We Have Work To Do
So
because of God's mercy, we have work to do. He has given it to us. And we don't
give up. Instead, we have given up doing secret and shameful things. We don't
twist God's word. In fact, we do just the opposite. We present the truth plainly.
In the sight of God, we make our appeal to everyone's sense of what is right
and wrong.
Suppose our good news
is covered with a veil. Then it is veiled to those who are dying. The god of
this world has blinded the minds of those who don't believe. They can't see the
light of the good news of Christ's glory. He is the likeness of God.
We do not preach
about ourselves. We preach about Jesus Christ. We say that he is Lord. And we
serve you because of him.
God said, "Let
light shine out of darkness."—(Genesis
1:3) He made his light shine in our hearts. It shows us the light of God's
glory in the face of Christ.
Treasure is kept in
clay jars. In the same way, we have the treasure of the good news in these
earthly bodies of ours. That shows that the mighty power of the good news comes
from God. It doesn't come from us.
We are pushed hard
from all sides. But we are not beaten down. We are bewildered. But that doesn't
make us lose hope. Others make us suffer. But God does not desert us. We are
knocked down. But we are not knocked out. We always carry around the death of
Jesus in our bodies. In that way, the life of Jesus can be shown in our bodies.
We who are alive are
always in danger of death because we are serving Jesus. So his life can be
shown in our earthly bodies.
2
Corinthians 4:1-11
First century
followers of Christ understood the issue of clay pots, which were used to store
olive oil used for cooking, bathing, medicine, ceremonies, lamps, and
cosmetics.
And like those pots,
our bodies are temporary, fragile, and expendable. In our modern world that
highly values outward beauty, we would be wise to
remember that our greatest treasure is the life of Jesus within us. By God’s
grace and power, may we live so that others can see Christ in us.
We are just
clay pots. Jesus is the true treasure within us.
Christ is
seen most clearly when we remain in the background.
Our Daily Bread –