A Refiner's Fire

Scripture Lessons: Malachi 3: 1-4 and Luke 1: 68-79 Sermon Title: A Refiner’s Fire Preached on 12/9/18 Last Tuesday your Church Staff was honored to be welcomed into the home of Paul and Janice Philips for the annual Church Staff Christmas Party. This was my second staff party over there, and this one was just as extravagant as the first time I was able to go. They served us hot apple cider and cheese straws as we gathered. Sitting at dining tables we had three sauces to adorn our entre: mango salsa, horseradish, or Jezebel Sauce, and our choice of grilled salmon or smoked prime rib. I chose both. Members of our Administration Council served as waiters. Bill Pardue wore a bow tie, it was outstanding and we all couldn’t help but give thanks for the gift that it is to work at and serve a church where we’re so appreciated. It truly was wonderful, and then Santa showed up. I’m not kidding. He delivered some gifts, financial and otherwise, and he let me in on a little secret – he whispered this to me in reference to Rev. Joe Brice’s behavior at the party: “Maybe Rev. Brice thinks he’s in the clear, but I’m still watching. Bad behavior counts, and anyone could lose their place on the Good List – all the way up to Christmas Eve.” I know that by this point in the month of December, all children have already prepared their lists, and in some way or another, prepared their reputation knowing that the old song has some truth: You’d better watch out, you’d better not cry You’d better not pout; I’m telling you why Cause Santa Clause is coming to town You know the rest – sing it with me if you want to: He’s making a list and checking it twice He’s gonna find out who’s naughty and nice Santa Clause is coming to town This time of year – that’s what kids are worried about. Behavior. They’re thinking about what list they’re going to end up on and who’s coming to town. Adults on the other hand... we’re just worried about guests coming to down. So beds get made. Turkeys defrosted. And Egg nogg nogged. Even if it’s Cousin Eddie’s coming over to do you know what in the storm drain, still there are ways that we adults must prepare for Christmas. But when it comes to children – they prepare a different way. They prepare with a time of spiritual purification, you might call it. Moral redirection. Reputation redemption. This time of year, they are mindful of their behavior knowing that good children will receive gifts and bad children coal. For them, the only imminent guest who matters is Santa Clause and because he’s coming to town his arrival must be prepared for. A child prepares for Christmas by getting her life in order and not her house. That almost sounds like the prophet Malachi. Do you know about the Prophet Malachi? Not many people do. Even Bible scholars don’t know much about the author of this book, little about the historical events that prompted this prophet to write, but what is clear is that Malachi knows that someone is coming to town and knows that with his coming preparation is necessary. But it’s not the kind of preparation that we see on the eve of the arrival of guests or relatives – you don’t prepare for his coming by putting up lights or decking the halls – you prepare for his coming by recognizing that we need purifying in our hearts, minds, and souls – for the one who is coming is “like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap.” According to Suzanne Richard, professor of Old Testament at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey, a fuller – or one who used fuller’s soap – was the ancient world’s version of a dry cleaner. Clothes soaking in lye were stomped as you might imagine a group of people would stomp on grapes to make wine. The clothes were then spread out on the ground to be bleached by the sun in what was called a fuller’s field, which was always outside the city or town. If the one who is coming is like “fuller’s soap” then don’t imagine one of those “Dove Soap” commercials where the soap is so gentle as not to irritate the skin or the kind of shampoo that makes washing your hair a pleasurable experience – the sales pitch for fuller’s soap would be that it is so abrasive that it will bleach that skin right off. The book of Malachi is about a messenger whose sole purpose is to say, “He is coming. The Lord is coming. So get ready. Be prepared, for he will be like a refiner’s fire and like fuller’s soap to all who are defiled and impure.” The messenger is John the Baptist of course. He’s the one whose birth is celebrated in the song his father Zechariah sang at his birth which made up our Advent Candle Lighting Liturgy and our Second Scripture Lesson. Zechariah sang: “You, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,” but what should we be preparing for? A dinner party? No – a Savior who will purify our souls – and purification is no pleasant experience according to Malachi. And this fuller’s soap is disturbing enough with its imagery of harsh cleaning agents, feet stomping, and being left to dry out in the sun, but have you ever seen a refiner’s fire? I had the opportunity to tour an aluminum recycling plant because my friend, Brandom Gengelbach worked there. A recycling plant is an incredible place, amazing really. You have to put on these safety glasses, a helmet, and a protective coat before you go in. Then the tour begins with a look at the finished product – a great big slab of refined aluminum, called an ingot, but to make an ingot you have to start with used or unrefined aluminum, so the next part of the tour is looking at these big piles of car parts, old computers, bicycles, soft drink cans, and old wire. All of this junk is placed in a furnace and the furnace building is one of the hottest places I’ve ever been. It’s one of those places where it feels like your eye balls are sweating. It’s so hot in there you can almost see the heat, but you can go up in the control room and watch as the junk is melted until the impurities – the paint from the drink can, the plastic casing on the wire - all those impurities are burnt off to create something new and pure. I think of that when I read, “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver.” It doesn’t sound pleasant, but here’s something interesting. The Bible uses silver and gold and I’ve been telling you about aluminum. Both silver and aluminum are two of the most reflective of all the metals. When aluminum is heated and purified something called a “lighting sheet” is created so that the metal has a mirror like quality. Apparently that’s also true for silver, that when it’s heated the silver smith knows that his metal is pure because he can see his reflection in it. Think about that then. The metal is refined when it reflects the Maker’s image. And we - we were created in God’s image, but easily enough we gathered impurities the way a white sweater gathers stains, the way metal is painted and wrapped and treated. The human condition is one of starting out pure in the Garden of Eden, but because our Creator instilled in us a capacity to choose for ourselves, our decisions, our circumstance, and our world has corrupted and defiled what was once pure. Refining is what we need, and you know it as well as I do. It doesn’t sound like a relaxing process, but when you look out on the world can you really think for a moment that everything is as it should be? Corruption, disease, pollution, and genocide. Oppression, poverty, cancer, and slavery. Greed creeps into our hearts, and so many try to buy their way to happiness that we have to rent units to store all the junk that we went into debt buying. Desire guides our thoughts, keeping us from being satisfied with the gifts that we’ve already been given. Violence walks the streets, as the innocent are killed, and all are inspired to fear and worry. We are confined to our houses and suspicious of our neighbors. We are distracted and stretched. Overworked, yet struggling to make ends meet. Surrounded by people, yet often feeling all alone. We have too much to eat, yet there is an emptiness we can’t fill. All around us is conflict, war, famine, and discord. But the primary focus of this morning’s Scripture Lessons is not a warning to change our ways. It’s not an assessment of who’s to blame nor is the point that we must rush to do something about all that’s wrong in our world. Instead – in these two Scripture Lessons is a promise that the One who is coming will. And he will not tolerate the kind of denial that distracts us from the real issues. He will not accept the half-hearted apology or the lie that masquerades as truth. And “who can endure on the day of his coming?” is one question that Scripture asks, but “will we endure if he doesn’t come” is another. A new day is dawning, and Scripture is clear that getting to that new day is as painful as being washed with fuller’s soap or being refined in the fire, it’s like a mother giving birth to a new child the Apostle Paul said, for indeed, there is moaning before the shouts of joy. There is confession before forgiveness. And purification before redemption. John the Baptist, born of Zechariah the Priest, is the one who was born to tell us to get ready for it, rejoicing in the promise of what’s to come: The dawn from on high will break upon us, To give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace. For we have yet to learn the ways of peace. But he is coming, and Thanks be to God. Amen.