2 Corinthians 4
Treasures in Jars of Clay
1Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,"[a]made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
7But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. 12So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
13It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."[b]With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, 14because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. 15All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Footnotes:
[a] 2 Corinthians 4:6 Gen. 1:3
[b] 2 Corinthians 4:13 Psalm 116:10
5 comments:
13It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken".
i really like this verse. in just a few words, it says so much. sometimes i feel like i am not doing enough to evenagelize to others. but this verse gives me encouragement that simply believing is telling a story to others.
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
death is not a fun topic, at least in my opinion. but again, i really appreciate when i can read verses like this that are evidence of eternity.
2 Cor 4
Wow. I really want to say it again. WOW! I love this chapter. It truly captures what our lives should be about. It boils down to who you are living for and why. The final few verses really bring it all togeher.
17 For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! 18 So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.
I can honestly say that I a not great at trying to find joy in my difficulties. I realize that joy is not "happiness", but it is sometimes difficult to separate that in my mind. It is however very freeing to think that these bodies are simple vessels to carry the good news.
10Through suffering, these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.
I guess I could quote every single verse in this chapter. I’ll stop.
Thank you for Paul father. Your message through him is timeless. Thank you for reminding about my purpose.
In Christ,
c
I never really have meditated on the truth that the ministry we are called to is a product of God's mercy (vs.1). That Paul and the early church would undergo so much hardship simply for speaking and living for Christ (things we often are embarrassed of or hesitant to do) and consider the cost of that as merciful is truly amazing.
I agree with you all that every verse here is loaded and encouraging. I love the image of the "jars of clay" while I am living in an age dedicated to "appearing as we are not" (Image is everything). Truly a counter-cultural message from God to us even today.
Verse 16-18 are also amazingly potent in life today. We are barraged with over 60,000 marketing images and soundbites all clamoring for our attention, affections, and appetite. So we fix our eyes NOT on what is seen [or heard], but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Is the rat race for the American Dream in anyway congruent with Paul's message here?
Lord, I pray that you will help set me free from my bondage to stuff and image and capture me with your beauty, strength, and grace.
In Christ's Mercy we pray,
ER
2 Cor 4
Fantastic Chapter, Lots of thought provoking responses!
First:
8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.
As a "grad school daddy" I can testify to this many times over. There are many days I'm beat, tired, exhausted. But I'm neither defeated nor dead. That's amazing to think about. From whom do I gain my strength? From God, I believe. It is my purpose to succeed for some unforeseen (to me) plan. Giddyup, even when we're exhausted.
Second: 16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
--Along the lines earlier, physical exhaustion, persecution, being perplexed, etc. These are all physical, our minds are growing each day. We are meditating on God's word. Moreover, I find so much encouragement and inspiration from you guys by doing this each (most) day(s).
Onto the previously written comments: I agree with timmcd6 and cas, it is certainly reassuring to hear (again) that this struggle is for the long run.
As for ER's comments, I believe that there's a huge discrepancy between what the American Dream has been and what the media/some people (most?) make it out to be today. I believe that the American Dream is the opportunity to live free and comfortably, and to provide for my family and for me its all internal and not about stuff, but giving my children a great place to grow up. Others have turned the AD into having the biggest house and making the most money, retiring early, and DO judge it by the opinion of others.
I think that Paul's message jives quite well with My AD (or MAD :) ) as I will always be able to control how comfortably we live spiritually, and as we grow and live the way Jesus did we will be happy whereever.
God, Help us to focus on You, and by extension focus our efforts on Your will, not ours. Give us the Holy Spirit each day, that we may be the beacons you want us to be, and not have our light dimmed by the physical exhaustions of your trials. Instead, let the knowledge of our rebirth through Christ fill our heads and hearts, and let our actions, inactions and smiles tell others of Your amazing grace and mercy.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
crb
Great re-capturing of the American Dream for sure, crb. The only problem is the pursuit of comfort as defined by the absence of hardships or difficulties (the main cultural definition being pushed today). If that is what "comfort" is then to pursue comfort seems so counter to the early church and the life of Christ. Notice what Peter and John prayed for after being threatened for preaching the name of Christ in Acts 4:29...Boldness. Christ's recruiting message was so clear--follow me and forget about easy living. If "comfort" means an absence of troubles, then very few of the godly have ever known it. I prefer the Latin perspective of "with" + "strength" whereby God comes alongside us as we struggle through circumstances and infuses us with the power/strength to obey Him and encourage others.
I wasn't really using American Dream in anything other than the hijacked, pop-cultural reference of pursuing a radically consumptive lifestyle of consumerism above the rest. I think we agree on the basics here, but just wanted to clarify the intent of my earlier post.
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