2 Corinthians 4:6-7
Treasured
“The Scriptures say, “God commanded light to shine in the dark.” Now God is shining in our hearts to let you know that his glory is seen in Jesus Christ. We are like clay jars in which this treasure is stored. The real power comes from God and not from us.” 2 Corinthians 4:6-7 (CEV)
What do we usually do with something we treasure?
Hide it. Protect it. Keep it in a safe place.
Makes sense, right?
Take jewelry for example. Not only is it precious to us, but then we often have a special jewelry box for it. Some are simple, and some are treasures in their own right. So you have something that is precious, enclosed and protected in something that is also precious itself.
We protect documents, photos and other digital things with passwords and other security features. We buy home security systems to keep all that we treasure in our homes safe.
The people we love in our life, treasures, we are very protective of them too. We go to great lengths to keep them safe as we should.
It’s just interesting how our approach to this differs from God’s approach…
Because it is basically the opposite.
Think about it. Let’s start with Jesus, who took on flesh, a clay jar with God most precious treasure and the old hymn reminds us, “And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing; Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin (How Great Thou Art).”
Okay. So instead of hiding, protecting and keeping Jesus in a safe place, He put Him in an ordinary clay jar (flesh) and then sends Him to die on the cross for us and be raised. Jesus didn’t look different than other human beings. He didn’t have a special “clay jar” made just for Him.
Pardon me, but is that a way to treat something one treasures??? 😉
Then there’s us. With Jesus in our hearts, by the power of the Holy Spirit, this light that the passage talks about, some of God’s treasure poured out into us, clay jars. This light, this treasure of God’s within us, it’s real, it is precious to God and it is inside us.
And in this life, as you know, the jar, well, it gets a little banged up. It’s flawed from the beginning. It’s weak. It gets old. It cracks. It’s completely not worthy of the treasure inside. It chips. It often just starts falling apart after awhile. But the treasure always manages to stay inside.
Excuse me, but would you or I choose to put something that is precious in a vessel that is easily broken, not very stable or secure, and will ultimately fail? 😉
We wouldn’t invest like this. We wouldn’t leave people we love as vulnerable as this. This is crazy, right?
Good News! God does!
With Jesus and with us, God keeps pouring out His treasure into this world and into us. As ugly, and old, and unworthy as we may feel – or as our clay jar may show, we have God’s treasure within us. We may not look like pearls or diamonds, but when the treasure is on the inside, it means it can’t be taken away or fade away – it’s eternal.
But why? Why does God do this?
This passage answers it in part. “The real power comes from God and not from us.” It was and is about God revealing His power, grace, glory and love through us. It’s just the way He does it.
And I can’t help but think of Jesus’ words, “Your heart will always be where your treasure is… (Matthew 6:21).”
True for us. But true for God too. Where His treasure is, even in clay jars like us, there His heart is also.
Amen.
Discussion Questions
- Do you ever think about yourself as one of God’s treasures? Why or why not? How about now?
- Which is more important – the treasure or the vessel? How do we live – with more emphasis on the treasure or the jar?
- What does this idea reveal about God’s character? What do think about that?
- Is there anything for us to learn from God’s way of treating treasure, about how we treat our treasures?
Living Water 