As The Silver Is, So Are We
Scripture: Malachi 3:1-3; 1 Peter 2:9; Matthew 13:22; 1 Corinthians 3:11-14
Introduction
This will be a two part series that I have titled “As The Silver Is, So Are We.” I received an email several months ago about the refining of silver. In the email, a women’s group was studying Malachi 3:3 and wondered what the statement “He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver…” meant about the character of God. As the story goes, one of the women volunteered to go and find out the process for refining silver. She found a silversmith and visited him at work, watching how he purified the silver. When she left him, she understood more about Malachi’s prophecy. This morning, God wants us to know that we are like silver so let’s examine some of the traits of silver.
I. Traits of Silver
Silver is a soft, white, lustrous transition metal. It has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal. It occurs as a pure free metal (native silver) and alloyed with gold, as well as in various minerals. Most silver is produced as a by-product of copper, gold, lead, and zinc meaning that the silver is actually found mixed with these other minerals and is separated while purifying them. Silver has been known since ancient times and has long been valued as a precious metal. It is used to make ornaments, jewelry, high-value tableware and utensils (hence the term "silverware") and currency coins. Today, silver metal is used in electrical contacts and conductors, in mirrors and in catalysis of chemical reactions.
Silver is stable in pure air and water, but tarnishes when it is exposed to air or water containing ozone or hydrogen sulfide. A major use of silver is as a precious metal and it has long been used for making high-value objects reflecting the wealth and status of the owner. Jewelry and silverware are traditionally made from sterling silver (standard silver), an alloy of 92.5% silver with 7.5% copper. Although sterling silver will tarnish faster than pure silver, (it is the metal the silver is alloyed with, mostly copper, that is the main component in the tarnishing process), sterling is a much better metal for jewelry than fine/pure silver. Pure silver is simply too soft to be practical for most pieces of jewelry. Silver is also used in medals, denoting second place. Some high-end musical instruments are made from sterling silver, such as the flute. Finally, silver is much less expensive than gold which is why most prefer gold jewelry versus silver.
In the refining or purifying of silver, heat is required. First, to separate the silver from the other minerals it is combined with in its natural form it must be heated. Because different metals melt at different heating temperatures, this was the best way in the “old days” to separate the silver from the other minerals. Silver melts at a temperature that is less than that of copper and gold and at a higher temperature than lead or zinc which most silver is derived from. Because of the differences in the temperature required to melt each mineral, they can be easily separated. Today, there are several ways to separate the minerals, but for the correlation with Malachi, I will stick with the heat method for this message. Once the silver has been separated from the other minerals, it still contains other impurities. By holding the silver over the fire and heating it to its melting point the impurities will either burn away or rise to the top of the melted silver.
In order to make my point for this message, I want you to remember the following facts about silver – facts that are similar to our lives.
• To obtain the silver, it must first be separated from the other minerals.
• Once the silver is separated, to purify it requires heat.
• Pure silver is very soft and cannot be used for jewelry so it if often mixed with copper (sterling silver).
• Silver tarnishes (change color) when exposed to air and water.
• The tarnishing of silver is reduced when it is being worn.
II. How Close We Are To Silver
A. To obtain the silver, it must first be separated from the other metals.
I shared with you earlier some of the steps necessary to refine silver. As you recall, when silver is first dug up, it is not dug up as the silver we see when we buy it. It is normally found mixed with other minerals such as copper, gold, lead or zinc. To make it useful, it must first be separated from the other minerals using heat. So it is with each of us. Consider what Peter said in 1 Peter 2:9: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Think about the word “called” that I highlighted. This word in the Greek means to be summoned, invited or to cry out. In other words, God called us from darkness into the light. Now the reference to darkness is the world. God called us out of the world where we were truly mixed, into His light. That calling from the world in which our lives existed is similar to the separation that takes place between the sliver and the other minerals in which it was combined with.
Jesus said the following in reference to the seed of God’s word being sown in our hearts: “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” (Matthew 13:22) When we are so caught up in the world and all of its troubles, our focus on the world drowns the seeds of God’s word that has been planted within us. God’s word may promise us peace during difficult times, but because we are so focused on the world, we forget that we have peace that has been promised to us. Like the silver that must be separated from the other minerals in order for it to be useful, we must be separated from the world in order for us to experience the fullness of God in our lives. Although we must continue to live within this world, we do not have to live as a part of this world in the way that it thinks and operate. To do so will cause us to forget where our power lies.
B. Once the silver is separated, to purify it requires heat.
I shared with you two weeks ago that my company was planning to have a layoff of employees. At that time I did not have the details. Well, we found out last week that they will be laying off 1200 reps and managers this week, the 20th for managers and the 22nd for reps. We are all waiting to find out which of us will be affected. People’s response to the news has been varied. Some individuals immediately started working on their resume and getting their names out there. There were others who became so angry that they refused to go out and do their job. There were still others who began to compare their life circumstances to their partners and wondering why they were losing their jobs while their partner who may not be as good as them kept theirs. Then there were those who made the decision that since they were still being paid to do a job they must continue to do it until they found out differently. If you were in this situation, which response would you have had?
I have found that it is when we go through difficult times our weaknesses are revealed and the strength of our faith is tested. It is during these times where I have come to realize weaknesses within me that I needed to work on. These trying times can be similar to the heat that is necessary to purify silver. Although the silver has been separated from the other minerals, it still contains impurities. Sounds familiar? Yes, even after we have accepted the call to come out of the world, we will still have some impurities within us. With silver, the heat cause the impurities to either burn off or rise to the top where it can be scooped off. Once the impurities are removed, you are left with pure silver. When we go through trying times, that sense of being under the fire can, if we allow it, expose our impurities and cleanse us of them. There are many people out there who are doing a lot of “good things” yet they refuse to go through the fire. They refuse to be purified wanting God to just accept them as they are. Although God does initially accept us the way we are, there is a purifying process that we are expected to go through. Listen to what is recorded in Malachi 3:1-3:
“Behold I am going to send My messenger and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming’, says the Lord of hosts. ‘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. He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness.” These verses were speaking to the arrival of John the Baptist who went before Jesus to prepare the way for Him. If you know the story of John, he called it like it was and he was not afraid of offending those who heard him. John was killed when he told Herod that it was not right for him to marry his brother’s wife. (See Matthew 14:1-12) It was John’s mission to prepare the way for Christ’s coming yet it was Christ who would do the purifying. John’s role was the wake up call for people to begin thinking differently about how they were living. He called upon them to start living righteously before they had to stand before Christ. Malachi received this prophecy and understood what would be coming. In the prophecy it was asked “who could stand before Christ.” That question should cause us to pause. You see, there are many of us who say we are ready for His return, that we cannot wait for that day, yet we are only speaking words. We are not ready to stand before Him. We are not ready to see the one who knows truly what is in our hearts, not just what we show people on the outside. There is a difference between standing before man and lying and standing before the one who knows what you think and knows what is in your heart. We will not be able to lie our way out or deceive Christ when He does come.
When the silversmith wishes to purify the silver, he places it in the heat until the impurities are either burned away or they come to the surface so that they can be removed. When we are going through the fire, those flaws that are hidden deep within us will rise to the surface. It is when we are most stressed that our weaknesses come out. That is why it is often said that if a person gets angry they will tell you how they “really feel”. In that situation, the person really just removes the restraints and speaks what they have been hiding within their hearts. As the silver passes through the fire, the impurities are identified and removed. What is left is the pure silver.
Before I close this section, let me speak to one more purifying act that we will experience. You see, if we do not get it right in this life, we will lose out in the next. If the things that I do in this life are not from a pure heart, they will not bring me any rewards in the next life. All of our works must pass through God’s purifying fire and if the works are not pure, they will not make it. Consider what 1 Corinthians 3:11-14 says: “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.”
In these verses Paul says we should build on the true foundation – Christ. I am not sure how many of you have had experience with foundation work, but if the foundation is bad, what is built on it will not last. Houses have come down because the foundation was bad. The foundation is the key. So when a “good” builder builds a house, he makes sure that the foundation is laid appropriately and at the right time to ensure that it does not crack later as the house sits on it. Once the foundation has been set, the next step is to build on it, whatever it is, a house, office, whatever. Whatever is built on the foundation must be of good quality or it too will not last. Remember the story of the three little pigs? The house that was built of brick and mortar withstood the wolf’s attack. Well think about that story as you consider what Paul says to the Corinthians. If the foundation is true, that being Christ, then those works that we do for Christ must also be pure. Our works will pass through Christ’s purifying fire and if they remain, we will be rewarded. If they do not remain, we will lose out on rewards. So as the silver passes through the fire to remove its impurities, the same happens with us. We can start the process on this side or we will have it done for us on the other side.
We are like silver. We too must be separated from the world in order for Christ to use us. Although we must live in this world, our live are must more than what happens to us on a daily basis. Like the silver, we have impurities that must be removed. It starts with our acceptance of Christ. When we accept Him, His blood covers all of our impurities and we are made as white as snow. But because we are not fully separated from the world, there are things that spring back to life within us that must also be dealt with. It is these things that rise to the surface when we are in the fire (experiencing bad situations) that lets us know that we still have work to do. The good news is that we have help; we do not have to do this alone. Because we have help, as we walk with Christ, we can be assured that the works we do for and with Him will last through eternity.
I will conclude this message next week. May God bless and keep you.
