"Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter, so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it." (Jeremiah 18:3-4). My question today to you is this: are you
the potter or are you the clay? I want to talk to you about the difference
between being the potter,the potter is the one who makes and forms the clay, and being the clay, that which is molded by the hands ofsomeone else. For whichever one you decide to be in your Christian life will determine whether you will be submissive to God and do whatever He wants you to or be stubborn and go your own way and do your own thing. Just like there can many servants but only one master there can also be many lumps of clay but only one potter to mold them. The Clay By definition, clay is nothing more than any earth that forms a paste with water and hardens when heated or dried. Since we were made from the dust of the ground I don't think that anyone would argue the point that we are the clay. (Genesis 2:7) And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. In order to make clay that is useable you have to start with just the right mixture of earth and water. If there is too much water in the clay and it is too wet it will not
harden. If it is too soft it will be too weak to hold up and nothing will be able to be formed from it. If it is too dry it will crumble and break apart and will be just as useless. There must be a perfect combination of the two ingredients in order for clay to be useful. This signifies spiritually that in order for man to live he must have a proper mixture of certain "ingredients" in his environment. Physically we need water, food, and air in order to survive. These are our most basic needs. We also need heat to keep us warm, light in order to see, clothes to protect our bodies and shelter to protect us from the elements. We must be able to sleep and eat in order to strengthen and nourish our bodies. Just like we need certain "ingredients" in our lives for our physical well-being we also need certain "ingredients" in our lives for
our spiritual existence and growth. Once you have mixed the right amounts of
both earth and water the clay must be kneaded or worked with the hands in order to incorporate the ingredients or mix them together. The reason for the kneading process is two- fold: You must get out all the air bubbles. Any
air pockets that are left in the clay will cause the piece to explode when it is
being fired in the kiln. Any grit or foreign particles that are left in the clay will create imperfections and cause the clay to weaken and to fall apart
when it is being thrown on the wheel. The potter can feel these in the clay as he works it with his hands. This signifies spiritually that in order to be used
of God, all the junk, all the imperfections, all the sin, all of self, must be gotten out of your life. God cannot use YOU if there is still some of YOU left in YOU. Only when you become an empty vessel can God fill you. If the Holy Spirit tries to fill your life and there are still some parts of YOU left in there then only part of Him will be able to fill you. Some of Him will still be
left outside. You will not be totally filled by the Holy Spirit and He will not have total control. You will still be in there interfering and resisting and trying to be in charge. It just won't work. In order for you to be
totally filled with the Holy Spirit, you must be totally empty of self. During the kneading process the clay is handled roughly by the potter as he works
out the impurities in it. At first the clay itself is abrasive and unresponsive but the more time the potter spends kneading it the more elastic and pliable it becomes. This implies spiritually that if we really do indeed want to be used of God then He has to put us through the kneading process. If we are responsive and yield to Him then it will be much easier for Him and easier on us. But the more we resist God the more roughly He has to deal with us. It is only when we finally submit to Him totally and willingly that His "kneading" of us becomes soothing and relaxing and we are healed in our spirit, too. God is the Potter. I don't think there is any doubt about that. If there is, look at Isaiah 64:8, "But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand." It couldn't be plainer. It is the potter who does the molding and shaping of the clay. He knows what He wants the finished product to be and look like. The clay is totally under his control. It has to be 100% yielded to him, not 50%, not even 99%. The clay MUST YIELD to the potter's hand if it is to become something useful. We yield to God by surrendering our will. The Finished Work: The potter has several choices to make while he is working with a piece of clay. He can finish the piece he started if he thinks that it is responding to his leading. He can reshape the piece he is working on as he goes along if he feels it would be better as something else. He can throw away an unresponsive piece of clay if he feels that it is not going to come out the way that he planned. (Isaiah 30:14) And he shall break it as the breaking of the potters' vessel that is broken in pieces; he shall not spare: so that there shall not be found in the bursting of it a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water withal out of the pit. This implies spiritually that sometimes we are going in one direction, serving the Lord, and we come to a place where we have to make a choice. God requires something extra of us to prove how much we love Him and are willing to serve Him. The Final Touches: It is the potter who decorates each piece and gives it its beauty. It must also be glazed for protection so that it doesn't become marred or damaged. (2 Timothy 2:20-21) But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. Spiritual application: Our decoration is the talents that God gives each of us. He gives these to us to be used not for selfish gain but for Him. He loans them to us. It has been said that if we don't use the talents God gives us then He will take them away from us. What talents do you have? You may not think you have any. But everyone has at least one. It may be an ability to pray. You say, "That's a talent?" Yes, it is. There are many things you can pray about and many people you can pray for.The last step is the firing process. The piece cannot be finished or used until it survives this final phase. The fire is needed to make the piece strong so it will last a long time. If there are still some tiny impurities in it that the potter couldn't get out then the piece will crack or explode and be useless. There will always be a test. God will always tests us with something that is very special to us or important in our lives. Why not allow God to mould your life.