Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images and lyrics from Joy Williams singing her song … Do They See Jesus In Me … Repeated from yesterday’s blog as poignantly sung of the desire all Christians should have … for others to see Jesus in our lives which are, so often, being hidden inside these sin-ridden vessels.
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Highlight Verse[s]: 2 Corinthians 4:7 [NLT] … 7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure.
… We carry the power of the Gospel forth in these sin-ridden vessels, which often makes it difficult for others to want to see Jesus in us.
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Highlight Passage [context]: 2 Corinthians 4:7-18 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Paul, teaching on how we carry ourselves many times will determine how others might desire to see the life-changing power of the Gospel.
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Reference Passage : … Matthew 5:16 [NLT] … 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”
… As Christians, we need to be willing to show how God has changed us so that others can see the Holy Spirit being carried around in these ugly, but transformed, vessels.
Reference Passage : … Luke 19:1-10 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… When others saw Zacchaeus change it would have caused them to see the power of the Gospel chasing the life of a sinner.
Reference Passage : … 2 Corinthians 5:17 [NLT] … 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
… Again, as Christians, we need to be willing to show off the change in us brought about by Gods love, mercy, and grace.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Kirsten Holmberg, related a a personal story to illustrate how others see us will often determine if they want to know more about what’s inside of what’s carrying our Christianity. The ODB author wrote: “Do you want to see what’s inside?” my friend asked. I had just complimented her on the old-fashioned rag doll her daughter held in her small arms. Instantly curious, I replied that yes, I very much wanted to see what was inside. She turned the doll face down and pulled open a discreet zipper sewn into its back. From within the cloth body, Emily gently removed a treasure: the rag doll she’d held and loved throughout the years of her own childhood more than two decades prior. The “outer” doll was merely a shell without this inner core to give it strength and form.
That’s an interesting word picture, isn’t it? And it shows that others will only desire to see what’s inside us as Christians; and that is God’s Spirit, if/when they see who we are as transformed vessels. Really, we’re actually like the attached photo, with God using us as “cracked pots,” which allow the transforming power of the Gospel to shine thru our changed lives so that others will want to share in that life-changing power.
And that truth is very well illustrated in the story of how the hated tax-collector, Zacchaeus, was changed by Jesus’ grace and mercy; and what he became because of God’s love. And there’s little doubt that we’re all like the vessels of clay which the Apostle Paul wrote about in today’s highlight passage.
But the question becomes … are we allowing the light of Christ to shine thru the cracks in the vessel which contains God’s Spirit (see Matthew 5:16)? As Joy Williams sings, in the song again linked today, do others see the life-changing grace of God’s Spirit shining thru the way we live, … especially when they have seen how we have changed once Jesus comes to reside in our hearts?
And many times the only way others will see that change is when we we’re willing to share our testimony of a changed-life (see 2Cor. 5:17) with others. So, does that challenge you, as it does me, to shine the transforming light of the Gospel with others every time we get the opportunity.
Maybe today?!!
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Lord, Jesus, thank You for making me a poster boy for 2Cor. 5:17.
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Give me the opportunity to do a show-n-tell about how You have changed me, … maybe even today! … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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