Earthen Vessels Containing a Priceless Treasure: the Excellency of the Power is of God

We believers in Christ are earthen vessels containing a priceless treasure – the Christ of glory, and the excellency of the power is of God and not out of us, for God has shined the precious treasure into us and we can experience Christ as treasure within and image without to shine with Him as our glory. Amen!

This week we have been enjoying the matter of Christ as the image of God and the treasure; these two matters are interrelated, for Christ as the image of God shines into us to become our inward treasure.

The image of God refers to Christ as our outward expression, whereas the treasure refers to Christ as our inward content. Through the illumination of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, we received Christ into us and thereby we obtained a priceless treasure.

When we received the Lord as a result of hearing the gospel and responding to it, something of Christ was infused into us.

Now as believers in Christ we are learning to cooperate with the Lord so that any veils may be removed from our eyes for us to see the Lord face to face.

Satan as the god of this age, is working to both obtain our worship and veil us from God so that we don’t see the preciousness of Christ. He blinds our thoughts and veils us with our concepts.

We think that our concepts are good, for they are what we think; however, Satan hides behind our concepts and by means of our concepts, he veils us so that we don’t see Christ. Oh Lord!

Thank the Lord that He shined upon us and also that He is shining in us as the gospel so that He may be infused into us! May we learn to drop our concepts, turn our heart to the Lord, and exercise our spirit so that we may see the Lord face to face!

Whenever the heart turns to the Lord, the veils are taken away, and we experience the freedom in Christ. Then, we behold Him face to face, and He as the glorious image of God, shines Himself into us to impress His image on us and within us.

The face of Jesus Christ is shining, for He is the most precious One. When we spend time with the Lord and behold Him face to face, we are infused with Him, and we can do anything that He wants us to do, for it is He in us who does everything.

Thank the Lord that He has chosen us to be vessels, earthen vessels, containing the Christ of glory as our priceless treasure. He chose us to be vessels of honor filled with the Triune God in Christ as our priceless treasure!

God Shined the Precious Treasure into us, the Earthen Vessels: the Excellency of the Power is of God and not out of us!

2 Cor. 4:7 says, That the excellency of the power may be of God and not out of us. We are earthen vessels, but God shined into us a precious treasure, the Christ of glory (vv. 4, 6). The fact that we’re earthen vessels proves that the excellency of the power is of God and not out of us.

In ourselves, we’re just earthen vessels; we are sinful, fallen, and low. How can we manifest the truth and shine forth the glory of the gospel? It is only by God shining into us the precious treasure – the Christ of glory, so that He becomes our priceless treasure.

Although we are worthless earthen vessels, God has shined the precious treasure into our being. Now this treasure, the Christ of glory dwelling in us inwardly, is the source of power energizing us and enabling us to shine forth God’s glory and manifest the truth.

Thank the Lord that we have this priceless treasure in our earthen vessel! This treasure has the power, and this power is excellent!

The power of this indwelling glorious Christ is transcendent, surpassing, even exceedingly surpassing.

When people look at us outwardly, they see that we are earthen vessels, just like them. But inwardly, we have a priceless treasure – Christ as the embodiment of the processed and consummated Triune God to be the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit in our spirit (1 Cor. 15:45; Gal. 4:22). Hallelujah!

As long as we turn to our spirit and remain in our spirit, beholding the Lord face to face, the Lord continually supplies us with the excelling power we need to express Him. Through His divine dispensing, He is infusing us with all that He is, and He constitutes us as ministers of a new covenant (2 Cor. 3:6).

We have a wonderful, living, and active treasure in our earthen vessel. This treasure is the power, the source of strength, for us to behave and serve in the world today, and by the excellency of the power of this treasure, we can shine forth the gospel and manifest the truth. Amen!

Paul testified of the earthenness of his vessel and the excellency of the power of the treasure within him in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9. He said that they were pressed on every side but not constricted; being pressed on every side relates to the earthen vessel, and not constricted, to the priceless treasure.

They felt it was too much, being pressed on every side – this is the earthiness of their vessel. Yet they were not constricted – that’s the excellency of the power of the treasure. Unable to find a way out – the earthen vessel; but not utterly without a way out – the treasure.

They were persecuted – the earthen vessel, yet not abandoned – the treasure. Cast down – the vessel, but not destroyed – the treasure.

Similarly, in 2 Cor. 6:8-10, he listed many items that show the vessel and the treasure.

Through glory and dishonor, through evil report and good report, as deceivers and yet true; as unknown yet well known, as dying yet behold we live, as being disciplined and yet not put to death, as made sorrowful yet enriching many; as having nothing yet possessing all things.

2 Cor. 7:5-6 also mentions the contrast between the treasure and the vessel. We believers in Christ live in a paradox: we constantly have the earthen vessel with its sufferings and limitations, yet we also have the treasure, and the excellency of the power is of God, not out of us.

Some young brothers may think that they have to suppress the “earthenness of the vessel” and they may behave as if they don’t even have an earthen vessel; this is not normal. Others try to camouflage the earthen vessel by steeling themselves.

May we let the earthen vessel be seen, but with the treasure inside. The treasure must shine through the vessel.

May we trust not in the earthen vessel but in the priceless treasure within the vessel, realizing that the excellency of the power is not out of us but of God! God shined Christ into us, He is working Christ into the very fibers of our being, and He will conform us to the image of Christ! Hallelujah!

The treasure is the power and source of strength for us to live Christ, manifest Christ, and shine forth the gospel to others. As believers in Christ, we have Christ as a wonderful treasure within us, and outwardly, we bear Christ as the image of God, the expression of the Triune God (2 Cor. 4:4).

Lord Jesus, thank You for coming into us to be the priceless treasure in our earthen vessel. Amen, Lord, we want to know You as the treasure within us. We want to behold You as the most precious One so that we may be infused with You. May we realize that in ourselves we are nothing more than earthen vessels, but we have a priceless treasure within! Praise the Lord, the excellency of the power is not out of us but of God! Amen, Lord, may we see that the treasure within us becomes the source of the power energizing us and enabling us to shine forth God’s glory and to manifest the truth! Hallelujah, Christ as the marvelous treasure within our earthen vessel empowers and energizes us from within! Amen, Lord, we turn to You. Continually supply us with the excelling power through Your divine dispensing so that we may be constituted as ministers of a new covenant! Praise the Lord for the treasure in our earthen vessel!

Living a Crucified Life for the Manifestation of the Resurrection Life by the Excellency of the Power of the Hidden Treasure in our Earthen Vessel

The apostle Paul testified repeatedly of the persecution, sufferings, and danger he experienced; however, what we see in his experience is not complaining, murmuring, or arguing with the Lord about it but simply Christ living in him and being expressed through him.

On the negative side, the apostles were under the killing of the cross through so many difficult situations, persecutions, and harsh environments. The death of Christ was operating in them.

On the positive side, the divine life was released through them, for they manifested the resurrection life. They lived by a life that was all-sufficient and all-fitting, and the excellency of the power was not of them but of the hidden treasure in their earthen vessel.

This truly is a paradox, for the apostle did not receive any outward glory or recognition, nor was he vindicated or saved from prison, yet in all these things he lived Christ and manifested Him.

We believers in Christ need to live a crucified life for the manifestation of the resurrection life. We have been crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20), and now Christ lives in us.

In ourselves, we are an earthen vessel that is fragile, weak, mortal, and sinful, but within this vessel we contain a priceless treasure.

The excellency of the power comes not from the vessel but from the treasure within us. Even though it may seem that we are daily under the killing of the cross, and our weak vessel is becoming weaker and weaker, we need to contact the Lord as grace in our spirit and remain in our spirit, where the supply is.

Christ lives in us; He enables us to live a crucified life for the manifestation of the resurrection life so that we may carry out our ministry for God’s new covenant.

On the one hand, we live a crucified life, being under the killing of the cross daily. On the other hand, grace abounds in us, and life is dispensed through us.

Even more, our life becomes a manifestation of Christ. Whether through our words and deeds, Christ is magnified (Phil. 1:19-21).

As we live a crucified life for the manifestation of the resurrection life, the excellency of the power is of the hidden treasure in our earthen vessel.

Thank the Lord that we are earthen vessels containing a marvelous treasure! Our living and our ministry today should be in the Spirit, something that is real and living. The Lord is gaining this among us today.

Inwardly, we have Christ as our wonderful treasure, and outwardly, we bear Christ as the image of God so that Christ may be expressed through us. Christ to us is not just a Redeemer – He is the most excellent One in the universe, and He lives in our spirit!

He is the indwelling treasure, and we can experience and enjoy Christ as the treasure within and the image without. May we remain in a personal, direct, and intimate contact with the Lord day by day.

May we seek His face. May we just behold Him and look into the index of His being in our spirit.

The shining of His face becomes the shining of our face. Our ministry for the Lord and service to Him will issue out of our beholding Him to be infused with Him, and the excellency of the power is of the priceless treasure in our earthen vessel.

We will minister to others not only by our speaking but even by our living, by the way we live. Christ will shine through us.

Lord Jesus, keep us beholding You today. You are the treasure in our earthen vessel. We turn our heart to You. We set our entire being on You. We take You as grace, for You live in us to enable us to live a crucified life for the manifestation of the resurrection life. Amen, Lord Jesus, even as we are under the killing work of the cross, may life be imparted through us into many others. May grace abound in us and may grace flow through us to those around us. We look to You, Lord, for our supply. We take You as our life and person. We want to live the Christian life and serve as ministers of a new covenant by the excellency of the power of the hidden treasure in our earthen vessel. Oh Lord, may all things work out for good for us to be conformed to Your image, for our vessel to be conformed to the treasure! May You be manifested through us! Amen, Lord, may our words and even our living speak for You and minister Christ to others!

Read this article in the Romanian language – citiți acest articol în limba română la următorul link, Suntem vase de pământ care conțin o comoară neprețuită: excelența puterii este de la Dumnezeu.

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Ricky Acosta in the message for this week, and portions from, The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3211-3212 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (2) (2024 December Training), week 17 (msg. 5), Christ as the Image of God and the Treasure.
• Similar articles on this topic:
  – The treasure in earthen vessels, a portion from, The Centrality and Universality of Christ, Chapter 4, by Witness Lee.
  – How Can Christ’s Crucified Life Become Our Pattern? More via, Holding to Truth in Love.
  – The enjoyment of Christ as our portion in second Corinthians, a portion from, Christ our Portion, Chapter 4, by Witness Lee.
  – The Treasure of Excellency in Our Vessel, via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – Christ as the treasure hidden within the earthen vessel, a portion from, Practical Lessons on the Experience of Life, Chapter 15, by Witness Lee.
  – 2 Corinthians 3:18—Beholding and Reflecting the Lord with an Unveiled Face, via, Bibles for America blog.
  – Knowing Christ’s Resurrection Power and the Operation of the Cross, via, Affirmation and Critique.
  – Man – A Vessel to Contain God, via, Living to Him.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Earthen vessel man was made— / Body, soul, and spirit too, / God as life that he may take / And with Him have oneness true…God in man and man in God / Mutual dwelling thus possess; / God the content is to man, / And the man doth God express. (Hymns #972 stanzas 2 and 9)
  – Him expressing from within, / Making Him to others seen, / I transparent have to be / That He may be shown thru me. / Transformation is my need, / To be broken more indeed, / That the clay may change in form, / To the treasure to conform. (Hymns #548 stanzas 5-6)
  – Hallelujah! In the body we / Bear the death of Christ continually: / Thus His life comes forth for all to see as / The outer man is broken down, / The inner man is shining so that— / In these earthen vessels men can see / There’s the treasure of reality! / Thus the gospel’s glorious light will be / Shining out from us. (Hymns #1178 stanza 2)