I had the chance to preach in our Sunday morning service a couple Sundays ago, and I felt like I should introduce myself to some of our new visitors, but I didn't do that. But I did say that we were going to start a series that day, and it was going to be a one-part series. Well, this is another one-part series today as we gather and as we spend the time essentially looking at one verse. It's a verse that on and off over the years I've found, I guess you'd say significant in my own life as I've considered what it says. In many ways the verse is a reflection of my own story of walking with Christ. And I think maybe that's why I'm drawn to it. And in it, the verse, I think we'll see, captures some very significant realities of the Christian life. And I hope those will be evident to you as we spend this time looking at it. And the verse is 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 7. And just to give it a little extra context, we'll read verse 6 in addition to verse 7. And there it says, for God who said, let light shine out of darkness, has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. Well, the first thing that Paul really draws our attention to in verse 7 is, in a way, a real challenge to us. And what the challenge is, is a challenge of what our view of Jesus Christ is. And what Paul tells us is that his view of Christ is that he was a treasure. Paul begins verse 7 by saying, we have this treasure. And the reason we know the treasure is Jesus Christ is, in part, what he has just said in verse 6, where he says, the glory of God in the face of Christ. And that is what he is referring to when he mentions that we have this treasure. But what's a treasure? Well, a treasure is something that's valuable to us. It may be something physical. We talk about family heirlooms that are passed down from generation to generation and things that we hold on to because they're valuable to us. And they may be old to someone else. They may not have valuable, but they're valuable to us, so we hold on to them. It may be something that we have purchased or worked on over the years. We maybe work years and save so that we can have this certain object and we finally get it. And because of our investments towards that end, it has value to us and we treasure it. But treasures don't have to be just physical in nature. That may be a person. I received an email yesterday. was sort of one of these group emails from a husband whose wife is very sick and he titled it an email, an update on our treasured Wendy and he referred to his wife as his treasured one and understood that there were others who would view her in such a way or folks may treasure certain memories because of their value to us so we have these treasures but the treasure that Paul refers to It's that of Jesus Christ, and I think as we look at what Paul says here, and as we consider all of scripture, I think Paul would clearly say that the greatest treasure, the treasure that trumps any other treasure, is that of Jesus Christ. Well, I grew up in a home and in a church setting where our family did go to church regularly, but as I look back and reflect on those things, I feel really safe in saying that Jesus Christ was not particularly treasured in our home or in our church. He was sort of there. He was in the background. Jesus Christ was certainly something that was mentioned, but actually one of my clear memories, particularly of the church I grew up in, was a challenge of what the Bible really said about Jesus Christ. In particular, it was a challenge that, you know, Jesus really couldn't have done those miracles. That's just somebody later on who wanted to build up who Jesus was and said he did those miracles. And what I remember is actually an attempt to diminish who Jesus Christ was. Clearly, he wasn't treasured. And it would have been my senior, approaching my senior year in high school, that in God's providence I made some new friends. I enjoyed these friends. I at least thought they enjoyed me. They let me stick around. One of the things I began to discover fairly quickly is that these group of young people were people who were excited about Jesus Christ and weren't shy about sharing about him. One of the things they would talk about is having this relationship with Jesus Christ and how important that was. In fact, it was the most important thing in their lives. This was at least new to my hearing. It may not have been the first time I heard it, but it was one of those things that the timing was right. And I began to hear the story from these young people who clearly treasured who Jesus was. They were involved with Young Life, a ministry some of you would be familiar with. And I began to go to those meetings, and there began to hear more of the story. And at the center of that story was Jesus Christ, who was to be valued and was to be related to. And it would have been the fall of that senior year that God worked in my heart and really drew me to Himself. And my own view of who Jesus Christ was changed. It went from a name that I knew and somebody off in the distance to being a person who I had a relationship with and clearly became a person who I treasured. And that really is at the heart of the Christian faith. I suspect if we had a chance to sit and individually share, each of you would have your own story, hopefully, of how you came to the point in your life where Jesus Christ became the one who you treasured. And obviously, if that is not a story that you're yet able to tell, I would certainly challenge you to consider more seriously who Jesus is and the role that he might have, that you too might come to the place where you can say with Paul, this is the treasure that we have. But there's also sort of a secondary challenge, and that's the fact that sometimes we have treasures, that we say are treasures, but we forget how valuable they are. I heard a story recently of someone who came through inheritance, a piano was given to them, a very nice old piano, that they knew had some value. They had in their minds, you know, how much it would be worth, but they had an appraiser come in and he appraised the piano, and to their shock, this piano was actually worth five times the amount that they thought it was. And I thought, what an illustration of what can easily happen to us in our walk with Christ. We know Jesus Christ is important to us. We say he is our treasure, but how easily we undervalue who he is and his role in our life. So along with the challenge to view Jesus Christ as the one whom we treasure, is the challenge to remember how valuable he really is and to make that one of our passions in life. So one of the things that Paul unfolds for us in this passage is the fact that Jesus Christ is a treasure. But he goes on to make a second point here, and he says that this is a treasure that we have in jars of clay. Another way that that verse can be translated is we have this treasure in earthen vessels. And what is being described here is everyday houseware. This is the everyday stuff. This isn't the good China. This is the cheap stuff, if you just want to look at it in common vernacular. This is when you have a bunch of kids over and it's not special company, you bring up this earthen vessels, these jars of clay. And that's the reference that Paul makes to where this treasure is placed. And what Paul is really doing as he describes these jars of clay is he's describing us. He's describing us as those jars of clay in which this treasure is placed. And you know what? It's not a compliment. when he describes us as earthen vessels, as jars of clay. It's a description of the state of our lives. In the beginning, we're told that God wonderfully and majestically and fearfully created us. And in the beginning, when he created us, we were really majestic beings. We would have been fine china, if you will. But then the fall came, and there was the rebellion to God, and the influence and effects of sin had its way. And one of the effects was, yes, we are still made in God's image, and His creation was fearfully and wonderfully done, but the effect on us is rather than being fine china, we're now jars of clay. We're earthen vessels. And we are people who are fragile. We're easily broken. We have cracks. We're porous. And that's the image that Paul is using here as he describes us. And what he is saying, in effect, is it's into such beings, into such reality, that Jesus Christ comes. And it's a really beautiful image of what the gospel is. That Jesus Christ comes and who he is, and he comes to people whose lives are broken. And there's lots of ways that that brokenness comes to us. Some folks have family backgrounds that are not particularly good, and there are effects from that background that have influenced their shape, if you will, as a jar of clay. Some folks, and we're told in numbers that are really astounding, grow up and face some sort of abuse. And those abuses are going to affect their brokenness. There can be events that unfold in life that affect who we become. This is really in some ways a dramatic illustration, and they're lesser illustrations, but those who go off to war and are in the midst of battle are affected by those events. It affects who they are, and they know in some way the fragileness and the brokenness of human existence. And whether or not we have had a difficult family background, whether or not unusually difficult events have come our way, just living in this world and being sinners and having the effect of our own sin come into our lives makes us a fragile, porous, if not broken individuals. So when we consider what Paul is saying, that it is into such beings that the treasure is placed, we have that beautiful image of what the gospel is, that Jesus Christ comes to dwell, not in China that's already perfect, but to come and dwell in those of us who are hoarse and broken and know our fragileness. And there we have what is in reality the heart of the gospel. We're told that Jesus Christ comes to dwell within us, to live in our hearts, to tabernacle within us. We're described as temples of God that he comes to dwell in. And that's the wonder of the gospel message, that the treasure is Christ and he comes to dwell in us. So why would God do this? You know, that's an interesting thing to think about. Why would God come and dwell in Christ? Why wouldn't God come and find that perfect and good and beautiful China? Doesn't it make more sense that that's what he would do? But the message here is that he comes to jars of clay. But Paul really gives to us, in essence, the answer to that question in the remainder of this verse, where he says, the treasure is in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. There's a wonderful but great mystery. And that great and wonderful mystery is that God shows his power through our brokenness, through our weakness, through our fragileness. And evidently, this was a lesson that Paul himself learned. And in a fascinating way, I'd love to find out how it connects. He talks about his own example in this letter to the Corinthians. It's later in this letter that Paul talks about his thorn of flesh. this problem that had come to him, and whether it was an actual malady to his flesh or a set of circumstances that he called the thorn in his flesh, it was a problem to him, and it was a great problem. And we know that he cried out to God three times, and you just have this sense that he cried out with great passion that God would remove this problem from him. And he describes it this way later in 2 Corinthians. where he says, three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me, that is, this thorn in the flesh. But He said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest in me. You know, Paul really was, from our perspective, a very gifted person. And it could have been easy for Paul to rest on his giftedness. And as he went around ministering to people for folks to say, isn't Paul great? Look at his great gifts. Or isn't Paul amazing, these spiritual experiences he's had, and to really lift Paul up. But Paul realized that, you know, that wasn't good, and that God had brought this thorn in the flesh, whatever it was, so that he would be humbled. And one gets the sense that whatever this thorn in the flesh was, Paul wasn't the only one that knew about it. Other people could see it, and they could see him struggle, and they could see the effect on him. And it was because of that, that when God worked, In and through Paul, people were able to say, you know, it's not Paul who's done this, it's really God who has worked through Paul. It's through his weakness, and in spite of his weakness, that God is at work through the Apostle Paul. And that really is just one example of the things that we might know. Think of the people who we know who have gone through devastating set of circumstances, and maybe some of you have, and you've known brokenness, and you've known your weakness, and how in the midst of that situation God has come and slowly worked in your life and put your life back together. What is it that people see? They don't see you. They see the power of God at work in your life. And when that happens, it's God who is exalted and lifted up. Or maybe the person who is just horrified by speaking publicly. And maybe really isn't very gifted at it. But circumstances arise where they're able to tell their story. And in their struggling and broken way, they tell their story. And God moves in people's lives. And it becomes a setting where people know it's not the gifts of that person where God has worked. It's through their weakness that God's power has shown itself. And the examples can go on and on. And God's upside down and mysterious way, he says to us, it's actually through your brokenness. It's the fact that you're jars of clay and not fine china that my power and my glory and my radiance actually shows itself to the world around. You know, I think all of us in one way or another wrestle with this sense that we really have to have our lives together before God can take us and use us in a situation. And we think, well, when I get my life together, then I'll make myself available to this situation or to the Lord. But the truth is, It's in our weakness that God can often most use us. And there's a sort of a little saying, I think, that applies. That God actually uses us while he's fixing us. And he fixes us while he's using us. And that's really the way to approach life. And that's a reflection of what this passage says. It's a reflection of what Paul, even the great apostle himself, understood this. And it should be a great encouragement. As we, too, approach life and we wonder, knowing who we are and our own weaknesses, and we wonder, how can God possibly use me? Well, that's actually the best question to ask, because it's when we know we're weak and when God uses us that it's His glory and it's His power that is reflected and receives the glory. Well, that's, I think, the story of this verse. And if it were maybe another setting and a little bit more time, I might be able to reflect a little more candidly how this is a story really of my life. And as we've done this, I hope you've seen a little bit of the story of your life. Because I really think the story of every Christian's life can be seen in this verse. That Jesus Christ is our treasure. And he's placed that treasure in lives like ours, jars of clay. And in spite of the fact that we're jars of clay, it's His glory and His radiance that can shine through us. And He's to be honored and be praised for that. Let's pray together. Lord, we thank You for the simple but glorious truths found in just this one verse. One senses that as Paul spoke this truth about Christian reality, that he was telling his own story. But he was also telling our story, and for that we thank you. Lord, we struggle with our own sense of inadequacies and our own weaknesses, and we find it hard to want to step up to the plate for you, but that's how you want us, and that's how you take us, and that's how you use us. That's how you reflect your glory. For this we praise and thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.