February 8th, 2026
Intimacy: The language of God
Part 3: Mold Me!
Jeremiah 18
Pastor Ray-Ann Dela Fuente
February 8, 2026
Memory Verse:
“When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into?”
Romans 9:21 NLT
Introduction:
Welcome to the River of Faith! Today we are in week two of our new series called "Intimacy: the language of God." The word "intimacy" is not explicitly used in the Bible but it is clearly expressed as a description of what our relationship with God should be like.
"Intimacy" is defined as "closeness" with God. How is God close to us? Can we know certainly that God is close to us? Today we will learn the different levels of closeness that people have with God and the ultimate goal is to have a relationship with Him as a Potter is to a lump of clay.
Main Pointers:
“The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over.
Jeremiah 18:1-4 NLT
1. The potter always has the full control of the clay.
A. This is one of the most profound illustrations that God used to convey a message to His chosen prophet. A picture so clearly portrayed and was filled with so much wisdom and perspective.
B. What is the relationship of the potter and the clay? The workmanship of the potter is displayed on the lump of clay and when the potter decides that the jar He was working on did not quite turn out as He hoped, He crushed it and started over again.
C. “And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.”
Isaiah 64:8 NLT
2. The potter's hand molds the clay as He chooses to.
“Then the Lord gave me this message: “O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand. If I announce that a certain nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, but then that nation renounces its evil ways, I will not destroy it as I had planned. And if I announce that I will plant and build up a certain nation or kingdom, but then that nation turns to evil and refuses to obey me, I will not bless it as I said I would.”
Jeremiah 18:5-10 NLT
A. This is a powerful and very vivid illustration of God's desire to have the same intimacy to Israel as of that of the potter to the clay.
B. God asked "Can I not do this to you?" Implies that it is intimacy that God seeks towards His people and not dominion over them. The illustration of a potter to a clay is an intimate relationship. The potter molds the clay in His own hands to create a masterpiece.
C. “How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?”
Isaiah 29:16 NLT
3. The one intimate relationship with God is when He can correct and mold you.
“Therefore, Jeremiah, go and warn all Judah and Jerusalem. Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am planning disaster for you instead of good. So turn from your evil ways, each of you, and do what is right.’” But the people replied, “Don’t waste your breath. We will continue to live as we want to, stubbornly following our own evil desires.” So this is what the Lord says: “Has anyone ever heard of such a thing, even among the pagan nations? My virgin daughter Israel has done something terrible! Does the snow ever disappear from the mountaintops of Lebanon? Do the cold streams flowing from those distant mountains ever run dry? But my people are not so reliable, for they have deserted me; they burn incense to worthless idols. They have stumbled off the ancient highways and walk in muddy paths. Therefore, their land will become desolate, a monument to their stupidity. All who pass by will be astonished and will shake their heads in amazement. I will scatter my people before their enemies as the east wind scatters dust. And in all their trouble I will turn my back on them and refuse to notice their distress.”
Jeremiah 18:11-17 NLT
A. The purpose of the potter and clay illustration was to show Israel of How God can still mold them despite of their rebellion towards Him. But even that they rejected the Hand that created them.
B. The real measure of an intimate relationship with God is true obedience to HIS Word and humility in times of discipline. God asked "Can I not do this to you?" If we trust Him completely then we allow Him to mold us freely.
C. “Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.”
Genesis 2:7 NLT
Conclusion:
Who molds you to be the person you are today? All of us are a product of how our parents raised us and how we perceived our surroundings. To have the intimacy (closeness) with God we must have the submission to Him to mold us. Like potter molds the clay with his bare hands God can mold us to be the person that He called us to be. Let Him mold you and create a masterpiece in your life.
Part 3: Mold Me!
Jeremiah 18
Pastor Ray-Ann Dela Fuente
February 8, 2026
Memory Verse:
“When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into?”
Romans 9:21 NLT
Introduction:
Welcome to the River of Faith! Today we are in week two of our new series called "Intimacy: the language of God." The word "intimacy" is not explicitly used in the Bible but it is clearly expressed as a description of what our relationship with God should be like.
"Intimacy" is defined as "closeness" with God. How is God close to us? Can we know certainly that God is close to us? Today we will learn the different levels of closeness that people have with God and the ultimate goal is to have a relationship with Him as a Potter is to a lump of clay.
Main Pointers:
“The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over.
Jeremiah 18:1-4 NLT
1. The potter always has the full control of the clay.
A. This is one of the most profound illustrations that God used to convey a message to His chosen prophet. A picture so clearly portrayed and was filled with so much wisdom and perspective.
B. What is the relationship of the potter and the clay? The workmanship of the potter is displayed on the lump of clay and when the potter decides that the jar He was working on did not quite turn out as He hoped, He crushed it and started over again.
C. “And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.”
Isaiah 64:8 NLT
2. The potter's hand molds the clay as He chooses to.
“Then the Lord gave me this message: “O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand. If I announce that a certain nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, but then that nation renounces its evil ways, I will not destroy it as I had planned. And if I announce that I will plant and build up a certain nation or kingdom, but then that nation turns to evil and refuses to obey me, I will not bless it as I said I would.”
Jeremiah 18:5-10 NLT
A. This is a powerful and very vivid illustration of God's desire to have the same intimacy to Israel as of that of the potter to the clay.
B. God asked "Can I not do this to you?" Implies that it is intimacy that God seeks towards His people and not dominion over them. The illustration of a potter to a clay is an intimate relationship. The potter molds the clay in His own hands to create a masterpiece.
C. “How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?”
Isaiah 29:16 NLT
3. The one intimate relationship with God is when He can correct and mold you.
“Therefore, Jeremiah, go and warn all Judah and Jerusalem. Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am planning disaster for you instead of good. So turn from your evil ways, each of you, and do what is right.’” But the people replied, “Don’t waste your breath. We will continue to live as we want to, stubbornly following our own evil desires.” So this is what the Lord says: “Has anyone ever heard of such a thing, even among the pagan nations? My virgin daughter Israel has done something terrible! Does the snow ever disappear from the mountaintops of Lebanon? Do the cold streams flowing from those distant mountains ever run dry? But my people are not so reliable, for they have deserted me; they burn incense to worthless idols. They have stumbled off the ancient highways and walk in muddy paths. Therefore, their land will become desolate, a monument to their stupidity. All who pass by will be astonished and will shake their heads in amazement. I will scatter my people before their enemies as the east wind scatters dust. And in all their trouble I will turn my back on them and refuse to notice their distress.”
Jeremiah 18:11-17 NLT
A. The purpose of the potter and clay illustration was to show Israel of How God can still mold them despite of their rebellion towards Him. But even that they rejected the Hand that created them.
B. The real measure of an intimate relationship with God is true obedience to HIS Word and humility in times of discipline. God asked "Can I not do this to you?" If we trust Him completely then we allow Him to mold us freely.
C. “Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.”
Genesis 2:7 NLT
Conclusion:
Who molds you to be the person you are today? All of us are a product of how our parents raised us and how we perceived our surroundings. To have the intimacy (closeness) with God we must have the submission to Him to mold us. Like potter molds the clay with his bare hands God can mold us to be the person that He called us to be. Let Him mold you and create a masterpiece in your life.
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