God is the Potter
We are the Clay
 ne of the most powerful analogies in the Bible regarding our transformation and
sanctification in the Lord has to be the analogy of the potter and the clay. The Bible says that God is the
Potter and we are the clay. It is up to God to mold, transform and sanctify us as we journey through this
earthly life.
Whenever God gives us a specific analogy in the Bible, this means that we have to seek into the revelation of
that analogy in order to pick up what God is trying to tell us with the analogy. If we do, then we will see exactly
what God is trying to tell us in reference to the actual analogy itself. In other words, we have to find out
exactly how pottery is made if we want to fully understand what God is trying to tell us in this most incredible
analogy.
Here is the key verse from Scripture that will give us this specific revelation that God is the Potter and we
are His clay:
"But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our potter; and all we are the work
of Your hand." (Isaiah 64:8)
I have never made pottery myself, so I had no idea of how it was actually made. But I always had a feeling that
God would somehow bring someone along that would show and demonstrate how this process is actually done so we can
see exactly how this analogy fits into what God wants to do with each one of us in our personal growth in Him.
I recently received a DVD from a friend who had a pastor by the name of Pat Lazovich come to their church. Pat
used to make pottery before God called him into full time ministry work. As a result of his previous experience in
actually making pottery, God now has him traveling to different churches, giving real live demonstrations on
exactly how pottery is made, and then how this analogy perfectly fits in and lines up with how God wants to mold
and transform all of us in our personal growth in Him.
I reviewed the entire DVD, and his demonstration and explanation of this analogy was excellent. I cannot
recommend this man highly enough with his demonstration on the potter and the clay. If any of you would like to
have him come to your church to do this demonstration for you, he is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel in Sierra
Vista, AZ. His website address is http://www.calvarysv.org/.
In this article, I will give you the main steps on exactly how pottery is made, and then the appropriate
explanations on how all of this fits into the analogy that God is the potter and we are His clay.
Grab a hold of this powerful revelation, because it will both visually and dramatically show you not only how
God molds and transforms us in this life, but exactly why God does some of the things He does with us in this
molding process, as this process can be quite painful and unpleasant at times.
I will break down the main steps on how pottery is actually made, along with the appropriate explanations as to
how all of this perfectly fits into God's actual sanctification with us under the specific captions below.
1. God Needs the Word in Us Before He Can Start the Sanctification Process
The first thing Pat will show you is the lump of clay that he will actually use to make the piece of pottery
with. Before Pat can put this piece of clay on an electric wheel to start the actual molding process to make the
kind of pottery he wants to make, he first has to add enough WATER into it in order to make it pliable and
soft enough for him to be able to actually use it. If he does not add enough water into the clay, the clay will
remain too hard and too rigid for him to be able to actually use.
When the water is added into the clay, it makes the clay soft and pliable. If the clay is not soft and pliable
enough, the potter cannot begin to use it to make the pottery he wants to make. The analogy for us to pick up on
this first step is that the water used in this process represents the Word of God.
Here is a good verse giving us the actual revelation that the word "water" in the Bible is symbolic of
the Word of God. In other words, the Word of God is like water to our souls. Just like our physical bodies need
water in order to be able to live and survive in this world, in the same way our souls need God's Word flowing
through us in order to feed us on the inside in our inner man.
" ... that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might
present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be
holy and without blemish." (Ephesians 5:26)
What this is telling us that God cannot even begin to mold and transform us in this life unless we are first
willing do our part. And our part has to be to get into His Word and try to read, understand and assimilate what is
in the Bible as best we can, with the Holy Spirit helping us to understand what we are actually reading.
The Bible says that we are to grow in the knowledge of God, and one of the main ways that you grow
in the knowledge of God is to read from the one Book that will give you this direct knowledge - the Bible!
There is no other way into the knowledge of God other than through the Bible.
If you do not spend enough reasonable time in this life trying to read from the Bible and assimilate
the actual knowledge that is in there as best you can, then God will have very little to work with in your own
personal growth process with Him, and you will see very little, if any actual growth in Him in this
life.
The reason why so many of God's saints are not spiritually growing in this life and being properly
sanctified in the Holy Spirit is because they are not spending enough time trying to read and understand the
Bible as best they can, and then see how the actual knowledge in this Book can be incorporated into their daily
lives.
The Holy Spirit needs something to work with in order to get this growth process kicked into full
gear - and that something is knowledge - and that knowledge can only be gained by reading the Bible. There is
no other way!
Just as the potter cannot use the clay unless there is enough water added into it - in the same way God cannot
start the molding and transformation process in our lives unless we first start to get enough of the Word in us.
The Word cannot start to effectively work in you and your life unless you first start to attempt to get it into you
in the first place.
So without question, the first step you have to take, if you really want God to mold and shape you into the kind
of person He really wants you to become in Him in this life, is to spend enough reasonable time in the Word -
trying to understand, with the help of the Holy Spirit, all of the knowledge that is contained in it, and exactly
how all of this knowledge can be incorporated into your personal life and walk with the Lord.
2. You Have to Be Properly "Centered" in Jesus Christ
After Pat adds enough water into the clay to make it soft and pliable so he can now start to work with it - the
next thing he will do is put the piece of clay in the center of an electric wheel. This wheel will then
start to spin so he can then use his hands to start the molding and shaping process with the clay as it is actually
spinning on the wheel. However, if the piece of clay is not properly centered in the middle of the wheel,
then he will not be able to work with it and he will not be able to make the pot he wants to make.
He said having the lump of clay perfectly centered in the middle of the electric wheel is the
first step in being able to actually make a pot. If he tries to make a piece of pottery with a lump of clay that is
not properly centered in the middle of the wheel, it will eventually tear apart before he can finish the
process.
In the same way that the clay has to be properly centered in the middle of the wheel before the potter can even
begin to mold and shape it - we have to be properly centered in Jesus before God can start to mold and shape
us.
So what does it mean to be properly centered in Jesus? I believe what it means to be properly centered in Jesus
is that you have to be under a complete and full surrender of you and your entire life with Him where He is now in
full control of you and every little detail of your life. Jesus has to become both Lord and Savior in your life,
not just your Savior. Too many Christians do not have Jesus as the real Lord in their lives.
Again, this is all fully explained to you in our article titled "The Full
Surrender" in the Bible Basics section of our site. In this article we give you all of the main verses from
Scripture to show you exactly what this full and complete surrender is all about, along with a full surrender
prayer that will actually get you in this realm with the Lord.
Bottom line - you have to enter into God's perfect will for your life before He will start to guide
both you and your life in the direction that He will want it to go in. God will not fully guide you to your
divine destiny in Him and fully sanctify you to the degree that He would really like in this life unless you
first come into this full surrender with Him. It's your all for His all.
Just like the potter cannot mold the piece of clay into the piece of pottery that he is trying to make unless it
is perfectly centered in the middle of the wheel - in the same way the Lord cannot begin to properly work
with us in this life unless we are perfectly centered in Him in this full surrender.
Pat actually shows this with a piece of clay. With it not being properly centered in the middle of the wheel, he
gets it about halfway to where it needs to go and then all of a sudden it rips and tears apart from the wheel - all
because it was not perfectly centered in the middle of the wheel in the first place.
In the same way, if we try to live our lives without Jesus leading and guiding the way, our lives will
eventually fall apart and we will never reach and fulfill the divine destiny to which God has called each one of us
in this life. That is why Jesus tells us in His Word that without Him we can do absolutely nothing in this life -
and that if we try to build our own houses in this life without His guidance and direction - that we will be
laboring "in vain" if we try to do it all through our own efforts and wisdom.
Here is the verse that will give us this specific piece of revelation:
"Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it." (Psalm 127:1)
3. Sanctification is a Slow, Steady and Progressive Process
The next thing that Pat points out is how "slow" and "steady" the electric wheel turns as he is using his hands
to mold the pot. He explains that to get the lump of clay to the pot he wants to make, that the wheel has to turn
at this slow and steady pace. If he speeds up the wheel to any faster degree, the lump of clay will again tear
completely apart before he can make it to the finish line.
In the same way, we have to have patience with the Lord on how He wants to work and build our lives up and
sanctify us through the Holy Spirit.
In our fast-paced, self-centered world, we are use to instant everything. But in God's realm, He usually works
things out at a much slower pace and time frame than we are used too - and if we do not learn how to go with His
slower flows and time frames, we will get very frustrated and impatient, and we could eventually lose our peace and
joy in Him, not to mention our possible calls in Him.
Just as a teenager will get stretch marks on their skins if they grow too fast during puberty, in the same way
we have to let God build, grow and develop us in this slow and steady manner. If we try to push the envelope too
far and too fast with Him, different parts of our lives could totally unravel and fall apart.
Not waiting on God's timing on who you should be marrying in this life could cause you to marry the wrong person
in this life. Not waiting on the next job you should be taking could cause you to take a major wrong turn in the
divine destiny God already has planned out for your life, and it could cost you years of wasted and unproductive
time, if not completely cause you to lose your calling in Him all together.
Just as a good potter has to take his time when molding and forming out this piece of pottery as it is spinning
on the wheel - in the same way God has to mold, shape and transform all of us in this same, slow and steady manner.
This is why one of the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit is the fruit of patience. We all need the patience of the Holy
Spirit operating in us to help keep us in line and in God's timing with how He wants to work out things in our
lives, especially in the fast-paced world in which we all live in.
4. God's Hand Will Personally Mold, Shape and Transform You
The next thing you need to grab a hold of in your sanctification in the Lord, is that it is literally the hand
of God Himself, operating through the Holy Spirit on the inside of you, that will supernaturally transform and
sanctify you. This is a direct, supernatural work done by the Holy Spirit Himself.
Once Pat has the lump of clay properly centered in the middle of the wheel, and enough water has been added into
the clay to make it soft and pliable enough to be able to work with, then Pat starts the actual molding process
with the lump of clay.
What he first does as the lump of clay is spinning on the wheel is to take his hand and push it down on the top
of the clay to create an opening in it. Once this opening has been made at the top of the clay, Pat's hand then
goes down deep inside the middle of the clay as it is forming out, and he uses his hands to properly shape the
piece of clay as it is building up during this spinning process on the wheel.
Pat's hands are thus working on both the inside and outside of the clay to mold, shape and transform it into the
pot he wants to make as it continues to spin on the wheel. His hands are literally making and forming all of this
out with this original, shapeless lump of clay. Pat says that he cannot make a pot unless his hands go down deep in
the middle of that pot as it is forming out.
In the same way, God's own hand literally goes down deep in the middle of us - right down in the middle of our
souls and spirits - where the inner sanctification work is actually done - to mold and transform us into the saints
He wants us to become in Him. That is why we have to give God the green light to do this type of inner
sanctification work in us, as he needs our full cooperation in order to be able to get that deep down on the inside
of us.
Since God is doing the actual supernatural work on the inside of us, it can become rather painful and unpleasant
at times, since God will be removing all of the bad and negative qualities that He does not want us to have
operating in our personalities, and at the same time, instilling and imparting all of the good, positive and godly
qualities that He will want us to have.
Pat also has to apply a good amount of pressure with his hands as he is molding and shaping this lump of
clay. In the same way, God has to apply some serious pressure on all of us from time to time in order to get
us to change to become the kind of person He wants us to become in Him.
Removing toxic qualities such as pride, self-centeredness, bad tempers and lust can all be very painful due to
our flesh wanting to keep these negative qualities operating in our personalities. But let God do this inner
surgery work in you through the Holy Spirit, and you will eventually be molded and shaped into the godly saint that
God is calling you to become in Him - and true joy, happiness and fulfillment will be all yours in this life.
5. Let God Develop You to Your Fullest Potential in This Life
The next thing Pat will show you is that as his hands start to work with both the inside and outside of the
clay, the lump of clay now starts to actually grow as it continues to spin on the wheel. It starts to get bigger
and taller.
However, he then all of a sudden stops working the clay, with it being about half-way to where it needs to go.
He then points out that we all need to let God take us as far as He wants to go with us in this life. He said no
one is going to pay for a pot that is only half-done and half-completed.
In the same with with the Lord, we should not quit and bail out on Him as we are about half-way up the mountain
He is wanting us to climb in our calls and our divine destiny in Him. We always need to continue to press on and
push the envelope with God, and let Him take us as far as He wants to take us in this life. Too many Christians
quit and bail out on the Lord as they are about half-way up the mountain He is asking them to climb for Him. As a
result, they never find out how much further they could have gone with God had they just continued to press further
on.
Pat says that once you start this process with the Lord, let Him decide how far He wants to take you in this
life, and do not be afraid if God really wants to stretch your abilities and your horizons in the divine plan that
He has already set up for your life.
You only have one chance in the eternal scheme of things to leave your mark in this world in the calling that
God has placed on your life. Let God take you as far as He wants to go with you in this life - and you won't ever
have to worry about having any second regrets once you leave and depart from this life and enter into heaven for
all of eternity. You can leave this life knowing that you have fully accomplished everything that the Lord was
wanting you to accomplish for Him if you just stay the course with Him and do not bail out due to fear or
laziness.
6. God Knows Exactly What He Wants to Do With Your Life
The next thing Pat will point out as he is building this piece of clay into the exact pot he wants to make, is
that he knows exactly what kind of pot he is going to make before he even starts the process. He knows
exactly how tall and how wide it will end up being, because he already has a perfect plan for the pot
before he even begins to sit down to start to work with it.
In the same way, God our heavenly Father, already has our lives perfectly planned out for all of us. He
knows exactly what He wants us to become in our callings in Him, who we should be marrying in this life, how
many children He would like us to have if it is in His perfect will for our lives, and exactly how to get to all of
these specific milestones so we can make it there safely and in one piece.
Just as the clay needs to fully trust the potter to make it into the exact pot he wants to make - in the same
way we need to fully trust the Lord to mold, shape and transform our personalities - along with leading our lives
into the specific things and specific directions that He will want to take them in. Since God is all-perfect and
all-powerful and we are not - then it only stands to reason that we can fully trust God to build the
"house" of our lives in Him rather than us trying to do it all on our own efforts or wisdom, or the wisdom
or efforts of anyone else in our lives.
7. Don't Stretch Beyond the Boundary Lines That God Has Set Up For Your Life
The next thing Pat will show you is that even though you want to make this pot into what you had originally
designed it to be, you need to be very careful that you do not make this pot too tall or too wide and go beyond
what your original plan for the pot was. If you do, it will tear apart and completely unravel, thereby completely
destroying what you were originally wanting to do with the pot in the first place.
In the same way with the Lord - though we are to press on and go as far as God will be wanting to take us in
this life in our specific callings in Him, we also have to realize that there is another side to this two-sided
coin. We also have to make sure that we do not stretch beyond what God is actually calling us to do or stretch into
positions that He does not want us going into.
If God is calling you to be an attorney, a pastor, or a doctor, do not try and stretch into other callings that
He does not want you going into. If God is calling you to play third base on His team, do not try and stretch into
the shortstop or left-fielder's positions. Stay in the boundary lines that God will be setting up in your life. If
you stretch beyond those boundary lines, you will stretch beyond your calling, and there will be no anointing, no
protection and no fruit for you in those other endeavors. God knows exactly how far He wants to take us in this
life and we need to respect the boundary lines that He will be setting up in our lives.
Billy Graham was called to be an evangelist and he perfectly stayed in that calling during his entire life. He
did not try to be a musician or a pastor. He stayed within the boundary lines that God had initially set up for his
life and as a result, he will end up going down as one of the greatest evangelists of all time because of all of
the good fruit he has produced for the Lord in that specific calling.
8. God's Eyes and Attention Are Always on You
Another good point that Pat brings up is that his eyes are always on the clay once he starts to work it. If he
takes his eyes and attention off of the pot as he is shaping and molding it, he could make a big mistake and damage
the pot in the process.
In the same way, once we come into this full surrender with the Lord, and we give Him a full and solid green
light to start working our lives in the way He wants, God will never take His eyes and attention off of you. You
will always have His complete and undivided attention, since He is omnipresent and no respecter of persons. God
obviously has His eyes on everyone since He is omnipresent, but until you come into that full surrender with Him,
He will not start to work and build up your life in the directions that He will want it to go in.
What this means is that you can fully trust God to complete the work that He has begun with you until the day
you die and depart from this earth. As a result, you will be able to leave this life with most, if not all of your
divine missions fully accomplished for Him as long as you stay the course and do not bail out on Him anywhere along
the way.
9. God Will Always Be Doing Major Pruning in Your Life
The last thing that Pat will do is to take a knife and start cutting off any excess clay that has accumulated
around the pot as he was molding and shaping it on the spinning wheel. What he is doing is smoothing out all of the
rough edges so that the pot turns out complete and beautiful to the natural eye.
In the same way, God will always be pruning out different things and different qualities in your life that He
will not be wanting you to have in this life. God may want to prune out some of the bad friends you are hanging out
with due to the negative influences they may be having on you and your spiritual development in Him. He may also
want to prune out some bad habits you may still have on you such as smoking cigarettes or the overeating of the
wrong kinds of foods - and He will definitely be pruning out some of the bad and negative qualities you may still
have operating in your personality such as some of the ones mentioned above.
Though this cutting and pruning can be very painful at times when it is actually done due to your attachments to
some of the above things, realize that it is always for your own good in the long run, and you will be much better
off by going with the Lord on anything that He will want to prune out of your life or your personality. Resist Him
on it and you may never reach to the heights, to the calling and to the person that He will want you to become in
Him in this life.
10. Let God Mold You Into the Specific Person He Wants You to Become
After Pat completes the process of turning this lump of clay into a beautiful piece of pottery, he then makes
the comment to let God mold and shape you into the specific person He wants you to become, not
what other people want you to become.
You have been created by God to be an unique person - unlike any other person that has ever
been created and born into this world. Realize that only God can mold and shape you into the finished
person that He wants you to become in Him. You can't do it for yourself, your family members can't do it
for you, and your best friends can't do it for you - only God can!
God, as our Father and Potter, is the only One who has the full knowledge, the full power and the full means to
be able to truly sanctify us to become the beautiful, godly, and righteous saints He is calling all of us to become
in Him in this life.
Conclusion
Watching Pat give a live demonstration on how pottery as actually made leaves you with a very good visual image
in your mind's eye on the analogy of the Potter and the clay. Watching Pat's hands literally take a hard, rigid,
and shapeless piece of clay, and then turn it into a beautiful piece of pottery, perfectly lines up with what God
wants to do with each one of us in this life in our personal growth and sanctification in Him.
Due to the fallen, sinful and corrupt state that we have all been born into this world with, only God mold,
shape and transform us into beautiful vessels of honor that will be fit for His use. Sanctification, when truly
done by the Lord, is the highest state we should all be striving for in our personal relationship with the Lord.
The Holy Spirit is already on the inside of us waiting and willing to do this type of inner work on us.
In the Sanctification Section of our site, we have
plenty of good articles giving you more information on what true sanctification in the Lord is all about and how to
get this kind of show going with the Lord.
I will end this article by bullet pointing all of the above main pieces of revelation on the Potter and the clay
so you can see how powerful and how beautiful this analogy really is:
- God Needs the Word in Us Before He Can Start the Sanctification Proces
- You Have to be Properly Centered in Jesus Christ (The Full Surrender)
- Sanctification is a Slow, Steady and Progressive Process
- God's Hand Will Personally Mold, Shape and Transform You
- Let God Develop You to Your Fullest Potential in This Life
- God Knows Exactly What He Wants to Do With Your Life
- Do Not Stretch Beyond the Boundary Lines that God Has Set Up For Your Life
- God's Eyes and Attention Are Always on You
- God Will Always Be Doing Major Pruning in Your Life
- Let God Mold You Into the Specific Person He Wants You to Become
Once again, God the Father is giving all of us an incredible piece of revelation in His Word on this analogy of
Him being the Potter and we being His clay.
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Michael Bradley
Bible Teaching and
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Lessons
Scripture taken from New King James
Version.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2005-2008 by Michael Bradley.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5
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