As Sharp Iron 'Sharpens' Sharp Iron (1)

In the Bible it is written, that as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. But this words cannot be taken literally. We need to know how exactly the irons are being sharpened against one another, so that they can be truly sharp. Because if being sharpened the wrong way, the iron will never become sharp, instead, they will be useless and will be thrown away as trash.

dull iron can be of any shape. And they can be shaped into useful things.

Keys, that has the ability to open the door....

Swords, to fight in battle...

Armors, that can protect you from enemy's attack....



To become useful, the iron needs to undergo many different processes:
1. Purifying process by fire to remove impurities
2. Molding process to mold into some basic shape
3. More fire and hammering to form better shape
4. Cutting and Sharpening to remove parts that are redundant or not useful
5. After finished, the tools need to be polished and sharpened regularly so that they can remain useful.

Isn't that similar to how our lives will be useful if we:
1. Let our lives be purified from unclean thoughts
2. Let it be molded and used by God
3. Let it be perfected by 'hammering' and 'further purification'
4. Sharpen our talents and abilities, remove our bad habits and negative thoughts
5. Continuously seek God for renewal

As what is mentioned in the Provers, two man will become wiser, if they sharpen each other. They should work together to remove the bad habits of one another, while encouraging each other to advance in each talents.