Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1902-09-13
"A LIFE MADE OVER"
Sunday Discourse By DR.. Chapman, the
Noted PastOr.Eyangelist.
Some Lives Mentioned in The Bible Which
Have Really Been Made Over Again
Like the Clay Mouiders.

list, who breaches to overfiowinS congrega-
tions in this city, has furnished the follow
ing eloquent sermon to the press. 1t was
preached from the text so he made 1t
again" Jeremiah Is: !.
To any one familiar with the prophecy OF
Jeremiah up to this point in the Scripture
it will be apparent that Israel was rushing
on to destruction, and Jeremiah seems
powerless 10 stop them in their mad
course. One day as he passes along the
highway he beholds potter working IN
booth, and as he turns aside he beholds
him with the clay in his hands and the
wheel revolving, toiling away until this
piece of work is finished. He looks at it
with disappointment, and then crushing 1t
into his hands he kneads it over and over
and finally makes 1t again as the text de-
clares. Jeremiah is interested, and then he
saw the spiritual significance Of it all as
we read in the fifth and sixth verses of
this 18th chapter, Then the word OF the
Lord came TO me, saying. o, house of
Israel, cannot / do with you as this pot
ter? Saith the Lord. Behold as the clay
is in the potter's hands. SO are We in Mine
hand, o house of Israel" The trouble was
not with the potter; he was evidently
good workman, nor with the wheel, for
that seemed to do its work well. but en-
tirely with the clay. Sometimes the clay
was coarse and difficult to mold, other
times il was full OF grits, but there were
two courses that were opened to the pot
ter. First. he could purify the clay by re-
moving the coarser clements. and second,
he could make a rude vessel of the material
at hand. This is a familiar figure in the
Scriptures, for we read in Isaiah Ga: s,
"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 and
then we read IN the New Testament in
Paul's Epistle 20 the Romans. the 9th
chapter and the 2lst and 22d verses.
Hath not the potter power over the clay,
Of the same lump to make one vessel unto
honor and another unto dishonor: What
il God. willing to show His wrath, and to
make His power known. endured with
much long suffering the vessels of wrath
fitted to destruction"
We are the clay. God is the potter. Cay
in itself is most unattractive, but the art
ist looks upon it with interest because OF
what he sees in it in the way OF beauty al
ter his hands have touched it. This makes
the difference in two pieces of canvas, one
If touched by the master hand and is a
masterpiece, the other Is simply canvas III
its natural state and is not interesting.
A traveller stood watching a potter work
in the factory one day and said to him,
why is it in these days when such won
derful mechanical tools are constructed
this work is not done by machinery rather
than by hand,' and the potter said
There are some pieces OF work which can
only be brought to perfection b. the
touch of human hand" and 50 it is in
the formation of character. Whatever
may be ones social position or his financial
wealth he will not be able to please God
nor to be prepared for heaven until the
hand OF God has touched him. This Is n
picture of Our regeneration, for regenera-
ton Is the coming into Us of the life of
God. | stood one day in Venice watching
the glassblowers, and while glass in Its
natural state was most uninteresting, just
as soon as the workman began to blow the
breath of his own life into it it became
thing OF beauty. Adam. back in the Old
Testament becoming a living soul is the
Old Testament story of Gods inbreathing,
while the child of God in the New Tesla
ment is the New Testament's story of that
same inorcathing.
The day OF our conversion we Welded
ourselves to God: that was the closing of
ourselves in the hands OF the potter. As
we came into the light with Him God saw
imperfect!ons IN our makeup. things that
were not pleasing to Him, and so He put
His finger upon this or that; some OF these
things we have not been willing to give UP,
and so our lives have been marred. We
have had 4 controversy with Him. and
wherever there is controversy there Is
no peace. We are Christians. it is true.
but we are fruitless and joyiess. and many
OF us are shorn of power. The vessels were
married in the making. but it is a comfort
ing thing to know that we are in the har l.:
OF the potter still. and although we failed
yesterday we need not fail tomorrow. for
He will fashion Us if VIC will but permit
Him 10 do 80 IN the likeness OF His own
dear Son. We are 10 be holy. we are TO
be pure OF heart. VIC certainly are to have
fellowship with Christ. we have been in
bondage long enough, now the question is
shall we yield or not. Suppose we do not
yield. are we then lest: Certainly not
Paul says. ''He is able TO keen that which
/ have committed unto Him." and in the
eighth chapter of Romans he seems to eX-
haust language TO soar into heaven and to
make his way to the very dcD.hs OF the
earth and then to cry aloud, Nothing
shall be able to separate us from the love
of God which Is IN Christ Jesus our
Lord but we shall he shorn OF peace and
OF power and OF blessing, and while certain
kinds OF work will go on in our lives an
other kind of vessel will be made. Ro-
mans Q: q, Hath not the potter power
over the clay. of the same lump to make
one vessel unto honor and another unto
dishonor.' We might have been a vessel
in the kings palace. we might have been
in the throne room of the king. we might
have been used 20 carry life to the diving
and God would and YOU would not is a
sad story OF many life.
Ill
God has plan for every life. jeremiah
did not know what was in the mind of the
potter bat he knew that he was working
according TO a plan. but we know what is
in God s mind. Romans S: 90. For whom
He did forelSnow, lie also did predestinate
to be coaformed to the image of His Son,
that lie might be the first ho:n among
many b ethren." Philippians 3: y. Not
as though | had already attained. either
were air. ady perfect. but | follow after. if
that | nay apnrchend that for winch also
L am apprehended o. Christ Jesus" God
canno. be satisfied with anything less than
this. \ workman in a factory fashioning a
beautiful design saws an imperfection in
the plan. To carry It on meant ruin, and
so hc carried it back 10 the artist and
found that n was M error OF the copyist
and that Is the difficulty OF an inconsistent
life. II misrcprescats Jesus Christ There
arc people in this world who would scorn
to be hoterdoX so far as the Scriptures are
concerned, but so far as the manifestation
OF the Christ life is concerned they are ex.
cecdingly heretical. It is not part of Gods
plan that we should fail.
A distinguished preacher has said,
There Is definite and proper end and
issue for every mans existence, an end
which to the heart of God is the good in.
tended for him, or for which he was in.
tended; that which he is privileged to be
come, called TO become, ought to become:
that which God will assist him to become
and which he cannot miss save BY his own
fault. Every human soul has a complete
and perfect plan cherished for it in the
heart OF Coda divine biography marked