This story of Jeremiah, it starts in a really strange way because how is it that we think that we hear God? We perhaps sometimes think we don’t hear God at all. Perhaps we just think, oh, he’s talking to other people, but he’s not talking to me.
But he talks to Jeremiah in a way, first off, and basically says to him, go to the potter’s, go to the potter’s home.
Now I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get an image in my head or a sense that I need to be somewhere. And I suspect that’s what’s going on here. I suspect Jeremiah didn’t get a voice that he could hear saying, go to the potter’s home. I suspect what happened was he had a sense that he needed God, wanted him to be somewhere. And as I said, I suspect all of us have been in that same place.
He goes to the potter’s home, open minded. What am I doing here, God? What is it that you want me to do at this potter’s home? Jeremiah is the man who’s used by God to announce the arrival of Jesus, the forthcoming arrival of Jesus. What’s he doing in the potter’s home?
And he stands there and he watches, and he watches that pot being formed beautifully, the skill of the potter, those gentle hands just teasing a beautiful pot out of a blob of clay. And then perhaps to his dismay, watches as that pot breaks.
Because there’s a, there’s a problem with it, there’s a grain of sand in it, there’s a piece of straw in it, it’s not how it’s meant to be. And the thing that was beautiful all of a sudden is back to being a blob of clay again, ready to be reformed.
Now God’s message that is clear to Jeremiah is that it’s for the people of Israel what he’s saying to the people of Israel. And the Old Testament’s full of it.
Look, just do the things that I asked you to do and be the people that I want you to be. And if you’re not, then I’m going to take control and I’m going to make you into those people. And if you do it wrong again, I’m going to do the same thing again and again and again. And the Old Testament is that story.
It’s that story of the people of Israel just getting it wrong constantly, God forgiving them, bringing them back to a point of perfection again. And then entrusting them through their own free will to do the right thing. And you think, well, okay, I get it.
I get if we do the wrong thing, then God can put us back together again. That kind of feels like a bit of a negative story for us. The message for us today.
But I think the message is much more beautiful than that. I think the message for today is something about this. Each of us has the capacity to do something amazing. And what do you think the reason is that we choose not to do something amazing? Because we’re afraid of failure. We’re afraid to look foolish more often than not.
The reason you don’t step out, the reason you don’t respond to that little voice in your head or in your heart is because you doubt it. You doubt yourself that you’re hearing God clearly and therefore you just walk past.
I’m exactly the same. This isn’t about you, it’s about us. But this message is a message of hope. Because God doesn’t want you to walk past. But when you do, he doesn’t slay you. He doesn’t tell you off. What he does is he takes that mistake like that piece of clay, bundles it back up again and says, go again. He loves each one of us so much that he. He just wants us to be the people that we can be.
My piece of ginger, which was meant to look like my grandson, he just takes back on board, unlike Colin and others, just reshaped into love, into a heart. Each one of us has that opportunity. And what we need to do is not be afraid to step out when we get that sense that we’re meant to be doing something.
Because like as not, we may get it wrong. But that’s not the problem. The problem only arises when we choose not to do anything about it. If we do get it wrong, we’ve got that wonderful safety net. The Potter is waiting for us. And he turns our mistake back into love of him again. And off we go again.
Can we be brave? Can we trust that our lives are in the Potter’s hands? That when we get those chances we can venture out, we can go into the scary places and do the things that he wants us to do, knowing always that he’s there. And if we get it wrong, he loves us and we can go again.
Amen.
Further Study
Reading
Jeremiah 18:1–11
2 Corinthians 4:7–10
Ponder
Reflect on a time when you sensed God prompting you to act, speak, or step into something new. How did you respond?
What fears most often hold you back from stepping out in faith—fear of failure, of looking foolish, of letting others down?
How does the image of clay in the potter’s hands speak into your own life story?
Scripture Exploration
In Jeremiah 18:1–6, what does the imagery of the potter and the clay reveal about God’s sovereignty and care?
How does the reworking of the clay (when it’s spoiled) illustrate God’s patience and ongoing commitment to his people?
In 2 Corinthians 4:7–10, Paul describes believers as “jars of clay.” How does this expand the theme—fragility held within God’s power?
Personal Reflection
What theological principles about forgiveness and second chances can be drawn from the potter reshaping the clay?
How do you understand the relationship between God’s sovereignty and your own free will in this image?
Where have you experienced God taking failure or weakness in your life and reshaping it into something new?
Personal Application
What practical step could you take this week to trust the “little nudges” of God, even if you’re unsure where they will lead?
Identify one fear that regularly holds you back. What would it look like to bring that fear honestly before God in prayer?
Think of someone in your community who feels like they’ve “failed” or been “spoiled clay.” How might you encourage them with the hope of being reshaped by the Potter’s love?
Plan one small, brave action you will take in the coming days—something you might normally avoid out of fear of getting it wrong. Afterwards, reflect on how God met you in that step.
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