Post by Admin on Sept 28, 2017 7:09:50 GMT
The image of the Spirit we discussed tonight was as water, so we began by considering the characteristics of water, or what we associate with water: thirst, quenching thirst, bathing, washing, clean/clear/purity, destruction, growing things, fun (as in swimming or water balloons), necessity of life, way to travel. We also shared experiences of being thirsty, and how water was good both to drink and to douse ourselves when we were very thirsty and very hot.
We had two scripture readings for tonight’s discussion. The first was taken from the beginning of Jesus’ confrontation with the Samaritan woman at the well, where he claims to provide “living water.” As background, we learned that Jews considered a stream or river to be “living” water, in contrast to a cistern or well with still water. The woman of course is thinking of water as merely the physical water she carries in her pot for drinking, yet instead of turning away from Jesus’ odd statement, she stops to question Him, to engage with Him. Our discussion turned from physical water to the spiritual water, and specifically, when we have felt spiritually thirsty. We compared spiritual water to physical water: the Spirit helps us when we are needing it, the Spirit cleans us, helps us grow, and is a necessity. A few points about physical water really drove this home. For example, one person mentioned that physically, we might drink a soda when thirsty, and not have our thirst quenched until we turned to water; this is like looking for way to satisfy ourselves when we are anxious or upset or angry with certain treats or behaviors, instead of going to the Lord and letting the Spirit flow. Or another example is that clean modern water supplies and sanitation have resulted in a heathier population, even though the people may not have perceived that they were dirty; likewise, we may not realize that casual Christianity and feel-good humanism will not actually keep us as healthy as can the Holy Spirit’s activity.
The second scripture was Jesus announcing in the temple that those who believed in Him would have living water (the Spirit) flow from within them. This happened at the end of the Jewish Festival of the Tabernacles, which featured the priests pouring out water to represent future fulfillment of a prophecy about rivers flowing from Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:8 “On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter.”) In that context, it made sense that Jesus clarifies the prophecy. The amazing aspect of this promise is how the Spirit will flow “from within”...us!
Again, we had a few verses from a famous hymn to close the discussion:
"I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say"
by Horatius Bonar, 1808-1899
Verse 2.
I heard the voice of Jesus say,
"Behold, I freely give
The living water; thirsty one,
Stoop down and drink and live."
I came to Jesus, and I drank
Of that life-giving stream.
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived,
And now I live in Him.
We had two scripture readings for tonight’s discussion. The first was taken from the beginning of Jesus’ confrontation with the Samaritan woman at the well, where he claims to provide “living water.” As background, we learned that Jews considered a stream or river to be “living” water, in contrast to a cistern or well with still water. The woman of course is thinking of water as merely the physical water she carries in her pot for drinking, yet instead of turning away from Jesus’ odd statement, she stops to question Him, to engage with Him. Our discussion turned from physical water to the spiritual water, and specifically, when we have felt spiritually thirsty. We compared spiritual water to physical water: the Spirit helps us when we are needing it, the Spirit cleans us, helps us grow, and is a necessity. A few points about physical water really drove this home. For example, one person mentioned that physically, we might drink a soda when thirsty, and not have our thirst quenched until we turned to water; this is like looking for way to satisfy ourselves when we are anxious or upset or angry with certain treats or behaviors, instead of going to the Lord and letting the Spirit flow. Or another example is that clean modern water supplies and sanitation have resulted in a heathier population, even though the people may not have perceived that they were dirty; likewise, we may not realize that casual Christianity and feel-good humanism will not actually keep us as healthy as can the Holy Spirit’s activity.
The second scripture was Jesus announcing in the temple that those who believed in Him would have living water (the Spirit) flow from within them. This happened at the end of the Jewish Festival of the Tabernacles, which featured the priests pouring out water to represent future fulfillment of a prophecy about rivers flowing from Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:8 “On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter.”) In that context, it made sense that Jesus clarifies the prophecy. The amazing aspect of this promise is how the Spirit will flow “from within”...us!
Again, we had a few verses from a famous hymn to close the discussion:
"I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say"
by Horatius Bonar, 1808-1899
Verse 2.
I heard the voice of Jesus say,
"Behold, I freely give
The living water; thirsty one,
Stoop down and drink and live."
I came to Jesus, and I drank
Of that life-giving stream.
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived,
And now I live in Him.