Not one more blow!
Is not My word like fire [that consumes all that cannot endure the test]? says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks in pieces the rock [of most stubborn resistance]? (Jeremiah 23:29) Both fire and a hammer have an effect of changing what they touch, don't they? They both can reduce to pieces that which are touched by their influence. There is a "heating" effect of both. The hammer begins to "heat up" the nail as it drives it through the wood - repeated blows from the hammer actually change the temperature of the nail! Why on earth does God compare his Word to fire and a hammer? The Word of God changes whatever it comes into contact with, and it has a way of changing the "temperature" of whatever it touches. It is important for us to see God does not say the purpose of the fire is to consume us. It is just used to consume whatever cannot hold up to the test of the heat! In other words, whenever we feel like the Word of God is a little "cons...