Water in the midst of drought
Scripture
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
(John 7:37 NASB)
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
(John 7:38 NASB)
But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
(John 7:39 NASB)
(John 7:37 NASB)
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
(John 7:38 NASB)
But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
(John 7:39 NASB)
Observation
Jesus was preaching among many who were religious people, but were spiritually dry. They were going through the motions and following all the rules, but they had no life in them spiritually. Of course, this preaching made the religious leaders angry. How could he dare stand in front of the people and say what he did? He was revealing to them that he was the Messiah, and that it was through him that they could find living water which would quench their spiritual thirst for all of eternity.
Application
In the United States we are experiencing a drought this summer.
Vast fields of crops are in danger of being lost because of the extended
dry period. Even an occasional rain shower or thunderstorm is not
enough to quench the thirst of the ground and provide for a healthy
crop. What we need is a steady downpour of rain which comes on a
regular basis so that the deep cracks which have formed within the crust
of the earth will be melted away and the roots of the plants will be
well watered and the crops will grow.
Sadly, it's easy for us to experience drought on a spiritual level as well. When we don't get enough spiritual water we too will become hard and crusty. There will be very little healthy crop. This can happen to us individually, but also corporately. In Jesus' day the entire religious community had become dry and brittle.
The only way that we can avoid these types of dangers is to remain well watered. The water that Jesus promised was to come from the presence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus went away into heaven so that he could send the Holy Spirit who could come and live within and among each and every single one of us, providing a way in which we could be a well-watered garden. Unfortunately, we often limit the presence of the Holy Spirit to a little corner of our lives when he wants to be right in the center filling us day after day after day with life-giving water and spiritual strength. The droughts that we experience in our own lives spiritually are man-made. We experience drought when we don't allow time and/or space for the Holy Spirit to water us on a daily basis. We must create time and space and allow him to fill us to overflowing on a regular basis. He has promised this for us -- we must just allow him to fulfill what he has promised and the drought will end.
Sadly, it's easy for us to experience drought on a spiritual level as well. When we don't get enough spiritual water we too will become hard and crusty. There will be very little healthy crop. This can happen to us individually, but also corporately. In Jesus' day the entire religious community had become dry and brittle.
The only way that we can avoid these types of dangers is to remain well watered. The water that Jesus promised was to come from the presence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus went away into heaven so that he could send the Holy Spirit who could come and live within and among each and every single one of us, providing a way in which we could be a well-watered garden. Unfortunately, we often limit the presence of the Holy Spirit to a little corner of our lives when he wants to be right in the center filling us day after day after day with life-giving water and spiritual strength. The droughts that we experience in our own lives spiritually are man-made. We experience drought when we don't allow time and/or space for the Holy Spirit to water us on a daily basis. We must create time and space and allow him to fill us to overflowing on a regular basis. He has promised this for us -- we must just allow him to fulfill what he has promised and the drought will end.
Prayer
Lord, thank you for your life-giving water, the infilling of your Holy Spirit. Amen.
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