Written by bruce r. mills for “God’s group” @ www.Godsmanforever.com
“Are you filled to overflowing with living water ??”
John 7:38… He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” (NKJV)
There is much in the Bible about living water… Check out this link in Reference 1. Below, for 10 Bible verses about living water…
I see this living water as the Holy Spirit living within the “born again” Christian… If you do not have the Holy Spirit that God has indwelt you with at the moment of salvation…then sadly, no matter what you call yourself, you are NOT a Christian in God’s eyes… Here is the biblical definition of what a Christian is…
How does the Bible define a Christian?
According to the Bible, a Christian is a person who has been offered the Holy Spirit upon repentance of their sins. When you repent, you are baptized and you receive the Holy Spirit. As a Christian, this spirit enables you to gain insight into the truth of God as well as his word. (See Reference 2 for the link for this definition)
As you read in this definition, the Holy Spirit enables the believer to understand the truth that God reveals to them in His inerrant Word, the Bible… I came across this link in Reference 3. Below that gives us “5 WAYS THE HOLY SPIRIT HELPS US UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE”… I am quoting this link, because it gives us a very good understanding of what the Holy Spirit will do to help the “born again”, redeemed child of God live for Christ…
5 Ways the Holy Spirit Helps Us Understand the Bible
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Opens Our Spiritual Eyes – Jesus told the Laodicean church to “anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.” Revelation 3:18. Sin has blinded our hearts to the truth. We need a miracle to open our eyes. The Holy Spirit is given to do that. “The Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” 1 Corinthians 2:13
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Leads Into All Truth – Do you want to know truth? Then you need the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised His disciples, and us, that “when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.” John 16:13
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Gives Us Understanding– Jesus’ teachings gave new insight the Old Testament Scriptures. Where did He get that understanding? “The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.” Isaiah 11:1-3We too can have deep understanding into God’s Word through the illumination by the Holy Spirit.
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Leads Us in What to Study– Do you ever struggle to know what to read in the Bible? Ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He will show you. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:14
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Reveals the Things of God– “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.” 1 Corinthians 2:9-12
Spending time reading, digesting, understanding, and then applying God’s Word to your life is what is needed to grow and mature as a “born again” Christian… Jesus tells us the importance of spending time in the Bible in several pieces of scripture… Here are 3 that come to my mind…
John 8:31-21… Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (NKJV)
Abiding in God’s Word means you spend time reading the Bible, hopefully every day…and then apply the truth found in the Bible to guide the way you live by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit… Jesus tells us twice what it means to spend time in the Bible…in Matthew 4:4…&…Luke 4:4…
Matthew 4:4… But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ” (NKJV)
Just like we cannot live without food and water for too long a time…if we are a believer, we need to feed our spirit to continue to grow and mature in our walk with the Lord… And this spiritual growth should never stop throughout our lifetime as a redeemed child of God… God uses scripture to teach us everything we need to live a life that will please our Father in heaven… The apostle Paul gives us a very good description of what it means to spend time in God’s Word…
2 Timothy 3:16-17… All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (NKJV)
Going through each of these reasons to spend time in the Word, is for another day… The importance of this scripture is found in verse 17… “that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Getting back to the first piece of scripture which defines the title of today’s post… “Are you filled to overflowing with living water ??”…
John 7:38… He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” (NKJV)
I have often wondered what Jesus means by “out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” ?? Jesus wasn’t talking about little streams… He is talking about at least two “rivers of living water.” If you have rivers of living water flowing out of your heart…where does it go ?? The word picture I see from this scripture, is that these rivers fill up the believer to a point where living water pours out of them for all people around them to see…
As I said earlier, I see this living water as the Holy Spirit living within the “born again” Christian… And when our hearts are filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit, others around us will see this outpouring of the Holy Spirit… This word picture is much like when the Bible talks about the light of Christ living within the Spirit-filled Christian, that will have those around us be able to see the light of Jesus in our lives… You will find a link in Reference 3 below, with 34 verses about the light of Christ… Here is one of these verses where Jesus teaches us about His light within us, in the Beatitudes…
Matthew 5:16… Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (NKJV)
My friends, if you are truly living a “Spirit-filled”, “Christ-centered” life, you should be so focused on what the Holy Spirit is urging you to do, that if you are obedient to His leading, the Holy Spirit will open doors for you, that you could never open in your own mortal strength… I am reminded of this scripture I share with the younger generation every chance I get…
Ephesians 3:20… Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, (NKJV)
Why wouldn’t you want the help of the Holy Spirit to help you decide what vocation you would be best suited for…what college to attend…and help in choosing the right person you should settle down with and marry ?? Since God doesn’t make any mistakes…for me it is a “no brainer” that allowing God to direct every step of our lives just has to be the best path for us… Solomon, King David’s son, who was made the wisest man there ever was by God Himself, (1 Kings 4:30)…penned half of the Book of Proverbs; and we should all learn from this important piece of scripture penned by Solomon…
Proverbs 3:5-6… Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. (NKJV)
God’s Word is living and powerful, as we read in Hebrews 4:12… For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (NKJV)
I pray you will see in all the scripture above all the blessings that God wants to shower upon all of you who are living as “born again” Christians, who are obedient to God’s will for your lives… Not yet a “born again” Christian ?? Open the P.S. below for a presentation of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ…and humbly pray to God with Godly sorrow and a repentant heart to forgive you of your lifetime of sins… Believe that Jesus Christ shed His blood to cover your lifetime of sins… Pray that God would send Jesus into your heart to guide and direct every facet of your life…
Gracious God and heavenly Father, I pray that Your living and powerful Word would move in the hearts of every reader today… I pray You would draw every reader in to Yourself (John 6:44), who is not yet a redeemed, “born again” child of Yours…and that their lives would be changed in the blink of an eye when they understand and obey the gospel of Your Son Jesus Christ…[See P.S. below] And I pray that all of the believers reading todays post, would be moved to confess any and all sins (1 John 1:9), and then do their best to live a “Spirit-filled”, “Christ-centered” life… I pray for You to fulfill both of these life changing requests for both believers and unbelievers, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…
Blessings in Christ, bruce
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P.S. When there is no other place to turn…turn to God !! If you’re not a “born again” Christian, is the Holy Spirit urging you to open this link ?? Here is the truth about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… https://godsmanforever.com
To my brothers and sisters in Christ, please feel free to share this message of the cross with those in need…
Picture credit: https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS832US832&sxsrf=AOaemvKd9tAzHeemg1SfTAOzyjONnkQRgQ:1633538241747&source=univ&tbm=isch&q=image+living+water+Bible&fir=Ua0NruHTN-aLNM%252C-_AVVyjbLGrrFM%252C_%253BedotrfptFJa7jM%252COaBq6hY7zSmJWM%252C_%253Be4jirJL5HwYV2M%252COQ6K9f50aW4l4M%252C_%253B8w6ZuYfO5N0IpM%252CR2EbbZ7HSgiJwM%252C_%253BWBifOBhX7NAypM%252CXEVIJn_cyLKiDM%252C_%253B2Hxf13iU78cR-M%252COaBq6hY7zSmJWM%252C_%253BlK-ezD0lzCP6ZM%252CvsgIt4TmaFJbyM%252C_%253BFGyVeJAbBAQUCM%252CQax_D1ps77aKeM%252C_%253BwRSfA8CdlnkJ8M%252CbjTq74hsbTpgjM%252C_%253Bxfr_ZH2pm_ndzM%252C8_vVuQVtWgt4JM%252C_&usg=AI4_-kT2fDch83afkRjiCwtLFeZC6YGi5g&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjj34CVnLbzAhU-mHIEHbotAUgQjJkEegQIBhAC&biw=1258&bih=801&dpr=1#imgrc=ZoNaRNAi-eYUAM
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About Godsmanforever
I present posts about God's Word, with a personal focus on how God's grace is received through saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ... Sinners must understand and obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ... See this link for more...
https://godsmanforever.com/2014/10/26/the-truth-about-sin-10262014-by-bruce-reposted-from-7112013/
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