God is the Potter, We are the Clay

24 May 2009
Speaker: David Wang
Text: Isaiah 64:8

John Williams (1796-1839) was an Englishman trained as a foundry worker and mechanic. When God sent him to the Polynesian islands in the South Pacific as a missionary, he was able to use his training and skills to help build strong ships of 60 feet long to ease travel between the many islands there, and extend God's kingdom successfully. His was a life that was much used by God, till the end when he and another missionary were killed by some islanders and eaten by them.

In the same way, God has His purposes for our lives, as we can see from the texts in:

Isaiah 64:8 - Yet, O LORD, you are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand.

Psalm 138:8 - The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your love, O LORD, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands.

Principle 1

God has a purpose for each of us who are created unique individuals by Him. We are not here by chance or accident.

Psalm 139:13-16 - ¹³ For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

¹⁶ your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

Principle 2

God is in the process of moulding our lives for His purposes.

- He will complete His work. Paul is confident that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6

- He is doing a good work in us: making something beautiful of us, to become like Christ in character and doing the things He does -

Ephesians 2:10 - "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

2 Peter 1:5-8 - ^"5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. ⁸For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Principle 3

The steps we need to take to make God's purpose a reality in our lives:

1. Submit to and obey God in everything. We need to submit and cooperate with God our Potter and allow Him to mould and shape us by discipline and hardships sometimes in order to smoothen our rough edges and cleanse us from our sins.

2. Seek to discover and develop our God-given gifts and ministries, and use them to serve Him.

Pastor Hsi (1836-1896) was an opium addict who became a Christian and a leader, and then ran a ministry to opium addicts in many locations over a considerable area, establishing clinics and churches.

God will use us for His kingdom and His glory, if we will let Him, submitting all our selves, lives, gifts, abilities, experiences, whatever little we have (like the little boy with 5 loaves and 2 fishes), into His loving and wise hands.

Beautiful, beautiful, Jesus is beautiful,

And Jesus makes beautiful things of my life,

Carefully, touching me,

Causing my eyes to see

That Jesus makes beautiful things of my life

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