In Psalm 8, David is writing a statement about to how big God is and how puny we are. Yet, God has graciously crowned you and I with glory and honor and has set us to rule over his Creation. David says in verse 3 and 4, ““3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him?”
When he wrote these words, I picture him alone somewhere on the backside of a mountain, laying on his back and looking up at the heavens and gazing at the moon and stars. And as he does, he’s thinking to himself, “Jehovah God, in light of the mighty works of your fingers, what could possibly be the significance of my life?”
As I thought of David writing this Psalm, I remembered that my grandmother used to have a little plaque by her front door that said, “Only one life, twil soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.” And I think that statement says it well. The significance of my life and your life can only be measured in light of our relationship with God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ. And when we seek to live in the light of the purpose God has intended for our lives, then will we know the significance of our lives.
The message today is one I think my son Josh will relate to well. If you don’t know, Josh is a tremendously gifted blacksmith, and I would go as far as to say probably one of the best in the country. There are a lot of similarities in what a Potter Does and What a Blacksmith Does.
Jeremiah 18:1-6, “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. 4 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. 5 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.”
The Potter’s Mission
He doesn’t just sit down at the potter’s wheel and do nothing. Before he ever sits down, he has in mind whatever it is that he wants to make – he doesn’t just make things on a whim. He sits down with a goal, with a purpose in mind. He realizes there is a need, and he sets out to meet that need. And you can rest assured that whatever he is doing is something that can be used. So, the Potter has a mission, and his mission is to make something useful out of this worthless lump of clay!
I don’t need to remind you this morning that you and I are just lumps of clay. Before God ever formed you in your mother’s womb, he had a mission for your life in mind. His mission is this – He sees a need in the world, and He has formed you and I so we can help fulfill His mission in the world. I’m so thankful this morning that when God looks at me and He looks at you, He sees something that He can use to achieve His purpose!
And what is His purpose? “That none should perish but that all should come to repentance!”
SO understand with me, I have no issue with people setting goals, and I have no issue with people achieving goals, just don’t forget that in the process of living your daily life, He created us for a purpose, and that purpose is to share the message of Hope to a Hopeless world, our message of forgiveness for the unforgiveable. Folks, that’s why we are here.
THE POTTER’S MATERIAL
What does he have to work with? CLAY. And what is CLAY? Well, it’s mud. It’s dirt with a little water added! Now, God formed man from what? The dust of the earth. So, to get the clay that He needs, the potter is going have to go dig up some dirt, he’s going to have to get dirty in order to get the material He needs to fulfill his purpose. Listen, the Psalmist David said “He inclined unto me and heard my cry, he came down into the pit, out of the MIRY CLAY, and set his feet on what? THE ROCK and established my goings.”
But the clay isn’t ready yet. To make something to fulfill the Potter’s purpose, he has to prepare the material. In forming the clay, the potter then begins to remove all the rocks and sticks and debris that keep the clay from forming. Then he puts the clay under “running water.” And as the is running it under the water, it begins to remove the imperfections he couldn’t see from inside the clay!
Listen folks, if we are going to be used fully to complete the purpose in our lives, we are going to have to be cleaned from the inside out!
THE POTTER’S METHODS
When he is ready, he will reach where all those clay balls are sitting, he will pick the one He needs for that purpose, and he will throw that clay up onto the Potter’s wheels (not 1 wheel, but 2 wheels – 1 for the clay and one for the potter’s feet). He is controlling the speed of the wheel. The spinning wheel represents the circumstances in life. Let me ask you something, “Have you ever felt like your life was spinning out of control? Let me remind you that YOU ARE STILL IN THE POTTER’S HANDS and HIS FEET ARE ON THE WHEEL, AND HE KNOWS HOW FAST YOU CAN. But don’t forget, He is always in control.
As that clay is spinning on the wheel, he is thinking to himself, this is going to be a bowl, or this is going to be a plate, or this is going to be a cup. He doesn’t wait until the clay tells him what it wants to be. Or no friend, He is forming that clay into the purpose he intended it to be.
You know, the interesting thing here is, that when God is forming us, He never shows us the end of the road does He? He just shows us the next step. Many of us will never get to the end of the road; for some of us, all we may have left is the next step. But when you’re allowing God to form you on the Potter’s wheel and have faith that the next step is what He has for you, the NEXT STEP is all you need.
THE MIRACLE
The miracle is simple, the Potter made something out of nothing. The Potter has taken this ole mired piece of Clay and made something out of nothing!
Fighting for My Pea Patch 