Tupperware
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the excellence of the power may be of God, not of us. 2 Corinthians 4:7
Earthen Vessels – Do you like oysters? How about clams? Whether shellfish are or are not on your list, we all know one thing for certain. We don’t eat the shells. What counts with clams and crab and oysters is what’s on the inside. The outside is disposable. That’s the first word in this phrase, “earthen vessels.” It’s ostrakinois (think of oyster). It means, “made from the earth.” Clay pots. Nothing special about the outside. Just flame-hardened dirt.
Don’t you find it amazing that human beings spend so much time cultivating the outside? We do everything possible to call attention to the shell. Our preoccupation with physical beauty, external possession, power, position and prestige all focus on outside. We polish the disposable pot instead of realizing that it is intended to be discarded.
The second word (skeuesin) literally means, “household utensils”. Very common stuff. If Paul were writing today, he would have said “Tupperware.” You and I are Tupperware in God’s kitchen. We carry treasured ingredients but our outward container is only important as the carrier of what’s inside. No one buys gold-plated Tupperware.
Does that mean we are to neglect this “earthen vessel?” Are we to stop showering, stop exercising, stop learning or stop working. Are we to concentrate only on the “spiritual” life and let the rest go? Hardly. No one buys soiled, stained and broken Tupperware, even at a garage sale. The container must still do its job, but its job is be a useful and efficient container for something else. That “something else” is the “treasure.”
This verse explains the reason that we are to properly serve as Tupperware for God. The treasure is His power and glory, not ours. We don’t act as containers for our own enhancement. We aren’t full of our own achievements. We are to be useful domestic utensils for God’s purposes in His kitchen. He is the chef. He mixes the ingredients. He selects us and empties us when He has need for what we carry. Then we go back on the shelf, waiting to be refilled and used again.
Christians are the Tupperware of life. They are the containers for God’s glory. They are useful only when they are opened and emptied. There is nothing notable about their outward appearance. Just ordinary Tupperware in all sizes and shapes tossed into the bottom drawer until God needs to store something. Whenever Christians forget that they are oyster shells or clay pots, their usefulness is diminished. The desire to be a crystal vase is not part of the Christian message. Tupperware is good enough for God.
