Clay Vessels

Leviticus 4-6; Acts 14 

“’Whatever touches any of the flesh will become holy…The clay pot the meat is cooked in must be broken…’”

Leviticus 6:27, 28

Anything the sacrifices on the altar touched became holy. They could not be used later for common purposes. Clay pots or dishes used to eat the food offered on the altar during the Jewish feasts, had to be broken, even when that meant hundreds of thousands of dishes in a place like Shiloh. Halfway between Ramallah and Nablus, the historic site of Shiloh has been discovered. For hundreds of years, hundreds of thousands of people would gather at Shiloh, the place of the tabernacle to worship the Lord and offer sacrifices. This site was recently identified by the huge amount of broken clay dishes in the area. Paul described us as clay vessels when he wrote, “we have this treasure in jars of clay,” describing how our bodies contain the very presence and glory of God (2 Corinthians 4:7). We offer our bodies to the Lord as “living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God” (Romans 12:1). Like the broken clay dishes which have been made holy by the altar-sacrifice of Christ, we have been set apart, made holy unto the Lord.

Does this describe how we treat our body?

“Lord Jesus, I offer this clay vessel to you for your glory.”