I read this chapter, “Emptied From Vessel to Vessel” in
John Wright Follette’s book, Broken Bread. He gave this message on Jeremiah
48:11 as a sermon and it impressed me so much that I also shared it in one of our
women’s meetings at my church. –Danna Shirley
“Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath
settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither
hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent
is not changed.” (Jeremiah 48:11 KJV)
When I (Danna) heard the word “vessel,”
I tended to think of myself as the “clay vessel” in Isaiah 64:8. “But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are
the clay, and You our Potter, and all we are the work of Your hand.”
John Wright Follette in
his book, Broken Bread, made this comment about Jeremiah 48:11:
“Emptied from vessel to vessel is a figure that speaks of
winemaking. It relates to a method used to produce a well-refined wine, which
is poured into a vessel and allowed to stand for a certain length of time. Then
it’s poured into its next vessel.
“Each time this is done, there is a settling of the dregs
and sediment which remains in the container, as the winemaker carefully pours
the liquid into another vessel. This process is repeated until the wine is
perfectly refined and yields a freshness of fragrance and color that is
pleasing to the maker.
“This result will not occur if the wine had been allowed
to stay in only one vessel. Instead it would have “settled upon its lees” and
become scented with the essence of the dregs. Because the intention of the Lord
is to bring us to spiritual maturity, we also are carefully poured from vessel
to vessel; from one dealing to another.”
"These vessels may represent
the various trials, unique arrangement of trying circumstances, peculiar
conditions, unexplainable leadings, tests in relation to healing and the
general array of experiences and vicissitudes common in the life of a
consecrated Christian. The vessels are
quite different." --John Wright Follette
1. Tinged glass –
VESSEL OF MISUNDERSTANDING: People judge
the wine by the color of the glass. The
“wine” is all the time conscious of this judgment and has a prayerful time
getting settled. The wine must
become absolutely still and stand long enough for the sediment to settle and
cling to the bottom and sides of the vessel.
What is left behind is self-vindication and the self-life.
2. Large, round,
open receptacle – VESSEL OF PUBLIC GAZE:
Here the wine experiences public humiliation and weakness; public
judgment and criticism. The wine becomes
quiet, yielded and silent. When poured
out again it leaves behind the dregs of pride and self-preservation.
3. VESSEL OF LONG,
DARK TRIAL: Here the wine stands for
hours, days, or even months in shadow and darkness. The vessel yields no light and is not
transparent so the wine must remember the light found in other days and simply
trust that God will let the light shine again.
When poured out, the dregs of impatience, questioning, and unbelief are
left behind.
4. Vessel of bulges,
angles, corners, dents, and ridges – VESSEL OF STRANGE GUIDANCE: The wine has been poured and now it must find
its way into all the different bulges and angles. We do not have to know why God does everything;
neither do we have to explain to the public why He leads us as He does
at times. As soon as the wine is settled
and the lesson learned, the gentle hand of the Maker again lifts the vessel and
pours the wine out…and the wine begins to sparkle and gleam with fresh
yieldedness and obedience. Behind are
dregs of distrust and fear.
5. VESSEL OF
EVERYBODY ELSE’S FAULT: The wine may not
be to blame at all or the vessel it finds itself in but people sometimes fail
to do their duty, or forget, or someone is not yet broken and yielded, or
another refuses to come or go as he should.
We are often willing to go through a trial or test when WE are to blame
or have some involvement in it, but to be dragged into a plight that is not our
own and we are not to blame, is a to the flesh a real death. But we must remember that we did not pour
ourselves into this vessel…God did…we have only to yield, be poured into it,
melt, and flow.
The next phase of the lessons
is, “How may the wine act in being poured out?”
1. We may be wine
poured from vessel to vessel but if our will is not surrendered and we do not allow God to continue the “pouring” process, we can remain rigid and
unbroken in spirit. We then retain our
own shape and we do not melt into the vessel of our situation so that a
sediment may settle.
Did you ever try to pour out a pan of thick milk into
a smaller receptacle? The milk is thick
and curdled and has become set, there is no brokenness in
it. The question becomes not, “Am I
poured?” but “Am I broken?” One may be
poured and emptied into a hundred vessels and never learn the lesson God
desires or “be broken.” Let us break in
spirit and as we are emptied out there will be LESS agony, pain, and distress
for we will, with God’s grace, melt and fill each vessel quickly…and move on.
2. Another way we
may react is to yield to the pouring but just endure it…not learn any
lesson from it. We have a little pout in
our spirit saying ever so faintly, “Yes, Lord, I am going through, but just the
same I don’t think it is quite fair, for YOU could have made it easier.” We consent in will but do not break in
spirit. Let us break and let the dregs
settle.
3. The best way is
to not only surrender in will but to break in spirit and heart. As we break in spirit, we lose our setness;
our natural spirit gives way and we become pliable and run easily into the most
intricate parts of the vessel.
The object in emptying us from vessel to vessel is to
produce a broken and yielded spirit AND to keep us from settling on our
lees. The road of least resistance is a
rut. If we never get poured from
experience to experience, the wine gets spoiled and scented with dregs. Do not be surprised if God is emptying you
from a vessel in which you have been blessed for days, months, or even years. Maybe you are settling on your lees and He
wished to refine you a little more.
Another reason for all these vessels is to broaden us
in sympathy and understanding with each other.
The one who has had but little trouble in life is not a particularly helpful
person. But one who has gone through a
hundred and one trials, experiences, deaths, blasted hopes, shocks, and a
tragedy or two has learned his lesson – who by reason of use has his senses
exercised – such a person is worthwhile.
He is able to enter into the need of suffering humanity and pray it
through. Nothing can better equip us
than to break in spirit and heart and so become clear, sparkling wine, rich and
refreshing.
Why should we have this broken spirit? Because we follow Him who yielded His will,
and heart, and spirit. He became limp,
weak, and broken until His life was poured out.
Let us yield quickly and learn our lessons well so
that we do not become settled on our lees.
