He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. -John 7:38
{download PDF copy here}
Water [n] : purifying, cleansing, refreshing, healing, nourishing, invigorating, and restorative.
To be honest with you, John 7:38 was sort of a puzzle to me -- until this lesson. What does the LORD mean by "out of you shall flow rivers of living water". I have heard several teachings on this verse, yet it still seemed a bit fuzzy. As we go through this lesson, we are going to talk about water -- and living water. Remember, the LORD God doesn't just say things to be ethereal or poetic. He is always teaching us in his ways and conforming us into the image of his dear Son, Jesus Christ.(Romans 8:29)
I must tell you, Dear Reader, that this study of the fear of God has been such a blessing for me and has deepened my relationship with the LORD so much more. The LORD is a gracious teacher! I hope it has been the same for you.
Onward... we will be following along with pages 33-40 in our text. Bunyan asks on page 33, 'What flows from this godly fear'? These pages truly resonated with my heart. Let's take a look at the first answer:
First: There flows from this godly fear a godly reverence of God. He is great, said David, and greatly to be feared in the assembly of his saints. (Psalm 77:13; 95:3) -- NECESSARY WATER
-- God is the proper object of godly fear; it is his person and majesty that this fear always causeth the eye of the soul to be upon. ... That is more than any other; I stand in awe of him, he is my dread, he is my fear, I do all mine actions as in his presence, as in his sight; I reverence his holy and glorious majesty, doing all things as with fear and trembling before him.
This grace of fear, therefore, from it flows reverence of the words of God;
Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God.
Psalm 119:116
WOW! This really jumped out the pages for me. Godly fear FLOWS FROM a godly reverence of God. Jesus said, that whosoever believes on him -- from his belly shall flow rivers of living water.We know that the Word of God is life. We know that Jesus is the Word of God, and Jesus is Life. Here's the LIVING WATER part -- only from having a true fear of God which comes from believing Jesus Christ as our Saviour, can any life flow out of us. And that is the work of God in us. Lest we should boast.
It is this godly fear flowing from us that makes us bold. That causes us to be zealous for the things of God. Remember how David responded when he heard Goliath mocking God and mocking God's people?
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: -Philippians1:6
Second: There flows from this godly fear, watchfulness -- CLEANSING WATER
Here's a doozie! Are we listening to what the Holy Spirit is teaching us? This is wake up call!
From this godly fear, we are far more aware of the things we should be watching:
- your heart and keep it with all diligence
- that you fall not into temptation
- your mouth that it not be an evil member
- your ways and look well to your goings
Lest!! From the heart within, or the from the devil without, or from the world, or from some other temptation, something should surprise and overtake the child of God to defile him or to cause him to defile the ways of God.
Look up the following verses and note the instruction for us:
- Proverbs 4:23
- II Chronicles 19:7
- Hebrews 12:15
- Matthew 24:4
- I Peter 5:8
- James 3:2-7
- Colossians 3:5-10
Third: There flows from this fear a holy provocation to the reverential *converse with saints in their religious and godly assemblies for their further progress in the faith and way of holiness. INVIGORATING WATER
*Converse: To keep company; to associate; to cohabit; to be intimately acquainted; To talk familiarly; to have free and mutual communication of thoughts and opinions; to convey thoughts reciprocally;
*Conversation: familiar discourse or talk; free interchange of thoughts or opinions.
God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him. -Psalm 89:7
As I was writing this lesson, a friend of mine texted me and shared with me that she had just had a serious discussion with a friend of hers about the fear of God. The discussion escalated into an argument. It is sad to note that when there is a lack of the fear of God in a person's life, they tend to defend their own ways and disregard the searching out of God's ways. This gal's friend "already knows" about God...her attitude comes across as "why should I take the time to find out anything different from what I already know?" Humility is evidence that one fears God. Humility wants to search the Scriptures to find truth; even if we think we are right in a matter.
We are admonished to speak with one another regarding our walk with God. Remember Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. However, it is not politically-correct nor churchy-correct to have those straightforward and direct conversations. You know, we shouldn't judge. You know, we shouldn't offend the other person. You know, we should just love them right where they are. Does that mean we avoid straight talk? Does that mean we close our eyes to sin in the camp? Does that mean we are more concerned about someone's feelings more than we are their eternity?
What about: II Timothy chapter 3???? You should read that. If the people we are speaking with are Christians, then we should be able to talk about the things of God. Because, that's what our conversation should be....about God.
LOOK UP:
- Psalm 19:14
- Colossians 3:16
- ADMONISH
- EXHORT
Let's stop here for now. There are 14 ... let's call them "properties" of living water. The properties that flow from godly fear. I'll list them for you; but we'll take the time to look at them more in depth in the next few lessons.
PROPERTIES of Living Water: He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. -John 7:38
- a godly reverence of God
- watchfulness
- holy provocation to reverential conversation
- reverence of God's majesty
- self denial
- singleness of heart
- compassion
- hearty, fervent, and constant prayer
- a readiness or willingness to God
- humility of mind
- hope in the mercy of God
- honest and conscientious use of all those means which God hath ordained
- great delight in the holy commands of God, a delight to be conformable unto them
- enlargement of heart
Here's a little bonus list for you (we love lists!) In my own study of this lesson, I did some research on water: regular - physical - fresh - water and here are the 14 benefits. -- God is so AWESOME!!
DRINKING WATER BENEFITS (8oz/hour throughout the day) Also, check out this Water site
- helps you to lose weight
- healthy skin
- fights infection
- gets rid of body toxins
- healthy heart
- prevents joint pains and arthritis
- boosts energy
- prevents constipation
- reduces risk of cancer
- improves productivity
- regulates body temperature
- prevents loss of calcium
- hydrates brain cells
- oxygenates blood and lungs
Drink water and fear God
~Cristina
No comments:
Post a Comment