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Clay People

...for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. (Genesis 3:19)

...we have this treasure in earthen vessels. (II Corinthians 4:7)

What a difference in the person who has God-confidence! He is certain of victory because he's absolutely sure of the victor!

But WHAT are you really? Ask your doctor, he'll tell you one thing. Ask your science professor, he'll tell you another. Ask the chemist and he will tell you something else. But ask God and God will tell you that you are the creation of His hands. You are the apple of His eye. You are the pride of His heart - the choice object of His eternal love. That's what YOU are to God!

But just like you and me, the prophet Jeremiah wrestled with this whole concept of man. What is he? Where is he going? Jeremiah was especially disturbed over the fact that God's people had deaf ears and hard hearts.

So God spoke to Jeremiah:

Go down to the potter's house, Jeremiah. Watch him work. And learn a lesson. (See Jeremiah 18:2)

Many songs and sermons have come from this text about the potter and the clay.

It is still a beautiful story.

Pottery is a science of man rather than of manufacturing. The potter himself is the most important element. The clay next. And God says, "I am the Potter. You are the clay."

Clay is a mixture of common earth and silica. It is the presence of silica which makes clay something more than common earth. Man began with dust, but breathed upon by God's Spirit, he became a living soul.

There are, however, at least seven steps by which God prepares the basic elements of the very essence of humankind as they relate to the potter's craft.

1. Clay must be crushed. We, too, must be made pliable in the hands of God. The crushing process is not easy. But it is not until the flaws have been removed that we are suitable material for the potter's skill.

2. It takes time. Some wish for the potter to get on with the work. We want perfection and artistry now, but the process all takes time.

3. He squeezes out excess water. The potter can make no use of clay which is too moist. One of the most difficult of all life's lessons is this matter of excess. Zeal is good, but it must be tempered. So many of our virtues abort themselves when permitted to run wild. God has methods for squeezing out the excesses.

4. The process of isolation is a painful necessity. The potter isolates the clay, hiding it away for a time, so that it might acquire its true texture. It could well be that the dark corner where you are now isolated is only preparation for a spot in the sun. Don't despise isolation. Moses spent forty years in the wilderness. Elijah walked and talked with God in the solitude of the desert. John the Baptist discovered faith in the mountains.

5. The creation process is now only ready to be finalized. Once the clay is textured, once the basic materials are ready, then the potter creates.

I watched part of this process once at a potter's house in East Liverpool, Ohio.

First, the spinning wheel.
Then, the master's hand: smoothing, lifting, shaping, forming.
The wheel turns fast.
Miraculously, the pottery takes shape.
A vessel tall, a vessel short, a vessel with a handle. Individual.
Each standing alone.
Each a work of art.

So it is with your life and mine - a unique creation.

6. The fire must temper it. Green pottery, or freshly created pottery, must yet be fired. Otherwise, it is useless. Our faith too must be tried as by fire. It's the furnace of life that tempers us. The Bible promises you and me - though you are tried as by fire, you shall come forth as pure gold. (Zechariah 13:9)

7. The finishing touches can only come from the Master Potter's hands. After the clay has been prepared, the vessel has been formed, after the fire has made it strong, then the master potter picks up the brush and adds color as beautiful as the rainbow - color soft as a rising sun.

CONCLUSION:

Clay people? Earthen vessels? Created from dust and returning to dust? Yes, but we can have this eternal treasure of salvation in an earthen vessel.

But it is up to us whether that earthen vessel is a vessel of honor or a vessel of dishonor.

God is not searching in this moment for golden vessels, or silver vessels, or ornamental vessels, but He is searching for clean vessels to fill with the oil of the anointing of His Holy Spirit!

Have Thine Own Way, Lord,
Have Thine Own Way.
Thou Art The Potter,
I Am The Clay.
Hold O’er My Being,
Absolute Sway.
Mold Me And Make Me,
After Thy Will,
While I Am Waiting,
Yielded and Still.

Feedback

Great article. Simple yet very profound. Touched me. Yes, that's what we are – earthen vessels filled with God’s love and grace. I cherish these treasures forever. I've seen such treasured earthen vessels - people like yourself. You’ve enriched my life by allowing me into your circle of friends.

Pastor Moses Choudary
Hyderabad, India

Enjoy your writings very much. They are to the point and you can relate to everyday life situations.

Helen (Carden) Petty
Cleveland, Tennessee

Good morning, Sir! Whenever I am down I receive an email from you. When I read your emails, it lifts up my spirit. Thank you.

Michelle Riaz
South Africa

Carl, thanks for your ministry. Through the years, you have been a source of inspiration and challenge to me. Keep up the good stuff - people like me, broken clay pots - need an occasional reminder that God is still working on us - painful though it may be!

Pastor Toby Morgan
Sumiton, Alabama

Once again you have touched the heart of the matter! What an amazing truth that He who could dwell anywhere has chosen the dust of the earth as home for His heart. It is "Christ in us" that holds me in awe! It is humbling, yet it is exhilarating! It is too glorious to comprehend, yet so simple my five year grandson knows Christ lives in him. Thanks for reminding me and thanks for your writings. They are always food for my soul and drink for my spirit

Pastor John Watford
North Carolina

Wonderful! I tend to romanticize the notion of the "potter and the clay" because it is such a beautiful process to observe. But, oh my! Being the clay is often painful - all that stretching and pulling and waiting and heat. I have the assurance, though, that it will all be worth the willingness to let Him shape my life. I constantly have to be reminded to let Him do what He needs to do in order for me to be that vessel of humility and honor. And in the end, I pray He will be pleased to be my Maker.

Dee Yoder
Mansfield, Ohio

I completely agree with this word. I have been encouraging my congregation for weeks with a simple theme: "instead of seeing how much more we can hold on to, let’s try turning loose of some things we don't need and holding tighter to God’s unchanging hand.”

Pastor Don Horton
Brandon, Florida

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