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A Jewel or a Pebble?, November 12
In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel,
my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the Lord, and will make thee
as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the Lord of hosts.
Haggai 2:23
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Christians are Christ’s jewels. They are to shine brightly for Him,
shedding forth the light of His loveliness. Their luster depends on the
polishing they receive. They may 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. Without the polishing
that the Lord gives they can reflect no more light than a common pebble.
Christ says to man, “You are mine. I have bought you. You are now
only a rough stone, but if you will place yourself in my hands, I will
polish you, and the luster with which you shall shine will bring honor to
My name. No man shall pluck you out of My hand. I will make you My
peculiar treasure. On My coronation day, you will be a jewel in My crown
of rejoicing.”
The divine Worker spends little time on worthless material. Only the
precious jewels does He polish after the similitude of a palace, cutting
away all the rough edges. This process is severe and trying; it hurts human
pride. Christ cuts deep into the experience that man in his self-sufficiency
has 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 away. Then,
holding the jewel up to the light, the Master sees in it a reflection of
Himself, and He pronounces it worthy of a place in His casket. “In that
day, saith the Lord of hosts, will I take thee,... and will make thee as a
signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the Lord of hosts.” Blessed be the
experience, however severe, that gives new value to the stone, and causes
it to shine with living brightness.
God will not suffer one of His truehearted workers to be left alone to
struggle against great odds and be overcome. He preserves as a precious
jewel every one whose life is hid with Christ in God.
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