184. The Work of His Hand
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.
The Lord uses the image of the potter and the clay in Jeremiah and in Paul to make several points dealing with our relationship with God. The point here in Isaiah implies a promise: the promise is that we are the work of His hand. Our times are in the hands of God.
Our God the Lord has formed us with His own hands in the manner that a potter uses His hands to shape and form us, body and soul. And the promise is continuing through our life while the Lord continues to shape and form us with His hands.
The Lord has given to each created being the DNA that determines much about our body and life. When God formed Adam out of the dust He gave Adam the DNA makeup that made him Adam. The Lord God as Creator formed us from the dust with His hands, that is, He programmed in each of us the DNA that makes us who we are. It can be said that God wanted one of us, just like who we are and how He made us, according to His wisdom and love. We may not like parts of the DNA programming God created in us, but He likes it, for He made it just that way. “The Lord God formed the man…and breathed the breath of life. {Genesis 2:7}” In other words, God loves you just the way you are.
There is, however, a problem or two in the DNA structure of every human, but that is a result of the curse of the Fall. Something in our DNA will ultimately kill us if we live long enough. But God did not create that weakness; He made us perfect and whole in the beginning and He will restore us to that eternal perfection in Christ. The mistake in each DNA is a result of Sin, not a result of Creation. God has an ideal “me” in mind, and He will have it some day.
God formed this clay jar on the potter’s wheel once, and He continues to shape it with historical events and environmental influences through our life. Thank God, He is not finished with us yet. When He finishes His masterpiece, then it will be time to take us to Himself in heaven. It is important and very helpful for us to believe this promise that God’s hands are working for good, so that we are able to place everything into the hands of a loving God. We can trust God to shape us in a way that is good and will be a blessing. God is a good potter.