Enjoy & Shine the Christ of Glory as the Excellent Treasure in our Earthen Vessel

We need to enjoy and shine forth the Christ of glory as the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel.

As believers in Christ, we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not out of us; the Christ of glory is the priceless treasure in our earthen vessel, and when we behold Him and look into the index of His eyes, we are infused with His preciousness and shine Him forth to others also. Amen!

What a Christ we have! He is the embodiment of God, the image of God, even the effulgence of God’s glory.

He came to shine forth God and express Him to us.

We were without God in the world, but one day He came to us by means of the gospel, and out of darkness light shined on us.

He shined in our hearts to illuminate the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

We all can testify that, even though we argued with God and did not really want to believe, the Lord’s preciousness and glory were infused into us, and we could not resist Him.

What a privilege it is to believe into the Lord, the One whom we have not seen or touched with our physical senses, but whom we enjoy in our spirit as our indwelling treasure, so full of glory!

As we partake of Him, as we enjoy Him, as we spend time with Him, we see His preciousness, we are infused with what He is, and we even become the same as He is.

The more we place ourselves under the hearing of the faith, both by spending personal time with the Lord in His word and by being in the meetings of the church, the more we receive the illumination of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

We behold the Lord’s face, and we see God’s glory, God expressed in splendour.

As He shines in us, He also shines into our inner being, even within our being to expose any dark part and eliminate anything that does not match Him.

His shining brings into us a priceless treasure, and we as earthen vessels contain Him and even express Him. Praise the Lord!

May we learn to deal with any veils, anything that hinders us from seeing the Lord.

Our self is a veil, our opinions are veils, and even our feelings are veils; anything that is not the Lord Himself is a veil.

Our unturned heart is a veil blocking us from seeing the Lord face to face.

Not only the people in the world have been blinded by the god of this age but even we as believers in Christ so many times are blinded and veiled from seeing the Christ of glory.

May we learn to turn our hearts to the Lord and drop our concepts, even reject our old person, and just enjoy the Lord, beholding Him face to face!

God’s Shining in our Hearts brings into us a Treasure – the Christ of Glory as the Excellent Treasure in our Earthen Vessel

2 Cor. 4:7 is an amazing verse telling us that we believers in Christ have a treasure in our earthen vessel, which is the Christ of glory, and the excellence of the power is of God and not out of us.

How did we get this treasure? Through the illumination of the gospel of the glory of Christ, we receive the Christ of glory as an excellent treasure.

When we heard the gospel, when we heard about the wonderful person and amazing work of Christ, we were shined on, we received the Lord, and we obtained an excellent treasure in our earthen vessel.

Now the shining reality of Christ, the embodiment and expression of the Triune God, is the treasure within us (vv. 6-7).

The excellent treasure in our earthen vessel is the Christ of glory.

We have received Him. Now He shines in us and is our indwelling treasure.

When we heard the gospel, we saw the face of Christ, we personally contacted Him, and we experienced God’s shining in our hearts.

We did not just believe in some spiritual facts nor did we merely receive some Christian doctrines to be our new principles of living; we believed into the Lord Jesus and received the Christ of glory as the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel. Amen!

We are now earthen vessels that are not empty but contain a priceless treasure, the indwelling Christ of glory. Hallelujah!

Yes, our vessel is weak, frail, and mortal, but we have a priceless treasure in us, for the Christ of glory dwells in us to be our treasure.

This makes us not only wonderful vessels but also ministers of the new covenant with a priceless ministry, and the excellence of the power is not out of us but of God. Hallelujah!

God’s shining, which is God dispensing, in our hearts, brings into us a treasure, the all-inclusive Christ, who is the embodiment of the Triune God as the life-giving Spirit to be our life and everything (vv. 4, 6-7; Col. 2:9; 3:4, 11; 1 Cor. 15:45).

He is all-inclusive, and we are not; He is everything, and we are nothing.

Whatever we have, whether it is patience, endurance, humility, and love, it is not us but the all-inclusive Christ in us who expresses Himself.

We are just earthen vessels, but the Lord’s shining through the gospel brought into us the Christ of glory as the priceless treasure in our earthen vessel.

This priceless treasure is the divine source of the supply for our Christian life (Phil. 4:13; 2 Cor. 13:5; 4:7).

Living the Christian life is impossible without realizing that we have this treasure in our vessel, for it is this treasure that is the source of the supply for our Christian life.

It is not us who try to live Christ or please God, but us learning to spend time with the Lord to be infused with Him so that He in us does everything for the fulfillment of God’s eternal economy.

The source of supply for our Christian life and service to the Lord in the church life is the indwelling Christ of glory as the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel.

The source of supply for our speaking to others and for doing anything in our Christian life and church life should not be our ability or our zeal for the Lord but this wonderful, excellent treasure in us.

This priceless treasure in us has made us ministers of the new covenant with a priceless ministry (3:6; 1:9; 4:7).

How can we be ministers of the new covenant and who “ordains” or “appoints” us to be such ministers?

It is only by enjoying this excellent treasure and being infused with the Lord’s preciousness that we can be ministers of the new covenant, having a priceless ministry.

It is by the divine power in resurrection that we can be such ministers.

The excellence of the power is surely of God and not out of us.

Each one of us has a portion of the ministry which is uniquely ours for the building up of the church as the Body of Christ.

The source of supply for our ministry in the Body and for the Body is the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel.

As members of the Body of Christ, each one of us has a particular ministry in the Body and for the Body, and whether we carry out our ministry or enjoy others’ portion of this ministry, we need to take Christ as our source of strength and supply in our living and in our work.

The excellency of the power is of God and not out of us; this sounds so simple, but it is not as simple to apply this.

The Lord will give us the experiences we need for us to realize that we are not the source nor do we have the strength or supply to do anything for Him.

We are simply enjoying the indwelling Christ of glory, the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel, and He in us does everything.

Lord Jesus, we love You as the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel. Hallelujah, God’s shining in our hearts brings into us a treasure – the Christ of glory! Praise the Lord, all believers in Christ have a priceless treasure in their earthen vessel, and the excellency of the power is of God and not out of them. Amen, Lord, we open to You today. Dispense more of Yourself into every part of our being so that our vessel may contain more of this treasure. Praise the Lord, we earthen vessels contain a priceless treasure! Hallelujah, we worthless vessels are ministers of the new covenant with a priceless ministry, for this excellent treasure in our vessel has made us such ministers! Amen, Lord, thank You for Your divine power in resurrection which has accomplished this in us. Yes, Lord, the excellency of the power is of God, not out of us. We take You as the source of strength and supply in our Christian life and for our service to God. We love You, dear Lord Jesus!

Looking at the Index of the Lord’s Eyes to Sense His Preciousness and Dispense Him as the Priceless Treasure into Others

In a very practical way, the excellent treasure in our earthen vessel is the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6-7).

It is not Christ in a general way but the face of Jesus Christ, even the part around His eyes, the index of His eyes, that is the treasure within us.

The Greek word translated as “face” in v. 6 is the same word translated as “person” in 2:10; it refers to the part around the eyes of one’s face, the look as the index of his inward feelings and thoughts, which show forth and manifests the whole person.

When you look at someone’s eyes, you sense what are the feelings in his being, what he thinks of, and whether he is happy with you or not.

When we look at the index of the Lord’s eyes, we see Him, we obtain Him, and we know Him.

When we look at the index of the Lord’s eyes, we sense His preciousness and we realize that He is the most precious One in the whole world. Amen!

On the one hand, we can testify that we are earthen vessels, and our vessel is worthless, fragile, and mortal.

On the other hand, however, we sense that there’s an excellent treasure in our earthen vessel, for the Christ of glory indwells us to be our treasure.

And we have this treasure made real to us as we spend time with the Lord just looking at the index of His eyes.

When we forsake our old person and lay aside our concepts and intentions, simply taking Christ as our person by looking at the index of His eyes, we enjoy His presence.

The result is that we have a sweet sense of the preciousness of the indwelling Christ.

This experience causes us not only to be happy but also to shine.

On one hand, we look into the index of His eyes and we realize how precious He is; He is our life, our person, and our everything.

On the other hand, as we behold the Lord and are infused with Him, we also shine Him forth, and He will shine out from within us.

Those who receive the gospel of glory through our shining will have Christ as the precious treasure dispensed into them.

Then, like us, they will be earthen vessels containing this priceless treasure.

When people in the world have a treasure, they never want to share; they want to accumulate treasures for themselves, and everyone around them is envious of them and wants to have what they have. It is not so in the spiritual realm.

The Christ of glory is our indwelling treasure, and the more we look into the index of His eyes, the more we’re infused with Him, and the more we shine Him forth into others.

This treasure reproduces itself; it is a treasure that comes into our being and then shines through us, the earthen vessel, to be dispensed into others and become the priceless treasure in their earthen vessel. Amen!

We all can testify that, when we spend time with the Lord and enjoy His preciousness, we have a sense of how precious and dear He is, and we have His sweet presence.

This experience causes us not only to be happy but also to shine; we will shine the Lord out, and His glory will shine out from within us! Hallelujah!

May we always remember that we have in us an excellent treasure, Jesus Christ as our indwelling treasure, and may we take time to behold Him, be infused with Him, and shine Him forth.

He is the excellent and lovely One, and when we look into His wonderful face, the whole world fades away, for nothing is as precious as this wonderful One!

When we look into His wonderful face, when we behold the Lord and gaze into the index of His eyes, we realize His preciousness and we are infused with Him.

And we will shine Him forth, for He shines through us! Hallelujah!

Lord Jesus, we want to look into the index of Your eyes and be infused with You. You are the most lovely One. You are the most precious One. You are the precious treasure in our earthen vessel. We simply want to take time to behold You. We forsake our old person and take You as our person by looking at the index of Your eyes to enjoy Your presence. Oh Lord, we love You! Nothing is more precious than beholding the wonderful and lovely face of Jesus Christ! We want to live in Your presence and gaze into Your wonderful face. As we look into Your face, all other things fade away and are worthless compared to Your preciousness. Oh Lord Jesus, shine Yourself into us and shine forth from us into others! May we shine You forth into others so that they may also gain Christ as the precious treasure in their earthen vessel! Amen, dear Lord Jesus, we treasure You! We love to be in Your presence, gazing at Your countenance, being saturated with all that You are! You are our indwelling treasure!

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 Ron Kangas in the message for this week, The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 317, by Witness Lee, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Christian Life (2024 Memorial Day Blending Conference), week 6, The Triune God in Christ Being Life to Us by Shining in Our Hearts.
• Similar articles on this topic:
  – Vessels of Clay, Prepared unto Glory, via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – The treasure being in earthen vessels, a portion from, The Crucified Christ, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee.
  – 8 – The Ministry Abounding with Glory (3), From chapter eight of The Ministers in the Lord’s Recovery – Genuine Ministers of the New Covenant, via, Shepherding Words.
  – 8 Verses that Show Jesus Christ Lives in You, via, Bibles for America blog.
  – How we can shine with the God of glory, a portion from, Life-Study of Genesis, Chapter 8, by Witness Lee.
  – 70 Aspects of Christ as Everything for Your Enjoyment, via, Holding to Truth in Love.
  – The treasure and the earthen vessel, a portion from, Authority and Submission, Chapter 15, by Watchman Nee.
  – The Treasure of Excellency in Our Vessel, via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – Building with Gold, Silver, and Precious Stones, article via, Affirmation and critique.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – God in heaven hath a treasure, / Riches none may count or tell; / Hath a deep eternal pleasure, / Christ the Son, He loveth well. / God hath here on earth a treasure, / None but He its price may know— / Deep, unfathomable pleasure, / Christ revealed in saints below. (Hymns #589 stanza 1)
  – Earthen vessel I was made, / Christ in me the treasure laid; / His container I must be, / As the content He in me… / 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 1, 5-6)
  – Life is full of opportunities / Ordered by our Father’s hand: we see / Everything’s the best that it could be, / So let’s gain Christ! / Christ our content and reality / To shine out from us unceasingly: / He must have a way in you and me, / He must have a way. / 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)