Worship led by Sue Clarke and the Worship Team
River of life
The other week, when Dawn was leading worship and Lee was speaking, both mentioned ways that God directs us. Back on 26th March, Brian used these words:
“If we want to refresh others, we need first to come to His river.”
Those words just really stayed with me and are the inspiration for today’s theme. We often say we want to get closer to God, to Know Him better. We want to live the life He has designed for us and we want to bring others to God, through the way we live our lives.
For that to happen our lives truly have to be aligned to His, through the power and working of His Spirit in our daily lives. We have to be refreshed, in order to be able to refresh others.
2 Corinthians 3 v18
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the lord, who is the Spirit.
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So today we are going to look at a few aspects of rivers and, more importantly, the River of Life.
What is a river?
The Oxford dictionary definition of a river is: a natural flow of water that continues in a long line across land to the sea.
A river is a large, natural stream of flowing water, that flows downhill from a higher elevation to a lower elevation. A river can be wide and deep, or shallow enough for a person to wade across. A river has a source, a channel that the water flows through and an outlet.
The source of a river is where it begins.
In John chapter 4, God clearly says He is the source of living water, when He is speaking to a Samaritan woman:
John 4v10
If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.
God's life that comes to us like a river isn't a tiny, trickling stream but more like a powerful, rushing river.
Picture of fast flowing river
1 Chronicles 29v 11-13
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendour, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom, you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honour come from You; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise Your glorious name!
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One of the first biblical references to a river is found in:
Genesis 2 v10
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden, from where it was separated into four quarters.
Here we see a river which flows out of the garden of Eden (out of God Himself) to reach out to the whole earth and water it. God Himself is a river of water of life flowing out to reach man, quench man’s thirst, and fill man with life.
In the next scripture from Revelation we see the same picture but in the New Jerusalem; from the throne of God and of the Lamb flows a river of water of life, bright as crystal, reaching man everywhere.
Revelation 22 v1-2
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations.
The river of life here represents God's life-giving presence. The reference is to God’s Holy Spirit.
Waterfall picture
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A river symbolises life.
Life is like a river, it is always flowing, it can flow slowly or it can flow quickly, it can change courses but nothing can stop the river from flowing. The same happens with life, there are no external circumstances that can stop it from flowing.
Slow flowing river picture
The flow is the water that is running within the river. Humans pay close attention to the flow because small changes over time can divert the flow to a new area.
In the same way any changes in our lives can affect how the Spirit of God moves within our lives. Like a river though, nothing external can stop that river flowing, only us, as humans, can hinder or limit the Spirit’s flow.
Isaiah 43 v19
See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
John 14v 27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
What a promise and reason to completely trust in God, no matter what is happening around us in the world or our own lives. God promises us that peace that passes all understanding, if we only lean on Him.
Our next song is like a prayer, in that we are asking God to fill us with His peace love and hope- not for our own gratification (although that is a given), but because when we are filled it will overflow to those around us. When a river is swollen with too much water it only has one option- to burst its banks.
River bursting its banks
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If we’re thirsty we need to physically get ourselves a drink. In the same way if we are thirsting for more of God’s power in our lives, we need to go to His river, trust Him and dive in.
Tommy video
As God’s people we need to walk not according to our old human nature, but according to God’s Spirit in our lives. This will enable us to work together in fellowship too. By drinking of God’s Spirit, we are brought together under God’s headship. (We’ll be singing from the same hymn sheet- as the saying goes!!) We enthrone Him!
Philippians 2 v2
Then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.
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What is living water? We often use these words in songs or scripture but what do we mean by them?
One definition, I like, is that living water is the words of eternal life, the message of salvation, the truth about God and His kingdom, the doctrines of the gospel.
Living water is a biblical term which appears in both the Old and New Testaments. In Jeremiah the prophet describes God as "the spring of living water", who has been forsaken by his chosen people Israel.
Jeremiah 2:13
My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
Jeremiah 17 v13
O Lord , the hope of Israel, all who forsake You will be out to shame. Those who turn away from You will be written in the dust, because they have forsaken the Lord, the spring of living water.
Rivers of living water represent the Holy Spirit’s presence and power poured out on Jesus’ followers. The Spirit’s presence cleanses us and works within us, a moment-by-moment process by which we more and more submit our hearts, minds, and bodies to following Jesus.
When we submit to God’s spirit, this is how to be a refreshing river of life to others.
Picture of refreshing river
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What is the spiritual meaning of the river of life?
The river of life in Revelation represents God's life-giving presence. God never leaves us; he's always with us.
Psalm 46 v4
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God, the Most High, makes his dwelling place (his people) holy.
Throughout the Scriptures, we see that God wants man to take Him as the fountain of living waters and drink of Him, by coming to Him and drinking of God as the Spirit.
John 7 v37-39
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. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this He meant the spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive.
Jesus here is saying that he would bring living water that could forever quench a person’s thirst for God. He is stating His claim here as the Messiah.
God Himself has become the river of pleasures for us to drink, be saturated with, be watered by, rejoice because of, have our thirst quenched, grow in, and be filled with. The more we drink in God’s Spirit, and allow His Spirit to flow in us, the more we will be attuned to His will for our lives.
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A river has a channel that the water flows through
Revelation 22 v1-2
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations.
The river is flowing, getting wider and wider, deeper and deeper as it flows from the throne; and the leaves on the trees are for the healing of the nations, it’s as clear as crystal, it’s the water of life.
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From Genesis through to Revelation, the bible mentions the river of life again and again. Almost in every book we see that God’s desire is to be fountain of living waters, the stream of life, the spring of water, the source of life to His people.
The deeper we move into our relationship with God, the more the river of life will surround us and flow through us.
Psalm 42 v1-2
As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
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We’re going back to one of the first verses we heard this morning.
Revelation 22 v1-2
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations.
All things will be made new. Death will be replaced with life. The whole earth will be a recreation of the garden, and the glory of the temple will cover it. Every nation will be blessed through the power of the resurrected Jesus, and God's own personal presence will permeate every square inch of the new creation.
1 Chronicles 29 v11
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power, and the glory and the majesty and the splendour, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom and Your are exalted as head over all.
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River of God, flood over me and lift my feet up off the ground. Carry me out into Your sea and in Your presence I’ll be found. I’ve felt Your fire and I’ve felt Your rain; and I’ve heard Your voice whisper my name. I’ve been wading in Your river, I’ve ridden on Your waves; I’ve tasted of Your goodness, still I’m longing to be changed.
There’s something inside me that just won’t let go; Why am I afraid of losing control? I know Your love is for me and You’ll never do me harm; so melt away my fears, and Holy Spirit come!
Please help me Lord, to be more like You, to do the things You’ve called me to do. Let me help bring in Your harvest, Oh I want it for Your Son; so fill me with Your power, Holy Spirit come!
I’ve had enough of holding back, I see Your goodness all around, this time I’m opening up my heart, so come and fill me now.
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Notices
- Wednesday 17th May – Coffee Morning at 10.30am.
- Next Sunday – Worship and Breaking of Bread; speaker will be William Fleming.