He will sit and refine and purify the silver, purify the sons of Levi Mal 3,3

And here we are. We are at the end of Advent, reading the last prophetic book of the Old Testament and soon entering the New Testament. At this critical moment, the prophet Malachi uses the image of a craftsman working with silver to describe how God wants to purify his priests (“the sons of Levi”) so that they can “offer to the Lord sacrifices in righteousness” (3:3).

And for us now, two days before Christmas, God wants to do the same. He wants to purify us so that we can receive Jesus even more deeply this Christmas. Do you know how silver is purified? The silversmith must put it in a special crucible and then hold it in the middle of the fire, in the hottest place, so that all the impurities, all the “dross” are burned out and come to the surface. It is a meticulous and demanding job: the silversmith sits all the time by the fire, waiting for the right moment to take the silver out of the furnace.

Our heavenly Father holds us with the same watchful and caring care as we are being purified. He knows what impurities will surface, and he has a plan to remove them. Perhaps he must remove from our envy of a neighbor who can give his family generous gifts. Or the irritability we react to when we are exhausted from holiday preparations. Or our long-standing bitterness that shows during family gatherings. Or any other “impurity.” Whatever it is, God desires to cleanse you of it. So trust in his deep love for you. Imagine the joy he feels when he foresees the freedom, hope, and love you will experience after the dross has been burned out of you. Just as a silversmith knows what refined silver looks like when he sees himself in a mirror, so God knows what your refined self looks like when he sees himself in it as in a mirror. So, in these last days before Christmas, permit Him to continue His work. Let Him transform you more and more day by day into pure silver reflecting His image.