An Inspiring Example: Lessons from the Potter and the Clay in Jeremiah
An Inspiring Example: Lessons from the Potter and the Clay in Jeremiah
The title of this article was inspired by readings in Jeremiah, chapters 18 and 19. In those chapters, two kinds of vessels are mentioned. The vessel in chapter 18 is still in the potter’s hands and can be reshaped. In contrast, the vessel in chapter 19 cannot be reshaped; it is broken and discarded.
In chapter 18, God invites Jeremiah to visit the potter’s workshop. Jeremiah watches the potter working on a vessel that becomes spoiled in his hands. The potter then remakes the vessel using the same clay, shaping it as he sees best. At that moment, the word of the Lord comes to Jeremiah: "This is what I will do if my people repent; tell this to the people." In other words, if the people repent, God will make them into a new vessel.
However, in chapter 19, Jeremiah is instructed to buy a potter’s jar. He is to announce to the people that God will bring a disaster on them like nothing they had ever seen before, because they had abandoned the Lord and defiled the place by burning incense to other gods. Jeremiah then breaks the jar in the presence of the men and declares: "This is how the Lord Almighty will shatter the people, and the jar cannot be remade."
In light of all this, Jeremiah had two significant reactions. The first, recorded in chapter 18, came when, under almost unbearable pressure, he expressed that God had deceived him. It seemed as though God had stepped away and left him alone. Jeremiah seemed to forget that God was still present, and he lost sight of the future hope that awaited him.
The second reaction, found in chapter 19, was a deep desire never to have been born. Jeremiah felt he would have preferred not to exist rather than witness a people who had abandoned the God who had never abandoned them.
His remarkable example helps us understand and endure the crises we face.
Antonio Mendes
Church and Ministry Leadership Consultant