From the very earliest account in the Bible, humanity is depicted as being as clay in God’s hands. We are His creation, created in His image and animated by His divine breath, His Spirit.
Adam.
The LORD God formed the man from the clay of the ground.
He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the man became a living being.
(Genesis 2:7)
Job.
Remember that you have made me like clay;
and will you return me to the dust?
(Job 10:9)
Elihu.
Behold, I am toward God as you are;
I too was pinched off from a piece of clay.
(Job 33:6)
Isaiah
O LORD, you are our Father and we are the clay,
You are our potter, we are all the work of your hand.
(Isaiah 64:8)
Jeremiah
As if to dispel any doubt, God makes it abundantly clear in this wonderful passage from Jeremiah, that He is the Potter and we are as clay in His hands.
“Arise, go down to the potter’s house and there I will let you hear my words.”
So I went to the potter’s house, where he was working at his wheel.
As the potter worked, the vessel of clay that he was making, was marred in his hand, so he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed best to the potter to do.
Then the word of the LORD came to me: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done?” declares the LORD. “Behold, like clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.”
(Jeremiah 18:2–6)
The clay was marred.
I once asked a potter, “How does clay become marred in a potter’s hands?” and received a quick and simple reply,
“Air bubbles and stones”.
I understood the lesson!
Like air bubbles and stones, there are two things that cause God’s plans for a disciple to be 'marred in His hands', weakness (lack of faith) and resistance (disobedience); this is true both individually and collectively.
God’s grace.
Please note that the potter did not discard the clay after it was marred in his hands. He made another vessel, the next best item he could make from that lump of clay.
God has wonderful plans for us. He wants to make the very best of what we offer him. He never discards a saint because of our weakness or resistance, he always makes the best of what we are willing to offer him.
We are as clay in his hands.
There has never been a better time to be a disciple of Jesus Christ!
Next question, What makes clay soft?
We will answer that question in my next article, “The Soft Clay”.
