The Potter And The Clay

Jeremiah 18:1-6

18 The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, ² “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” ³ So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. ⁴ But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over.

⁵ Then the Lord gave me this message: ⁶ “O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand.

Everything from IKEA comes in a box. You march through the store and find what you want, all put together and looking great. You take a card and wind your way through the maze until you reach the warehouse section. You find the number on the card and pull down a box with a picture on it. This picture represents what is in the box, but in pieces. You go home and follow the instructions to the best of your ability, but something is missing, or you put it together wrong. This starts the undoing of all your work and the process of starting over. The instructions must be followed to the letter, they say, so that you don’t miss anything.

The Israelites had the instruction manual. Moses had written it down straight from the Lord at Mount Sinai. By the time Jeremiah came on the scene, the people of Israel had little interest in following the law. In fact, most of the kings, from Saul all the way up to the king during Jeremiah’s time, were evil and cared little for God’s law. When they followed the law, all was good, and God blessed them. But when they did not follow the law, Israel was attacked from within and outside by all kinds of things. From family squabbles to foreign kings, Israel seemed to be under the punishment the Lord had laid out for them through Moses. Jeremiah was the prophet—their last chance to repent, before the Lord exiled the entire country to Babylon.

This prophecy from the Lord explains an often confusing truth most of us don’t want to hear. In Genesis, it tells us that the Lord God made the heavens and the earth. He created man and woman to subdue the earth and rule over it. When Adam and Eve sinned, they handed over that dominion to Satan in the garden. Ever since then, it has been a challenge for sinful man to reclaim what was lost, until Jesus came and died on the cross. Having received the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 2, we now can possess the dominion that Satan stole from us. The confusing part is that we are still clay in the Father’s hands, molded for His will. Yet, like the Israelites, we often want to do things our way. The funny thing is that we seem to think we can override the Lord God and do things our way because we know better. Isaiah 45:9 tells us:

“What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’? Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’”

Choosing to follow Christ means believing you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Christ is not a ticket to heaven you can purchase. The people of Israel must have thought this way because they did the bare minimum under the law, assuming, We are God’s chosen people, and He will protect us from all things, all while they sinned uncontrollably.

Today, realize you are the clay, and He is the potter. He is shaping you into something great. He has plans to prosper you and give you a future. He wants to bless you as a father blesses and loves his own children. He sent His Son to pay the ultimate price for all our sins so we could be with Him for eternity. Stop doing things your way and give it all to the Lord. I can guarantee that the piece of furniture you bought from IKEA will not turn out the way the picture looks if you don’t use the instructions. God gave us the instructions, the Bible. Get into it daily, and the Lord will begin to put you back together the way He intended you to be.

Prayer: Father, help us stop doing things our way. Help us stay determined to be under Your will in all areas of our lives. Help us to read and understand the Bible daily so You can transform our lives into the beautiful creation You intended us to be. In Jesus’ name, amen.