“Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy” (1 Pet. 4:12-13)

REFINED BY FIRE

In order to refine rough gold, it is necessary to pound it, break it, crush it, and then wash it with water or some special liquid. This process removes the apparent impurities, yet it is not able to eliminate the impurities entwined with the inner structure of the gold. Hence, it is necessary to place it inside a container where it can go through intense fire. This fire cannot go out or the container will break.

Once the gold is placed in the container and the temperature is raised, it melts and becomes liquid. Since it possesses a high density (19.250kg/m³), the molten gold sinks to the bottom, and the impurities rise to the surface where they can be removed.

The same applies to the church life, as we are disciplined and go through numerous sufferings. According to Peter, this is part of the “fiery trial” meant to burn and remove the impurities of our soul-life. As you increase the heat of fire, the amount of impurities floating up to the surface will also increase that they be eliminated. Therefore, the Lord raises up the temperature to five hundred, six hundred, one thousand, one thousand two hundred degrees, etc. At the end of this process, our faith becomes even more precious than perishable gold (1 Pet. 1:7).

In the Garden of Eden there was gold, bdellium, and onyx stone (Gen. 2:12). These materials were in the river which flows out of Eden to the New Jerusalem, the city of gold. This gold, however, was not ordinary, “the city was pure gold, like clear glass” (Rev. 21:18). Since that city is made of clear, or transparent, gold, it “had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light” (v. 23).

This clear gold is more precious than perishable gold, for it is produced through sufferings and trials (1 Pet. 4:19). These are not outward sufferings of the flesh, such as illnesses or tragedies, but inner sufferings caused by the purifying fire. This was Peter’s experience described in chapter 1 of his first epistle.

In chapter 4, he counsels that we should not regard the fiery ordeals meant to try us as strange, but that we should rejoice as we become partakers of Christ’s sufferings which help us deny our soul-life (vv. 12-13).

Denying our soul-life is the most important thing for us today. Yet, we know this is not easily accomplished; we are still unable to deny it. Perhaps, it may be easier for the younger brothers and sisters in the Lord to accept this word; the rest of the saints still have difficulty practicing it. They may participate in conferences on marriage and family living; they may hear that according to 1 Corinthians 11, man is the head of the woman, the Lord is the head of man, and that God is the head of Christ; yet in their daily living, they completely neglect Christ’s heading up. In the beginning, the sisters may even submit, but after a week they go back to forcing their husbands. This indicates that mere mental conviction of certain doctrines is unable to change us.

We need the Spirit’s burning within our being. This is the best way to perfect the saints that they become like clear gold, a material used in the New Jerusalem. Hallelujah!

Key Point:

Going through the refining fire.

Your Key Point:

Question:

What is the issue of the inner burning described in 1 Peter?

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