Removing the Dross
You have removed the wicked of the earth like dross;
Therefore I love Your testimonies.
Psalm 119:119
Dross is the scum formed on the surface of molten metal. Key term is “molten metal.” The dross doesn’t come out until the heat is applied. It is a certainty of life that we all experience heat. Not just uncomfortably warm but molten heat burns the flesh away. Our flesh is the fat that drips over the flames of an altar. We want the wicked to be removed but we don’t want to experience the heat so that it can happen. The heat removes the wickedness in us. If we refuse to allow this process to happen, we will be the dross that is removed. What profit is ours if we gain the world but lose our soul? What benefit do we derive from wasting our sorrows?
There are some like Pharaoh who refuse to bend and lose it all. There are some like Moses who must spend forty years tending sheep in the wilderness of Midian to gain his soul. There are some like the Children of Israel who see His works but never learn His ways so they perish in the desert. There are some who are rebellious and wicked of heart and will never understand the purpose of the heat and will thus burn away.
Where does this heat come from? Where does the answer lie? I think the key is in His testimonies.
Therefore I love Your testimonies.
Psalm 119:119
Dross is the scum formed on the surface of molten metal. Key term is “molten metal.” The dross doesn’t come out until the heat is applied. It is a certainty of life that we all experience heat. Not just uncomfortably warm but molten heat burns the flesh away. Our flesh is the fat that drips over the flames of an altar. We want the wicked to be removed but we don’t want to experience the heat so that it can happen. The heat removes the wickedness in us. If we refuse to allow this process to happen, we will be the dross that is removed. What profit is ours if we gain the world but lose our soul? What benefit do we derive from wasting our sorrows?
There are some like Pharaoh who refuse to bend and lose it all. There are some like Moses who must spend forty years tending sheep in the wilderness of Midian to gain his soul. There are some like the Children of Israel who see His works but never learn His ways so they perish in the desert. There are some who are rebellious and wicked of heart and will never understand the purpose of the heat and will thus burn away.
Where does this heat come from? Where does the answer lie? I think the key is in His testimonies.
posted by brent at 12:46 PM
2 Comments:
Refiner's fire. My heart's one desire.
J
Hey Jack,
As I was re-reading the post I realized I failed to give you credit. An aboslutely beautiful line that completely captures this dying/sacrificial process we go through.
Ahem. AHEM! Excuse me... everyone! "Our flesh is the fat that drips over the flames of an altar." Should have been in quotes. It was lifted from pages of the most beautiful blog Forgotten Prophets authored by the honorable Mr. H. [A hearty round of applause accompanies this anouncement.]
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