We have the greatest treasure of all time: The gospel of Jesus Christ; the wonderful message for all people, all time, everywhere, of God's love and power to save us.

This treasure is given not just to those we might consider "worthy", for God's Word plainly says that no one is worthy. Instead, this treasure is given to us: plain, everyday people who are pretty much stumbling along. We aren't priceless vases, we are but earthen vessels. Jars of clay.

But isn't it wonderful that God can use such lowly, common, everyday vessels to fulfill the work of His Kingdom, or that He would even WANT to? He could send down His angels to carry the gospel message to the lost world, but He chose to use us, even though we are weak and imperfect vessels. Isn't it incredible that the Soveriegn God of the universe chose us?

What kind of vessel are you? Perhaps you think God doesn't want you. You may think you are so sinful, so bad, that He doesn't want you. You are wrong. You may be so badly broken over the circummstances of your life that you think things will never get better, that God can't fix all the things that are broken in your life. You are wrong. Or you may feel so empty and worthless that God cannot possibly use you. You are wrong!

It's so wonderful how God can take the most filthy, dirty vessel and cleanse it. He can take a broken vessel and mend it, putting the pieces back together and making it like brand- new. And He can take an useless, empty vessel and fill it to overflowing. Yes, God can do all these things!

And that is the wonderful treasure that we have: the message of what God can do in a regular, ordinary life; how He saves us, cleanses us, changes us, and fills us, making us into vessels of honor in His kingdom. Not by our power, but by His. That's a powerful message!