The Potter and the Clay. Trusting God’s Sovereign Hand (Romans 9:14-25)

Sermon on 20 July 2025 by Pastor Justin Chia

The Book of Romans is authored by Apostle Paul. When Paul wrote these books, he did not meet with the church. The keyword in Romans is the righteousness of God. The key verses are Romans 1:16-17 and 3:21-26. Romans 1-8 focuses on the revelation of God’s righteousness. Romans 9-11 focuses on the vindication of God’s righteousness. Lastly, Romans 12-16 focuses on the application of God’s righteousness.

Romans 1:16-17 - “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.””

Romans 3:21-26 - “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Romans 9:14-25 - “What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles? As He says also in Hosea: “I will call them My people, who were not My people, And her beloved, who was not beloved.””

‭‭Trust in God’s sovereignty. His mercy, His plan. Complete reliance on faith as His chosen people. The sovereign hand of God means God has the ultimate authority and makes all the decisions. It’s all according to His will and purpose for His pleasure. It is always for your good and eternal purpose. We walk by faith, not by sight. We want to trust only in Him for His mercy endures forever. He is the potter, we are the clay. We submit before Him and embrace our position as the clay. Let the hand of God be imprinted on us as we walk in alignment to His will regardless of what is happening in our life. After a season in life, we will always give thanks as we see how God moved in our lives. If God is with us, who can be against us? Your life will be full of thanksgiving. You will live a humble and obedient life, willing to submit under His authority. Israelites are the natural branch and we Gentiles are grafted onto the olive tree. By God’s mercy, He has chosen Gentiles and raised them up.

Romans 9:1-2 - “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart.”

Romans 9:30-33 - “What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. As it is written: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.””

Romans 8:28 - “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

God has chosen you. He is the ultimate authority. He offers mercy; He hardens hearts. You are a royal priesthood, a holy nation. As chosen people, we should live our lives honourable to God.

1 Peter 2:9 - “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”

Romans 9:18 - “Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.”

He is the Potter, and we are the clay. In every meeting, let God be first. Never make your own plans or seek man’s wisdom. A clay must be soft and humble. It cannot have a lack of self control. Whatever we are going through now, God is shaping and moulding us. God is rewriting our story.

Romans 9:21 - “Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?”

2 Timothy 2:20 - “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.”

Matthew 6:33 - “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Trust that God’s plan is perfect. Embrace our position as a clay. Let us be an honourable vessel. We will have peace in God because He reconciles us and brings us to a justified position. When we are going through things we don’t understand, we tend to question The Potter. The Potter has the authority to give you a plan. If you truly trust and know that He is The Potter, you will have a relationship with God. We are just a foreign traveller in this temporal world.

Jeremiah 29:11 - “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

Romans 8:28 - “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

1. God has the ultimate authority

Whatever we are going through, it is the will of God. We may not understand but we should have faith. All things work together for our good. He is so tangible. He is residing in us and chose us. God’s election is based on His purpose and calling, not human merit.

Romans 9:18 - “Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.”

Isaiah 55:9 - ““For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Ephesians 1:4-6 - “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”

Romans 9:11-12 - “(for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.””

Before Jacob and Esau were born, God loved Jacob and hated Esau. God chooses people. One thing we are sure of is that God chose and appointed us, not us choosing Him. There is nothing wrong if we want to build a big house or earn money. However, we need to seek God first. The fruit of the spirit is a mark of a disciple. Only few find the narrow path. You cannot manage your sin, you have to kill it.

John 15:16 - “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

Romans 8:13 - “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

2. God’s mercy and compassion

Romans 9:15 - “For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.””

God’s mercy is not earned. It is a gift from His sovereign will. If we are always in the spirit, we will know if we are in alignment with Him. The only condition to receive salvation is to have faith. Faith is belief with obedience.

Ephesians 2:8-9 - “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

He chose us before we even had the chance to choose Him. God’s mercy -> Thanksgiving and worship. Our Responsibility -> Reflects God’s mercy and love.

Ephesians 1:4 - “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,”

Jeremiah 1:5 - ““Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.””

Psalm 139:13-16 - “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.”

The eternal destiny of all things lies solely with God, who has perfect love and perfect grace.

3. God chose us to be used by Him

Romans 9:21 - “Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?”

We are broken, but God’s purpose is beautiful. We are no longer under the dominion of sin so we live under our status now.

Acts 9:1-6 - “Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.””

Acts 9:15 - “But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.”

When God uses broken people, He gets all the glory!

1 Corinthians 1:26-29 - “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.”

2 Timothy 2:21 - “Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”

Accept and trust God’s sovereign choice. Trust the Potter’s hands. I believe God is rewriting your story today! He is the Potter and we are the clay. You are His chosen one. His decision. Formed. Known. Chosen.

Irenaeus is a Greek bishop and a Christian theologian. From God’s hands, it is not you who shape God; it is God who shapes you. If then you are the work of God, await the hand of the Artist who does all things in due season.  Offer the Potter your heart, soft and tractable, and keep the form in which the Artist has fashioned you. Let your clay be moist, lest you grow hard and lose the imprint of the Potter’s fingers.

Amen.