We have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. —2 Corinthians 4:7
Who entrusts fragile pots to treasure? The assumption is that only the very strong can hold up something of great worth. But in Christ, weakness handles treasure. Frailty in the hands of faith becomes formidable. Fragility fierce enough to withstand the fire and still find feet to stand firm. So just who are these special clay jars? You and I.
You’re peering down into the ridge. The rickety rope bridge is in front of you. Strung across the canyon with little leverage or leeway. Then someone hands you a chest of treasure. It’s brimming, bulky, and big. The goal: walk across the bridge without dropping that chest and not drop to your death. Who would trust you to deliver that directive? Traverse through the trial without tumbling. Trek tenuously without trepidation on toes of life and death. Great treasure is for the grand, and God opens opportunities for us to do so because of His grace which walks with us as we handle treasure amidst challenges.
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Vulnerable. Clay is crumbly, capable of falling apart. Like clay, we are vulnerable in so many ways. Fragile means breakable. We are susceptible to suffering. We get stained by sin. We are swept away by sorrow. We get stormed by Satan. We break when the burden brings us down. In a million pieces when our realities shake, our relationships sink, and our resilience shatter. Paul’s analogy of us to clay declares that in our weakness, the work of the gospel can still shine because the source is from God and not ourselves.
Valuable. Clay is cheap and costs inexpensive. The poor and prosperous can both afford to purchase clay. Clay is the every day man material, made from dirt and dust of the earth. It’s raw and real. It’s representative of what God can do with little and transform it to much. Clay is messy and mundane. It’s written off as minor and nothing to write home about. God reverses what society doesn’t revere. He makes valuable the vulnerable.
Validated. Clay is common. Clay is everywhere. It’s not unique or unusual. It doesn’t amaze at first sight. It doesn’t animate the senses or attribute awesomeness. But God takes the common and makes it uncommonly greater for His greatness. God validates clay not with vacillating uncertainty, but He approves, affirms, and accepts clay as is. Then the Maker molds and meshes the clay to be more than what it could be on its own.
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Our fragile poverty is contrasted with the fierce potency of God. His power explodes power into our powerless lives. Whatever strength of the light that we carry is derived from the source of the illumination, our God and the guardian of clay jars. In our vulnerability, He values and validates our weakness so that we can carry His treasure. Our jar is filled with light to guide us in the darkness and for others to see that the jar carrying the light is one that God treasures.
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©️2020 Jordan Su