Sermon Central
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Refining
Contributed by Doug Lyon on May 11, 2008 (message contributor)
REFINING
A woman called a silversmith one day because she was curious about the process of refining silver. So she made an appointment to come to his shop and watch him work.
She saw him hold a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, you need to hold the silver in the middle of the fire. That's where the flames were hottest. That's where you burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot. Then she thought about the verse in Malachi 3:3 that says God "sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."
She asked the silversmith if he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time. The man answered "Yes." He not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver. If the silver was left too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"
He smiled and answered, "Oh, that's easy--I know it is fully refined when I see my image in it."
And the same is true of you. God puts you through Red Sea experiences in order to burn away everything in your life that doesn't resemble Jesus Christ.
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