Trial By Fire: There’s Beauty in Refinement

The Academy of Art in Florence, Italy houses a beautiful statue of King David from the Bible. I am not usually a museum kind of guy, but both times I have laid eyes on this work, it has taken my breath away. One thing that amazes me about this particular sculpture is how it was formed. When asked how he carved such a magnificent statue from a block of marble, the artist, Michelangelo, merely said, “I just removed everything that wasn’t David.” 

In a similar sense, I think this is what the Holy Spirit does in us as Christians. If we consider ourselves to be followers of Jesus, we are called to be set apart and made holy—sanctified—and the Holy Spirit accomplishes this through a process of refinement, trials, and tribulations. 

Refining, in simple terms, means to remove impurities. I don’t know how familiar you are with gold or the processes that are involved in purifying it, but in order to have worth or value, gold must be refined. One of the oldest and most common methods to remove these impurities is to immerse gold in fire, and skim the impurities called “dross” off the top. As you would expect, the temperatures needed to refine gold are so hot that it can become uncomfortable or even dangerous for those handling the metal; however, after the process and dross removal are completed, the gold comes out shining brighter than ever. 

Just as fire removes everything that is not gold—and just as Michelangelo removed everything that was not David—the Holy Spirit removes everything from us that is not Christlike. While this process often looks like a burning fire of trials and tribulations, the Holy Spirit can use these difficulties to sanctify and change us if we allow Him. Here are some passages in Scripture that speak about refinement... 

Ezekiel 36:26-27: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” 

Psalm 66:10-12: “For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.” 

1 Peter 1:6-7: “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 

Did you catch the first line in that last one? It commands us to rejoice! Even in the midst of times that are confusing, painful or scary, there is joy because we are being refined, and God is being glorified. Don’t believe me? Here are some other verses that demonstrate blessing found in pain... 

James 1:2-4: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” 

Romans 5:3-4: “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” 

James 1:12: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” 

While we may not understand the things we face in the present moment, we can know with confidence that we will emerge wearing “the crown of life.” As Christians, we will continue to be sanctified and refined for the rest of our lives, but instead of letting the coming trials and hardships discourage us, we should embrace them. Besides, we will come out shining brighter than ever. 

By the way, do you know how the refiner of gold knows that the process of refining is finished? It is when he skims the last bit of dross off the top and can see the reflection of his face in the gold! Jesus is doing a work in each of us as Christians and putting us through heat and the sanctification process to remove the dross of what is not Jesus, so that we will eventually reflect Him!

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