Refiner’s Fire
Mal 3:2
“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he [is] like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap”: KJV
Mal 3:3
“And he shall sit [as] a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness”. KJV
‘Who shall stand’? During the life history of Jesus Christ we see there were some emanations of His glory and power, and no one could stand before Him; a good example is the witness of His transfiguration; Mat 17: 1-13.
‘Purge them’ God will sanctify us inwardly. That is they may be sincere in their conversion to God and are consecrated. A good tree beareth good fruit and God wants us to be like good trees bearing good fruits for His glory and honour.
Are you in the refiner's fire today? If you are don't rebel or try to run away, just sit still and let the refiner do His work. The Bible says: 'He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify [them], refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord.' A woman who read this verse at a Bible study wanted to know how it related to her walk with God, so she made an appointment with the silversmith. Without mentioning anything other than a general interest in the process, she sat and observed him work. She watched as he held the silver over the fire, explaining that in order to burn away every impurity he had to keep it in the middle where it was hottest. She asked him if he usually sat in front of the fire the entire time. 'Yes,' he replied, 'not only do I have to hold it, I must watch it. If I leave it there too long it will be destroyed.' After thinking about that for awhile she asked, 'How do you know when the process is complete?' Smiling, he replied, 'That's easy; I see my face reflected in it.'
If you're in the refiner's fire today, remember: a) He knows what He's doing, so trust Him b) He won't allow you to be destroyed by the circumstances, or take His eye off you c) when the process is complete, you'll be more like Jesus and less like your old self. Isn't that what you want? Isn't that what you've prayed for!
Yes, we must be purged if we are to be washed wholly. We read in the seventh verse of Psalms 51: "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." There are amazing gems in that short verse: 1)hyssop is like chae (a spindily, green herb which looks like small onion shoots). It is popularly used in the East as a purgative. Being purged with hyssop means that God cleans our inside first (the deep chambers of our hearts) before He will clean is altogether. Once we are cleaned (or purged) in our hearts, we will appear clean and even "whiter than snow". 2) Can anything be whiter than the soft, delicate crystals of snow? Yes. Snowflakes are formed around tiny impurities in the atmosphere. So, at the heart of every snowflake is a blemish of impurity, but not with the soul committed to God. When washing the feet of the disciples at the Last Supper, Peter objected. Jesus responded, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me." If Christ is in our hearts, we shall remain clean in all respects.
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