"Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities; your eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. But there the glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams." (Isaiah 33:20-21) "And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God, and of the Lamb." (Revelation 22:1) "And I saw in the midst of the throne...a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, having seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God." (Revelation 5:6) "The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall be their Shepherd, and shall guide them unto fountains of waters of life." (Revelation 7:17) "But when they came to Jesus, and saw that He was dead already, they broke not His legs; But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water." (John 19:33-34) "There are three that bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the three agree in one." (1 John 5:8) "Jesus stood and cried saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believes on me, as the Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this He spoke of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive." (John 7:37-39) "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessing upon your offspring; And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses." (Isaiah 44:3-4) "Restore unto me the joy of your salvation; and uphold me with your free Spirit." (Psalm 51:12) "When the kindness of God our Saviour and His love toward man appeared, Not by works done in righteousness which we did ourselves, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, Which He poured out upon us richly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour." (Titus 3:4-6) "Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law does he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he does shall prosper." (Psalm 1:1-3)
God himself is a place of broad rivers and streams. The river of life flows from Him. "The glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams." (Isaiah 33:21)
It is a real stream, because from it comes the rain upon the earth, as we saw in our last lesson. It is the life of God in visible form. "And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God, and of the Lamb." (Revelation 22:1)
Christ crucified is in the midst of the throne, whence the water of life flows, so that the water flows direct from the cross. "And I saw in the midst of the throne ... a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, having seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God." (Revelation 5:6)
The law of God was always in the heart of Christ, even when He was here in the flesh, so that He himself was the throne of God. He has told us that His body was the temple of God. "Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and will you rear it up in three days? But He spoke of the temple of His body." (John 2:19-21)
So it was fitting that the water of life should flow from His side as He hung on the cross. On the cross Christ gave His life for us and all mankind. So the water that flowed from His side was the water of life. "But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water." (John 19:34)
It was mingled with blood, for the water and the blood are one. So we see that the river of water of life is also the blood, the life, of the Lamb. The Lamb slain is in the midst of the throne, the source of the river of life. "The Spirit, and the water, and the blood ... agree in one." (1 John 5:8)
All three are life. So the water of life flowing from the throne of God,--from the slain Lamb,--is the Spirit of God. Christ himself has told us this in so many words. "He that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this He spoke of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive...)" (John 7:38-39)
The world cannot receive the Spirit of God, "because it sees Him not." (John 14:17) "The natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14)
Our physical eyes are not adapted to see spiritual things; therefore if we could be permitted to enter heaven just as we are, we could not see the throne of God, nor the water of life, any more than we can see them where we are. But at the resurrection we shall receive a spiritual body, (1 Corinthians 15:44-51) and then we shall see the river of life, which is the Spirit of God. We can then see the Spirit as plainly as we now see our earthly friends.
But God gives us the Spirit, in order that, receiving Him by faith, we may become spiritual, and thus with our spiritual eyesight, that is, by faith in the words of God, we may see the Spirit in the gifts of God. The world cannot receive Him, because it sees Him not, neither knows Him, "but you know Him; for He dwells with you, and shall be in you." (John 14:17) "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessing upon your offspring; And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses." (Isaiah 44:3-4)
The Spirit is the water of life, and so it is always spoken of as being "poured out" upon us. (Acts 10:45) The reality of the gift of the Spirit, and the freeness of the gift, is shown to us by the rain, the life of which is the Spirit. The fullness of the salvation of God is made known to us in the rain that refreshes the earth, and by which we have life. "If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another; and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." (1 John 1:7)
The blood of Christ is the water of life, and is also the Spirit, and so it is that we are cleansed by "the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost." (Titus 3:5)
All the water that is in the heavens and earth comes from the throne of God, from the river of life. Water cleanses. This everybody knows. Thus it is that God makes us see the reality of the cleansing power of the blood of Christ.
The water that Christ gives is "living water." (John 4:10-11;7:38) It is flowing, not stagnant. Flowing water, living water, is pure. Even if impurity be thrown into it, it soon becomes pure. All the sewage of the city of Paris flows into the Seine, yet forty miles below the city there is not a trace of impurity in the water. And this is in this sin-cursed earth. With what confidence then may we not come to the "fountain opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." (Zechariah 13:1)
And the reality of this cleansing is made known to us afresh every day, as we wash our bodies in water, or use water for the cleansing of our garments.
How freely and literally God has bestowed--"poured out"--His Spirit upon all flesh! Why will not all men receive Him? Read again the words of the scriptures that compose this lesson, and see how easily we may receive the Holy Spirit simply by believing. Do you believe? "His delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law does he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he does shall prosper." (Psalm 1:2-3)
What a wonderful blessing is promised to those who meditate in the law of God. What is the law of God? Can you not see that it is His life, and that it is in everything that He has made? What a grand thing to be sure of prosperity in every undertaking! Let us then meditate in the law of God as revealed in His works. Let us pray, "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law." (Psalm 119:18) "You, Lord, have made me glad through your work; I will triumph in the works of your hands." (Psalm 13:4)--Present Truth, September 1, 1898.