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Shine with Living Brightness, December 24
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up
my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth
him.
Malachi 3:17
.
Christians are Christ’s jewels, bought with an infinite price. They are to shine
brightly for Him, shedding forth the light of His loveliness. And ever they are to
remember that all the luster that Christian character possesses is received from the
Sun of Righteousness.
The luster of Christ’s jewels depends on the polishing that they receive. God
does not compel us to be polished. We are left free to choose to be polished or
to remain unpolished. But everyone who is pronounced worthy of a place in the
Lord’s temple must submit to the polishing process. He must consent to have the
sharp edges cut away from his character, that it may be shapely and beautiful,
fitted to represent the perfection of Christ’s character....
The divine Worker spends little time on worthless material. Only the precious
jewels does He polish after the similitude of a palace. With hammer and chisel He
cuts away the rough edges, preparing us for a place in God’s temple. The process
is severe and trying. It hurts human pride. Christ cuts deep into the experience that
man in his self-sufficiency regarded as complete, and takes away self-uplifting
from the character. He cuts away the surplus surface, and putting the stone to
the polishing wheel, presses it close, that all roughness may be worn off. Then
holding the jewel up to the light the Master sees in it a reflection of His own image,
and it is pronounced worthy of a place in His temple.
Blessed be the experience, however severe, that gives new value to the stone,
enabling it to shine with living brightness! ...
[The Lord] has workers whom He will call forth from poverty and obscurity.
Engaged in the common duties of life, and clothed with coarse raiment, they are
looked upon by men as of little value. But Christ sees in them infinite possibilities,
and in His hands they will become precious jewels, to shine brightly in the kingdom
of God. “They shall be mine, saith the Lord of Host, in that day when I make up
my jewels.” (
Malachi 3:17
).
Christ’s perfect knowledge of human character fits Him to deal with minds.
God knows just how to treat each soul. He judges not as man judges. He knows
the real value of the material upon which He is working in fitting men and women
for positions of trust.—
Manuscript 168, December 24, 1902
, “The Sin of Evil-
speaking.”
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