One day, the Lord told the prophet Jeremiah to go the potter’s house and watch him at his work. There was a lesson God wanted Jeremiah to learn and a message he wanted him to hear. He told Jeremiah, “And there I will cause you to hear my words” (Jeremiah 18:1).
So Jeremiah did as he was told and found the potter working with a lump of clay on the wheels. He watched as the master craftsman worked the clay with his gentle touch. He noted how the clay responded to the potter’s hand and began to take on a new form.
Then everything stopped! Something had gone wrong. The potter had detected an imperfection in the clay. A small pebble. A grain of sand. Something that didn’t belong. Jeremiah noted, “The vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter” (Jeremiah 18:4a).
Though marred, it was still in the potter’s hand. Jeremiah watched in wonder as the potter sat on his bench looking at the marred lump of clay in his hand. What would he do? Toss it aside as inferior and start with a new lump? No. As Jeremiah watched, the potter began to work out the imperfection. He then, “made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it” (Jeremiah 18:4b).
As Jeremiah stood pondering what he had just seen, the word of the Lord came to Him, “Cannot I do with you as this potter?” (Jeremiah 18:6).
The answer, of course, is yes! The moment you put your life in God’s hands, He begins working out His wonderful plan. As the Master Potter God begins to work out His dream for your life. But then our imperfections rise to the surface. That temper. Those doubts that seem to plague us. That bad habit we cannot seem to shake. A temporary setback. Every imperfection is detected by the hand of God.
That would be the end of the story if it wasn’t for the grace of God. So what does the Master Potter do with marred vessels? He lovingly and patiently works out the imperfections and goes back to work making them into vessels of honor (2 Timothy 2:21).
That is God’s plan for you! And He is committed to accomplishing that work. “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” (Philippians 1:6). With God, marred vessels can be remade!
Pastor Todd Weston
So Jeremiah did as he was told and found the potter working with a lump of clay on the wheels. He watched as the master craftsman worked the clay with his gentle touch. He noted how the clay responded to the potter’s hand and began to take on a new form.
Then everything stopped! Something had gone wrong. The potter had detected an imperfection in the clay. A small pebble. A grain of sand. Something that didn’t belong. Jeremiah noted, “The vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter” (Jeremiah 18:4a).
Though marred, it was still in the potter’s hand. Jeremiah watched in wonder as the potter sat on his bench looking at the marred lump of clay in his hand. What would he do? Toss it aside as inferior and start with a new lump? No. As Jeremiah watched, the potter began to work out the imperfection. He then, “made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it” (Jeremiah 18:4b).
As Jeremiah stood pondering what he had just seen, the word of the Lord came to Him, “Cannot I do with you as this potter?” (Jeremiah 18:6).
The answer, of course, is yes! The moment you put your life in God’s hands, He begins working out His wonderful plan. As the Master Potter God begins to work out His dream for your life. But then our imperfections rise to the surface. That temper. Those doubts that seem to plague us. That bad habit we cannot seem to shake. A temporary setback. Every imperfection is detected by the hand of God.
That would be the end of the story if it wasn’t for the grace of God. So what does the Master Potter do with marred vessels? He lovingly and patiently works out the imperfections and goes back to work making them into vessels of honor (2 Timothy 2:21).
That is God’s plan for you! And He is committed to accomplishing that work. “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” (Philippians 1:6). With God, marred vessels can be remade!
Pastor Todd Weston
