Refiner's Fire
by Lindsay Simantirakis
I grew up in the church, and my first lesson on purity was don’t have sex outside of
marriage. In my mind there was a list of things I should abstain from: crude language, sex, drugs/alcohol, rated R movies; basically, anything fun! I felt that being pure was somewhat of an impossible task. I believed lies that God wanted to withhold good things from me, when in fact it was quite the opposite.
I spent a long time focused on just abstaining from things, not really knowing why. I knew I didn’t want to sin and break God’s laws, but I didn’t know what God’s word said about being pure. Why did God care so much about us being pure? Didn’t He die on the cross to take care of that?
The Song Refiner’s Fire has been on my heart. It says “Purify my heart let me be as
gold and precious silver...refiner’s fire, my heart’s one desire is to be holy set apart for
you Lord... ready to do your will.” Jesus died on the cross and paid the price for our sin. He washed us white as snow. He is in the process of transforming us to be more like Him to do His will. There is only one way to do God’s will and that’s His way. In John 14:6 Jesus says,
“I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” In our world there are so many options and ways to do things. We can customize our experience and find the most convenient and effective way to do something. Often God’s ways are not convenient and often counter to the way we think. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways; declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9
“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will has not yet been
made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure” Hebrews 3:2-3. In our time on earth it is our job to get ready for the return of our King. We want to be able to present ourselves to him. In Matthew 5:8 it says “Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God.” I want a pure heart, so that I can see Him. Sometimes it feels like we are walking through a fire, being refined like gold or silver. We can hold on to the promise that we will see God face to face one day.
We all can fall into believing the lies of the enemy that God doesn’t want good things
for us, but He has an eternal plan for our good and His glory. Let us replace lies
with the truth. “Finally brothers whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things” Philippians 4:8.
I grew up in the church, and my first lesson on purity was don’t have sex outside of
marriage. In my mind there was a list of things I should abstain from: crude language, sex, drugs/alcohol, rated R movies; basically, anything fun! I felt that being pure was somewhat of an impossible task. I believed lies that God wanted to withhold good things from me, when in fact it was quite the opposite.
I spent a long time focused on just abstaining from things, not really knowing why. I knew I didn’t want to sin and break God’s laws, but I didn’t know what God’s word said about being pure. Why did God care so much about us being pure? Didn’t He die on the cross to take care of that?
The Song Refiner’s Fire has been on my heart. It says “Purify my heart let me be as
gold and precious silver...refiner’s fire, my heart’s one desire is to be holy set apart for
you Lord... ready to do your will.” Jesus died on the cross and paid the price for our sin. He washed us white as snow. He is in the process of transforming us to be more like Him to do His will. There is only one way to do God’s will and that’s His way. In John 14:6 Jesus says,
“I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” In our world there are so many options and ways to do things. We can customize our experience and find the most convenient and effective way to do something. Often God’s ways are not convenient and often counter to the way we think. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways; declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9
“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will has not yet been
made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure” Hebrews 3:2-3. In our time on earth it is our job to get ready for the return of our King. We want to be able to present ourselves to him. In Matthew 5:8 it says “Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God.” I want a pure heart, so that I can see Him. Sometimes it feels like we are walking through a fire, being refined like gold or silver. We can hold on to the promise that we will see God face to face one day.
We all can fall into believing the lies of the enemy that God doesn’t want good things
for us, but He has an eternal plan for our good and His glory. Let us replace lies
with the truth. “Finally brothers whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things” Philippians 4:8.