Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me.
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. (Is. 64:8)
God has formed the people of Israel with His hands. Yet they have become unclean, a moral leprosy is upon them, and God has hidden His face from them, consuming them because of their iniquities (vs. 7). Certainly, God will not forsake the work of His own hands (Ps. 138:8). While His eyes and hands were always on the vessel in the shaping process, it must be set aside to dry and heated in the fire before it can be all that it was created to be. Now it has been made, it has been fired, it has been found to be with cracks. Useless for the purpose for which it was intended, it must be shattered and thrown out. God can—and does—cast away those who prove unfaithful to His election and raise others in their place.
What do we do when our nation has fallen off the Master Potter’s wheel? When we see shattered people and places all around us? Let this be a reminder that we are to remain centered on His wheel, pliable in His hands, resting in His all-knowing wisdom when we go through dry seasons and blazing fires. Through it all we learn to trust in Jesus as He conforms our will to His will, our purpose to His purpose. The finer the vessel the thinner the walls, the higher the heat, and the more intense the refining. As the Apostle John puts it, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30). We are valuable to God when we endeavor to be the best container we can be individually, in our families, in our communities, and in our nation. Whether a terracotta flowerpot for flowers or a bone china cup for the King’s table, let His mark of ownership be seen in us in all that we do and say.
Does your soul thirst for God; your flesh long for Him in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water (Ps. 63:1)? Does your soul long for purity, for the love of God, sprinkled with the pure water of heaven? Let Him fill you that you may give out what He has put in, to think and act out of a sincere love for your Master Potter, signed with His image. Today is the day to ask Him to “Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me.”