The Water of Life

UV 726/10,000 The Water of Life And the Spirit and the bride say, “ Come! And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let those who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” Revelation 22 v 17 The Holy Spirit and the bride of Christ, or the Church encourage people to come and drink from the Word. The Word is equated with the water of life. Like water it is freely available. Like water, it cleanses the person who bathes or washes with it. Like water, it quenches the thirst of people or satisfies the existential longings of people for meaning, fulfilment of purpose, for control,for guidance, for resolution and for significance. Thirst is a more fundamental or pressing need than even hunger. Physical thirst produces a stomach-wrenching pain while spiritual thirst produces a soul-wrenching pain. The Word satisfies in full the most fundamental need of our lives. Like water, the Word is transparent- we can look at different aspects of life as if we are looking through a lens and we can gain a different and eternal perspective. Unlike water that will quench our thirst only for a little while, when we drink of the Word, it will be like a spring in us that will never dry up. Unlike water that will put out or extinguish a fire, the Word will light a fire in us and distinguish us from the rest of humanity who are tormented as they walk in the light of the torches that they themselves have lit for a time. This uni-verse is reminiscent of the incident in which Jesus tells the Samaritan woman at the well, “ Come to me and I will give you the water of life that will never make you thirst again.” In speaking these words, Jesus was turning her spiritual eyes to see that though she had an immoral past, she could have eternal life by believing the words of Jesus and following Him. Society had condemned her as incorrigible and irredeemable but Jesus revived her soul’s longing for truth and righteousness. Her thirst for acceptance was fulfilled. Jesus did not gloss over her past but bringing it to the foreground, led her into repentance and conviction. She heard the Word and was satisfied that the Word is truth. She became one of the first evangelists of the good news, to tell still others, “ Come and drink of this fountain!” The Word once we drink of it, becomes a well of well being within us to bring healing, hope, love and salvation to others. It become the source of rivers of peace-giving or life-giving water inside us and of waves of mercy and grace that never cease. Four actions are necessary for our thirst to be satisfied: one, we should go to the Lord willingly in response to his invitation to all mankind, “ Come!” Two, we must recognize our thirst for the eternal truth and eternal life. Three, we must desire to satisfy our thirst, and not deny that we are thirsty. Four, we must take the Word and drink of it freely or liberally or frequently. We must plant the text in our context. Water, gentle as it is, has the power over time to bore holes through rock. If there is a mountain of a problem in our path, the Word will become a hammer to make a level path for our feet. The water of life is a living water in us-hence, it will not remain still or inert for the Spirit of God will stir our emotions, our imagination, our intellect, our spirits and our wills with it. Just as water finds its own level, similarly, the Word will find its own level in our lives. Just as the ground virtually everywhere has an underground stream or river or reservoir, similarly we should always store below the surface of our hearts and minds, sufficient Water of life to refresh and nourish us in times of drought and dryness. Prateep V Philip