Jefferson David Tant
The story is told of a rather rough, uncultured man whose attention was attracted by a beautiful vase in a shop window. Having bought it, he placed it on the mantle in his room. From his perch, it became a kind of judgment on its surroundings. The man then had to spruce up the room to make it worthy of the vase. The dirty old curtains were replaced. The worn chair had to be fixed. The walls and woodwork needed brightening. In time, the whole room was transformed.
In the same way, the gospel of Christ can work in our lives. As we take Christ into our lives, we begin to note certain things that do not measure up to the beauty that is within us. Careless habits are out of place, unwholesome thoughts need to be washed, improper language needs to be set right, questionable amusements need to be thrown out, selfish deeds and unkind words must all be replaced by those things which conform to that image we hold within our hearts, even the “new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him…” (Colossians 3:10).
So we must set our houses in order, and we can be thankful that goodness is contagious.
“But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work” (2 Tim. 2:20-21).
Are you a vessel for honor, or dishonor?
