Hello everyone! Today’s Bible study will come from 2nd Corinthians chapter 4, verses 7-10. Lets begin now with the reading of the scripture……. (v7) “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. (v8) We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; (v9) Persecuted, but not destroyed; (v10) Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our bodies.” Verse 7 is where we find our main point for this passage. The presence of God (treasure) is said to be in earthen vessels, so that God will be seen as powerful and not us. In the New Testament we know that the Spirit of the Lord lives in us, and no longer in a place of worship. So God is saying that we are like “earthen vessels” because we are like a frail and brittle jar. Compared to God we as humans are nothing more than little clay pots that can be easily destroyed. God depicts humanity here in all its weakness, so that we can see that the Gospel is not a product of human intellect or ability. However, He does this to show that He is the one with the power and all glory and honor should go to Him alone. If we try to stand alone as humans, God says that we will be nothing more than clay pots that can be broken by a child. However, the next 3 verses give us the hope of turning or lives over to Christ. Standing in yourself you may be easily destroyed, but if you let Jesus rise up in you you will be able to withstand anything. In verse 8, it says (speaking of people who have Jesus living in their lives) that they are “troubled on every side, yet not distressed.” We can have trouble coming at us from every direction in life, but if we hold on to Jesus there is nothing that can distress us. It goes on to say “we are perplexed, but not dispaired.” In your life as a Christian you may not understand everything that is going on around you, and at times you may find yourself perplexed. However, you should not dispaired because God is in control of everything around you. We may find ourselves being persecuted (v9), but know that God will never turn His back on you. Remember that when they persecute you, they persecuted Jesus before and because they hated Him they hate you. It also says in verse 9 that we may be “cast down, but not destroyed.” We may be that little clay pot that is so easily broken, but if we trust in Jesus even if we are cast down we will not be destroyed. Finally, in verse 10 it tells us to keep our focus on Jesus. In His death He was able to bring life to all of us. If you don’t already have Jesus living in you, He can come in a change your life. So that you will be able to stand through the trials that you face, and not be broken like the clay vessel. Just ask Him into your heart and He will come and live in you. For those of you who are Christians, today I say for you to keep hope that no matter what comes you will not be broken if you stay focused on God. Thank you all, and God bless. Jordan
Wild-Fire
Back Home
Bible Study Archive
Testimony Page
