Today’s reading: John 6:25-7:44
My selection: John 7:37-40
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
My reflections: Jesus boldly proclaims His power to impart the Spirit of God to those who come to Him. The process is open to all who meet the conditions:
1. Must thirst. It is by God’s grace that one senses a need, an insatiable craving, for what only Jesus Christ can supply.
2. Must come to Christ and drink. Many, if not most, feel empty and needy, but that alone will not bring a lasting solution. We come to Him as we read His Word, hear His Word preached, and call upon Him in faith.
3. Must believe in Him. Faith in Christ is more than merely intellectual assent to His existence or trusting Him for immediate needs. It is to rest upon Him alone, to trust Him completely for forgiveness of sin and adoption as God’s child. That faith will express itself in an obedient, albeit still imperfect, life.
The result of this is to receive the Spirit that Christ gave to His people, the Spirit that is like rivers of living water flowing out of the believer’s heart.
My challenge: Jesus’ call and claim is unparalleled by any sane person in human history. Have you thirsted, come to Him, believed in Him and received His Spirit? If so, seek to abide in Him and bear the fruit of the Spirit today. Seek to be satisfied by the living water of His Spirit alone.
Tomorrow’s reading: John 7:45-9:12
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