“Remove the dross from the silver, and out comes material for the silversmith.” Proverbs 25:4
We are all in a refining process. The Bible calls this sanctification. Our most difficult days are meant to make us more like Jesus. God does not waste pain; rather He uses it for our purification. “For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver” (Psalm 66:10). It is not easy but it is essential to cultivate an eternal perspective within our conscience. There is dross in our fleshly habits that need extracting by the fires of suffering.
Dross is anything dirty and of little or no value. It is waste or impure matter, the scum that rises to the surface of molten metal. The pressure you may feel is pushing impurities to the surface of your soul. It is at this point God’s Spirit skims off the sin, so you are freed up and cleansed before Christ. Don’t resist the righteous refining process. It is the Lord’s way to make you holy for Him. Refinement is a resource for righteousness.
Even the wise and most capable for Christ are not immune to the Almighty’s refining fires, “Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time” (Daniel 11:35). Without affliction your leadership will not rise to the level needed to lead your team most effectively. Your example of faithfulness under fire fires up your followers.
Your refinement is an expression of the Lord’s love. He loves you too much to allow you to be held back by immature attitudes and impure motives. Because He cares, He continues to remove layers of hurt that need healing and sin that needs forgiving. Submit to His sanctifying process and your purification will propel you forward in His perfect will. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, NKJV). Am I surrendered to my Savior’s process of refinement? Do I daily confess my sin and receive His cleansing power for my soul?
Related Readings: Isaiah 48:10; Daniel 12:10; 2 Timothy 2:20-21; 1 Peter 1:7
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