July 26

This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’ — Zech 13:9 BSB

It is a mercy to be placed in the furnace, and it is a mercy to be brought through it. God promises to bring his people through the fire, which means they must be put into it, but they will not be left there. It is “through the fire”—passing right through from beginning to end, whether it be a slow, long fire or a quick, fierce one. The Lord knows exactly what we can handle, and it is not always the hottest fire that produces the most softening effect. Some metals are so stubborn, with the impurities so ingrained, that they require a hotter fire than others. But once the law has done its work and the impurities have been purged away, the Lord usually brings a more refined, gentler fire.

This fire of trial may include temptations, sickness, family struggles, hardships in providence, persecution, the daily battles with the sin and death within us, the hiding of the Lord’s face, or the feeling that he has denied us his presence. These trials test the faith of every believer. But through them, God brings about humility, meekness, brokenness of spirit, greater sincerity, and a desire to know and follow his will. Oh, that these fruits of the Spirit might abound in us and all of God’s people!