The Clay Jar

October 12 Jeremiah 19:1-21:14

Object Lessons That Demand Obedience

The Clay Jar

“Sometimes God takes HIS time. One hundred and twenty years to prepare Noah for the flood. Eighty years to prepare Moses for his work. God called young David to be king but returned him to sheep pasture. He called Paul to be an apostle and then isolated him in Arabia for fourteen years. How long will God take with you? His history is redeemed, not in minutes, but in lifetimes.” (Max Lucado)

How long is this message of judgment going to take?

A conspiracy is based on a “covert organization” trying to accomplish a secret plan. The Sovereign God is the one revealing the plan to the people of Judah through his prophet, Jeremiah. It is not a secret; it’s just not popular.

Other prophets are saying, “Peace. Peace.”, but their message is NOT from God. It is just what they want to speak.

Jeremiah started out as a young man. God told him not to marry or have children in this desperate time. Before you know it, he is a man burying a “loincloth” and wearing something that stinks to “high heaven”... the smell of destruction is about to blow in God’s people’s directions. But, they are not smelling or responding.

Not only that, they are plotting against Jeremiah. They don’t want to hear what he has to say at all. Perhaps “that ship hasn’t sailed just yet as in the days of Noah”. Very soon they will lose their homeland and all that is dear to them.

But, for now, they think that if they can just silence Jeremiah all their problems will go away.

In fact, the priest in charge of the Temple (Did you get that?) heard what Jeremiah was doing and had him arrested, whipped, and put in stocks at the Benjamin Gate of the Lord’s Temple. (20:1-2)

Does this remind you of what they did to the greatest prophet that ever lived, Jesus Christ?

It was the PRIESTS and PHARISEES who “sold Jesus out”... They had done the very same thing to Jeremiah.

We would be remiss to not notice how over and over in the OT, God gives us a glimpse of what will happen to his very own son!

Perhaps, you wonder why God “keeps silent” (so to speak). Why doesn’t he just go ahead and “light these bad people up” and rescue poor Jeremiah?

Well, that is the point. God’s own son will willingly step into the place of prophet, priest, and king and there will be no rescue for him… None. Even though the FATHER has the power to do so!

Instead, He will RESCUE US… God’s wicked, wayward people.

Hard to grasp isn’t it?

This story is filled with another object lesson that demands obedience, “The Clay Jar”.

In Jeremiah 18:1, Jeremiah is asked to, “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” (That’s a field trip ready for a significant object lesson.) The Lord’s message to Israel was what The Potter could say to his creation because He made it. He says, “As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand.” (18:6)

Jeremiah did warn of this object lesson and their reply was, “Don’t waste your breath. We will CONTINUE to live as we want to, stubbornly following our own evil desires.” (18:12)

Here is what they said about Jeremiah, “Come on, let’s plot a way to stop Jeremiah. We have plenty of priests and wise men and prophets. We don’t need him to teach the word and give us advice and prophecies. Let’s spread rumors about him and ignore what he says.” (18:18)

So, after this God returns to HIS OBJECT LESSON. He is a God “ON MESSAGE”.

He tells Jeremiah to, “Go and buy a clay jar.”

So, Jeremiah did just that and smashed the pot as God had asked him to do.

Why? God is the potter and we are the clay, and marred clay is not perfect in the Potter’s hand.

This very story of “The Clay Jar” proceeded Jeremiah’s arrest, whipping, and being placed in stocks! The priests had a “Hissy Fit” that God was calling them “Marred Clay” and that He was sending a message that he could and would send them into EXILE.

There is an old terror movie that I saw at a movie theatre when I was young and too dumb to know better. There was an intruder coming to terrorize the household and they were scared to death. (Me too!) They kept calling them on the phone to make threats.

The climax of the movie was when they said, “The phone call is coming from WITHIN the house!!!”

That’s when my popcorn flew in the air! That message is every babysitter’s worst nightmare! The stalker is INSIDE!

Guess what message Jeremiah gave to the priest who had turned against him and God?

He said, “Pashhur, the LORD has changed your name. From now you will be called “The Man Who Lives in Terror.”

You see, tragically, “THE PHONE CALL” was coming from within THE HOUSE OF GOD… And now it is time for a big HOUSE CLEANING!

Today’s object lesson is that He is still the POTTER and we are the CLAY, and He is in charge of HIS HOUSE!