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When I found a patch of ripe chokecherries just metres from our condo, I felt as if I’d hit the jackpot and found a treasure. No condo resident seemed interested in picking them and in undergoing the tedious process of preparing them to make jelly. I knew, however, what a joy it would be to open a jar of chokecherry jelly on a winter’s day, and sample its contents. So I picked the fruit and made a batch of jelly. The essence of the summer fruit was preserved in the cheerful looking jars on the pantry shelf.
In ancient times in the Middle East, clay jars were used to preserve documents, written either on papyrus or parchment, from deterioration. In 1947, Bedouin shepherds discovered clay jars containing scrolls in desert caves near Qumran, near the Dead Sea. These documents, parts of the Old Testament, were unusually accurate when compared with our modern copies of the Scriptures. The treasure of the Word of God has been preserved for all these years.
And yet, the clay jars, though stored in a cave, were not strong in themselves. Just as my jars of jelly would break if they fell off the shelf, clay jars were just common containers that also break easily.
We, as humans, are being compared to clay jars in 2 Corinthians 4:7. “We now have this light ('the glorious light of the good news' verse 4 ) 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.“ (NLT)
How then can we, weak and fragile as we are, impact those around us?
--We realize that we are just the containers for God’s great treasure, the good news of Jesus
--We dedicate ourselves to God for His purposes, fixing our attention on Him.
“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” (Romans 12:1.2 The Message )
--We acknowledge our powerlessness in ourselves. How well we know this when we break down under pressure! We have to rely on God's strength. Jesus said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT)
When we open ourselves to God, the treasure of the good news of Jesus can be savoured by those around us. Are you ready to let the world sample the goodness of God through you.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for the privilege of being fragile jars that contain the essence of God Himself. Thank you for helping us develop our character as we respond to your direction within us, so that others will in turn respond to Your goodness. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Alice Burnett
Red Deer, AB, Canada
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