Lessons Learned from the Potter - Jeremiah 18:1-6

Introduction

In his book “In the Master’s Hands” Phillip Keller tells a story while visiting the Pathan people in the rugged terrain of Pakistan’s Khyber Pass of a humble potter’s demonstration of the divine drama of transformation. His ancient craft, unchanged across millennia, he illuminates an eternal truth: God is perpetually at work, pressing, pulling, and perfecting His people into vessels of value.

Over the next couple of months I wish to explore seven profound places in the Potter’s process the Lord so graciously opened my eyes to. Each process representing a pivotal point in our spiritual pilgrimage. We will journey from the clay pit to the consuming fire, every stage intentional. Each process is sacred, and through it all, the potter never once, casts the clay away.

Jeremiah 18:1–6 “The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. 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. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 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.”

This passage in Jeremiah is not simply a historical narrative, it is a living parable. God deliberately sends His prophet to an ordinary workshop so that he may learn an extraordinary revelation.

I. A Place of Sin - The Pit of Perdition

Psalm 40:1–3 “I waited patiently for the Lord; And he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: Many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.”

Ephesians 2:1–2 “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:”

Somewhere in the potter’s shop or close to it, the potter has a clay pit. In this pit he finds his clay. However, this is not a pleasant process. You see, the process of improving the clay’s colloidal characters require the potter mix straw and a variety of grasses into the clay. As these materials are trampled and stomped over time into the clay they begin to rot and decay. In turn the clay takes on a putrifying order. You could say, it smells like death.

As the potter reaches down into this putrifying stench of clay he pulls out a decayed, dead lump. No life in this clay, no future, no hope of ever existing outside of that dead pit until the potter pulls that lump out. This certainly reminds us of how God in His Grace lifted us out of the miry clay.

a. The Putrid Place of Our Past

Sin produces a stench that permeates every single part of our existence. That putrifying pit represents our position in Adam, before Christ reached down and saved us. There was a time for some, and for others it may true at this very moment, concerning a life trampled, mixed with filth, and utterly hopeless. There is nothing attractive, nothing redeemable by human measure in the clay pit. Its stench is its defining feature.

b. The Perception of the Potter

The things we see as worthless, the Divine Potter sees value. God looks past the stench and sees Calvary. He sees our sin debt paid in full by His precious Son Jesus Christ. His Divine vision penetrates our depravity and discerns our destiny. Like the potter, He does not assess us by our present condition, He evaluates what His own hands can produce. This is His Grace: love that sees not what we are, but what we shall become.

c. The Pursuit of the Precious

The potter deliberately descends into the pit. He reaches down, not recoiling from the repulsive condition.

John 4:4 “And he must needs go through Samaria.” - Jesus must of necessity pass through Samaria. He deliberately descends to a Samaritan level, so that He may lift the lost from this pit of sin. Jesus condescended to our condition to lift us up out of corruption.

Jesus doesn’t wait for a person to cleanse themselves, He came to us through the incarnation that He may reach into the clay pit, lift us out and wash us white with His unspotted righteousness and set us as justified before the Father! Allow me to remind you of David’s words:

Psalm 40:2 “He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.”

Practical Principles

Christ descended from glory’s heights into humanity’s depths, not because we were lovely, but because we were lost. Consider the rescue diver’s motivation when diving into murky, black and unknown waters. It is not the condition of the waters but the value of the victim. And so God, looking upon the clay pit of our sinful existence, was moved not by our loveliness, but by His love.

Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Remember your Roots - Never forget where the Lord pulled you from. Gratitude grows from the soil of remembrance. The one who remembers stays grateful and compassionate toward others still trapped by sin.

Reach into Rank Places - We should never be too proud to reach the lost. Ministry means getting messy. Entering uncomfortable spaces where hurting people hide. The church often sanitizes its surroundings, which blocks its ability to reach those still submerged in sin. We are called to the clay pit, not just the cathedral.

Recognize Potential in the Polluted - We need to train our eyes to past someone’s present condition to their future possibilities. That addict, that broken marriage, that wayward child. The Divine Potter sees a vessel of honor waiting to emerge from that lump stinking clay. Our calling is to see those individuals through the eyes of Jesus and not simply human perception. Every lump has potential.

Restore the Broken - Be willing to pick those up who religion and society look down on. Just as Jesus restored Peter, we too remember that people will fall short in this life and when they are down we as Christians should aspire to restore such.

Conclusion

What specific “pit” did God rescue you from?

How does remembering this affect your daily walk with God?

Who in your circle of influence is currently “in the pit” and needs someone to reach down to them?

Why do we sometimes hesitate to minister to those whose lives are messy or smelly?