Isaiah 64:8- But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
There is a process to crafting clay pottery. It can't be done all at once. Clay can be used to make pieces as small and delicate as jewelry or as large as massive sculptures. It's potential is almost endless!
First is the digging process.
Gathering the clay from the ground. It is unusable at this stage.
This is like your human birth. You are fresh and full of potential, but not saved. You are born with a sin nature that separates you from God.
John 3:7- Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Romans 10:9- That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Next comes the weathering Process. The clay is filtered with water through a fine mesh to remove any particulates. This is the very beginning stage on the path to usefulness for clay.
This is like salvation, the second birth. You are a new Christian and have an eternal destiny in heaven, but your usefulness as a Christian on earth is yet to be determined. God has to remove the world from you! You are on your journey to becoming a new creation.
Romans 8:29- For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
The moment you became a Christian, God started working on you to conform you into the image of Christ. Each stage of the process brings you closer to the envisioned finished product.
I Corinthians 15:49- And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
At this point in your life you are justified. Your sin debt has been paid by the blood of Jesus Christ. The rest of your life you will be going through a sanctification process. This lifelong procedure is all about you becoming like the Lord Jesus Christ. It happens gradually, day by day, as we submit our lives to the will of God.
Philippians 1:6- Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
The next step is the drying process. This is where the potter removes the water and allows the clay to dry; this makes it pliable.
This is your spiritual growth at the very beginning of your Christian walk. You have a lot to learn about your new position as a child of God. This stage gets you to the point where Christ can start using you.
Ephesians 4:22-24- That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
After enough time has passed, the wedging process begins. The clay is pounded and kneaded to remove excess moisture and create a solid lump without air pockets. At this stage the clay won't hold a shape properly. Clay is thixotropic- this means that as you work with it, the clay first gets sloppier and wetter, before it begins to dry in the atmosphere.
Christ starts pointing out things in your life that He wants you to yield to Him. It can seem like a confusing mess as you try to navigate through what Christ wants from you, personally. The more you resist His direction, the longer this phase takes.
Romans 12:2- And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
After working the clay, it is left to rest. It has to just sit there. It seems like nothing is happening, but microscopically, the clay particles are growing bacteria that makes it sticky. These bacteria are needed for the clay to be able to hold a shape.
This point may seem meaningless, but it's actually necessary. You may feel like God has abandoned you, but He hasn't. You are actually growing spiritually in this phase. All the work is done on the inside.
II Peter 1:4-8- Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
All of these things are shaping our character, something no human can see. Yet, it is of infinite value to the Lord!
Now comes the shaping process. Shaping it on a potter's wheel creates the shape and design, but it still won't hold if liquid or pressure is introduced. At any point in this phase the clay can be recycled into a different shape if the potter doesn't like how the design is turning out.
Sometimes this part feels like it will never end. It can be a dizzying process of learning to trust the Lord's guidance.
II Timothy 2:20-21- But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.
The hardest part of the shaping process is getting the clay centered on the wheel.
This is the stage of the Christian's walk where many decide to go their own way and live for themselves. A vessel of honor would be one that is used by God to show His mercy, but a vessel of dishonor can also be used by God to show His judgment. How you yield to the shaping determines which way your vessel will be used. By keeping our focus on Christ, we can become a beautiful vessel of honor! It all begins with our determination- what we set our minds to accomplish.
I Peter 1:13-16- Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
At this stage the clay is called "greenware" and it is at its most fragile! This is where it feels like the devil is attacking hard! Before the designed clay can be bisque fired, it needs to be “cleaned up”. The work can’t go into the kiln if it has sharp edges – when glazed, sharp edges turn into razor blades!
The potter can use a piece of fly wire to rub the work all over – this will scratch a little and is done with a gentle touch. He may use a knife or metal tool to scrape any areas that require a bit more treatment. Finally, there's a very light wipe over with a slightly damp sponge to help soften and soothe all of the edges.
Ephesians 2:10- For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Now we are ready for the baking process. The clay is in the shape that the potter has intended, and it is baked in a bisque kiln at 1,800*F. This will harden the clay into the shape that will hold. There is no turning back once the clay goes into the fire.
I Peter 4:12-13- Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
This process burns off the water in the clay. The structure of the clay is not altered that much at this temperature. This part as a Christian is no fun! It's the chastening of the Lord or the fiery trials that we go through.
Hebrews 12:11- Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
Colossians 1:9-12- For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
The firing takes about 10 hours to complete the cycle and about two days to cool down.
Once it has cooled, the work is placed in the glaze room ready for decoration! If you made it through the chastisement successfully, then you have learned to rely on Christ and look to Him. The world isn't as alluring as it once was, and heaven's sounding sweeter each day!
The glazing process is where the potter puts a coating on the clay with a silica compound that will turn into a glass type layer when heated at 2,200*F. This is necessary to keep the color and the design on the pottery.
There are three main options for surface treatment at this stage:
- Oxide Washes
- Underglazes
- Glazes
Underglazes are stable colorants. They can be mixed with each other to form a variety of colors and can be used like watercolors to paint the pottery. They should be finished with a clear glaze on top to seal them.
Oxides are a different option. They don’t always need a glaze on top, and some glazes can change the color of the oxide wash!
The glazes need no other “glaze” on top! But the potter must be careful of unknown glaze interactions. You can put any combination of glaze in a bowl or on a plate, but only a single glaze on the outside of any vertical surface!
Different chemicals in the glaze can have dramatic effects. For example, barium carbonate turns manganese bright pink! Other elements can turn manganese dioxide brown, blue, purple and reddish brown. Glaze chemistry is a whole subject on its own!
Glazes are a chemical reaction that occurs under heat. Simply put, glaze is a layer of glass-like substance that bonds with the clay underneath. Clay is made of silica, alumina and water. Glaze is made of mostly silica. Silica has a melting point around 3092*F. The silica requires a “flux” to help it melt at the lower temperature. Fluxes can be all sorts of chemicals – a common one is calcium – calcium has a melting point of 4532*F, however, together they both melt at a much lower temperature of 2264*F!
Remember the story of the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace? There were four men walking around in the fire, and only three climbed out. The form of the fourth was as the Son of God. He's the flux that goes through the fire with you so that you can endure the temperature and become like Him in the process.
Romans 6:5,9,22- For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
A glaze kiln takes around 12 hours to reach temperature and two to three days to cool down. Sometimes a third firing process is required – this is for decoration that is added to work after the glaze firing. For example – adding precious metals and lusters. This firing temperature is usually around 1112*F to 1472*F, depending upon the techniques being used.
The final stage is the finishing process. During the heat of the fire the pores on the clay absorb the glaze and as it cools it is bonded to and locked into the clay. The pottery is now ready to be used for its intended purpose.
This is the portion of life right before Christ calls us home to heaven and we are sanctified. God's work in our lives is complete and we are eternally perfected inside and out in our body, soul, and spirit!
II Timothy 4:6-8- For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
This is the end of your journey. You have come so far and have become the vessel that God has intended. For a Christian it is a life-long journey, but it will be absolutely worth it all when we see Christ!
I John 3:2- Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
