Daily Devotional

A Ministry of the Kerwin Baptist Church

May 24, 2018

by Pastor Hawtree

I AM PERSUADED THAT HE IS ABLE:

TO BE THE POTTER (part 2)

Jeremiah 18:1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.

The first thing we see in this passage is the POTTER:
We discussed this subject thoroughly in the last devotional. We have already established the roles we each have in this illustration. God is the Potter, and we are the clay. So, we need to keep that in mind as we look at this passage. God is represented by the Potter in this story, and you and I are the vessel that is being formed.

The second thing we see in this passage is the PLAN:
“He wrought a work”. That is the plan. For God the “Potter” to make us into what He wants us to be. We see here that He does the work, not us. The Potter is the one in control. It even says in verse six of this passage, “so are ye in mine hand”. Look at this verse:

Romans 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?

You see, in this story, the potter had already envisioned what he wanted vessel to be, and God already has a plan for your life, and my life. The potter, here, had a reason for every action, and that reason was to make it according to his plan for that vessel. The vessel had no say so in what it wanted to be. We are to be formed according to His plan, not ours.

The third thing we see in this passage is the PROCESS:

He wrought a work “on the wheels”. The wheels were rough and hard. The wheels provided friction. The potter controls the wheels, and he controls the vessel. The potter knows how fast to turn the wheel, how much friction needs to be applied to the clay, and how hard or soft he needs to touch it with his hands. This is what God does to us. It is never fun for us to be on the wheel, to feel the friction, to be molded and changed, but it is necessary. It may be that you are on his wheels today. Maybe God is applying pressure or friction in your life currently. I know it is not a fun process, but we would never be changed without it. We would never become a useful vessel without friction. We would never be molded without pressure. Trust God’s “process”. He has a reason for everything He is doing.