“The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: ‘ “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” ‘ Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. And the vessel that he made of clay was]marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: ‘ “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” ‘ says the Lord. ‘ “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel” ‘ ” ‘ ” ‘ ” (Jeremiah 18:1-6)!
Heavenly Father, we are depending on You to be our teacher as we seek to learn lessons to help us in our Christian journey, by visiting the House of the Divine Potter. In the name of Jesus Christ we humbly pray. Amen.
As we make several visits to the Divine Potter’s House you may notice lessons being taught in the lives of some of the people we have mentioned in other devotionals. That will occur, when there is something that deals directly with the lesson for the day. (e.g., Samson and David in yersterday’s devotional).
Today we will look at another lesson.
Lesson No. 2: The Divine Potter will make you into another vessel as it seems best to Him. Let us go to a passage of Scripture that I believe will serve the purpose of explaining this process,
“But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine”.
Jacob was created by God, as we all are. Even before he came into the world, he was marred (As a twin he held on to his twin brother’s heel, trying to come out of his mother’s womb before his brother). Many people are marred by their progenitors, ancestors, prenatal influences, their environment, and the list could get very long. Even before we can make certain decisions for ourselves the tendencies to decide, were passed on to many of us, whether biologically, or by learned behavior. (We see these deceptive behaviors, in his uncle Laban, and in his mother)!
Even under these predisposed conditions, we have been equipped by God who loves us and wants us to be saved, with the gift of free will. Even if we are wired a certain way, at any point, we are free to choose God’s way!
God also formed Jacob after he came out of his mother’s womb marred. He did not force the forming to take place, but followed and watched over him as he fled, until the time was right. Many years after deceiving his father, and fleeing from the wrath of his brother, as he made his way back home, the Lord engaged Jacob in battle and allowed Jacob to confess his real name, forgave him, and redeemed him (spared his life – he saw God, and did not die) and then called him by a name of God’s choosing- Israel-Prince, who fought with God and man, and prevailed! And because of his promise that he made to God,
“Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God” (Genesis 28:20, 21, emphasis supplied).
God had answered Jacob’s prayer, and Jacob kept his vow to God. Before: God was referred to as the God of Abraham and Isaac. “Then Jacob said, ‘ “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’ ” ‘ “: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies” ‘ ” ‘ ” (Genesis 9, 10, emphasis supplied).
God had done for Jacob abundantly above what he had requested of God, and after that night of wrestling, with his nature changed (deceiver) which led to a change in name (Prince), he would now keep his promise to God, and receive Him as his God. After: “[T]hat they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you” (Exodus 4:5, emphasis supplied).
Therefore, God could say of Jacob, You are mine!
The Potter had made another vessel as it seemed good to the Divine Potter to make!
NOTE: I have divided a paragraph and added two additional paragraphs to this devotional that I believe will make the lesson more evident. I encourage you to read it once more.