For the umpteenth time, discouragement rushed in and reared its ugly head. Despair can paralyze and debilitate even the strongest of souls! But God always makes sure my spirit overcomes – by spoon feeding me His Word, and I regain focus. Great is His mercy and loving-kindness towards me. Great is His grace. He reminds me that I possess a priceless treasure.
“We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” 2 Corinthians 4:7
This treasure is kept in a jar of clay… a fragile container that’s so-so easily broken. Think about this! We are earthen vessels to display God’s power. We ARE these jars of clay! All of us have flaws, chips and cracks. Our outward appearance… our humanity… our physical disabilities… our shattered dreams… these are all elements of our jar of clay. So let me remind you (and myself); if we focus on our humanity and all those things that are attached to it, despair is bound to set in. The ministers of the gospel are weak and frail creatures; they are mortal, and soon broken in pieces. God has so ordered it that the weaker the vessels are, is how His power may appear. Others will see Jesus in us, who is the supremely valuable treasure to be valued and sought after. There is an awesome power in the gospel of Christ, to enlighten the mind, to lovingly convict the conscience, to convert the soul, and for the heart to rejoice; but all this power is from God our Creator, and not from men, who are but instruments, so that God in all things are glorified. I think of this Scripture…
“…always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So then death is working in us, but life in you.” 2 Corinthians 4:10-12
When the sufferings of Christ are re-acted in the sufferings of Christians, they set before the world the great example of a suffering Christ, that the life of Jesus might also be made manifest – that people might see the power of Christ’s resurrection and the value of His grace. This truth is so evident in my life. How honored I am that God chose me to shine His light onto others. No, the world most certainly would not think to live my life, with all of its limitations, is an honor. But it is – we are in the world, not of the world! God doesn’t leave us in the dark about darkness. I can’t describe how comforting it is to know that all of my humiliations and adversities are how Christ’s power and presence are demonstrated through my life. And so are yours!
Let God’s truth refocus your eyes today on the treasure that dwells within you. This treasure can fill the emptiest of vessels; after all, a jar is designed to hold something! That treasure is God himself, living within us, bringing his abundant life. In our own humanity we have no sense of wealth or worth, no value in this jar of clay. We are simply an empty jar. But when this humanity is filled with deity, we receive what we were created to hold, the very life of God. He is our treasure!
When we look only at the frail clay pot, despair is the natural result, but when we look at the glorious treasure we hold, we are inwardly renewed day by day. Our frailties are not to be despised, for they serve a purpose! They allow the life of God, our cherished treasure, to seep out for all those around us to see!