Untapped Springs
John 4: 4-16
“4 He had to go through Samaria on the way. 5 Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. 7 Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” 8 He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food.
9 The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans.[b] She said to
Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”
10 Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
11 “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? 12 And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?”
13 Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.14 But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
15 “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.”
16 “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.”
What was the point of Jesus telling her this?
Do you think He really meant that she wouldn’t be thirsty ever again?
Since you’ve began your relationship with Christ, have you ever been thirsty?
Of course you have.
I don’t know about you but the more I learn about God, the more thirsty I become.
So, what exactly is Jesus talking about here.
I think He’s trying to say that once you find His ‘water’ or His fullness, you’re not going to be satisfied with anything else. You won’t be thirsty for anything else again. We’re talking spiritually of course. Sure, your carnal nature may still hunger and thirst for the carnal things but that’s where the Bible talks about ‘crucifying the flesh’.
Have you ever noticed that once you’ve experienced God there’s just something inside of you that will not be satisfied with anything else. That’s a God-sized void that can only be filled with Him.
HOWEVER, we also do go through dry times. This ‘living water’ Jesus is speaking of is something that is just that, alive. God doesn’t want you to be stale and stagnant in your relationship with Him anymore than you want to have an unfulfilling relationship with your spouse. The idea is to keep your relationship with God fresh, active and meaningful in your life.
Therefore, from time to time, He’ll allow the river you’ve been drinking from (spiritually) to dry up in order for you to move on to another place in Him.
Think about it from the Bible. Let’s look at the nation of Israel in the Old Testament. If God had of kept them in the desert and kept feeding them manna every day, they would’ve never made it to the land promised to them. He had to lead them. That’s why the cloud of God would move. He didn’t want them to set up a permanent residence in the desert. If he had of let them stay in the same spot for the entire 40 years, they might of never made across the Jordan River into Canaan simply because after 40 years, they had ‘set roots’ where they were at.
Now let’s go back to this river drying up thing we were talking about. Don’t forget we are speaking of the river as a metaphor for the presence of God.
God will sometimes allow the river where you are to dry up so you will have to go looking for Him again. He knows it’s part of our nature to get comfortable somewhere, make a permanent settlement in our minds as to what God does and how He operates and then get stagnant.
Some of us may have said figuratively before, “Surely this is the only way God moves. This is where God’s river is. There can’t be another one. This is where He does His work. Through this river and only through this river.”
THEN……… one day, that river dries up.
Oh no. What happened?
Did God forget me?
Have I sinned?
Does God not move anymore?
There have been some who’ve created entire Christian denominations simply out of God moving His presence and they never followed. Then, because God had moved away, they declared He didn’t do those things anymore. He still moves, just not in your area. He never intended you to build a house where you were only supposed to pitch a tent.
How is your walk with God right now?
Are you experiencing a fresh move of God in your life?
OR
Are you feeling dry, discontent, maybe even a little ‘left out’ by God?
Do you see others around you be blessed, being prosperous and achieving their spiritual goals while you are simply trying to hold on? You don’t want to quit and give up but at the same time you simply don’t know what’s wrong.
You may even be saying, “I don’t get it. I’m doing everything I’ve always been doing but not getting the same result.”
God may have moved your water. You may have built a house where God only wanted you to pitch a tent.
Could that be it?
So what do I do? I’m in a desert place in my relationship with God and didn’t even realize it. However, now that I know I’m here how to do I find Him again? How do I find the river (His presence) again?
1.Review the map for indications of water.
We all know what our map is…. God’s Word. Immerse yourself in God’s Word again. Allow His Word to speak to you. If He doesn’t at first, that’s okay. Keep reading. Sometimes you can be so dry it may take a little more than at other times.
2.Look for other signs of life in the area.
Now is not the time for you to become judgmental and skeptical if your true desire is to encounter God. You must look beyond attitude of, “I don’t do that” or “God doesn’t move like that”. If you want to stay thirsty, keep your pious attitude. But, if you really were in a desert and you really were truly thirsty, you wouldn’t care about anything other than getting something to drink. It wouldn’t matter what it looked like or who gave it to you. If you’re thirsty enough, you’ll drink it. Of course, be sure to use temperance. Make sure you are always in line with the Word of God. That being said, If you’ve never danced before the Lord, maybe it’s time to dance before the Lord. If you’ve never fasted more than a couple of days, maybe it’s time to boycott the kitchen. How thirsty are you for His presence and fullness in your life?
Lastly,
3.Keep looking.
God’s not trying to punish you. He’s trying to move you. He wants to be found. He wants to take you from glory to glory. The place between the glory is not always the joy but the reward is so worth it.
Let me say again that God wants to be found. He wants you to have a powerful, active, sincere relationship with Him. Don’t give up.
Worship Survival Guide: Survive by Worship.
So excited to have had all of our new class members with us last Sunday night.
