Refiner’s Fire | Purpose
Refiner's Fire • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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What Doctrines are contained within these Illustrations...
Purpose - Obtain Gold/Purity
>> Soteriology, Original Sin, Total Depravity/Utter Corruption, Imago Dei
[Intro]
2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord.
[Prayer]
The Theme of our retreat is the Refiner’s Fire, which comes from the imagery we just read from Malachi chapter 3…
The basic process of refinement is:
— Raw Ore is selected
— Put under extreme heat
— valuable metal and “dross” separate
— Refiner separates the metals
— Valuable metal is purified and used to make something
Malachi’s use of the imagery of Refinement is exactly what’s needed in his day…
>> And as much for us today
[Illustration]
If you hang with 3-4 year olds, which I do with my kids and family more than I ever have, you’ll find kids coming back to the same one word question over and over and over… What is it?
“WHY”
>> Same question new believers ask on repeat
>> “WHY” is a question of PURPOSE
Why has God made us?
Why is there evil in the World?
Why did God have to send His Son?
Why me?
Our time together will be addressing God’s purpose in Refinement of His people
(1) Refinement is done with the end in mind
God is a God of Purpose
[Illustration]
When people think of the Fall, in Genesis… Adam and Eve sin against God, unleashing cursing and sin and death upon the creation…
Why would God create humans FULLY KNOWING they’d muck everything up?
This question is a great question to ask… IF, how things are today is “the end of the story”
[Illustration]
My kids have a children’s bible called the Jesus Story Book Bible and when you read in it of the Fall, it describes when Adam and Eve have to leave the Garden of Eden… And as they leave, the other says,
“They thought it was The End”…
>> And totally tries to fake out the reader.
But you have the Bible in your hands, your a few pages in and there are a few hundred more pages left in the book, and sure enough when you turn to the next page, the author confirms that this ISN’T the end…
>> But that God has a Plan and a Purpose for them, even in their exile and disobedience.
God holds the disfigured, rocky, ore of our hearts… with a purpose in mind.
(2) Removal of the Dross
[Illustration]
One of the Doctrines of Grace include the Doctrine of Total Depravity
>> I favor R. C. Sproul’s renaming it: The Doctrine of Utter Corruption which says:
[Total Depravity]
The Bible is clear:
10 as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
The Better question to ask is,
Why would God do anything redemptive for humanity at all?
(3) Creation of something new
[Illustration]
A few months ago we did a series in our church on Romans 8, specifically around the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. My object lesson for the kids involved using an old nasty log that I told the kids was like us before the work of God the Holy Spirit, who applies the transformative benefits accomplished by the Son.
I talked about how dirty and “worthless” the log was, how it’s not good for anything but to lay there and do what dirty logs do...
I got a message from someone in our church who wanted to talk about it. The person talked to me about how, although the illustration served it’s purpose in making us think about God’s power in saving us from death, they thought the use of the word “Worthless” was misleading and could cause people in our church to believe they are worthless,
mentioning the inherent worth of humans as created in the image of Christ (Imago Dei).
Why is the Gospel good news?
God LOVES the Logs!
He has sought to make us pure that were once corrupt.
Recognize God as Great and Good
>> Great = Ability
>> Good = Intent
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth in him.
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
[Band come up]
[Pray]
——————————————————————
Questions:
(1) Read Malachi 3: 2-3. What was God’s purpose in refining the Levites?
(2) After the Fall in Genesis 3, humanity is sent away from the presence of God. How does God come to His people after the Fall? Consider the Old Testament and explain the significance of the Son of God in His incarnation (God become man, yet remaining fully God).
(3) What is the Gospel, and why is it good? Why is the gospel good news for you?
