Jeremiah 18:1-10 - Things that Fall Out Consistently

Jeremiah 18:1-10
1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord saying, 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will announce My words to you.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. 4 But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make.

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, 6 “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. 7 At one moment I might speak concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom to uproot, to pull down, or to destroy it; 8 if that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent concerning the calamity I planned to bring on it. 9 Or at another moment I might speak concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom to build up or to plant it; 10 if it does evil in My sight by not obeying My voice, then I will think better of the good with which I had promised to bless it.

Message: Things that Fall Out Consistently

Time: The Chaldeans (Babylonians) are besieging Jerusalem. Nubuchadnezzar is king of Babylon. Zedekiah is the last king of Judah before Babylon destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC.

What the Lord is Saying:

The Westminster Confession of Faith which was a document similar to the Westminster Shorter Catechism and came about after the WSC to help further clarify ideas put forth in the WSC states in 5.2 - "Although, in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the first Cause, all things come to pass immutably, and infallibly; yet, by the same providence, He orders them to fall out, according to the nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently."

I am studying this decree of God currently with God as the first cause of all of life, but also realizing that there are secondary causes: necessarily such as physical laws, freely such as free will or human freedom, and now contingently.

The Bible is clear that God ordains our leaders. But he isn't in the practice of electing leaders. While he ordains a president, like Bush, Clinton, Obama, and Trump and thus he is the first cause of these appointments. The election process is carried out by the secondary cause - the free will decision of each of the voters. God establishes what will happen and then the American voters are the secondary cause in serving the means by which the event of election occurs.

Things that fall out contingently are what has been termed "if, then" relationships. Thus, the result or outcome is predicated first on something happening.

In this example from Jeremiah the Lord states two outcomes based upon the decisions of the house of Israel. He states that there will be one result if that nation turns from its evil and a different result if it does evil in My sight. This helps my understanding of God because this confirms the notion of free will and that God has not simply determined each choice.

Promise: We do not know in advance what God has decreed, so we pray, we ask, we choose, then we trust God as the outcome comes to fruition.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the clarity of You and Your word in the midst of the mixed up world we often live in. Bring guidance and understanding to people so that they will glorify You in all they do. Thank you for human free will. 


Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with March being about the sovereign providence of God and looking at how the Bible reveals His control over all things.