Clay Pots and God’s Power (2 Corinthians 4:7–12)

Pastor Douglas Kelly tells of the time he was in university and “he was taken aback when he heard pastor William Still stop in the middle of a sermon, and in a loud voice cried out, ‘Christ is in you, and is shouting “I want out!”’” Kelly goes on to say, “That is the message of 2 Corinthians 4:7–18.” I think he is right.

Having just written that “God has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (4:6), Paul tells his readers that God has designed for this light to be manifested in fragile and dying bodies, which he likens to jars of clay. Paul wants to encourage and motivate Christians to embrace their weakness as a means of the glorious gospel of Christ shining forth in the world. Yes, Jesus Christ in you wants to shine out from you to the glory of God.

We are often so focused on self-preservation through obtaining and exercising power. But the gospel turns that cultural characteristic on its head and reminds us that the real characteristic of humanity is weakness. For the Christian, this is good news for, in our weakness, God’s power is displayed and, in our weakness, we trust the Lord to sustain and to preserve us. This is why it is so important for us to embrace the truth that we are pots of clay to display the power of God.

Paul was persuaded that the Lord uses clay and even cracked pots, like himself, in his plan to powerfully save sinners. This conviction is fleshed out in these six verses in four sections:

1. Powerless Pots (v. 7)
2. Powerful Paradoxes (vv. 8–9)
3. Powerful Perspective (vv. 10–11)
4. Powerful Partnership (v. 12)

Powerless Pots

Paul begins: “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (v. 7). “But” connects what has been said above to what Paul says here. In the words of Philip Hughes, “‘But’ introduces the startling contrast between the splendour of what Paul has just been speaking and the poor vessels in which it is contained.”

Having made the point that he preaches Jesus Christ as Lord (v. 5) and “not ourselves,” Paul tells his readers why. He sees himself and his fellow messengers as mere “jars of clay”—as clay pots. This is vital because it ensures that all praise goes “to God and not to us.” Paul is nothing, Christ is everything. How important this is for faithful gospel ministry (vv. 1–6)!

Those who have experienced the blessing of the new covenant and who have received spiritual sight to replace spiritual blindness—that is, those who, by the Spirit of God, have seen “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (v. 6)—view themselves as powerless pots stewarding the most powerful truth in the world. The treasure is the important thing, not the container.

Paul likens the gospel light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ as a treasure. The word speaks of something valuable, something of wealth. Jesus used the word to describe eternal salvation to the enquiring rich young ruler (Mark 10:21). Paul viewed the gospel as the most valuable of his “possessions” and marvelled that the Lord entrusted it to clay pots.

Paul was no more diminishing the value of the human body than he would diminish the old covenant (3:7–12). Rather, he is making the important point that the message is more important than the messenger. He is emphasising that neither Mr nor Ms Pot are to outshine the exceedingly extraordinary power of God displayed in the cross of Jesus Christ. When it comes to the message, it is beyond comparison (v. 17) to the one delivering. Guthrie observes, “The problem with gilded boxes is that their shine can distract from the glory of the treasure they contain.” Paul will have none of that.

We can summarise that Paul is again making a thematic point: God’s “power finds its full scope in human weakness” (Harris). It is for this reason that one should not judge the value of the message by the vessel through which it comes. When someone has a valuable jewel, it is usually not contained in a container that outshines the jewel. So with the gospel message. Calvin helpfully observes, “A treasure is not the less valuable because the vessel in which it is deposited is not a precious one.”

In all that follows (through chapter 6), this idea of “powerless pots” being used powerfully by God is at the forefront of Paul’s mind. It should likewise be with us (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:26–29). And yet how often we are tempted to think that if someone famous would turn to Jesus Christ then many would listen to the gospel and be saved. Undue attention is therefore given to evangelising sports stars, celebrities, politicians, and the rich and famous. We should be grateful when such are evangelised for, like you and me, they need to be saved. And yet Paul tells us that powerless pots make way for the display of the glory of God as they faithfully spill their contents to those who need to see the gospel light.

As James Denney so thoughtfully put it over a hundred years ago, “No man can give at once the impression that he himself is clever and that Jesus Christ is mighty to save.” So choose. Paul did.

I have recently been reading and enjoying The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God by Justin Brierley, which traces the seeming fall of new atheism, with many reconsidering Christianity’s truth claims. It has been an interesting read, but Brierley does seem to overemphasise the social status of converts to Christianity, almost giving the impression that it is because people of high social standing are converted that others are turning to Christ. This is precisely what Paul is warning against! As Casto says, “Even the most eminent Christians cannot compare with the gospel treasure of Jesus Christ. Compared to the glory of the gospel, the best of us is still like a jar of clay, like a paper coffee cup.”

Clay but Clean

I recall hearing a sermon forty years ago on this text in which the preacher made the point that God uses clay pots and “cracked pots” but not dirty pots. He illustrated that if one came to his home for dinner, his best crockery might have chips in it and that guests should not be offended. However, if he served a meal on dirty crockery, that is an entirely different matter. So with sharing the gospel.

In a sense, each Christian has some “chips” or even “cracks” because we are still in these fleshly bodies. A sinful past might have caused damage that we will carry until our death. Nevertheless, we can carry these things in their “clay” and still be clean before the Lord and before the world. Let us strive to be clean though cracked pots.

Beware the Cool

“Jars of clay” speaks of that which is fragile, impermanent, and perhaps expendable. Think of paper coffee cups. Perhaps much of the church at large has lost sight of this in its quest to be seen as acceptable, “with it,” as “woke,” and cool. Being countercultural is viewed as evangelically unhelpful and so we try to be like the world—like that which is fallen and fading. If Paul lived in our day, he would definitely not be “cool.” Neither would Jesus.

The dynamic is in the difference. Jesus prayed that his disciples would be sanctified by the truth and in doing so he knew we would face hostility (John 17). His prayer has not changed. We are all expendable. God buries his workman but his work continues precisely because it is his work!

Bruce summarises it well: “The worthlessness of the vessels is evidence that the transcendent power which attends the preaching of the gospel, the change which it effects in human lives, is God’s and not the apostles” (Bruce).

Powerful Paradoxes

In vv. 8–9, Paul lists a series of powerful paradoxes to illustrate his point: “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”

He provides here examples of the experience and revelation of the power of God in the life of a clay pot. He provides four transparent testimonies of God’s power in an otherwise fragile and weak life. He does so by the use of what I am calling “Painful Participles.” Each participle of pain is met with a corresponding adjective of affirmation.

Crowded but not Crushed

“We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed.” The word “afflicted” properly means “to crowd” and speaks of being under pressure such as among a throng of people (see Mark 3:9). The word “crushed” in Mark 3:9 is used later as “restricted” (6:12). Paul was “squeezed but not squashed” (Tenney).

In his ministry, Paul had found himself in a tight space, narrowly hemmed it by troubles, pressed in upon by hardships, and yet the Lord had manifested his power in rescuing him from a crushing death. His ministry was never restricted, unless the Lord deemed that best.

Doubtful but not Despairing

Paul was sometimes “perplexed, but not driven to despair.” The word translated “perplexed” refers to being in such a situation that there seems to be no way out; a situation in which deliverance is doubtful and therefore to be at one’s wits end.

Paul knew what it was like to be without personal resources. He truly knew the meaning of weakness. And yet he says that, because of God’s power at work in him (through the gospel), he was not driven to despair. This phrase means what it implies—to be utterly at a loss, to renounce all hope. It means, as Harris says, “at a loss but never totally at a loss.”

Thoughtful readers might scratch their heads, since Paul uses the same word in 1:8 when he says that he despaired of life itself. How do we reconcile these apparently contradictory statements? George Guthrie provides a helpful answer when he says that Paul is saying that he “has not been drawn into an ongoing state of despair.” Christians face times when they are at the end of their resources and are at an utter loss as to what to do and how to respond. But they do not remain in that condition (see Psalm 107:27–30 KJV). Philip Hughes summarises it well: “To be at the end of man’s resources is not to be at the end of God’s resources.”

Followed but not Forsaken

Paul had been “persecuted, but not forsaken.” The word translated “persecuted” means to pursue or to intensely follow after with a view to harm. Paul certainly knew what this was like, from his earliest days as a Christian when he was let down by a wall in Damascus to escape otherwise certain death (Acts 9:25–26).

Reading the book of Acts, it seems that Paul took seriously Jesus’ instruction (Matthew 10:23) to flee to another city when persecuted in one—carrying on gospel ministry. He refused to quit his gospel ministry in the face of relentless persecution. He found that, despite having to flee—often being forsaken by those whom he called friends (2 Timothy 4:10,16)—the Lord never forsook him. The Lord never abandoned him.

Knocked Down but not Knocked Out

Paul had been “struck down, but not destroyed.” He had been literally knocked to the ground on many occasions, perhaps most notably in Lystra when he was stoned by a hostile crowd and left for dead (Acts 14:19). Amazingly, he got back up and continued his ministry (14:20ff). As Hughes comments, he “was knocked to the ground, but not permanently ‘grounded.’”

The word “destroyed” was used by Paul to describe unbelievers who are perishing (2:15; 4:3). Though he was pounded and pummelled, the Lord preserved him. As has been well said throughout church history, Christians are invincible until the Lord is done with them.

It is amazing that Paul actually returned to Lystra after his experience of brutal persecution (Acts 14:21)! Though a very cracked pot, a very broken jar of clay, by the power of God he carried on. “Never, it seems, were Paul’s enemies allowed to do their worst” (Tasker).

These four participial examples drive home Paul’s point that God’s power, as first experienced in the gospel, is revealed through his people who are both fragile and expendable. To God be the glory, great things he has done!

Powerful Perspective

Perhaps the last participle brought to Paul’s mind his apparent death at Lystra and so quite naturally he builds on this thought of dying for Jesus’ sake and the blessing of resurrection life that accompanies it: “always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh” (vv. 10–11). Paul articulates a marvellously powerful perspective when it comes to trials experienced by Christians as we seek to carry out faithful gospel ministry. Simply, Paul is saying that his life was dominated by the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

By “always carrying in the body the death of Jesus,” Paul uses an unusual word (nekrosis), used only here and in Romans 4:19, where it speaks of the “deadness” or Sarah’s womb. The word speaks of the process of dying rather than the state of being dead (thanatos). It seems that Paul is not speaking about his metaphorical death as in Romans 6 but of physical death. Just as Jesus suffered in his physical body, so does Paul, and so does every Christian. Like Jesus, we are born in the weakness of human flesh, which will die. Flesh grows weary. It is cut and scarred and can be put to death.

The Lord Jesus lived with death in view. He faced it head on (Luke 9:51). Jesus was born in the shadow of the cross, as his mother seemed to know (Luke 2:33–35). He was born to die and was obedient to that divinely appointed death (Philippians 2:8). As we will see, Jesus was also born to die to be raised from the dead. But to experience resurrection requires death—and in Jesus’ case, it required crucifixion. This is what Paul seems to be emphasising.

As we will see later in the chapter and into chapter 5, Paul was very aware of his impending death. He did not necessarily have martyrdom in mind, but he was cognisant of the reality that he would one day reach the appointed day of physical death. One day, he would breath his last. One day, his heart would beat for the last time. That day would arrive, humanly, by the hand of persecutors. In all of this, he realised that his body was a clay pot—impermanent. But he was committed to living each moment for Jesus Christ. Just as Jesus knew his days were numbered, so did Paul. And just as Jesus was devoted to living each moment to the glory of God carrying out his appointed mission, so would Paul.

When you read the Gospel biographies of Jesus Christ you are struck with his humanity. He hungered, grew tired, and wept when confronted with death (John 11; Hebrews 5:7). In his humanity, he suffered as he was beaten and crucified to death. As he hung naked on the cross, he appeared to scoffing bystanders as extremely weak. To be frank, he appeared weak even to his disciples. They forsook him and fled. Why would Paul expect any other kind of existence as Jesus’ follower? By carrying in his body the death of Jesus, he was continually reminded that those devoted to God will look weak in the world.

When Jesus was on the cross, scoffers challenged him to come down and save himself if indeed he was of God. They taunted him to show strength to overcome physical death, to conquer mortality. It seems that this is what Paul has in mind. He is saying that, as the Lord Jesus did not escape physical suffering in a sin-cursed world, neither should he expect it. We should ponder this.

This is the folly of a prosperity “gospel,” which ignores the reality of disease, decay, and death. “Those who hold to the prosperity gospel,” says Sarah Bailey, “believe that God can best be seen when people are healthy, wealthy, happy and successful, and they are pleased to point to their own careers as proof.” But as John Piper says, “The prosperity gospel will not make anybody praise Jesus. It will make people praise prosperity.”

Christians should be the last people to use euphemisms when speaking of death. I really wish Christians would recapture and redeem the word “death.” We, of all people, should not be afraid to speak of death and dying. We are dying. And, like Jesus, we need to be devoted to making the most of the time we have. But further, we need to so live that others see that there is something far better than avoiding death—that is, a resurrection to follow. To experience nekrosis is to experience resurrection power.

Christians should live with the willingness to die for Jesus’ sake, to lose out on what others might be able to acquire, to suffer for Christ’s sake and therefore to proclaim the gospel. We should live with the commitment to proclaim God’s unpopular truth in a world that loves lies. When we do so, our “clay” will be battered and even broken, but what Paul writes here encourages us that these weaknesses of our clay pots are God’s means to reveal his power.

Resurrection Life

We do all this “so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.” This completes the thought, which he fleshes out in v. 11. “Yes, Paul and his coworkers are persecuted and vulnerable, but the outcome is the spreading of the gospel with its message of life” (Guthrie).

Paul, of course, is referring to the resurrection of Jesus. Again, just as Jesus knew he was going to die, so he knew he would rise from the dead (Matthew 16:21, etc.). It was in the weakness of the clay pot of Jesus’ body that God revealed his amazing power of resurrection when he raised him from the dead.

Jesus lived in a body like ours (see Romans 8:3; Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 10:5). When his body died and was entombed, no one expected anything further from him. But God would not abandon his Son to the grave and therefore brought him back to glorious life (Acts 2:29–33)! When all seemed hopelessly fragile, when it appeared that the clay pot was buried for good, God gave life. Hence Paul’s encouragement that, though life is marked by the weakness of sinful flesh (i.e. prone to death), nevertheless his risen Lord is able to do amazing things despite cracked clay pots.

Paul uses a phrase he will repeat in 5:15: “we who live.” He is referring to spiritual life. He is spiritually alive because of his risen Saviour. Therefore, he can live as one who in a sense will never die. The truth of the resurrection was God’s means of empowering him to persevere. It remains so for every Christian.

When you are at the end of your emotional, spiritual, even physical resources, remember the resurrection. The end of your resources are not the end of God’s resources. When you are uncertain about the way forward as a single mom, remember that Jesus is risen and that he will see you through. When you are sharing the gospel feeling like a clod, trust the risen Lord to do the work of removing the veil. When you are facing death, look to the risen Lord to bring you home.

Powerful Partnership

Paul concludes, “So death is at work in us, but life in you” (v. 12). The above examples focus on the personal, individual blessings of realising we are clay pots. But Paul concludes this section making the point that his trials were ultimately for the welfare of others (see 1:3–6).

Paul saw himself as a spiritual partner whose sufferings were intended for the spiritual welfare of the Corinthian church. He viewed himself as a clay pot containing the treasure of Christ that might need to be broken for the church to truly appreciate the treasure he is.

It has been said that before God will use a man he must first be broken. In a conversation about the cross of Christ, a church member recently said, “Will God crush his Son yet not break a man?” Think about that. Think hard about that statement. God crushed his Son with his wrath to provide life for you and me. “This is, of course, the great principle of the cross. Christ died that we might live. The great exchange of the gospel is: Christ’s life for ours” (Hughes). This gospel not only transforms but also informs our lives. It informs us that gospel blessings come through brokenness. Crushed pots are effective pots because the glory goes to God.

Paul understood this. If you want God to use you, you must embrace the reality that you are clay pot that will probably first need to be broken. God wants to use you to build your local church but brokenness is a part of that building process. Faithful servants of God have recognised this throughout church history. We must embrace this truth.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters remember that we are clay pots, blessed to enshrine the shining gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, confess your weakness and stop looking for power. The weaker you are, the weightier the glory of God in your life. Kent Hughes captures this well: “The equation for power is: My weakness plus God’s power equals God’s power.” Christians wouldn’t want it any other way.

AMEN