2 Corinthians 4:5-12
“Cracked Pots”
How many of you are, as Mary Poppins described herself, “Practically perfect in every way?”
How many of your friends or the people you love the most, care about the most and have been most touched and influenced by are “practically perfect in every way?”
My guess is…none.
Of course, what is practically perfect?
There are people whom I enjoy being in their company for the sheer fact that they are “themselves.”
And by that, I mean that they might act “goofy” or “silly” without worrying about how they are perceived.
A couple weeks ago, some of our Youth were out in the parking lot.
And being a silly goof myself, I ran up to them and said something to the effect, “Now that you guys have graduated from high school, I’m not sure I feel ‘cool enough to stand here with you.’”
To that, they laughed and then replied, “Don’t worry, we aren’t very ‘cool.’”
Now that IS cool!!!
God created us all with different personality traits and dispositions.
Think about some of the people you love the most, are closest to.
Perhaps they can be a bit flaky at times, but isn’t that one of the characteristics that make them who they are?
Deep down, isn’t that one of the things that makes you love them even more?
Would you really want to change that trait?
Perhaps someone you love has a “funny” and “unique” laugh.
Isn’t that one of the things that you love about them?
Maybe a close friend or loved one can even be a bit bossy at times…
…you might rather that they tone it down a bit, but if it is just a part of the loving person they are, would you really want to take that away?
Wouldn’t you kind of miss it?
When I was growing up we had a Siamese cat.
And for anyone who is familiar with Siamese cats, you know that they can be very loving and fun, but they also have major attitudes.
They don’t take things lying down.
They stand up for themselves.
For example, as a young boy, I always had cat scratches up and down my arms because our Siamese would not allow me to hold her upside down by the tail without a fight.
Or if she just didn’t happen to be in the mood for some very innocent and mellow play, she would let me know with a bite or a scratch.
When it came time for our 17 year old Siamese cat to be put to sleep, my mom was the one who took her to the vet.
Those experiences are always difficult.
But I remember my mother coming home from the vet and reporting that she was happy that our cat bit the vet as he was trying to move her.
To the very end, our Siamese was who she was.
And we loved that about her, even if it was a bit trying at times.
I believe that one of the big puzzles of life is to learn to accept and even appreciate our idiosyncrisies, and especially those of others.
Some of the things I love and enjoy most about others is their willingness and ability to “be themselves.”
Now, this “willingness” and “ability” to be and accept ourselves as God created us, does not mean that we revel in some self-destructive behavior or things that hurt ourselves and others.
It means, that as Christians, as people who are loved by God and love God, we accept that we all have things that remind us and others that we are simply human, and therefore, we must trust in God completely for all we are and all we have!!!
There is a story about a man who served as the British Ambassador to the United States at a time when the Cold War was just beginning.
And as Ambassador, he was often in touch, on a daily basis, with the President and Prime Minister on the other side of the Atlantic.
A lot of times he needed to get urgent, important and top secret messages back and forth between Washington and London.
And, at this time, it was far too risky to make telephone calls; the line was almost always bugged.
They had this diplomatic bag which went to and fro each day, and that was what he used much of the time.
But when something was really confidential, utterly and completely top secret and desperately urgent, he wouldn’t take the chance of using the bag that everyone knew was important.
Instead, he would put the message in an ordinary envelop and send it through the regular mail.
In our Scripture passage for tonight, Paul says that God has decided to put the most urgent and important message of all time…
…the greatest treasure in all the world…
…the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in “clay pots.”
Who would have thunk it?
God has decided to use ordinary people like you and me to carry His message of salvation to all the world.
And Paul says that God has done this so that people will know that “the awesome power belongs to God and doesn’t come from us.”
Proverbs 16:18 informs us that “Pride comes before disaster, and arrogance before a fall.”
Could it be that life is designed to keep us from pride, and therefore to keep us from disaster…
…for it is only through humility that we come to accept ourselves as we are…
…it is only through humility that we come to accept others as they are…
…and it is only through humility that we are able to accept the fact that we need Jesus!!!
The world talks a whole lot about human power and about the vast forces which we now control.
But the real characteristic of a human being is not our power but our weakness.
In our Scripture Lesson for tonight from 2 Corinthians Chapter 4 Paul writes, “We don’t preach about ourselves.
Instead, we preach about Jesus Christ as Lord…”
And there is nothing more powerful nor is there anything more important!!!
If we were to think we were the answer to the world’s problems, we would all be doomed to hell!!!
But thanks be to God, we have Jesus!!!
And because of Jesus we can accept and even embrace our human frailties.
For as Paul writes, “God said that light should shine out of the darkness…”
And, “He is the same one who shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Paul goes on to say, “We are experiencing all kinds of trouble, but we aren’t crushed.
We are confused, but we aren’t depressed.
We are harassed, but we aren’t abandoned.
We are knocked down, but we aren’t knocked out.”
And isn’t everyone dealing with an incredible, overwhelming amount of pressure and doom.
The difference between those who know Christ and those who don’t is that even during our most difficult times, we are never in such a tight corner that there is no way out!!!
Even when we are persecuted by other people we know we are never abandoned by God!!!
And one of the great mysteries and miracles of our faith is that in our most difficult times we often have our most intimate and joyous times with Christ.
Jesus never leaves us nor forsakes us.
If we are in the pit, Jesus is there with us.
Therefore, the pit isn’t so bad, because Jesus is there and Jesus is all that really matters!!!
Even when we are at our wit’s end we are never at our hope’s end.
There are times when we don’t know what should be done, but we can trust that, because of Christ living in us, something can be done!!!
There are times when we can’t see where life is going, but we need not doubt that it is going somewhere.
And we may get knocked down, but not knocked out.
An awesome characteristic of those who walk with Christ is not that we do not fall, but that we are never ultimately defeated!!!
We are all here not to proclaim ourselves, but to proclaim Christ!!!
And precisely because we are all so ordinary, we, like Paul have the authority to proclaim the good news of the Risen Savior!!!
We are all fragile, like clay pots; we all experience hardships, set-backs, and suffering.
But we also carry with us the most important message in the universe; a message that stands up to the test of time, a message that speaks of hope even in the midst of suffering, a message that brings life even in the midst of death!!!
We are part of that, even as Paul was!!!
How very humbling and amazing all at the same time!!!
There’s a story of a water carrier in India who had two large pots, and each pot hung on either end of a pole that he carried across his shoulders.
One of the pots had a crack in it, and the other pot did not.
After the long walk from the source of water to the Master’s house, the cracked pot always arrived just half full.
The pot with no crack was very proud if its accomplishments, it was able to carry all the water which had been put in it.
But the cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and was miserable that could only accomplish half of what it was created to do.
One day, the cracked pot spoke to the water carrier, “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you.”
“Why?” asked the water carrier.
“What are you ashamed of?”
“I have only been able, for the past two years, to deliver half my load because of this crack in my side…
…it causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house.”
In truth, though, the water carrier appreciated the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”
And sure enough, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot saw the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path.
But at the end of the trail, it felt bad again, because it had leaked half its load.
The water carrier said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of the path, but not on the other side?
That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it.
I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them.
For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table.
Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty in his house.”
Each of us have our own unique flaws.
We’re all cracked pots.
We’re all simply human, weak and fragile.
But God is able to do great things, even through our weakness!!!
If we allow it, Jesus will use our flaws to grace the Father’s table.
Praise God!!!
Amen.
