PARENTHOOD
a divine stewardship

The Treasure in Earthen Vessels

Often, we are filled with self-doubt concerning our capacity to care for our family according to God's way and purpose. We may recognize that we have been assigned a divine responsibility, a divine stewardship, regarding the nurturing of our children in the discipline and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4), but we remain fearful that we are not adequate for the task. Perhaps we even distrust our understanding of what nurturing them in the discipline of the Lord really means. An appreciation of the fact that God has deposited Himself, the treasure, into us, the earthen vessels, (2 Corinthians 4:7) is essential for our effectual execution of what is in reality an awesome task.

Watchman Nee in the article presented in this issue of Parenthood emphasizes that this treasure in earthen vessels is not a matter of God doing something for us or through us and neither is it an issue of our doing something for God with His help. Rather it is result of the joining of our earthen vessel to God's treasure. In this divine arrangement, on the one hand it is no longer we who live, but it is God who lives in us; but on the other hand, we live but our living is by the faith of the Son of God-Galatians 2:20. It is a mutual living-the Lord lives in and through us and we live by and with Him.

"It matters little what kind of earthen vessel we have; the treasure can always go inside. The earthen vessel remains an earthen vessel, but it is now a filled vessel. All weak people think that they are too earthen; their vessels are too full of clay and they are without any hope. Please remember that we have no reason to be disappointed or troubled. Whatever is spiritual, strong, powerful, and comes from the Lord can be manifested in us and will shine brighter and be magnified through the earthen vessel. Since this is the case, we can see the importance of the treasure. Brothers and sisters, everything depends upon the treasure. I must repeat, all situations revolve around this matter. Every outcome is positive. Those whose eyes are on the negative things are fools. The Lord can express Himself through everyone. When we have the treasure, many will know it."

May we learn to rely fully on the wonderful treasure that has been deposited into us so that He will be expressed through us.

When I first became a Christian, I had my own concept of the ideal Christian, and I tried my utmost to be that kind of Christian. I thought that if only I could attain to the ideal I had conceived, then I would attain perfection. I wanted to be perfect, but I had my own ideal and standard for being a perfect Christian. I thought that if I could reach this standard, I would be perfect. I thought a perfect Christian should smile from morning to night. If he shed tears, I thought he was not victorious, but a failure. I would even say he was wrong. I thought a perfect Christian should be bold, unafraid, and courageous in every situation. If he was fearful in anything, I would say he did not have faith. I would say he was not perfect because he did not trust in the Lord. I also thought the perfect Christian was never sad. If a person was sad, I doubted that he was perfect....

Paul Was a Man

One day I read the passage in 2 Corinthians where Paul was sorrowful. I asked, "Was Paul sorrowful?" I read that he shed many tears. I asked, "Did Paul cry?" I read that Paul suffered and was sad. I asked, "Did Paul suffer, and was he sad?" ...I had never considered that a person like Paul would have these problems. I began to realize that Christians are not another type of angel. God has not put a race of angels on the earth and said, "These are Christians." I also began to see that Paul was very close to us; he was not so far off. Paul was someone I know; he was not a stranger. I know him because I saw that he was a man.

The Treasure Manifested in Earthen Vessels

Many people have a concept of an ideal Christian. Please remember that this ideal was created by us, not by God. That kind of ideal Christian does not exist, nor does God want us to be such. Here we meet an earthen vessel, but the special characteristic of this earthen vessel is that a treasure has been put into it. The treasure transcends and overshadows the earthen vessel and manifests itself from within the vessel. This is the meaning of Christianity and of being a Christian. In Paul, we see a man who was afraid yet strong. He was troubled in his heart yet had hope. He was surrounded by enemies yet was not captured. Although he met with persecution, he did not feel rejected or cast aside. He seemingly was knocked down, but he did not die (2 Corinthians 4:7-9). We see his weaknesses, but when he was weak, he was powerful (12:10b)....He seemingly was sad, but he always rejoiced. He seemingly was poor, but he made many rich. He seemingly had nothing, but he had everything (6:8-10). This is a real Christian. This is true Christianity....

God's Power Being Manifested in Man's Weakness

The apostle said that he had a thorn in his flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7). I do not know what this thorn was, but I know this thorn made Paul weak. He prayed to the Lord about the matter three times, hoping the Lord would remove the thorn. However, the Lord said to him, "My grace is sufficient for you" (vv. 8-9). The Lord said even though the thorn in his flesh made Paul weak, His power was perfected in this weakness. How is the Lord's power perfected in human weakness? He said, "My power will tabernacle over your weakness," which means, "My power will overshadow or cover your weakness." This is Christianity. Christianity does not eliminate weaknesses, nor does it only look to the Lord's power. Christianity means that the Lord's power is manifested in man's weakness. Christianity does not mean that a new race of strange angels is created on the earth. Christianity means that man's weaknesses can manifest God's power.

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