Burning Silver

Zion Delight—Baldwin Park, California, USA

            A silversmith holds a silver ingot with his tongs. He slowly places it above the furnace. He must carefully monitor and regulate the silver ingot’s time over the fire and the proximity to the heat. Too long a period or too close to the fire, and the silver will melt away and vanish into the red-hot embers. Too short a period or too far from the fire, and the dross will remain, diminishing the value of the ingot. The craftsman’s eyes are focused on the piece of silver, and his hands hold it with just the right amount of pressure. He waits patiently for the impurities to be burnt away. He knows the silver is ready when he can finally see his reflection upon its surface.

In the same way a silversmith purifies a piece of silver over the furnace, so God refines us over the fire of affliction (Isa 48:10). In the midst of suffering (whether it is warranted by our actions and thoughts or not), we may often wonder why God allows us to go through such an unpleasant process. If He indeed loves us, why must we undergo such painstaking struggle?

In Psalm 139:23, 24, King David asked to undergo this process of refinement. He found great value in being purified by God. Let us examine these verses in detail and discover what we can learn from David’s prayer.

OUR HEARTS

            Search me, O God, and know my heart

What makes God’s observations different from our own self-examination? God searches through our inner being. In His wisdom and mercy, He can see us more objectively and compassionately than we can ourselves. He explores and examines every corner of our minds, hearts, and souls.

Let us consider for a moment what lies within our hearts. The Hebrew word for heart, lebab, represents our inner being and our soul. It includes everything that makes up our sense of self: our understanding and our knowledge, our reflections and our memories, our conscience and our courage, our inclinations and our resolutions, our emotions and our passions.

We can picture our hearts as unique, multi-faceted jewels. We comprise motivations, feelings, determinations, agendas, dreams, worries, and troubles. Unfortunately, we may discover that our gems are not as beautiful or as perfect as we would like them to be.

Our motivations and practices often fall short of our ideals. We aim to rise above the world but find ourselves sinking in sin time and time again. We may wonder what impurities distort our brilliance.

We may not know, but God is keenly aware of what truly lies within our hearts: our skewed motivations, conflicting emotions, proud determinations, secret agendas, overwhelming anxieties, silent sorrows, and invisible idolatry (Ps 44:21).

There are many impurities that can plague our hearts. He knows how they came about and why they remain. God understands the best way to eliminate them altogether, which is by burning them away with trials of fire.

TESTING AND REFINEMENT

            Try me, and know my anxieties;
And see if there is any wicked way in me

The Lord looks closely at our true selves. He inspects our hearts as a scientist examines a microbe under a microscope. God observes what we do and say in public and in private. He discerns our underlying motivations and emotions. He is pained by the evidence of evil, sorrow, and unfaithfulness hiding within us.

Because of His love for us, God proceeds to test and refine our hearts (Ps 66:10; Prov 17:3). He tests us with the affection of those we love, or with the criticisms of those we dislike. He refines us by placing responsibilities on our shoulders, or by taking away our accomplishments. He tests and refines us to see if we truly love Him and hold fast to Him in spite of changing circumstances.

Testing and refinement involve resistance and struggle, as well as pain. However, God regulates the type and the degree of struggle, not pushing us beyond what we can bear (1 Cor 10:13). It is a battle between who we are now and who God knows we could be.

This constant battle requires us to push past the obstacle of our weaknesses and soar on the wings of God’s strength. We can avoid hindrances by stepping onto the springboard of God’s word.

God’s voice whispers through the pages of the Bible, piercing our hearts, helping us recognize our shortcomings. By looking into its pages on a daily basis, the Scriptures serve as the mirror through which we can see ourselves through God’s eyes, know God’s will for us, and receive God’s blessing by following His instruction (Jas 1:22-25).

We can withstand and win the battle through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Counselor equips us and strengthens us so we can practice righteousness in our daily lives. Its abidance within us helps us to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God (Mic 6:8).

The presence of the Holy Spirit descends through humble and sincere prayer and intensifies with the choices we make in our lives. When we are torn between telling a lie that would benefit us or telling the truth that could benefit others, God’s Spirit grants us the courage to speak honestly. When we see someone in need, the Holy Spirit inspires us to let go of selfishness and give willingly, generously, and joyfully.

Testing and refinement make us clean, holy, acceptable, faithful, obedient, and righteous (Job 23:10; Ps 51:10; Isa 1:25; Mal 3:3). We also bring glory to Christ by being victorious over our shortcomings (1 Pet 1:6, 7). Because of His immeasurable love for His children, God is willing to exchange a short period of tribulation for an eternity of bliss.

PATIENTLY PERSEVERE

            And lead me in the way everlasting

Psalm 139:23, 24 shows us a pattern of God’s caring intervention in our lives: “Search me…try me…lead me.” David invited God to be an active participant in the process of his refinement. Through trial by fire, God found what was wrong, cleaned what was dirty, and guided what was good.

The purpose of the process of refinement is that once God has removed traces of the wicked alloys, we are free to become more and more Christ-like—perfect, precious, pure. We no longer need to focus on our success, our generosity, and our talent. We can serve with His humility, help with His love, resist with His power.

As we patiently persevere through our time “in the fire,” we can gradually assimilate His qualities. We will find that God patiently guides us along the path to eternity at His side. He not only points out the right direction through His word but also shares in every step of the journey. We are constantly accompanied by His Spirit, which holds us by the hand and comforts us along the way.

            God holds a human heart in His hands. He slowly places it in the midst of affliction. He must carefully monitor and regulate the length of time and the severity of the trial. Too long or too severe, and the heart will be lost to sin or despair. Too short or too light, and the evil will remain, rendering the heart useless to God. The Father’s eyes are concentrated on the heart, and His hands hold it firmly but gently. He waits patiently for the impurities to be burnt away. He knows the heart is ready when He sees Himself in it at long last.