For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

Devotion based on 2 Corinthians 4:6,7

Have you ever given someone a present in plain paper wrapping? Why did you do it? Was it to surprise them? Did it work? To surprise someone with a special gift that they are not expecting can give an extra lift to the receiver.

Paul described a gift from God in plain paper wrapping (jars of clay) in our Bible passage. The gift was a treasure, the gospel, God’s plan of salvation for sinful mankind, which includes you and me. Ever since sin separated Adam and Eve from God, that separation has continued in all their descendants. And we can do nothing to bridge the gap between God and us. But God could, and he did! He sent his Son to live a perfect life, and then suffer and die in our place. Jesus has taken all our sins and paid for them, rising victoriously from the grave and defeating Satan for all time. This message is that treasure, the gospel, where God spells it all out for us.

And the plain paper wrapping, the jars of clay, as Paul described them? Paul was describing himself as a sinful, unworthy human, in need of the same salvation he was preaching. And that is true today. God still tells us the story of our salvation through sinful humans using the everyday language that we understand. That treasure is as powerful today as it was in Bible times. You and I have the same assurance of salvation as those who listened to Paul.

Don’t underestimate the power of what God has given us—our salvation through his Son, Jesus.

Prayer: