Thursday the 13th

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

 

You know, jars of clay are not the sturdiest things in the world. They chip, they crack, and ultimately they fall apart and become useless. As I read this scripture this morning I was reminded of a program I was watching this week about biblical discoveries. I am sure you have seen the sort of program, where the archeologists find all types of relics form the times of Christ. As I was listening to this man talk of the different things he had found on his various trips, I noticed in the background a clay jar. It was really pieces of a jar that was held together with tape. It looked like he was trying to piece it all back together, so that he might know what it looked like before, or that he might discover what it’s use was. All I could think about was what happened to the stuff that was inside of the jar? Think about it, what was in that jar when it finally broke? Was it empty? Had the owner recognized that the jar was getting old, so before it broke to pieces did he transfer the contents? Did the vessel just break spilling out the contents all over the floor? What about our vessels? We know what ours look like…. they are us; and we know the treasure that they hold; it is the spirit of the Lord. It is from here that we draw our strength, it is this contents that supplies us with the power, the drive, and the conviction to go out and profess the word of God. So what are we doing with our contents? Just like all clay vessels ours too will become old and brittle. It will crack, chip, and start to leak. We might work very hard to patch and mend our vessels, but in the end, like all things of this world, our vessels will become useless. How full will your vessel be when it’s usefulness runs out? Funny thing about our vessels, it seems the more we pour out on to the world, the more that it is replenished. If our job is to empty our vessel, that is to share, and inspire the Joy of God in all of those around us, how much will be left when the jar breaks? I for one pray that on the day I expire there is just enough left in the bottom of my jar to take me into the eternal with the Lord. For that to happen, we have to get busy pouring out that love from our vessel onto the world. I can think of nothing more tragic than to have a vessel come to the end of its usefulness only to break and spill it’s entire contents out onto the floor. What a waste! So I urge everyone, work to empty your vessel everyday. Yes each morning it will be full again, but do not let a day go by without trying to empty it out. This way when we stand before the Lord, we might e able to honestly say, “Lord as you have freely given to me, I have freely given to those around me. The countless blessings that you have filled my vessel with, have been poured out daily onto others.” May the world never have to wonder what was in our vessels. They will know because we have given them some of the treasure that was in it!

 

 

God Bless,

Brian Thetford

The New Covenant Church

www.thenewcovenantchurch.com

<))))><