Living water life

TODAY'S SPECIAL: John 4:1-20

TO CHEW ON: " ' Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.' " John 14:13,14

What an offer! Who wouldn't want this water, especially in the dry, thirsty Samaria of Jesus' time? Of course we know Jesus was speaking metaphorically (though by the woman's reaction, it seems she didn't pick that up right away). But what did He mean by living water inside oneself, becoming a fountain "... 'springing up into everlasting life' "?

Water imagery flows through the Bible.

• Psalm 110 (titled "Announcement of Messiah's Reign" in my Bible) speaks of the brook that revives: "He shall drink of the brook by the wayside; Therefore He shall lift up the head" - Psalm 110:7.

• Isaiah talks about joyfully drawing water from wells of salvation - Isaiah 12:3.

• Ezekiel sees a vision of a healing river that gives life to all it touches - Ezekiel 47:9.

• Here in John 4, Jesus promises an inner, self-replenishing fountain that springs up into everlasting life.

• Later Jesus calls out during the Feast of Tabernacles: " ' If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water' " - John 7:37,38. Then John adds an author's aside that sheds light on the source of this river: "But this He spoke concerning the Spirit whom those believing in Him would receive" - John 7:39 (emphasis added).

This was prophesied too:

"For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring" - Isaiah 44:3.

We could say, I think,  that to the extent that the Spirit has access to and control over our lives, living water will be a fountain within and flow out of us.

We can, of course, shut Him down too if we rebel against (Isaiah 63:10), blaspheme (Matthew 12:31; Mark 3:29), lie to (Acts 5:3), resist (Acts 7:51), grieve (Ephesians 4:30), insult  (Hebrews 10:29) and quench Him (1 Thessalonians 5:19).


PRAYER: Dear Holy Spirit, please have full access to my life. I want it to be part of that living water stream that flows through the centuries into eternity. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.