Streams of living water

John 7:37~52

37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

40 On hearing his words, some of the people said, "Surely this man is the Prophet."

41 Others said, "He is the Christ."

Still others asked, "How can the Christ come from Galilee? 42 Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?" 43 Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. 44 Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.

45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why didn't you bring him in?"

46 "No one ever spoke the way this man does," the guards declared.

47 "You mean he has deceived you also?" the Pharisees retorted. 48 "Has any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him? 49 No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them."

50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 "Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?"

52 They replied, "Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee."

I. Message:

Content:

1. Lord Jesus seizes the opportunity on the greatest day of the Feast to proclaim to the crowd that He is the living water (v. 37~39)
2. The crowd was puzzled and began debating among themselves following Jesus’ claim (v. 41~44)
3. Jewish leaders did not believe; the guards returned empty-handed; Nicodemus spoke up for Jesus (v. 46~52)

Themes:

1. Streams of living water
2. Courageous and steadfast Jesus
3. Debate-inducing Jesus
4. Foolish Jewish leaders

II. Who is God, Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit?

1. Courageous and steadfast Jesus Christ faces challenges and fulfills His mission (v. 37)
2. Jesus as the life-giving living water (v. 38)
3. The Holy Spirit that comes down to dwell within us (v. 39)
4. Jesus Christ that is about to be glorified (v. 39)
5. Jesus Christ as the true prophet (v. 40)
6. Jesus Christ as David’s heir (v. 42)
7. Jesus Christ with authority in teaching and speech (v. 46)

III. What does the passage teach us (about commands, promises, examples, exhortations and warnings)?

1. Seize the opportunity

37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."

The Feast of Tabernacles is one of the most important feasts in the Jewish tradition. This Feast reminds the Israelites that they went through a number of years in the wilderness living in tents. This is also the time of harvest and gathering barley, wheat and grapes. Therefore the Feast also carries the meaning of harvest and thanksgiving and is also called the Feast of Ingathering. (Exodus 34:22)

On the last day of the Feast, the priest takes a golden jar to draw water in the Pool of Siloam, walks past the Water Gate and returns to the Temple. The ceremony is to commemorate God’s providence in water during the years they wandered in the desert. As the ceremony progresses, people begin to read Isaiah 12:3, “with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” At the same time, the crowd sings to praise and give thanks to the Lord.

In such a commemoration, thanksgiving and feast centered on water, Jesus used the term ‘living water’ to describe Himself and “said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."” Lord Jesus knows how to seize the opportunity!

Reflections: evangelization requires zeal and wisdom. How can I seize every opportunity?

2. The meaning of the living water

The living water that Jesus talks about here has two meanings:

First, to quench spiritual thirst: our flesh may dry up, so does our spirit; dried flesh needs water while dried soul needs Jesus. It is the same in chapter 4 where Jesus talked about the living water with the Samaritan woman. This living water leads to eternal life.

Second, to foretell the coming of the Holy Spirit: on the Pentecost, as the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples, they were filled with power and courage.

Reflections: is my life (soul) dried up, empty, lonely and hopeless? Is my life flowing with living water? Am I filled with the Spirit? Have I received spiritual gifts?

3. Receiving the Holy Spirit; Jesus being glorified

Jesus said this to point out that everyone who believes in Him will receive the Holy Spirit. At that time, “the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified” (v. 39). In this passage, apostle John linked “Jesus being glorified” and “disciples receiving the Spirit”. This is to show that the Spirit is to be poured out to church and believers to continue Jesus’ work on earth following His necessary steps: raised from the dead; ascended into Heaven; accomplished His mission; being glorified. There are proofs in the Book of Acts and disciples do receive the Spirit.

Reflections: Lord Jesus has already completed His task and been glorified. Have I received the Spirit? Do I act according to the Spirit’s guidance to continue Jesus’ work and to fulfill His great commission?

4. Evil powers gather

“Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why didn't you bring him in?"” (v. 45) Usually the chief priests and Pharisees do not get along. However, they came together to find a way to get rid of Jesus. The Pharisees accused Jesus of violating the rules of the law while the chief priests accused Him of violating the Temple. These two powerful religious forces work hand in hand to form a strong evil power to eliminate Jesus. This is an example of finding allies in a lesser enemy to fight a common one.

5. Confusion of the Temple guards

“Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why didn't you bring him in?" 46 "No one ever spoke the way this man does," the guards declared. 47 "You mean he has deceived you also?" the Pharisees retorted.” (v. 45~47)

The guards were instructed to arrest Jesus but were touched by His words and compelled to fear Him and then decided to return empty handed. Everyone was amazed by His teaching for He taught with authority, unlike the teachers of the law (Matthew 7:29). There was a huge difference between accusations made by the chief priests and the Pharisees and the Lord Jesus the guards encountered. This difference made them really confused.

6. Nicodemus’ defence

Nicodemus is referred to as a member of the Jewish ruling council, possibly one of the seventy ruling members. He is a Pharisee and visited Jesus at night to talk about rebirth. Clearly, he believed in Jesus.

At this moment, he stepped forward to defend Jesus by pointing out that the chief priests and the Pharisees did not follow the law in accusing Jesus. According to the Jewish law, there are steps to be completed before making a formal accusation. But they ignored such procedure. Nicodemus then decided to step forward to defend Jesus.

Nicodemus’ courage is worthy of praise. He was rebuked by the Pharisees and the chief priests, who explained that Jesus cannot be the promised prophet or the Messiah because He was born in Galilee.

Reflections: would I defend Jesus for truth and justice without worrying about setbacks like Nicodemus?

7. Which type pf person am I?

According to the descriptions of the crowd’s reaction, there may have been a few different types of people present:

1. believe that Jesus is the Christ (v. 41);
2. doubt about Jesus’ identity (v. 42~43);
3. attracted by Jesus’ authority in teaching (v. 46);
4. think about arresting Jesus and put Him to death (v. 45~49);
5. defend Jesus (v. 51)

Reflections: if I was present at the scene, how would I have reacted?

Translated by 顏偉哲