2 Corinthians 4:7-10 “But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.” This verse talks about how powerful God's light is and how he allows us to go through hard times but does not allow them to destroy us. Music:"Adding the Sun" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
The Clay Vessel
2 Corinthians 4:7-10 “But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.”
I looked up the meaning of this verse and the answer I found is very interesting so I am going to read it to you. I will also put a link to the explanation in the show notes so you can check it out too if you want to. CLICK HERE for explanation.
What is the treasure Paul describes in this verse? From the previous verse, we know that it is the "light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). Paul described God as shining His light into Paul's heart, penetrating the darkness of Paul's unbelief and revealing His glory to Paul through faith in Christ. Paul finally saw with spiritual eyes what he had never seen in all of his years of religious practice. In fact, Paul's phrasing in the prior verse incorporates the values of many different cultures—light, knowledge, and glory—and expresses them in the form of a person which is Jesus Christ.
To know God in this way, to see God's glory and to be given the opportunity to share in that glory forever, is the greatest of all treasures. Paul writes now that this great treasure is not kept under lock and key in a museum or a bank vault. Instead, God keeps this treasure of the light of His glory in Christ in fragile jars of clay. Clay jars were included in nearly every aspect of life in Paul's day. They were efficient containers, but also prone to breaking easily. Modern people tend to think of glass jars as "fragile," but glass was considered an improvement over clay.
The point being made is that God has deliberately chosen something fragile and unimpressive. Why would God keep this great treasure in such vulnerable containers? Paul says God wants to show that the power of His glory is from Him. He leaves no room to suggest that power comes from Paul or any other human being. The power of the gospel is so overwhelming that it is not limited by the quality of its container. God displays His limitless power and glory by distributing it through limited and common human vessels.
Wow, that last paragraph is pretty powerful. Especially where it says, “The power of the gospel is so overwhelming that it is not limited by the quality of its container. Then it goes on to say God displays His limitless power and glory by distributing it through limited and common human vessels. Do you ever feel like you are not good enough to spread the Word of God. Maybe it’s not that you don’t feel good enough, but you don’t feel smart enough, holy enough, or some other version of enough. Often times we don’t feel like we are enough and so we don’t try. We count ourselves out of the game before it even starts. We tell ourselves that God doesn’t want us to spread the word. He wants those that are more qualified to do it. That last paragraph is speaking directly to those of us who feel this way. “The power of the Gospel is so overwhelming that it is not limited by the quality of the container.”
Even though we aren’t perfect, we can still spread the good news of the Gospel. Maybe it’s true and we don’t know enough, we aren’t good enough, we aren’t holy enough, that doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter because we aren’t doing anything through our own strength. All of our power comes from God and He can do anything. That is the point He was making by talking about clay pots. Clay pots were normal, ordinary and boring back in the day. They were very common as they were used for everything. God will fill us with His power as well. No matter how common or fragile we may feel.
I really liked this verse because it shows us that God does allow us to suffer, but not be completely broken. It says we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. Do you ever feel like this? Do you ever feel like every single thing in your life is going wrong and wonder how you are still standing? Somehow you have not been crushed by the weight of it all. The power of God is what is keeping us from being crushed under the weight of it all. He does allow us to be afflicted but He is right there with us the whole time. He is giving us the strength we need to get through it all.
The next line says, perplexed but not driven to despair. We don’t always understand what is going on. Sometimes something bad happens, something really hard for us to understand. For instance, when we lose a loved one suddenly. When this happens we probably are filled with a lot of questions. Even though we have questions, we are not driven to despair. My devotional this morning touched on the subject of our perplexity. This is what it said in Jesus Calling for August 7th. “Understanding will never bring you Peace. That’s why I have instructed you to trust in Me, not in your understanding. Human beings have a voracious appetite for trying to figure things out in order to gain a sense of mastery over their lives. But the world presents you with an endless series of problems. As soon as you master one set, another pops up to challenge you. The relief you had anticipated is short-lived. Soon your mind is gearing up again: searching for understanding (mastery) instead of seeking Me (your Master). If we don’t want to be driven to despair when feel perplexed then we need to search for God before we seek understanding. Sometimes we have to trust God knows what He is doing, even when we don’t understand why He is doing it.
The next part says we are persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. Again, this is because of the power of God. Sometimes if might feel like we are destroyed. We may feel as though things couldn’t get any lower. If you are in a season like this then I want to encourage you to adopt this verse. To know that you maybe be knocked down, but you will not be destroyed. God will not allow it. He is with you on this journey, even if you can’t see Him or feel Him. I like this verse because it provides encouragement and shows us that no matter how bad it gets God can still redeem us and redeem the situation we find ourselves in. There is nothing more powerful than God, and I find that so comforting.
The final part of the verse says, “ always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.” God is calling us to be His light in the world. He wants others to look at us and see Jesus. Are we working on this? This is something that will take a lifetime to perfect and something we can work on every single day. We don’t have to wait until we feel we are enough. Remember the power of the Gospel is not limited to the quality of the vessel. God’s power will not be limited by us. It doesn’t matter if we are enough, we will never be enough, but God’s power can still flow through us to others. We can be His light in the world, even with all or our imperfections. All we need to do is ask God to lead the way. We have to accept the challenge, say yes, and then the power of God can work through us. Will you accept the challenge today?
Dear Heavenly Father I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord we thank you for not letting us get crushed by the way of our problems. Thank you for not letting us be driven to despair by our perplexity. We thank you that when we are knockdown we are not destroyed. We thank you for using us as your vessel. We are grateful you are there for us through everything. We love you so much Lord, you are so amazing! We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen.
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to spending time with you tomorrow. Have a blessed day!