The theme for our Parish weekend at Scargill last month was taken from Paul's second letter to the Corinthians, chapter four, verse 7: “But we have this treasure in clay jars to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”
We spent the whole weekend unpacking this verse but, in summary, Paul is making the point that every believer in Jesus has — in the gospel message they've received — the greatest of all treasures. It reminds me of what the Psalmist said about God's Word: that it's “more precious than gold; much pure gold” (Psalm 19.10).
Qk, so that's the treasure, but what about the jars? Well, the jars are us — the vessels in which this gospel treasure is contained. It's a great metaphor for a couple of reasons: firstly, it reminds us of our origins:
“Yet you, Lord, are our father. We are the clay; you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand” Isa. 64.8.
And secondly, it reminds us of our fragility and vulnerability. Many of us made a clay jar of our own at Scargill and — as Simon found out — they were easily broken if dropped or held on to too tightly!
Like clay jars, we're all very prone to being chipped, cracked, and sometimes even smashed. But as Paul makes clear; this weakness is important so that we can't claim that the power of the gospel living within us is anything to do with us. It should keep us humble and prevent us from boasting in anything other than Christ crucified and resurrected.
But it's not easy being so fragile and it's often painful when we're damaged by life. As a Church we're called to play our part in putting one another back together and to refuse to judge one another's brokenness or the possible reasons for it.
As I've written recently, I'm praying about how we might create time and space do this more effectively at Bradley, St Thomas. How we might be able to share our struggles and be listened to and be prayed for in a way that’s not always possible on a Sunday morning. How and when we do this has not yet been decided; please do pray about it and come and see me if you have any words from God about how we should proceed.
During my sabbatical, God really spoke to me about how we need to have a space at which things not often mentioned on Sundays can be discussed sensitively and in confidence. And during our parish weekend at Scargill, God gave me a name for this new gathering: Jars of Clay. Ian