Romaine Park Church Service – 30/01/2022, Nick Booth:- There is a River – John 7:37-39 and Psalm 46:4
Church, last time I preached (that is four weeks ago) I spoke about the word of God and I mentioned that I was doing a reading plan with a bunch of pastors throughout Australia a 30 shred! Well, I finished reading my bible through yesterday! So now that I got through it in one year – I am going to go through the NT in the next month with the same group of pastors so that we can slow down a bit and take more in!
I’m not asking all or even any of you to read it through that fast, but I would encourage everyone of you to read through your bible – I wouldn’t push you to do it in a month but maybe in a year or 2 to have it finished would be a great thing.
I like to think of individual passages and books like pieces in a wonderful jigsaw puzzle that makes up the whole picture. It is so good to see where verses, and passages fit within the biblical narrative of redemption.
We should read it through so that we see full picture. So that we can see where the parts fit in the big picture of scripture. As we do this, we see the interconnectedness of scripture and recognise the divine authorship and even God’s guiding hand in history and with people! This encourages us to know that God is still speaking and acting in our world. God has not stopped working in our day and age. He is still in control and he has not surrendered the world to any human, to any government or to any other spiritual power! Our God reigns! And if that doesn’t excite you – maybe just go right ahead now and check your pulse and make sure that your heart is still beating!
Church, today, I want to talk about the Joy that having a relationship with God brings in our lives. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t difficult times, it doesn’t mean that you won’t have seasons of huge challenges or where you might face anxiety or depression (but it does mean that you can find real Joy that comes even during those dark hours, days and weeks because God is with you.
While reading through my bible this last month – there was a line from a Psalm that just grabbed my attention and I thought – I’m going to preach on that topic! I’m sure that many of you have heard this verse before but I want to read the verse for you today and then take a look at a few passages from other parts of the bible that relate to it. Similar and complimentary passages.
Ps 46:4
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
About 11 months ago a friend of mine, Allan Davis preached to us one Sunday about the Jordan river in Israel and how it flowed and brought life as long as that river was giving out. But when it reaches the dead sea – well there was no life. Nothing lives there because it is D E A D dead. It stops giving and produces no life. Our lives can become like that and we can become self-focused and lack any joy or gladness. Remember the line in this Psalm. The river makes us glad! It brings us Joy. We need to get God’s Joy and his river of life flowing out of us! And there is something vital that we need to do to come to the place where God can do this for us and in us. Let’s read a passage where Jesus himself talked about this.
John 7: 37 – 39 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
- Now, I don’t want to conflate the idea of life and Joy too much but they are both aspects of a relationship that flows from God through His Holy Spirit.
There are various verses in the bible that reveal that Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is in our lives, when he has regenerated us “Joy of salvation”. When he forgives us “joy when our sins are forgiven” and also when he fills us, then Joy comes as a by-product. Just have a look at Acts chapter 2 – people thought that the church was drunk. If you want Joy – perhaps what you really need is the life that God gives. That life is a Full life, an abundant life, it is eternal life that we receive when we are born again. Now it’s not one that is free from pain or issues but one where God is with us through every trial, every struggle and every challenge.
- A question that I see asked in this passage from John and perhaps not often asked by many of us to ourselves is how thirsty are we?
How thirsty am I for a deeper relationship with God? If I don’t recognise the need – then I will never set out to get it filled!
Let me tell you a little about what was happening at this feast of the Tabernacles when Jesus stood up to say “If you are thirsty, come to me”.
The feast of Tabernacles is a festival where Israel would go camping for 7 days to remember the 40 years living in tents in the Wilderness. Every day of those 7 – there would be a procession to the Pool of Siloam and they would remember the water that flowed from the Rock in the wilderness when Moses struck it.
By the time of Jesus, this feast had an additional day – The last great day. On that day the priests would march down to the Pool of Siloam, Draw water from the Pool and march back to the temple to pour out the water as a prediction of the Holy Spirit being poured out when the Messiah came. This had been going on for years but on this day, Jesus stood up just before the water was to be poured out and he stole their thunder.
Let me read you what one commentary says.
Verse 37 … marks the last day of the feast. Jesus’ offer of living water on that day was made against the background of the Jewish tradition of bringing a libation of water drawn from the pool of Siloam. The libation was accompanied by singing Psalms 113–118, the last of which is particularly messianic, followed by reciting Isa 12:3 and 55:1. So their ritual concluded with ‘Ho everyone that thirsts, come you to the waters.’ With this still echoing in the temple, Jesus stood up and said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink”
Did you get that… Jesus interrupts this religious festival and Cry’s out or Yells out in loud voice – totally stealing their thunder.
Can you imagine it – At the pinnacle of this enacted Parable – Jesus shouts out ‘Come to me and I will give you rivers of living water flowing out from within you! Jesus, was declaring himself the Messiah and announcing that we need Him, and the life that he gives through the Holy Spirit!
The Jewish background to this is all really rich! Along with the other scriptures that I just mentioned, there was clear reference to Zechariah 14 and Ezekiel 47 both talk about the rivers of Living water flowing from the Temple! Paul wrote in Corinthians that we are the Temple of God. Both individually and corporately. God lives in us and not in buildings!
How about you, Are you living in God? Are you remembering and letting God fill you and guide your life? The question could be asked this way, Are you living God’s best life, His plan with His help and His presence in you? Friend, are you wanting more from God this year? or
Are you satisfied with what doesn’t really satisfy? Is the pursuit of things, of relationships, of career or real estate portfolio, The desire for popularity or position more important? All these things are fleeting and temporary and even if we get them, they leave us feeling empty. In the words of Dr Phil? How’s that working for you?
Jesus has been glorified! (Raised and seated with the Father). He has sent his Holy Spirit and yet so many people remain thirsty or worse still, satisfied with way less than God’s best. Something other than God has satisfied our spiritual appetite.
Let me tell you a bit of background of the pool of Siloam. This pool dates to the last King of Judah who was ultimately carried off to Babylon in the exile. King Zedekiah (was not a great or righteous king). He was the last king of Judah and he actually led a rebellion against Nebuchadnezzar. During his short reign, he built an aqueduct to bring water from springs into the city so that when they were under siege, they would still have water. You can read about the king and his rebellion n 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Jeremiah and some of the other prophets in the OT. But we only find out about the Aqueduct – from History and archaeology. Zedekiah knew the simple fact that where there was no water – there was no life. Unfortunately Zedekiah did everything in his own strength and he wound up blind and a prisoner of Nebuchadnezzar back in Babylon.
There was another prophet who was actually a priest of the Lord in Jerusalem during this period and he began prophesying before and during the exile. He was Ezekiel. He spends a number of chapters talking about the New Covenant relationship (just like Jeremiah and Isaiah do). There are absolutely incredible prophetic pictures to do with the time when Jesus would reign. Do check out some of them like the Valley of Dry bones in Ezek 37… But Ezekiel 47 talks specifically about a river of life that flows from within the temple- to bring healing to our world.
This scripture began being fulfilled in Acts chapter 2 when the Holy Spirit inhabited his New Temple – the people who he calls and saves. The ones who he then gives the responsibility to take the message of hope and salvation to others in his power. We are to be filled with the Holy Spirit to be empowered, to be emboldened, to be anointed, gifted to do His work in his power and not in our own strength. We need the Holy Spirit for more than just salvation, we need him for every part of our Christian lives. Paul writes in Galatians about how foolish it is to begin in the Spirit and then try and finish it in the Flesh!
In Revelations 22, the very last chapter of the Bible. We read that God intends to rescue our world and to live with Humanity for all eternity. He offers not just good things for this life but life with Him that lasts forever. Each of us are to cry out Come Lord Jesus. The Spirit and the Bride say come!
How is your hunger for that? Do you long for more of God or more specifically, for God to have more of you? Do you long to be with Him, not just to be free of life’s struggles but to enjoy God forever! If you have never known this joyous experience of being filled with God’s Spirit, its actually God’s plan for your life. It is meant to start in this life and then last throughout eternity! Ephesians 5 says that we are to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
- How do you get filled?
Whoever is thirsty needs to come to Christ to be filled. Are you thirsty? It starts by coming to Christ. I would love to help you find this life in Christ today. We do this by responding to his call to come to him. We repent of trying to do it all in our own strength and place our life under Christ’s lordship and direction.
Maybe you’ve been running your own life for 10, 20, 30, 40 years maybe more and you know that you have made a mess of many areas in it. Like King Zedekiah, you have become blind and imprisoned and you long from Freedom.
It is interesting that the only other time we here of this pool of Siloam is when a blind man receives his sight in John 9!
I wonder if you would join me and pray this prayer with me today? It is a simple prayer for salvation. If that is you then let’s pray as we come to Christ today.
Dear Lord,
I admit that I am a sinner. I have done many things that don’t please you. I have lived my life for myself only. I am sorry, and I repent. I ask you to forgive me.
I believe that you died on the cross to save me. You did what I could not do for myself. I come to you now and I give my life to you. From this day forward, help me to live every day for you and in a way that pleases you.
I love you, Lord, and I thank you that I will spend all eternity with you.
Amen.
