Romans 3:1-5
Diamonds are among the most prized gems in the known world today and are renowned for their dazzling beauty and sparkling array. Yet, the story of this precious stone is one of great affliction from start to finish. One hundred miles beneath earth’s surface, at temperatures in excess of 20000C, and at phenomenal pressures, the diamond is formed.
This sermon is an exhortation to have joy in the midst of tribulation!! Joy, “knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope” (Rom 5:3-4). As gold tried through the fire and is purified, and as the sweet flavours of food are more concentrated in the higher temperatures of a sealed pressure cooker; so precious Christ-like character is wrought in a Christian soul under the extreme pressure and fierce heat of tribulation!