Week of January 31, 2010
JOHN 7:37-52
Do You Have a Drinking Problem?
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1 <Read Isaiah 55: 1-9>
On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. John 7:37
A great teacher once said: “God has rigged the world not to work.” What he meant by this is basically two things. First, there is nothing in the world that satisfies completely, nothing that really lasts, nothing that fills the deepest longing that is in all of us. There is no possession, no fame, and no relationship that truly fills us. Yet, all of us have a longing for something that lasts, something that feeds our souls and quenches our spiritual thirst. The teacher’s point was the “something” we all want is none other than God Himself. God has made everything else so that it does not satisfy so that in the end, we should seek Him and find Him. Jesus is remarkably straight forward. If you are hungry, eat. If you are thirsty, drink. In other words, He is saying, “I am it. I am what you looking for. I will quench your thirst. I will feed you with food that will give you life. Won’t you come to dinner?”
Prayer: “Taking my sin, my cross, my shame, Rising again I bless your Name; You are my all in all. When I fall down you pick me up, when I am dry you fill my cup; You are my all in all. Jesus, Lamb of God. Worthy is your name! Jesus, Lamb of God. Worthy is your Name!”
(You are my All in All, Verse 2, The Celebration Hymnal, #583)
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2 <Read John 4: 7-15>
Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. John 7:38
There is a great principle we should write on our hearts and minds and even on the door of our refrigerators: “If God gives it, you have to share it or it goes stale.” Most of us know that the Dead Sea is one big stagnant pond. It is stagnant because all the water flows in, but none flows out. Many Christians are like this. They have faith and perhaps they spent a lot of time nurturing it through worship and Bible study. Like the muscles in our body, our faith not only needs to be fed, it needs to put to work or it becomes atrophied; like water, it must move to remain clear and alive. Sadly, many churches are this way too. Once alive with the purpose of sharing Jesus, time wore away the letters and their focus became on “—us.” This is evidenced by churches that have either died or are in the process of dying are all around us. Our faith in Jesus, even our very lives, must be given away to grow.
Prayer: “We’ve a Savior to show to the nations Who the path of sorrow hath trod, That all the world’s great peoples, Might come to the truth of God. For the darkness shall turn to dawning, And dawning to noonday bright, And Christ’s great kingdom shall come on earth, The kingdom of love and light.”
(We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations, Verse 4, The Celebration Hymnal, #446)
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3 <Read John 14:15-21>
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. John 7:39a
Have you ever felt like you could not go on, but then found the strength to do so? Have you ever felt a presence that gave you the feeling you are never really alone? Have you ever been at a loss about what to say but then the words were there? Have you ever felt like something you did was wrong and you needed to make it right? Have you ever been full of joy and have not really known from where the joy came? All of these experiences are evidence of the Holy Spirit in our lives—God Himself living in us and through us. This is the great heritage we have as Christians and something many Christians fail to fully grasp. The Scripture tells us that when we come to Christ and give our lives to Him, He makes us His children and gives us an inheritance. That inheritance is a new relationship with God as our Father and a new life which is eternal, a whole new purpose of living in Him and for Him. The wonder of this inheritance is that it is not just something we get later; it is something that we now have through the Holy Spirit. Our new relationship with God is right now; our new purpose of living for Him is right now; and our new life is right now.
Prayer: “Child of the Kingdom, be filled with the Spirit! Nothing but fullness thy longing can meet. ‘Tis the enduement for life and for service. Thine is the promise, so certain, so sweet! I will pour water on him that is thirsty; I will pour floods on the dry ground. Open your heart for gift I am bringing; While you are seeking Me I will be found.” (Come, Every One Who is Thirsty, Verse 3, The Celebration Hymnal, #720)
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4 <Read John 17: 1-5>
Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. John 7: 39b
When John uses the term “glorify,” he almost always referred to the cross. In other words, Jesus’ death on the cross brings Him glory, not only because through the cross Jesus would redeem us, but through the cross God gave us the Holy Spirit and enabled you and me to live a victorious Christian life. Many Christians do not understand this. We say, “Praise God, Jesus died for my sins and when I get to heaven I am going to be like Him.” That is certainly true, but God wants us to start right now. The purpose and the power of the cross of Jesus Christ is that God wants us to live for Him now, not in our power, but in His power, the power of the Spirit which He has given to us. Do you see it? Through the cross, we have been forgiven and have been made children and heirs. Heaven is indeed our destination and inheritance. Even more, through the cross, we have been given the Holy Spirit and have been given purpose and power. So many of us live our Christian lives like someone hanging off a cliff holding onto a tree branch. The fact is God has given us victory now and wants us to live with it.
Prayer: “Breathe on me breath of God, Fill me with life anew, That I may love what Thou dost love, And do what Thou wouldst do.” (Breathe on me breath of God, Verse 1, The Celebration Hymnal, #393)
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5 <Read Luke 12:49-53>
Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. John 7:43
These days there is almost no truth that is considered always true for all time, especially religious truth. If you even suggest that something might be truth for everyone, the labels come out with a vengeance: bigoted, unloving, unwelcoming, not to mention disdain for your intelligence. This puts Christians in a difficult place because Jesus’ requirements for us who follow Him are quite uncompromising. He says we must love Him more than our work, our political party, our possessions, our family, and even our lives (Luke 14:25). He says our purpose must be to follow Him even if it means loss of friendship, possessions, status or our physical lives (Matthew 6:19-24; Luke 14:26). He says we must believe He is the truth above all others (John 14:1-5) and then to speak that truth to the world, no matter what others think of us or do to us. As Christians, we do not believe we have all the truth, but we do believe that Christianity is all true. Even more, we believe that Jesus is the embodiment of truth and life, purpose and salvation.
Prayer: “Were the whole realm of nature mine, That were a present far too small: Love so amazing so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all.”
(When I survey the Wondrous Cross, Verse 4, The Celebration Hymnal, #321)