2007.03.03
Psalm 36:1-9
When we look at our main passage today, the person who takes refuge in God, and trusts in Him, has the promise they will have the blessings of drinking from the river of delight. When we look at Proverbs 14:27, it says that the fear of the Lord is a fountain of life.
As believers who have received the grace of the living God, we are the truly blessed ones who can not live without grace whether we are awake or asleep. Amongst many things, the thing that we need to be thankful for is the grace of being elected even before the creation of the world as those who were fallen. We have received the forgiveness of sins through the blood of the cross, and we are the people of grace who are clothed with righteousness. We have become children of god, serve Him, and we cannot express everything through our small mouths the grace that has come to us to receive blessings. In our lives, whether we are eating or drinking, we are thankful to God, are we are the ones who exist to stand before god saying "Amen."
However, there is still yet another grace that to enjoy. It is the grace to drink from the fountain(John 7:37-39). the living waters that would flow from the innermost being is talking about receiving the fullness of the Holy Spirit. If we live our lives being filled with the Holy Spirit, we will be prosperous in all areas.
Flowing with confidence, you have peace in your hearts, having neither hatred nor enemies because you are always rejoicing.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is eternally new. So thus, our lives become renewed and energized. You are able to enjoy life and find yourself. Moreover, the saints who believe in Jesus are not enslaved by the past, and do not fall into the trap of external appearances. Your lives are like, the new wine being poured into the things of the past and forgetting them. I pray that you can always have the live a life that can renewing river of life in your hearts.
1. The reason why the river of delight runs dry
Although God has allowed us the abundant water from the fountains that does not run dry, there are people who are living a life that is live a dry fountain. Those people's lives ultimately cannot be abundant. What is the reason that their fountains are dried up?
① It happens when we are holding back from God. Although we receive the abundant grace that is adequate for all things, we do not give proper thanks and when we are stingy towards God, the waters run dry. There are many people who fall into their own craftiness(Ecclesiastes 7:29).
② It happens when we receive grace and the Word but become lazy. It is because the heart of the Lord, is written well in the Word of God that when the spiritual relationship through the Word is not broken the waters of the fountain do not get dry.
③ It happens when we don't evangelize. Evangelism is the greatest desire of God. If you turn away from the broken heart of God, the hand of help from God gets pulled away and ultimately, the waters of the fountains get dry.
④ It happens when we become proud. When you become proud. When you become proud you become the enemy of god(James 4:6). Moreover, when you are humble, you are allowed the blessings of the rivers of delight. When your heart is hard, and you are not compassionate, the ground gets dry and parched, and cannot receive rain. We can not forget that in the end it becomes a wilderness(Revelation 3:14-17).
⑤ It happens when we don't have a prayer life. When your prayer life diminishes and when you start taking less interest your hearts gets divided and dry. That's why it's important to have thanks for the past grace that you have received.
⑥ It happens when we are dry of the oil of the Holy Spirit. The life in the church is like putting oil in an engine. When you have oil, it runs smoothly, but when you don't have oil, it makes a loud screeching noise. It becomes overheated and the engine burns out, wrecking the engine.
⑦ It happens when our love becomes cold. Be able to manage our temples so that the waters don't run dry, we have to always live a life of giving love to others. When you like to treat people well and have mercy on the souls who don't believe, our hearts will always be shining.
⑧ It happens when we don't have praise. God is very pleased with our praise(Isaiah 43:21, Psalm 22:3). As Paul and Silus were freed from their prison by praising, when we praise, miracles happen(Acts 16:23).
2. The life that that has the waters dry and the life of drinking from the fountain of delight.
Eli's song Hophni and Phinhas, are two representing characters from the bible who had the river of grace dry up. They were wicked and they were atheists who dirtied their fathers face. Through them, they couldn't help but live in a time of darkness(1 Samuel 3:1).
However, the prophet Samuel's mother Hannah is a representative to one who had the waters of the fountain burst. Hannah was a woman of prayer. In that time, she was one of the only few who were awake, making up her mind in front of God, and holding on sincerely, praying with blood, sweat and tears. Through the prayer of Hannah, the fountains of grace, the rivers of delight had burst and was overflowing and just at the right time, the tool for the movement of a nation-wide great awakening had emerged. The children of a praying mother never comes to ruin. Additionally, through the praying mother, her son Samuel also had a life of prayer.
This was the confession of Samuel. The church which has believers that pray never has the river of delight run dry. Please remember that the work of salvation for the nation of Israel was started by the prayer of Hannah and I hope that you can have the prayer life that is able to receive the river of delights.
My beloved members. If the grace in your family is dries up, at this time, set apart time to get on your family is dries up, at this time, set apart time to get on your knees and start to pray to God. What can you do in the state of a dried up heart? Putting your life on the line, when you pray sincerely, the waters of grace come bursting out. Also, I hope that you can have a consistent time of reading the bible, meditating on the Word and have the taste of joy when you understand the Word.
The descendants of Adam, the nature of the fall are in them and it's because you want to live by the desire of the flesh that it is hard to live by God's Word. At times we can come to think of the Word of God is tiring or a hassle. Our enemy the devil, satan, causes us to be busy with the affairs of the world. It is exactly from that point that the river of the fountains run dry. When the time you spend in front of God diminishes, your interest gets further away, and whether you know it or not you start to sin. When you live by the desires of the flesh, in that moment you don't have peace. Like drinking water from the beach, as you go on, you get more thirsty and troubled in your heart. On the other hand, to live by the Word is drinking from the river of delight giving confidence, strength and joy(Psalm 119:9-16, 71-72).
When you get far form God, you get conceited and the Holy Spirit dries up. It is the most dangerous thing to say. "It's good enough at this point." When your eyes get darkened by self-conceit, you get careless in all your work, and it starts a hole in you. In Revelation 3:14-17, like the church of Laodicea, the hot water becomes lukewarm and form that time your growth gets halted. As time goes by, you just become a believer who is only like an outside covering. I hope that you understand that you are always inadequate with flaws and a believer who always puts your efforts in trying your best. I pray as the end comes closer that you don't neglect God's work(Leviticus 48:10), pick up those who have fallen, and be diligent to love and help others. Until the coming of the Lord, I pray that you can always be full of praise and have the fountain of delight overflowing in your life.
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