.

Worthless, impure scum that forms in our lives as the result of living in this fallen world.

When we are in the midst of the refining process it can be anything but pleasant.

I know.

Tortuous comes to mind.

But as Jesus heats us to 1,760 degrees, stirs us until our head spins and we cry out for relief, perhaps we need to remind ourselves he loves us too much to leave us with a coating of scum covering his reflection.

And really, we don’t want that either, do we?

Do you feel like you’re in the refiner’s furnace?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the subject. Leave a comment below. If you think others would appreciate reading this, please share it through the social media buttons.

He will come to judge like one who refines and purifies silver. As a metalworker refines silver and gold, so the Lord‘s messenger will purify the priests, so that they will bring to the Lord the right kind of offerings. Then the offerings which the people of Judah and Jerusalem bring to the Lord will be pleasing to him, as they used to be in the past. Malachi 3:3-4 (GNT)

I wish you well.

Sandy

Please sign up to receive posts every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Thanks!