May 7, 2023 "Repentance Shapes Us Into New Beings"

Many of the smaller stories we find in the Bible are just little microcosms of the big themes of change and transformation. The LORD brings Jeremiah to the potter's house and uses the imagery of the potter and the clay. God wants to transform Israel - but it all depends on repentance - it all depends on their willingness to change. Now, when we hear a call to turn toward God - to repent - we hear it from two different places. First, from the place of independence. No matter how put together we make ourselves out to be, we're still clay, shaped and molded by someone outside of ourselves. Second, we hear it from the place of uselessness. We feel empty or cracked. In this way, this is a hopeful reminder - we're still clay - clay that belongs to the divine. This little passage reminds us that repentance is hard - we often resist it. So the invitation of the morning is repentance - turning toward God to be shaped and molded. Speaker: Aaron Vis Scripture: Jeremiah 18:1-12 http://bible.com/events/49075732