There's an older movie, and I don't know why I call it old, because I remember when it came out. But there's an old comedy called city slickers. If you see that movie city slickers, it's about this guy who's having a midlife crisis. He's trying to figure out what life's about. So he goes on this vacation with some guy friends of his to some dude ranch or cowboy thing where they're going to herd cattle. And he's just trying to make sense of life. And he meets this cowboy there. It's kind of old school cowboy, Curly. And Curly has the secret to life that he wants to share with him. And he says it's this. And he's like, your finger. He's like, no, it's one thing, right? You got to figure out that one thing, what the secret of life is. And of course, they individualize it. So it's like, well, what's your one thing? And what's your one thing? And everybody has their own one thing. And you need to find what your one thing is, what makes life about. And I'm not interested in what your life is about, but I am interested in what life is about. Like, for all of us that share this existence, that we're breathing air on this earth and we're alive, like, why? What's the purpose behind it? And everybody's kind of trying to get their mind around that because nobody wants to waste their life. Nobody wants to get to the end of it and be like, I blew it. And now sometimes that can just be overwhelming. So we think, well, well, I'll just have fun while I can. But fun can be a way in which you waste your life if your life is not just about having fun. So how do we not get to the end of our life and just have regrets? I blew it. I had one, and I wasted it. And the prevailing advice to avoid that seems to be, well, just chase your dreams. What are you passionate about? What excites you? You chase your dreams. But what if that is the most prevailing way in which people waste their life? Because if life is not about your dreams, whatever your dreams are about, then doing that, you might have some regrets when you come to the end of your life. And how do we not waste it? And you could see, like, well, maybe that's the broad road. Everybody's chasing their dreams. Everybody's chasing their passions. And you can see, while it's appealing, what excites you, what energetic, like, make your life about that. But if that's not what life is about. I could see in Jesus words how that leads to destruction or regret. And then Christianity comes along and it's got this pitch of, no, no, don't take the broad road. Take the narrow road. Like, it's got all kinds of opposition and difficulties. You need to die to yourself. You need to take up your cross and you can see like, that's the challenging sales pitch, but according to Jesus, it's like, but that leads to life. So let me just kind of put my cards on the table and tell you what I'm motivated about this morning is I want to help inspire us to embrace cross bearing, self denying, narrow road traveling Christianity. Like, if you're at a fork in the road right now, and if you're like, okay, I can go this Broadway or I can go this narrow way and everybody seems to be doing this, and I can chase my dreams and try to be happy, or I can kind of go this, take up my cross, follow Jesus route. I want you to be motivated. Like, I want to go that way. I want to go with Jesus. I want to take a narrower, harder road. And maybe you feel like that's the road I'm on and it's hard and it's difficult. Hopefully through this text that we'll look at together, you're going to be motivated like you're on the right path. Keep going. So that's what we're going to do. But to do that, we also need to know as followers of Christ if we're going to embrace the narrow road. How do you deal with suffering, difficulty, disappointment, rejection? How do you deal with that in a way where you don't conclude, am I wasting my life? Because other people seem to be having more fun? And if I'm doing this hard stuff and sacrificing, like, am I wasting my life this way? And to get this, we need to know what this is. What is life about? Like, what's the key? Second Corinthians, chapter four. Go ahead and turn there. It's best if you have it in front of you. We'll put the verses on the screen, but we encourage you to bring your bibles. I encourage you to bring a pen, mark up your bibles. It's better when you see it in front of you. We got six verses to look at, so let's get after this, starting in verse seven. But now, anytime you start with a conjunction, you know you're entering into a flow of thought. We'll come back to this. But he says, but we have this treasure in jars of clay. Now, jars of clay would have been like first century Tupperware. It's not impressive. It's not important. Like, everybody has it. It's very common. And he's saying, yeah, we have this treasure in jars of clay. What he means is not that we have something precious and we put it in something cheap, and we kind of devalue it. Like, yeah, we have this treasure and just kind of put it in some jars of clay. Like, let's just kind of devalue something that's very important. What Paul is saying is like, no, no, no. Where are the jars of clay? Like, you and I wear the jars of clay. Now, you have to remember that Paul is not impressive to the Corinthians, and in their culture, they valued status and wealth and power. And they look at Paul and he's suffering, he's full of affliction, and they're like, I don't know if I want to follow you. I don't know if I want to be influenced by you. I don't know if I want the. The life that you have. And Paul is saying, I know I'm not impressive. I get it. I don't roll in the town rocking the new Jordans. I don't have a lot of followers on my instagram. I don't look wealthy. I don't look influential. I get it, how you would look at me and think you're not impressed. But here's the thing. That's the point. That's the point. And Paul uses, actually, the plural here, not the singular. He says, we. We have this treasure in jars of clay. As in, you're not impressive either. Right? And the sooner you learn that, the better off you're going to be at figuring out what life is about. You're not a big deal. It's like, yeah, but I was all state in high school. That's not impressive. You're not a big deal. Like, whatever the car you drive, house you live in, whatever your accomplishments are, whatever job you have, whatever you think it is, like, you are not a big deal. And the sooner you realize that, the better off. And Paul's saying, we're just charged with Clay now. God has put something glorious in us, but us by ourselves, we're not impressive. We're not impressive at all. But God has put something impressive in us, and there is a purpose. There is a purpose behind God using unimpressive people. Look at Oliver seven, he says, but we have this treasure in jars of clay. And here's why. To show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. He's like, I get it. I'm not impressive, and there's a point to this. I don't want you to be impressed by me. I want you to be impressed by God. I don't want you to look at Paul and think, wow, Paul's awesome. I want you to look at Paul and think, God's awesome. God has done something in Paul's life. I want the attention to go there. I want you to get distracted by the packaging. I'm not here to impress you. I'm here to point you to Christ. But we can be really drawn to the packaging. We can be really drawn to power, status, influence. Like, we like that. Like, be honest. Think about this for a minute. Have you ever caught yourself thinking, boy, if that person was a Christian, they could really make a difference in this world? Right? If Lebron James just was passionately in love with Jesus, boy, God would do big things with. If Taylor Swift really came to Christ, right? Would you take a miracle? I'm just okay. If she, like, wholehearted, like, God could do so much through her. You ever feel yourself thinking that way? Do you think God ever thinks that way? Boy, if I could just have him, then I could really do some stuff. Like, is he bound by that? But we look at platform and prestige and power, and we're like, that's the way to influence people. That's the way to make a difference. And Paul is saying, hey, there's purpose behind me not being very impressive. Like, I want it to be clear that it's not me. But how's he put it, that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. Not trying to have you get distracted by the packaging. And today we got some pretty impressive packaging for Christmas. I can't remember if somebody gave it to me, if I bought it for myself. That's kind of where we're at right now on stage of life. But I got noise canceling headphones, which has been awesome. Sometimes I just put them on. I don't put anything on. I just cancel the noise. This is great. But I took it out, and the box was so awesome. Like, I was struggling. I was like, should we not throw this away? I felt bad. I tried to get Rudy, like, you want to put pencils in here or something? Like, we can keep this box. And I found myself, like, the headphones were sitting on the table, and I'm just admiring the artwork that went into this packaging. It's like, it can be a bit distracting or it steals focus away. And God is making much of himself by who he uses with unimpressive packaging. He's been doing that all along. Like, I'm going to make a nation out of an old guy who has no kids, right? I'm going to build this now. Let me use this lion, mama's boy, make my people in. Jacob. I'm going to put you second in charge of Egypt, Joseph, but I'm going to run you through the prison system to do it. Or probably one of the most obvious examples of God's intent in doing this is with Gideon. Gideon is in the book of judges. He calls him a mighty warrior, which he was not. He was kind of a coward. And they're going to fight the Midianites, and they had like 22,000 people in his army going to battle. And God says the army's too big. No general in the history of military has ever said that. We got too big of an army. He's like, you got too big of an army because here's what's going to happen. You're going to win, and you're going to think you won. And I didn't win for you. So here's what you do. You need to get rid of a lot of your soldiers. And they got, they were already outnumbered with 22,000, but God got them down to 300. And then they won the battle. Because he wanted to be clear that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. David, King David, the youngest overlooked shepherd boy, I'll make you kingdom God himself. Emmanuel. God with us. When he puts on flesh and dwells with us, does he come as royalty out of a wealthy family? No. Carpenter's son picking disciples? Who's he pick? I'll take some fishermen and a tax collector like those overlooked people. Because where does glory go? For example, let's say Christ didn't come in the first century, he came in the 21st century. And to show his glory, he's not going to feed people and heal people. He's going to win a national championship in basketball. So he picks his team, and he's like, I'm going to take LeBron James and Stephen Curry, and that's about all I know. Then he's going to take a lot of good basketball players, right? And he's going to form this team and he wins the championship. And everybody's like, well, duh, your team was stacked. Or let's say he comes and he's like, okay, give me that third grader. I want the boy on crutches. I'll take the 80 year old grandma. And then he wins the national championship. Which one's more impressive, right? So it's like, I don't want there to be any mistake where the power comes from and Jesus comes. Like, I'll build my team, fishermen, tax collectors. Like, this is the thing. Like he's showing off his power. Not only these people, but can you imagine that the gospel's gone to you? I mean, you. You get in on this. That was this past weekend. We were driving. Marc and I were driving to speak at a college retreat. And Marcy, who's known me most my whole life, in the most loving way, looks at me and says, can you believe that you're going to talk to kids about Jesus? And I was like, no. How did we get here? This is crazy. But you, too? Did God let you in on this? There's a phrase that Paul uses sometimes about the mysteries of God. Now, when we hear the word mystery, we kind of think of our mystery novels or mystery shows where it's okay. We're trying to figure out who did it. We don't have all the information. That's not the way the Bible uses mystery. The way the Bible uses mystery is like, there is something that you would never figure out on your own. God had to reveal it to you. And how crazy it is that God has revealed it to you, that you have had your eyes open to this. So Paul is saying, like, I get it. We're not impressive. I'm not impressive. But also don't be fooled, because I know society wants status and power and wealth. But there is something you need to understand about these jars of clay that make our unimpressive life a bit more appealing. So before you judge, you should take a closer look. Let's look at verses eight and nine. It says, we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. Perplexed, but. But not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken. Struck down, but not destroyed. So it's like you see some weakness, like you see affliction, you see persecution. You see struck down. But what you don't see is this indestructible life that I have. I will never be forsaken. I will go through hard things, but I will never be destroyed. You can knock me down, but you can't take me out. Like he's saying, like, you're just seeing what's on the surface. And there are some things that can and can't be true about the christian life. You can be afflicted. You can be perplexed. You can be knocked down, but you can't be destroyed. You can't be forsaken. You can't be crushed. See, there are an unforeseen benefit or beauty to the christian life that you have to see through faith. And some of the words he uses here, afflicted, I mean, really, you could put anything under that category. It's various kinds of activities, but you're not going to be restricted. You're not going to be limited. You're not going to be crushed in what you're called to do. Perplexed. Mean, like baffled, confused. So, yes, part of the christian life is like, why are you allowing this to happen? I don't get this. Why would you do it that way? I don't understand. Like, why? Like, you're going to be perplexed, but not utterly perplexed, not driven to despair. It's like, yeah, I don't get all the details to your plan, but I get you and I get you have a plan and I find rest and comfort in that. You say you're going to be persecuted. It just means pursued. But you're not going to be forsaken or abandoned. You're going to be knocked down. It's like, yeah, you're going to be hit with enough force to knock you off your feet, but you're not going to be destroyed. Or the word means terminated. Yeah, you'll get punched. You'll get it right in the face, but you're going to be okay. Paul's kind of describing rocky Christianity. Nobody looks at rocky and be like, that's who I want to be, right? He's getting beat up the whole time, but at the end he's like, oh, you wondezenhe kept getting up and kept getting up. And at the end it's like you're victorious. And Paul's like, yeah, what you see is this affliction and persecution, and you see all that, but what you don't see is the indestructible life that I have in Christ. And it's hard to see past affliction and persecution and opposition and getting knocked down. Cause there's a present and a future. It's like, I get. You see the present, do you see the future? And further down, in a couple weeks, we'll get to where he's like, you need to see what's unseen, not what's seen. It's like, well, you're seeing what's seen, and here's what's seen. You get beat up a lot, Paul you get put in jail, Paul. You have a lot of opposition, Paul, right? All you see is the present. You don't see the future. And Paul's like, yeah, if you look at the present, I get how you don't want my life, but if you could see my future, I bet you would want my life. So Paul is like, yeah, I know, I know. We're not impressive, but you're missing it. You move one word here, and you get what the world values and what they can see and not see. You take that word, not, and you move it to the front, then it's like, we're not afflicted. We don't have any trouble in this world. Yeah, but you're going to be crushed. We're not perplexed at all. We think we have it all figured out. It's like, yeah, but you're going to be driven to despair, and we're not persecuted. Nobody's against us. We fit in. Yeah, but you're going to be forsaken. We're not struck down. Nobody is against us. We're loved. Yeah, but you're gonna be destroyed. It's the broad road. Everybody's going there. It's wide. It's easy. Let's do it. But where does it lead? Destruction. And then the narrow road is like, boy, it seems like that's full of affliction and opposition and persecution. I know, but where does it lead life? So Paul's like, I get how we're not impressive. Totally understand that. I totally understand how you would look at our life and be like, I don't want that life. But here's the thing. We're not living for this life. Are you? Are you living for this life? Let's keep reading. Let that question sit a little bit. Verse eight. Let's get a running start into verse ten and eleven. It says, we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed, perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed, always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to the death, to death for Jesus sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. Now notice what's going on in verses ten and eleven. If you kind of look at it together, there's parallelisms happening there. This is common in scripture. You see a lot in the psalms where the writer will say something, and then they'll say the same thing again, just differently. And it kind of feels like, I think he just said that, and it's like, I did. And the reason they do that is to emphasize something. So in the message, if you're like, boy, Jake, you've said that, like, three or four times right now. I did. Like, it's important. That's why we're repeating it. So in scripture, there'll be parallelisms, or they'll repeat something to emphasize something important. So the question is, but what's he emphasizing? What's he emphasizing? Let's look at the parallels here. Verse ten, he's, like, always carrying in the body the death of Jesus. Then you got verse eleven, for we who live are always being given over to death. So you got always repeating. You got the death repeating. And then in verse ten, it's the death of Jesus. And then verse eleven, it's a death for Jesus sake. And then verse ten, so that the life of Jesus maybe also be manifested verse eleven, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in verse ten in our bodies, in verse eleven in our mortal flesh. So it's like, okay, you're kind of saying the same thing we're getting here. What's the main point that you want to get across to us in kind of repeating this? When he talks about carrying in the body, like, in our physical bodies the way that we live, we're carrying the death of Jesus. What Paul is saying is, okay, I'm not impressive to you. I get it. But what you need to understand is, I am willingly embracing a life of sacrificial suffering. I'm following my savior. Like, this is what the life of Jesus looked like. You remember him. He was hung on a cross. He was rejected. Yeah, I'm a follower of him, so I'm embracing him. What does that look like? Affliction, persecution, being struck down. I reflect my leader, and he's saying he's doing this so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. So when he talks about the life of Jesus, he's talking about the resurrected life of Jesus. So after the death of Jesus, which he carries in his body the way he lives. What happened after Jesus died? He rose again. You have the resurrected life of Jesus. It's like I'm manifesting that in my body. So what does that mean? It could mean, like, well, our bodies will be resurrected. There's a future bodily resurrection that Paul will experience. I don't think that's his point in this place, in two corinthians, I think what he's saying is in my body and is the way that I'm living my life, I'm shining a spotlight on the resurrection. I'm magnifying the resurrection of Jesus. Or you could put it this way, our living for eternity magnifies the reality of eternity. So when people look at Paul and the way that he's living and suffering, here's what they can conclude. Oh, Paul really believes in the resurrection. Like, he actually believes this. You can see it in how he lives. Like, he's living a life, just pouring himself out as an offering to Jesus. So when Jesus says, you can store up for yourself treasures in heaven and be like, oh, Paul really believes that. Like, he's actually trying to do that. And, guys, when you really believe in the resurrection, it changes everything. It changes everything in how you live. When you firmly conclude, like, this life isn't all there is, I have the ability to store up treasures in the next life. I have been granted to live for eternity. I have been a fellow heir with Christ. Like, when you really believe that now, it'll change how you live. Like, it breaks this love affair with the world that I have to get it all now, and I got to live out my dreams now, and I got this bucket list I got to get through, because someday it's going to be done. And then what you're like, well, I know what. Like, what's better is what's to come. So as a Christian, if you're like, what's the worst thing somebody could do to me? Kill me. That's why Paul says to live is Christ. To die is what gain. It's far better to be with Christ. So the worst thing somebody can do to me is actually the best thing that could ever happen to me. Like, when you really get that, you know how freeing that is in the way you live and what you pursue. If you actually believe in the resurrection, which Paul is saying, look at my life, it clearly says I'm not living for this life. In fact, in one corinthians 15, it's like, if there's hope only in this life, then I should be pitied most of all. It's like, why would I live this way if this life is all there is? The fact that I'm living this way points to the reality that I don't believe this life is all there is. I believe there's a life to come, and I'm living for that. And the way I'm living magnifies that. Do you really believe that? I remember when our kids were younger, we were in our living room, and we were doing these trust falls. You kind of stand and you just kind of fall back, and they catch them. And I wanted them to really fall quite a bit before. Like, I catch them down here. Like, you gotta really trust me. And they would. They would kind of fall, and then they'd put their foot back or put their hand back, and I started to get upset. It's like, do you not trust me? Like, I said I was gonna catch you. I mean, you drop a kid a few times, they really hold that against you. You laugh, because it's like, you know, I didn't drop them, but I, like, I want you to trust me. I'm gonna catch you. And they kept kind of like, you know, you fall a little bit, it's like, I'll trust you so far. And then I'm like, I'm not so sure. Is that you with Christ? It's not that you don't believe in Jesus, but I'll trust you so far, but I got it just in case. Like, I believe in the resurrection, but just in case, I got a bucket list. There's things I want to get done before I go. I believe in the resurrection, but just in case, I want to have my best life now. I believe in the resurrection, but just in case, I'm going to play it safe here. And what does it tell the world? That we live for this life the same way that everybody else does? Paul is saying, that's not what my life is telling you. My life is telling you that I believe in the resurrection. And then he says this, verse twelve. So death is at work in us, but life in you. Our life is at work in you. And it's a weird connection because you like connecting death and work. Like, I thought death was the end of work. Like, what's going on here? No, our death is producing something. Our death or our suffering? Our dying is working. It's producing something. But he doesn't say, death is at work in us, and also life is at work in us, which is true. As we die to Christ, die to ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. We're being renewed day by day. He's a transform from one degree of glory to another. There's, like, a progressive sanctification. That's true, but that's not what he's saying here. What he's saying here, as we die, as death is at work in us, life is at work in you. This is the great gospel exchange. Christ died so that we may live. And Paul's saying, I'm dying so that you can live now, not in the same way that Jesus. Paul's not saying I'm the sacrifice for your sins, but he's saying, my life of suffering is a cause or a tool that we used in your new life in Christ. Like, the reason that you came to Christ is because I brought the gospel to you. How do you think I brought the gospel to you? Suffering, opposition, persecution. So before you're too critical on my lifestyle, don't forget that's how you know about Christ. So here's some things we can conclude from this guy's missions, which is hard and sacrificial is how other people come to know Jesus. And the story of the gospel spreading to the ends of the earth is a story full of suffering missionaries that have lost their spouse, lost their kids, malaria, persecution, opposition, death. Like the story of the gospel, going to the ends of the earth is full of stories of suffering. And Paul as a missionary is being looked at by these people in their affluent culture, and they're kind of repulsed by his lifestyle. I don't know if I want that. I don't know if I'm drawn to that. He's despised and pitied instead of honored. So here's some things that we can learn from this. Don't despise and pity people who live sacrificial, radical lives for the advancement of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Don't despise or pity them. They're heroes and role models in the faith. So remember that, parents, when you're 20, something comes to you and says, I think I want to move overseas and be a missionary. And you're like, are you sure? It's pretty hard over there. They don't really like christians over there. And they're like, I know. That's the point. That's why I'm going. And you would not be a parent that tries to talk them out of that back into a life of comfort and ease in America. The other thing we can learn from that is that the kind of radical, sacrificial living for Christ is not just for missionaries, but there is a type of cross bearing, self denying Christianity that needs to be lived out at your work and in your home and in your neighborhood that we should embrace. It's what Paul's calling all of us to. He's saying, you're not valuing it when you see it in me, then you're not going to live it yourself. Like, when you look at my life and you're repulsed by the suffering for Christ, how are you going to stand up in the marketplace in your own hometown? And what Paul wanted these corinthians to know is that the christian life is not about ourselves and our comfort, and it's not about this life. In fact, we'll get into these verses next week. But further down in verse 14, he says, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. I was like, that's what I'm looking forward to. That's what I want. That's what I got my eye fixed on. You could sum it up this way. Life is not about you, and it's not about now. Life is not about you and it's not about now. Or to sharpen that a bit, you could say, the christian life is not about you, and it's not about now. It's not about all your comfort and your hopes and your dreams and your passions and your ambitions and getting the retirement you want or the job you want, whatever it is you want. Like in this lifestyle, life is not about you and it's not about now. The christian life is not about you, and it's not about now. So are you living the christian life or in the name of Christ, are you just trying to live for you and you're trying to live for now. And to be fair, the christian life is full of affliction, persecution and opposition and confusion, and it's not going to win you any popularity contests at work. But before you kind of are repulsed by it and say, no, thank, no, thanks, what Paul is also saying is, yeah, but it's worth it. It is so worth it. Like, all you see is this opposition, but I have an indestructible life. I will never be forsaken. I will never be crushed. I will never be abandoned. Like, you see my presence, but you need to see my future, and you need to see the impact that is being made through me, day in and day out. Look at yourselves. You know Christ because of my suffering. How glorious is that? Paul is saying, like, I know what this is. I know what life is about. It's about God and his glory. I figured it out like I've been compelled by it. In fact, he says it as the argument kind of keeps flowing in chapter five, verse 14. He says, for the love of Christ controls us or compels us, because we have concluded this. We've concluded what this is. We figured this out. That one has died for all, therefore all have died, and he died for all that. Those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him, who, for their sake, was, died and was raised. I know what this is. I know what life's about. It's about Christ and his glory and living for him. I'm passionate about God's glory. Therefore, I want my life to be about being with him forever. I want my life to be about telling other people about him. I figured this out. And church, let me tell you this. You can disagree. You can argue on your way home. If you don't get that, you're going to waste your life. And I'm telling you that as a pastor who loves you and as a fellow Christian who struggles with this, too, who feels the pull of now and here, but if you don't get that life is about God and his glory, you will waste your life, and you may not realize it because you may love it. And it's like, I got my dream house, my dream family, my dream car, my dream job, my dream retirement, and then you're going to come to the end and it's going to be a nightmare, because your life was not about your dreams. It was about God and his glory. Here's what I want us to remember. When you know that life is about God's glory, it will show in your lifestyle. When you know that life is about God's glory, it'll show in your lifestyle. Paul had a lifestyle that said, I get the glory of God. You see it everywhere in how I live. In fact, in his first letter to the Corinthians, he was addressing, like, arguments about which food you can or can't eat. And he says, whether you eat or whether you drink, whatever you do, do it for what? The glory of goddess. The glory of God motivates everything. How you live, how you eat, what you wear, what you watch, how you handle money, how you handle your time, everything is motivated by the glory of God. And when you get that, you understand Christianity should not be duty driven. Well, this is what I should do. This is what I shouldn't do. This is what I should watch. This is what I shouldn't watch. It's like, no, no, it should be glory driven. I want God. I want closeness with God. I want to honor God. God's better. The Corinthians, they had a hard time with Paul. They had a hard time with his lifestyle. It didn't make sense. I mean, you got a culture that values status and power and wealth, and here you got Paul, the suffering apostle. I mean, it's a hard sell. I mean, you think about it. Even in America, it's a hard sell. They don't make your life about you. Don't chase your dreams, chase God's glory. Yeah. You should consider, maybe you should move to Papua New guinea, learn a new language at 45, and share the gospel with people who don't know it. That's something you should prayerfully consider. Yeah. In a world that's like, hey, make as much money as you can. Here's our pitch. You're supposed to give a lot of it away and not be gripped by greed. In a world that's like, climb the ladder, get more and more power. It's like, no, be a servant, die to yourself. You could see how it's a struggling pitch. So why would anybody do it? Not only why would they do it, why is Paul joyfully doing it? Let's look back at our conjunction that we started with. Go back to verse seven. Says, well, we have this. What's that word? Treasure in jars of clay. Did you miss that the first time we got treasure? Treasure. Like, isn't that what people want? Do you remember when the rich young ruler went to Jesus? He's like, what must they do to have eternal life? Sell all that you have. Give it to the poor. Come, follow me, and you will have what? Treasure in heaven. Now, we don't hear that second part. All we hear is like, sell all I have. Are you crazy? What? But he's like, and you'll have treasure. And here, Paul's like, all you see is affliction. All you see is persecution. All you see is me getting knocked down. Do you not see the treasure that I have? That's what it is to have faith, to find a treasure. Jesus in Matthew 13 tells us, like, here's what it looks like. It looks like somebody who's found treasure in a field sells all they have. Excuse me. Joyfully sells all that they have to buy the field. That's what it looks like. Have you found a treasure, or you just not want to go to hell when you die? And what's the treasure? Let's look at verse six right before this, because you've got a conjunction here. He says, verse six for God, who said, let light shine out of darkness, has shown in our hearts to give. That's the depositing of the treasure, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Do you have that treasure? Because the reason that we live radical sacrificial lives is because of the treasure that's been put in us. And he says, it's interesting, he says, the light that's shining in the darkness. So if God is going to shine a light in the darkness, where does he shine it? In your hearts. He's like, here's how I'm going to light up a dark world. I'm going to shine in your heart and your heart and your heart and your heart and your heart. I'm going to change you from the inside out. And when you have the light of the gospel, the glory of God, and the face of Jesus Christ shining in your heart, you live different. And when you live different, you light up the darkness. So let me ask you, has the light of the knowledge of the glory of God and the face of Jesus Christ shine in your heart? Do you love God? Are you passionate about God? Do you see him as a treasure? Because if you do, if you do, it's not going to make you impressive to this world. It's gonna make you weird. Why would you do that? What would you give like that? Why were you singing like that? Why would you live like that, Paul, we don't get it. It's gonna make you weird and it's gonna magnify the power of God in you and the reality of eternal life through Jesus Christ, when you're actually living for that life and not this one. So, guys, when it comes to ministry, let's not get wrapped up in the packaging. Paul didn't have impressive packaging. People don't need to like you in order to love Jesus. Your goal should not be to fit in. This is not about relevance, it's about reverence. Relevance thinks. Thinks you just need to be able to fit in with the lost world. Reverence is about showing a lost world. You found a treasure, and when it comes to us as a church, let's not get lost in the packaging. And I know I'm saying that, like, we got new shiny screens and new fancy seats, and we got new stuff out in the foyer, and there are facilities, and we hope they facilitate ministry, but let's not get lost in the packaging. We're not trying to impress anyone, but we're trying to baffle everyone. Why do these people give like that? Why do these people sing like that? Why do these people live like this? Because the light of the knowledge of the glory of goddess and the face of Jesus Christ has shone in our hearts. Because it's shown in our hearts, you see it in our lives, as the most important or the most impressive thing about us. Should not be our facilities or our appearance. It should be the treasure that's been put in us. And I'm telling you, when you see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, when you see Jesus as the treasure in which he is, it'll show up in how we live. And when it shows up in how we live, that's how we light up the darkness. Amen. Let's pray. Father, I pray that you would break this love affair we have with the world, that we're trying to fulfill all our hopes and dreams and desires in this life, when really what will ultimately satisfy us is waiting for us and is found in Christ Jesus. Help us to embrace being jars of clay, that we would not strive to be impressive to anybody, but to show everybody the real treasure is not on the outside, but what you've done in us on the inside. And give us a faith to live for you instead of this land and this world. We need you to want you. So I pray that you would wake us up to your glory. Pray this in your name. Amen.