Treasures in Jars of Clay

~"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." 2 Corinthians 4: 7 (NIV)~

The treasure Paul is referring to is the light of the knowledge of God's glory expressed through Jesus. This light fills us, as Christians, and makes known to us that we have no power. All power comes from God.

These jars of clay that he refers to are our mortal bodies. For God to be able to use us as He wants, these jars have to be broken, spiritually broken, so they can receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit. In Isaiah 64: 8 Isaiah says,

"But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand."

In Jeremiah 18 the Lord speaks to Jeremiah to go to the potter and watch him form his pots from clay. The first pot he formed was marred so he turned it into a different type of vessel. When people form pots several problems can arise. Sometimes the clay is too dry. This will cause the pot to break easily. Sometimes the clay isn't centered on the wheel properly. When the clay isn't centered correctly the design will not work. The potter must reform the clay into something new.

When we have a dryness in our spirits, like the dry clay, the Lord wants something new to happen. He wants us to be a jar that can be filled up with God's glory. This light of Christ will shine forth to others. He wants us to be centered totally on Him. He must be our focus. If He isn't we can't perform the job that God has for us properly.

Like the clay in the potter's hands, our lives are shaped not by ourselves but quite literally by the hand of God. We are shaped into new creations by the saving work of Jesus. Clay has weaknesses. It can break. God is somewhat like the potters of Japan who create something known as Kintsugi Pottery. They repair broken pots with gold or silver to create something beautiful. They repair the broken pot and restore it but make it better than before. We are the broken jars of clay who need a Savior, a restorer, to make us whole again and better than before.

There are many examples of people who were broken before God could use them in the way He intended. Our brokenness is often what ultimately brings us to God. We can learn valuable lessons from being broken. Joseph was sold into slavery and unjustly imprisoned. Moses lived with the memory of having murdered an Egyptian. Rahab was a prostitute. Elijah was despondent. Gideon had fears and doubts about what God wanted him to do. David was broken by his sin with Bathsheba. In Psalm 51: 17 David says his sacrifice to the Lord is a broken spirit. In Job 9: 17 Job, in his brokenness says,

"For He crushes me with a tempest, And multiplies my wounds without cause."

Being broken hurts, mentally and sometimes physically. Jesus was broken on the cross by the weight of the sins of the world on Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21) Does sin weigh you down? Has sin broken you? Do you feel as if you can't find forgiveness? Christ has come to renew us with His Holy Spirit. He has come to take the burden of our sins away (I Peter 2: 24). Can we learn something from being broken? Most definitely.

Our broken moments, those times when God is recreating us for His purpose, can be difficult. Many times sin brings us to brokenness. Our sin is our choice, but the brokenness it brings when we realize what terrible decisions and choices we have made, can create a moment in our lives of clarity. We realize that without God we are nothing. We can't be used by Him, we can't make good choices, we can't live a life with love without being remade in His image and for His purpose.

We pray that our brokenness will lead us to Christ (Romans 6: 23) or to a deeper relationship with Him. Paul continues on in 2 Corinthians 4 to say that we are hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted and struck down but not crushed, despairing, abandoned or destroyed. Paul says these things happen to reveal the life of Christ in our bodies. Our weak vessels of clay may need to be remade, but we trust God's faithfulness that the outcome will be a better, more perfect vessel. A vessel that will reveal the life of Christ in us.