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Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Vessel of Honor {2 Timothy 1 - 2}


Tuesday, December 4, 2018


What is a vessel?  A vessel is a container designed to hold something, or a large boat or ship designed to carry something overseas, or a tube or canal in which body fluid is circulated and conveyed to the whole body.  Man was created as a vessel designed to contain, carry and convey God!

 Image result for 2 timothy 2:20-21


I spent a great deal of time researching what it means to be a vessel of honor.  I ran into several blog posts about being vessels of clay and how God molds and makes us, which is true,  and we can’t argue with the potter (Romans 9:20-21).  But, go back and read Romans 9:20-21 “But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?”  We are vessels of clay, but we are destined for honor and glory. 

Continue reading in Romans 9:23… we are vessels of mercy.  God had mercy on us because He destined us to be His containers!

What makes us an honorable vessel?  Paul tells Timothy to keep himself pure.  God uses cleansed people who flee from sin and pursue godliness.  You get to choose the type of vessel you will be.  Do you want to be a gold or silver vessel, used for honor, or will you be a cheap clay pot, used for dishonor? 

God uses evil people for His righteousness.  He used Judas in His plan of putting Jesus on the cross.  And Acts 27-28 says, “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.”

Proverbs 16:4 also says, “The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil.”

Please don’t allow yourself to think, “we are just robots!”  We have a choice.  We are accountable for our choice – either become a filthy vessel that God uses for dishonor or a clean vessel that God uses for honor.

I have been in a state of what I call ‘stale bread'.  I seem to be standing still and not going anywhere, yet if you know me, I am busier than I was when all my kids were in school!  So what’s going on you ask?  I began asking the Lord to show me what was keeping me from moving forward?  I asked Him what was stopping me from reaching His purpose for my life.  I’ll have to admit, it’s taken a long time for me to understand, but He has been slowly showing me what has been keeping me unclean.

Whether or not you are at this point in your life or not, you will come to a point that you need to go deeper in your relationship with the Lord.  Jesus is coming back soon! Are you waiting on God to do something amazing in your life prior to Jesus’ return?  Well then, now is a good time to prepare yourself to be that honorable vessel that God can use.

You have to empty yourself before Him and be honest where you are – with EVERYTHING!  God is good and He knows everything about you, but you have to come clean before Him yourself.

“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!”  2 Corinthians 13:5

I hate to say this, but there are a lot of people walking this earth on the wide road, and they don’t even know it.  And it all because of iniquity.

The Lord knows who is His (2 Timothy 2:19).  Iniquity is hidden sin and wickedness.  Most Christians think that wickedness is only for sinners, yet there Christians who proclaim to know Christ, yet still choose to do the same evil things that the world does and act like nothing is wrong with it.  We are supposed to be set apart from the world.  Romans 12:2 warns us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”.
 
It doesn’t matter how long you have been saved, you have to empty yourself of iniquity or you will not be an honorable vessel that God can use.  Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:21-23   21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

This may be the time for you to do a heart check.  If we are to be Christ’s lights on this earth, but you are still playing with darkness, how do you think others will see the light?  If it’s time to go deeper in your relationship with God, it’s time to let go of things that could hinder you from becoming an honorable vessel that God can use for His glory.

The King James Version uses the term purge in verse 2:21.  In other words, you and I have to purge ourselves from anything that is not like the Lord within us as we work towards doing what He has called us to do.  If we don’t purge, then we hinder our effectiveness. 

Sisters, let me make myself clear here, there is no way around this, you have to pour yourself out to God and examine your heart before Him on a continual basis.  It is not a one-time deal.  If you are honest, there are some things you already know about, but there might also be some things that may be setting you back from accomplishing God’s will that you are unaware of.  So I encourage you to humble yourself and go to Him to see if there’s anything hidden within your heart that needs to be cleansed and purified today.  He wants to make you an honorable vessel that He can use.  But you need to keep the lines of communication open, or you may become “stale bread”.  Or as Paul says, a “cheap vessel for everyday use”.

I’ll tell you something, once you rid yourself of the unforgiveness, hatred, jealousy, backbiting, lustful thoughts, sexual immorality, disobedience, pride, etc., anything that is displeasing to the Lord, He cannot use you until you come to Him with a clean heart.  God has a purpose for your life, but you cannot do it with a full heart – full of things that you know are displeasing to the Lord. 

Gold and silver will never disintegrate – clay will return to dust.  As we begin this advent season and we prepare for the coming of Immanuel, let us purge our hearts and become the gold and silver vessels that can carry Christ to others.