Treasure Inside Clay Pot

Picture one plain clay pot. E don chip for im mouth. One crack dey for one side. Di kind thing wey you go see for any kitchen and throw away without to think twice. Now picture say somebody open di cover, and light fill di room.

Di second letter wey Paul write to di Corinthians na di letter wey touch im own life pass all di ones e ever write. Some visitors don come Corinth, speakers wey dey impress people, with letters wey recommend dem, and dem make Paul look small. E no get much to look, people talk. Im letters strong, but when e dey with you, e weak. E dey suffer too much. Surely real messenger of God for get more success, more power, more to show? Paul just pass one time of trouble for Asia wey heavy so tey e think say e go die. Now e answer di people wey dey criticise am. And e no argue say e strong. E talk something wey surprise pass.

Because God for im mercy don give us dis work, Paul talk, we no dey lose heart. We no dey use tricks. We no dey twist God word. We just dey talk di truth openly, and we allow people conscience judge. If di good news be like say e hide from some people, na because di god of dis age don blind dem mind, so dat dem no fit see di light of di glory of Christ. Because no be ourself we dey preach, but Christ Jesus di Lord; and ourself, we be una servants because of Jesus. Dis thing no be about us, Paul talk. And then e reach go back to di first page of di Bible. Di God wey talk say, Make light shine comot from darkness, don shine inside our hearts, to show us di glory of God for di face of Jesus Christ.

But we carry dis treasure inside clay pots, so dat e go clear say di great power na from God, no be from us. Clay pots: ordinary, e dey break easy, e cheap. Na wetin Paul talk say e be. And na di point be dat. When one clay pot wey crack carry treasure, nobody dey praise di pot. Then Paul describe im life, line by line. Trouble dey press us from every side, but e no crush us; we no know wetin to do, but we no lose hope; dem dey persecute us, but God no abandon us; dem knock us down, but dem no destroy us. Dem squeeze am, but dem no crush am. E confuse, but e no give up. Dem hunt am, but God no ever abandon am. Dem knock am down, but e no finish. Paul talk say e dey carry di dying of Jesus for im body, so dat di life of Jesus go show there too.

So why e dey continue? Because, Paul talk, we know say di One wey raise di Lord Jesus go raise us too, and bring us with una enter im presence. Everything na for una sake, so dat grace go reach more and more people, and more and more thanks go rise go meet God. Na why we no dey lose heart; even though our outside body dey waste, our inside person dey become new every day. For outside, I dey wear out. For inside, God dey make me new every single day. Dis troubles light and dem no go last, e talk, if you compare dem with di heavy glory wey dey come. As we no dey look di things wey we fit see, but di things wey we no fit see: because di things wey we fit see no go last; but di things wey we no fit see go last forever.

Clay pots na di containers wey people dey use and throw away for di Roman world. Olive oil, wine and fish sauce, dem dey carry dem cross di Mediterranean inside clay jars wey dem call amphorae, millions of dem. For Rome, one hill still dey, Monte Testaccio, wey dem make almost only with broken oil jars, wey dem throw there for old times after dem don empty dem. Nobody value di jar. Everybody value wetin dey inside.

Treasure inside clay pot. You go find am for Second Corinthians chapter four. One messenger wey suffer plenty wey no pretend say e strong, because e know say di power na God own and di treasure na Jesus. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you feel weak or like say you don crack, how God fit want show im light through you?