May 21 Daily Devotional

Monthly Theme:

These readings focus on the Holy Spirit. In the Old Covenant (or Testament), the Spirit "anoints" one person here and one there to perform a special work for God. In the New Covenant, the Spirit is "poured out" like rain on the whole church of Christ.

Bible Reading:

2 Corinthians 4:7–15

Bible Text:

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God (2 Cor. 4: 7).

Devotional:

As soon as we claim that in Jesus and by his Spirit we have touched the glory of God and are being changed from glory to glory, some people who know us begin to smile. They don't think we are that glorious.

Therefore we add an explanation (not a disclaimer): We carry the glory of God in a clay jar. Pardon our appearance.

Because of our weak human nature, we are still subject to all the limitations and irritations that come with our present form of existence. We have mood swings, upset stomachs, and character flaws. And we are slowly falling apart. Clay jars.

But no one has a right to say that the gospel is not true just because we appear so frail.

Our weakness shows that "this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." If my smallness bothers you, don't say you cannot believe the greatness of the God of which I sing. If a Christian's lackluster life annoys you, he may still be correct when he says his eyes have seen the glory of the Lord. The big word of the gospel is grace. Therefore the unglamorous are chosen, the unlovely are loved, and ordinary clay jars are filled with the glory of God.

The glory is always from God. If we ourselves shine too much, we might be guilty of self-advertisement. Persons and churches who are impressed with themselves detract from the glory of God.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published in 1994. This edition is copyright by Faith Alive Christian Resources, from whom may be ordered Daylight, the predecessor of Twilight.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this edition of Twilight are from the New International Version

Be sure to read the "Preface" and the "Acknowledgments" by the author.