The Vision of the Potter

by Mark Waters

"The Lord is looking for an earthen vessel through which he can put on display the excellencies of His Son."

he word is filled with the revelation of God. In it He reveals himself in various ways. He shows himself as our creator, our redeemer, our savior, our bridegroom, our priest, and even as a farmer. There are others, and in each one we get a vital glimpse of who God is. He wants to be seen for who He is. He wants to be known. He yearns for a people who will know Him intimately.

The story of the potter's house begins with the phrase; "The word which came to Jeremiah FROM THE LORD." How important that phrase is. 1 Samuel 3:1 says; "The word of the Lord was precious (rare) in those days and there was no open vision." O, how much we need the word of the Lord for our day! Something is working in the Lord's heart and He wants to make it known. We need to know and hear the word of the Lord. How vital it is that we are hearing the thing that is on the Lord's heart at this present time.

In this case, the thing that was on the Lord's heart had something to do with a potter. The Lord wanted to reveal himself to Jeremiah as a potter. He needed a fresh unveiling of the Lord in a way that would address the need of time in which he lived. So, the Lord directed Jeremiah to go down to the potter's house, and said, "I will cause thee to hear my words."

No doubt under the present state of things amongst the Lord's people, Jeremiah is needing encouragement concerning the Lord's purpose and intent. When Jeremiah went to the potter's house, he saw him working on the potter's wheel, forming a vessel. The potter's focus is a vessel. He yearns to have and make a vessel. That is what a potter does. Some have said that art is a form of self expression for the artist. When his work is viewed, you get a glimpse of the one who made it. An artist wants to create something in which his own skill and artistic creativity can be seen. He takes a shapeless lump of clay and forms out of it a vessel through which something of himself can be expressed and seen. The potter's preoccupation is in having a vessel. In these verses, the Lord shows us what this vessel represents. This vessel is the Lord's people. They were to serve the Lord as a vessel through which His greatness would be seen. They were to be a people formed by His own hand, as a clay pot for the potters use.

Today God is still desirous to have a vessel. In 2 Corinthians 4:6, 7 Paul shows that God wants a vessel in which he can put his treasure. He's looking for an earthen vessel through which he can put on display the excellencies of His Son. He desires to put his glory in an earthen vessel in order to show forth the greatness of who He is. This is the word of the Lord to Jeremiah. The purpose of the Lord has to do with having a people that will bear the testimony of Jesus, through which the world can see who God is.

"Christ will not be alone! He will have companions with Him in His heavenly calling."

When God wants to move, he always first apprehends a vessel. When he wanted to take the land of Canaan, he took hold of a man named Abraham. When the world faced a seven year crisis, he called a man named Joseph and sent him as a prepared vessel before them to preserve life. When he wanted to deliver his people from Egypt, he apprehended a man named Moses. When the lamp of God was about to go out, he made himself known to a boy named Samuel. When God wanted to reveal Himself in fullness and redeem mankind, the word was made flesh and dwelt among us; He sent His Son.

The purpose of God always requires a vessel and the potter is so determined to have this vessel, that when it is marred, he doesn't give up. He remakes it. This is the word of the Lord Jeremiah needed to hear; the potter MUST have a vessel. The purpose of God demands that there be a vessel for the potter. When he went to the house, what did he see? "Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, He wrought a work on the wheels." Notice the phrase; "Behold, he…". There is something he was to see. "Don't miss this Jeremiah; this is what you are to see." He saw a potter making a vessel.

The Lord is at the potter's wheel today and He is making a vessel that will show forth His glory. He will not be without it. The word of God speaks of "Christ and his companions." Christ will not carry on the purpose of God alone. The book of Revelation shows Christ having overcome as a man and exalted to the highest place, then it speaks of "they that are with him." The longing of God is that there will be many sons joined to THE Son, who will participate WITH Him in the fulfillment of the Father's purpose. Christ will not be alone! He will have companions with Him in His heavenly calling. He will not give up on his intent on having this corporate vessel no matter how hopeless things appear amongst His people.

It is the enemy's intent to destroy this vessel and hinder the work of the Spirit so that there will NEVER be a corporate vessel prepared for the Master's glory. He works to frustrate the purpose of God with the hope that there will NEVER be companions with Christ in the heavenly calling. In the midst of all that the enemy seeks to do to abort God's purpose in a people, the Lord would take us to the potter's house to show us the word of the Lord. The word of the Lord is a fresh revelation of Himself to our hearts. Jeremiah went down to the house to see the word of the Lord and he saw a person; a Potter relentlessly forming a vessel for Himself.