For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 147:3
Life is fragile
We all go through difficult and heartbreaking situations as we travel through the years, and I know personally the pain of having to say goodbye to loved ones.
Throughout life there are successes and failures, triumphs and tragedies, and they all shape us into the people we become.
There is a form of Japanese art called Kintsugi, where broken pottery is repaired using gold as the cement. Once the broken jar is completely repaired, it is more beautiful and worth far more than when in its original state. The gold is woven into the clay to make a stunning pattern. In the same way, Christ repairs our lives, and the beauty of His grace is woven into the story of our brokenness; His shed blood binds up our wounds, and the trials of life are the furnace that refines us and sets the treasure into the clay.
Christ in you
If you have a jar or vase full of treasure, and you tip it up and pour it out, you will soon find yourself with an empty jar. But when the apostle Paul talks of the treasure in jars of clay he is talking about a treasure that can never be poured out or run empty. That’s because the treasure is not only in the empty space inside the jar, but is woven into the very fabric of the jar.
As the temple of His Holy Spirit God does not live in some hypothetical space in your body. He is not just in your mind or in your heart, or in your soul. He is your very being. Christianity is not a lifestyle, but life itself, and if you belong to Christ then it is no longer you that lives, but Christ who lives in you and through you.
God the father, in His grace and mercy, has decided to use frail, broken, and sinful people, to declare His divine power at work in humanity. So that in the darkness of life, His light is made known
The hope of glory
So what is Jesus doing with you? He may be sustaining you through pressure, humbling you through weakness, healing what is broken, or making His grace visible through places you once wished you could hide. The treasure is not passive. The life of Jesus woven into you is active, powerful, and good.
You may be like a jar of clay, but you are not empty, You may be fragile, but you are not forgotten, The treasure of Christ is at work in you.
Even in the dark storms of life, His glory should shine in you and through you, and out of you, after all, He is Christ in you the hope of glory!
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