Title: Drink living water (John 7:37-39)
Contents
These days, it is the rainy season, so we hear a lot of news about floods and accidents caused by water from here and there. But the first thing that is supplied to such places is also the fact that water. We shared the sermon last week under the title of “Blessed Rainy Rain”, and today we would like to share our grace with the title of “Drink living water” through today’s text, thinking about the need for cleaner and better bottled water during the rainy season and floods.
People and water have a close relationship. At least 70% of the elements that make up the human body are water. As a common sense for a healthy body, it is recommended to consume about 2 liters of water per day for an adult. That is why our body needs a lot of water. Therefore, the lack of water is unbearable. More than any other thirst, the thirst for water is the most thirsty. Man cannot live without water above all else. Not only humans, but almost all living things cannot survive without water. The birthplace of civilizations and cultures are all centered on rivers flowing with great waters. Without water, civilization and culture cannot develop.
According to the Bible, Eden, the birthplace of the first civilization, was where four rivers flowed: Pishon, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates. And from that time on, the people who were driven out of Eden began to search for water, and they went to war because of water and suffered because of water.
Water is an essential element in maintaining the health of our body and is a decisive factor in the development of civilization and culture, but only 0.1% of the water on this planet can be drunk. These days, the mountains near the city center are constantly visited by people fetching bottled water. And what happens in bottled water is often reluctant to talk about. As such, many city dwellers today buy bottled water to eat or go directly to the mountains to drink clear bottled water.
How much effort do you spend to get living water? Some restaurants advertised, 'We don't cook with tap water, but our family cooks with bottled water from the mountains every day.'
People who live in areas where water is readily available at any time do not understand the seriousness of water. But Palestine, the world of the Bible, is a tropical and desert country, so water is very scarce. If there is water, people can live, but without water, people cannot survive.
In particular, among the quarrels and resentments of the Israelites who were living in the wilderness, the most frequent occurrence was due to water. For the people of Israel who complained and complained because there was no water to drink in the wilderness, God through Moses broke the rock and made living water gushing out and drinking. And he sweetened the water of Mara, which could not be drunk because it was bitter, so that he could drink it. If a person drinks good water, it is good for health. Poor water can be detrimental to your health. If you can, try your best to drink good water.
Many countries have already been classified as water-scarce countries, so there is an emergency to secure clean water in various parts of the world, and there are some places where there are conflicts between countries for water resources. Korea is also one of the water scarce countries designated by the United Nations. This water resource has become an important resource more than oil, and it is certain that it will become even more so in the future. Because water is directly related to our life along with food. We can live without oil, but we cannot live without water. Even now, one in five people on the planet suffers from water, and it is said that in the next few years, one in two people will suffer from water.
However, man does not live only with material living water. We must have spiritual living water.
We should ask how much we are striving for spiritual living water. We know deeply how important living water is in our physical life. So, we do not hesitate to travel far to get that living water, and we carry, carry, and carry heavy water bottles. It's really expensive. But they are doing it happily. As we look at ourselves in this way, we should ask ourselves whether we really have that much thirst for spiritual living water.
As the Bible says Isaiah 58:11 "I, the LORD, will guide you always, satisfy your soul in dry places, and strengthen my bones; you will be like a watered garden, like a spring that never fails. Trust in the LORD. Blessed is he who does it. He is like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and when the heat comes, its leaves are green when it is not afraid, and there is no worry in a year of drought and never ceases to bear fruit. Jeremiah 2:13 “My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and have dug their own cistern, which is to store water. It's a broken puddle that you can't do." To live apart from the Lord and to live apart from the Lord Jesus Christ is like abandoning the source of living water and looking for water when you are thirsty.
Where living water flows, the works of healing, life, prosperity, and blessing have taken place. According to the book of Ezekiel, the dead seawater and living creatures came to life through the river of living water flowing from the altar, and the works of prosperity and blessing took place, and the dry and dead land became a place for people to live.
This world is getting worse day by day, and only hopeless predictions abound. Without Jesus Christ there is really no hope. Through faith in Jesus Christ, the source of living water, rivers of living water must flow from that belly. So there is hope. That will solve the problem.
When our ships overflow with the living water of the Holy Spirit, we can even lift a large fleet.
The people of old Israel who lived in the wilderness, the Jews of Jesus' day, and all of us living in modern times have their own thirst. There is a thirst for material things, fame, and power, and there is a spiritual thirst. However, nothing can fill you with true satisfaction. Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “The lover of silver is not satisfied with silver, and the lover of abundance is not satisfied with income.” Only when we believe in Jesus Christ, the source of living water, and we are connected with the Holy Spirit sent by the Lord, living water of true satisfaction will flow from the depths.
In order to obtain good living water for the body, we must go to a good spring. Where to go for good living water for the soul? We must go to Jesus Christ, who is the living water. Those who truly believe in Jesus and are filled with the Holy Spirit will always have living water without thirst.