And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:
God will turn His hand upon His people to refine them as metal is purely purged of dross and tin until only what is pure remains. The dross and tin are faults of character mingled with sacred things, such as selfishness, pride, rivalry, division, unbelief, laxness and the corrupt old life. The purging comes through searching trial in the furnace endured in faith, watched over by tender love that lets the fire consume only the dross, with the Word and truth received in love and the renewing Holy Spirit acting as the fire that cleanses heart and life. Those who sincerely repent and submit to Him are pardoned and purified, forgiven and sanctified inwardly and outwardly, so sin is consumed in them and they can endure His presence. After the cleansing He restores righteous judges and counselors, making Zion the city of righteousness redeemed with judgment, and fits His people in Christ's likeness for sacred work unto revival and the revelation of His glory.
Refining Imagery and Means
Isaiah 1:25 is a promise that God will turn His hand upon His people to refine them as a refiner with fire purely purges dross and tin from metal, taking away what is impure and leaving what is pure. The purging comes through trial, and the image of a furnace refining the spiritually sick applies this cleansing to the church, whose members need refining until the dross is consumed. His Spirit consumes sin in those who submit to His power, making them able to endure His presence.
The dross and tin are common matter mingled with sacred things, food that is acceptable but gives no real strength to the churches. In character they picture selfishness and self-exaltation exposed by searching trial that calls for correcting defects. They picture laxness and other defects needing thorough transformation to become fit for sacred work. They picture faults of character that must be separated from a person or subdued by a meek spirit through testing and trial.
The purging comes through searching trial as in a furnace that exposes defects and calls for correcting them and subduing them by a meek spirit. Seasons of perplexity and trial are part of discipline needed to purge this dross, and those who endure attacks and obstacles in faith can be victorious. The refining is governed by tender love that watches closely and permits severe fire to consume only the dross while removing sin as a purifier removes dross from metal.
The Word of God acts as the fire that consumes the mind's trash and cleanses it, removing what is impure like dross and tin. That same Word acts as fire consuming what is impure in the heart and what corrupts the heart, so the heart may become pure and holy. Truth received in love purifies by removing what is corrupt and produces a humble, sanctified life rather than self-satisfaction or pride.
The gospel, when obeyed through belief in the Word and forsaking sin, purifies people and sanctifies their abilities, enabling believers to stand together in the faith they profess. The refining furnace consumes sin as the Holy Spirit renews and sanctifies the whole person and writes the law in the heart, and when people allow God to work in them sin is removed. This purification is sought as people aim for the highest standard, put off the corrupt old self, become renewed in mind, and live in righteousness and true holiness, with pride, rivalry, and division removed so they can be one. It comes as they unify, come into the sanctifying circle of truth, draw together and press together, walk humbly with God, submit to one another according to the Word, refuse to seek to be greatest or first, heed every word that creates oneness, and avoid fault-finding, dissension and contention, in a melting and trying that takes away pride, unbelief, lack of unity and the corrupt old life so they become one as Christ is one with the Father.
Cleansing and Restoration Promised
God pardons the guilty and purifies the polluted who sincerely repent and come to Him through Christ. That cleansing removes sin as a refiner removes dross and tin, and it includes forgiveness, justification, and sanctification together. The inward cleansing of the heart is then shown in the outward cleansing of the life, in a changed outward life.
His Spirit consumes sin in those who submit to His power, making them able to endure His presence. Those who cling to sin are destroyed by the same glory that destroys sin, as fire removes dross and tin from metal.
The purification puts off the corrupt old life and the corrupt old self, renews the mind, and brings righteousness and true holiness. It takes away pride, rivalry, division, unbelief, and lack of unity through a melting and trying, so that God's people become one as Christ is one with the Father. This comes as they seek God's highest standard by unifying, coming into the sanctifying circle of truth, drawing together and pressing together, walking humbly with God, being subject to one another according to the Word, refusing to seek to be greatest or first, heeding every word that creates oneness, and avoiding fault-finding, dissension and contention. The gospel, when obeyed through belief in God's Word and forsaking sin, thus purifies people and sanctifies their abilities, enabling believers to stand together in the faith they profess.
After this cleansing God restores judges as at the first and counselors as at the beginning, so that Zion is called the city of righteousness and the faithful city, redeemed with judgment and her converts with righteousness. The dross and tin are common matter mingled with sacred things, food that is acceptable but gives no real strength to the churches. The purging therefore separates the Lord's work from the common affairs of life and keeps it distinct from what does not belong to it, so that those who feed the flock give real, solid, spiritual food and drink deep from pure living water.
The refining brings decided change into Christ's likeness and makes fit for sacred work. It applies to the spiritually sick church, whose members need refining in the furnace until the dross is consumed, and to those involved in the church's work, whose refining by the Holy Spirit leads to the church's revival and the revelation of God's glory. It applies to ministers, physicians, and teachers who need accumulated impurities cleansed from heart and mind so their characters can be changed. It applies to laxness and other defects needing thorough transformation, as in the need of Brother Stockton for defects to be consumed so he becomes fit for sacred work.
God will turn His hand upon His people to refine them as metal is purely purged of dross and tin until only what is pure remains. The dross and tin are faults of character mingled with sacred things, such as selfishness, pride, rivalry, division, unbelief, laxness and the corrupt old life. The purging comes through searching trial in the furnace endured in faith, watched over by tender love that lets the fire consume only the dross, with the Word and truth received in love and the renewing Holy Spirit acting as the fire that cleanses heart and life. Those who sincerely repent and submit to Him are pardoned and purified, forgiven and sanctified inwardly and outwardly, so sin is consumed in them and they can endure His presence. After the cleansing He restores righteous judges and counselors, making Zion the city of righteousness redeemed with judgment, and fits His people in Christ's likeness for sacred work unto revival and the revelation of His glory.
Refining Imagery and Means
Isaiah 1:25 is a promise that God will turn His hand upon His people to refine them as a refiner with fire purely purges dross and tin from metal, taking away what is impure and leaving what is pure. The purging comes through trial, and the image of a furnace refining the spiritually sick applies this cleansing to the church, whose members need refining until the dross is consumed. His Spirit consumes sin in those who submit to His power, making them able to endure His presence.
The dross and tin are common matter mingled with sacred things, food that is acceptable but gives no real strength to the churches. In character they picture selfishness and self-exaltation exposed by searching trial that calls for correcting defects. They picture laxness and other defects needing thorough transformation to become fit for sacred work. They picture faults of character that must be separated from a person or subdued by a meek spirit through testing and trial.
The purging comes through searching trial as in a furnace that exposes defects and calls for correcting them and subduing them by a meek spirit. Seasons of perplexity and trial are part of discipline needed to purge this dross, and those who endure attacks and obstacles in faith can be victorious. The refining is governed by tender love that watches closely and permits severe fire to consume only the dross while removing sin as a purifier removes dross from metal.
The Word of God acts as the fire that consumes the mind's trash and cleanses it, removing what is impure like dross and tin. That same Word acts as fire consuming what is impure in the heart and what corrupts the heart, so the heart may become pure and holy. Truth received in love purifies by removing what is corrupt and produces a humble, sanctified life rather than self-satisfaction or pride.
The gospel, when obeyed through belief in the Word and forsaking sin, purifies people and sanctifies their abilities, enabling believers to stand together in the faith they profess. The refining furnace consumes sin as the Holy Spirit renews and sanctifies the whole person and writes the law in the heart, and when people allow God to work in them sin is removed. This purification is sought as people aim for the highest standard, put off the corrupt old self, become renewed in mind, and live in righteousness and true holiness, with pride, rivalry, and division removed so they can be one. It comes as they unify, come into the sanctifying circle of truth, draw together and press together, walk humbly with God, submit to one another according to the Word, refuse to seek to be greatest or first, heed every word that creates oneness, and avoid fault-finding, dissension and contention, in a melting and trying that takes away pride, unbelief, lack of unity and the corrupt old life so they become one as Christ is one with the Father.
Cleansing and Restoration Promised
God pardons the guilty and purifies the polluted who sincerely repent and come to Him through Christ. That cleansing removes sin as a refiner removes dross and tin, and it includes forgiveness, justification, and sanctification together. The inward cleansing of the heart is then shown in the outward cleansing of the life, in a changed outward life.
His Spirit consumes sin in those who submit to His power, making them able to endure His presence. Those who cling to sin are destroyed by the same glory that destroys sin, as fire removes dross and tin from metal.
The purification puts off the corrupt old life and the corrupt old self, renews the mind, and brings righteousness and true holiness. It takes away pride, rivalry, division, unbelief, and lack of unity through a melting and trying, so that God's people become one as Christ is one with the Father. This comes as they seek God's highest standard by unifying, coming into the sanctifying circle of truth, drawing together and pressing together, walking humbly with God, being subject to one another according to the Word, refusing to seek to be greatest or first, heeding every word that creates oneness, and avoiding fault-finding, dissension and contention. The gospel, when obeyed through belief in God's Word and forsaking sin, thus purifies people and sanctifies their abilities, enabling believers to stand together in the faith they profess.
After this cleansing God restores judges as at the first and counselors as at the beginning, so that Zion is called the city of righteousness and the faithful city, redeemed with judgment and her converts with righteousness. The dross and tin are common matter mingled with sacred things, food that is acceptable but gives no real strength to the churches. The purging therefore separates the Lord's work from the common affairs of life and keeps it distinct from what does not belong to it, so that those who feed the flock give real, solid, spiritual food and drink deep from pure living water.
The refining brings decided change into Christ's likeness and makes fit for sacred work. It applies to the spiritually sick church, whose members need refining in the furnace until the dross is consumed, and to those involved in the church's work, whose refining by the Holy Spirit leads to the church's revival and the revelation of God's glory. It applies to ministers, physicians, and teachers who need accumulated impurities cleansed from heart and mind so their characters can be changed. It applies to laxness and other defects needing thorough transformation, as in the need of Brother Stockton for defects to be consumed so he becomes fit for sacred work.