“For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.”
2 Corinthians 4:6-7
God’s encouragement…
My journey through life reversed direction recently. At the funeral of Iny, the mother of my best friend since first grade, the years dropped away as I watched her photo tribute. Her children, her husband and her friends paraded by in photo after photo. For those few minutes, I felt like the child I was back then, when we all first met. Their faces poured out a treasure of memories for me.
In the scripture passage above, Paul tells us about a treasure God has shone in our hearts in the face of Jesus. It is the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. God’s most precious treasure, knowing Him through His Son, is given to all who believe Jesus is their Lord. This treasure is given to us in our “jars of clay” to ensure we understand deeply that the surpassing power of this amazing knowledge belongs to Him, not to us. Jars of clay can be broken even though they go through fire to increase their strength. Our Creator knows that trials in this life provide the fire that can increase our strength and our faith—but only when we trust Him! We must trust Him, to be shaped by Him, into the kingdom workers He created us to be.
God also carries us. For much of my life’s journey I believed I was under my own power, that my feet carried me everywhere I wanted to go. Now I know that I’ve been carried by Jesus. He lifted me onto His cart at my Baptism. Afterward, as I moved between mountaintops and dark valleys, the power of Jesus kept me securely on board. Jesus tenderly placed my jar with others so we could share our journeys. Most lovingly—through His life, death and resurrection—Jesus carries us home. To His church here on earth and then onward to our eternal home with God. While we are here, He instructs us to pour the light He has poured into us, into others. God’s treasure is meant to be shared.
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Image: pastel and color pencil drawing by Robin Lybeck: Jars of Clay
