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There is A River Series
From John 7:37 we hear Jesus portraying water as a symbol of the Holy Spirit and the supply of the Holy Spiritis Himself, the Holy Spirit then goes deep into the Christian’s being and is to flow out as rivers.The requirements to obtain the Holy Spirit are to be thirsty and to come to Him.
We know from 2 Cor. 1:21-22 that Paul when talking to Christians states God has anointed them and placedthe seal of the Holy Spirit on them.Again in Eph. 1:12-14 that those who believed in gospel message for their salvation were marked with the sealof the Holy Spirit.From these verses we understand that all Christians have the Holy Spirit on them and in them and is intended to flow out from them freely as rivers.Again, the Holy Spirit comes from God, is available to those who seek Him, goes deep into one’s beingand should be seen or experienced as an outflow similar to rivers.
As water is a symbol of the Holy Spirit we can look at the way water is seen in the natural realm and seeany similarities between the natural and the spiritual.
In the natural realm we see there is a water cycle.Water comes down from above in the form of rain or snow.Water flows down from higher places in streams that flow into rivers and down to the sea. It then risesas evaporation into the sky to return as rain.As the water flows down it is stored in various ways and is used to sustain life.While most of the water flows on top of the ground, some seeps down into the ground and is stored there occasionally coming to the surface via wells, springs or fountains.It is interesting to note that the water supply from underground can often be obtained even if there is no supply above the ground.Wells, springs and even fountains can bring life to otherwise dry and barren areas.People in desert areas do not expect it to rain and do not pray for rain when they have an underground supply.
What are the parallels between the spiritual and the natural?
First the supply comes from above it then flows down, some as an anointing on top and some deep downbut always brings life to any time it is utilised.In the spiritual it is our responsibility as Christians to seek Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit from Him and build up the supply deep within us.He willingly supplies the Holy Spirit to all who seek Him!But often we feel so dry and our lives so barren. We feel as if the supply is not available. We cry out for the “rain” of the Holy Spirit to come upon us.It is at those times we need to understand that there is a river and it is available, there is a supply deep inside us.Similar to the water cycle that goes around and around, so the flow of the Holy Spirit must also flow in a cycle.We receive the Holy Spirit into our lives not to keep Him or ourselves but to allow Him to flow up and out ofour lives for the blessing of others.Failure to allow the flow out of our lives could make us dead as the Dead Sea that has not outlet.During the articles on “There is a River” I want to learn about the working and supply of the Holy Spirit inthe lives of Christians especially during the dry barren times.
How did people in the Bible use the natural water and what happened when they look for the water supply in barren times.