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Jesus painted a beautiful picture of salvation in this passage. The salvation Jesus brings is like an artesian spring which doesn't have to be pumped. It bubbles up constantly.
Unfortunately, not every Christian's experience matches Jesus' description. Many people relate more to an old pump which has to be pumped and pumped. Just as a trickle of water comes, they have to rest. They lose their prime. The water stops. Then they have to start all over again.
Yet, Jesus said we would never thirst again. This doesn't mean that one drink satisfies us forever. But, as we continue to avail ourselves of this water of life daily, we will be constantly refreshed. The well of His...
OUR SPIRITS NEED TO BE TAKEN CARE OF AS WELL AS OUR BODIES. THEY NEED TO BE TRAINED IN THE THINGS OF GOD. THEY NEED...
Jesus asked this woman for a drink of water, but it wasn't water He was interested in. He wanted to give this woman eternal life.
God is the greatest giver there ever was. He lives to give. When He asks something of us we can be assured that it is only so He can multiply it and give it back to us.
God is not interested in the water we can give Him. We don't have anything to offer God that He doesn't already have. God wants us. And by asking us to give of our time and money or desires, He is really asking us to give ourselves.
Many a person has walked away from God sad, like the rich young ruler because all they could think about was what they would have to...
This is an interesting passage of scripture. On the surface, it might look like Jesus was running from a fight. Now that John the Baptist was out of the way (he had been imprisoned), it was inevitable that the Pharisees would attack Jesus.
One thing we can be sure of is that there was no fear on our Lord's part. On other occasions He demonstrated that no one could do anything to Him if He didn't allow it (Lk. 4:29-30; Jn. 7:30, 44-46; 8:20, 59; 10:39).
Therefore we can assume that Jesus left because He knew it was God's will. On another occasion when His half brothers dared Him to go to Jerusalem and confront the Pharisees, He told them that it wasn't time for Him to go yet (Jn. 7:1-6). A lesser man...
John spent 30 years preparing for a six month ministry, followed by one and a half years in prison before he was beheaded. Many people would not consider his life very successful, yet Jesus said John was the greatest man who was ever born (Mt. 11:11).
John's greatness didn't lie in his own success, but in the success of another. John stirred up the hearts of an entire nation in expectancy of their Messiah. The ministry of Jesus owed much of its success to the work of John. John had prepared a people to meet their God (Mal. 3:1).
In our celebrity conscious society, few people want to be the backup singer or the announcer who introduces the main speaker. We have adopted a mentality that unless we are in the limelight we have failed. That's not the way the Lord looks at things.
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John the Baptist had spent 30 years in preparation for his ministry. He didn't enjoy the normal benefits of childhood or adolescence. He lived out in the deserts separated unto God instead (Lk. 1:80).
For approximately six months, he enjoyed success in his ministry like no other man ever had. He started preaching in the wilderness--not the centers of commerce. Still the multitudes flocked to him. He became the most influential man in Israel and even shot the hearts of Roman rulers. Everything was going John's way.
Then he baptized Jesus and proclaimed Him as the long-awaited Messiah (Mt. 3:13-17; Jn. 1:29). From that time on, the multitudes who once followed John began to follow Jesus in ever increasing numbers (Jn. 3:26). His own disciples left him to follow Jesus (Jn. 1:36-37). This would have destroyed...