we are earthen vessels containing a priceless treasure, the Christ of glory!

I love the verse in 2 Cor. 3:16 which says, But whenever their heart is turned to the Lord, the veil is taken away. We want to have a heart turned to the Lord with an unveiled face so that we may behold and reflect just like a mirror the glory of the Lord and be transformed from glory to glory – even as from the Lord Spirit (see 2 Cor. 3:18).

Our turned away heart is a veil, hindering us from seeing the Lord in all that He is (2 Cor. 3:15). But whenever our heart turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away! As we behold the Lord with an unveiled face, we see the glorious face of Christ – and this is the treasure infused and deposited into us as the priceless treasure in our worthless earthen vessels…

Practicing the divine and heavenly photography

The gospel of Christ is the gospel of His glory shining forth, since Christ as the image of God is the effulgence of His glory (Heb. 1:3). We are like a camera with a lens and with a shutter – when the shutter is pressed, the object / the figure / the image in front of the camera is being impressed on the film / digital memory card.

But if the lens of the camera is covered, there’s no image brought onto the film. Satan blinds the minds and thoughts of the people today so that the illumination of the gospel of Christ’s glory would not shine into their hearts. That’s why we need to turn our heart to the Lord!

This is a “divine and heavenly photography” that we practice today in our Christian life and church life. We are learning to have a turned heart to the Lord so that we may receive on the film of our spirit the glorious face of Jesus Christ.

As the light shines in the Word of God, the image of Christ is being brought into us – shining into our spirit through our mind. When we speak the Word of God to others we need to pray for the unveiling of their heart so that they may have a turned heart to receive the illumination of Christ – the image of God – into their spirit!

God’s shining brings a treasure into us

When God shines on us through the speaking of His Word, the glory of God in the face of Christ is being infused into us to become the indwelling treasure in our spirit (see 2 Cor. 4:6-7; 1 Pet. 3:4). This is so wonderful!

We are earthen vessels – worthless, fragile, temporal, ephemeral, and passing away – but we contain a priceless treasure – the face of Christ, the person of Christ, the image of God Himself – in our spirit (2 Cor. 2:10)! There is nothing more precious and valuable in the whole universe than beholding the face of Jesus (see Gen. 32:30; Exo. 25:30; Psa. 27:4; Rev. 22:4).

Every morning we need to learn to turn our heart to the Lord and deal with any veils that would block our view. We want to see the Lord face to face and “mirror Him” to others, that is, behold Him and reflect Him with no obstacle to the ones around us!

This shining of the Lord’s glorious face brings into us more of the inestimable and priceless treasure of glory into us – the very person of Christ in glory. What a privilege to turn to the Lord continually and have a constant inward impression of His glorious image in our heart so that we may express Him!

the source of supply for our Christian life and work

The supply for the apostles as new covenant ministers was this very treasure within impressed into them through the continual shining of the knowledge of God in the face of Jesus Christ. God’s power is manifested in our weakness – we are frail and worthless earthen vessels but we contain a priceless treasure so that the glory and the sufficiency may not be of us but of God (2 Cor. 4:7; 12:10). I am so glad there’s a continual supply for our Christian life and our Christian work – it is the excellent power of this treasure in us!

Don’t you love the Lord, even more, when you read about these things? All we have to do is cooperate with the Lord to turn our heart to Him, and He as the treasure is being deposited, added, infused, and transfused into our vessel.

The more we turn, the more our earthen vessel is being filled with this priceless treasure – until we will become transparent vessels to make Christ visible in us! This is the way the apostles lived – the excellent power of this treasure strengthened them to be capable to live a crucified life that the resurrection life of Christ whom they ministered may be manifested! Wow…

Lord Jesus, save us from having a veiled heart, a heart turned away from You! Keep us turning our heart, Lord, and dealing with anything that stands in the way. We want to receive more of the shining of Your face into us. Lord, bring more of the treasure in our being! May our worthless earthen vessels be gradually saturated and filled with the priceless and glorious treasure until we fully express You by shining You out!

References and Further Reading

• Sharing inspired from, the Life-study of 2 Corinthians (msgs. 4, 7-10), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Focus of the Lord’s Recovery, week 5;
• Hymns to enjoy:
  # Whenever the heart shall turn to the Lord the veil shall be taken away;
  # The new covenant ministers / Are earthen vessels that are worthless / Who live by the excellent p’wer / Of Christ as the treasure—priceless.
  # Earthen vessel I was made – Christ within the treasure laid!