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1 In that day there shall be a
fountain opened . . . . (Zech 13:1)
6 And one shall say unto him, What
are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was
wounded in the house of my friends. (Zech 13:6)
13 O LORD, the hope of Israel, all
that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be
written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of
living waters. (Jer
17:13)
In a devotion of last week, we spoke of a Golden Key which was found; and then
of Chest to which the key belonged that further diligent search revealed. When
we go out seeking for a treasure of great value, we must do so with our eyes
open, and our hearts committed to the purpose. Careless eyes will overlook the
greater treasures of life if the heart is not fixed on the prize. There are,
too, Fountains of Water in Wilderness areas that many a thirsty traveler does
not see – not because he needs no water, but because he does not expect it. The
Lord Jesus Christ is a Fountain of Living Waters that most men are blind to see
– not because they do not need a Savior, but because they do not expect to find
Him at the lowest points of their lives.
There is a seemingly tragic event recorded of the bondwoman, Hagar, in the Book
of Genesis. I say ‘seemingly’ because in reality it was not tragic – but a
fulfillment of the will of God. Let us examine a portion of the account of
Hagar who was driven from among Abraham’s tent into the wilderness:
14 And Abraham rose up early in the
morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting
it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and
wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba. 15 And the water was spent in the
bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs. 16 And she went, and sat her down
over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not
see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her
voice, and wept. 17 And God heard the voice of the
lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her,
What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad
where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold
him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation. 19 And God opened her eyes, and she
saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave
the lad drink. 20 And
God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an
archer. 21 And
he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the
land of Egypt. (Gen 21:14-21)
Like many forlorn souls, Hagar wandered aimlessly in the wilderness until all
hope was expired. The wilderness of Beersheba is a desolate region of the Negev
Desert very near to the Dead Sea. Wherever plant life can be seen, if it is not
yet dead, it is dying. There is very little water of life in the wilderness of
Beersheba. This is very much like the world of sin in which the majority of the
world’s population wander. But even in the driest desert, there is a source of
water for the wise to discern. The water in Hagar’s bottle expired, and she
found herself stranded in the middle of a desert with a child and . . . . no
hope of survival. How sad and painful to consider the dejection and despair in
the heart of this young woman. She loved her son, Ishmael, more than anything
else in the world, and he was her only true possession in the world. But now
both are facing a cruel death of thirst. Her feelings are not for herself, but
for her dearly beloved son. It is not possible for any of us to imagine the
grief she felt if we have never experienced the unconditional love of a
mother’s heart.
Just as God the Father could not bear to look upon the death of His own Beloved
Son on the Cross, neither could Hagar endure to witness the death of her own
son. 45 Now from the sixth hour
there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus
cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama
sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God,
why hast thou forsaken me? (Matt
27:45-46) Where God
does not look, there is forever thick darkness. Christ felt that on the cross.
Now, Hagar attempts to shield her view of Ishmael’s perishing for want of
water. She cast the child under a shrub (the only shade available) and went the
distance of a bow’s shot sway. Grieving and weeping, Hagar had reached a point
of resignation and complete hopelessness. Have you ever arrived at such a point
in your own life? The water of life may have dried up for you, and the sky is
like a brazen canopy of heat. All hope is forsaken! Hagar weeps bitterly – so
bitterly that she is blinded by tears. The boy, too, was apparently weeping, or
calling for his mother. And God heard the voice of the lad. I believe
there are two prayers that God will always hear: the voice of a repentant
sinner, and the voice of an innocent child. Now God will asks a question that
would be obvious to us, but not to a God who knows the end from its beginning.
‘. . . . and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto
her, What aileth thee, Hagar?” What a question to ask when the answer is
already known but, of course, God never asks a question to which He does not
know the answer already. Now Hagar faces a “rags-to-riches” situation, “. . . .
fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is. Arise, lift
up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.”
This shocking word of hope removed the tears from Hagar’s eyes! “And God
opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the
bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.” Notice that no mention is made
of God creating a Fountain of Water in that place. He providentially placed it
there for this very purpose from the Third Day of Creation. The fountain (like
Christ) was there all along, but poor Hagar was too blinded by grief, misery
and the cares of the world to see it. Many of us are just like poor Hagar. It
is not until we may come to the very last knot of our ropes that we surrender
in our hopelessness and are forced to call upon that Power above every other
power – or perish.
The human body is composed of approximately 60-65% water. The central
governance of life is the brain and heart which contain a higher percentage –
73%. But as Holy Scripture counsels, the LIFE is in the Blood which is
comprised of 92% water. For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is
for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall
eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood
thereof. (Lev 17:14) Happening upon a tragic auto
accident, you will usually see the police or rescue personnel cover the blood
with dust or sand. That is explained in the previous verse 13 of Leviticus 14.
Being the Fountain of Living Waters, all who forsake Christ shall have their
names written in the earth. The earth was damned for Adam’s sin. . . . . cursed is the ground for thy sake.
(Gen 3:17)
Perhaps the wicked Scribes and Pharisees who brought the Woman taken in
Adultery to Jesus saw their own names written on the earth by the finger of
Jesus – and perhaps a woman’s name beside thereon. I prefer to have my name
written in the Book of Life: 5 He that
overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out
his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father,
and before his angels.
(Rev 3:5)
Any fountain or spring is the source for flowing waters such as creeks or
rivers. But the Fountain of Life which is Jesus is a Fountain overflowing
continually in cascading waters of pure, rich waters of the Deep.
As Jesus said to our dear Sister at Jacob’s Well: 13 Jesus answered and said unto
her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst
again: 14 But whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water
that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into
everlasting life.
(John 4:13-14) Perhaps this absolute truth will add meaning to the 23rd Psalm for us – “My cup
runneth over.”
That Love-laden Water of Life that our Lord imparts is not
standing water, but rather LIVING water. It cannot in any wise be contained,
but overflows from the heart of the true believer.
In moments of despair, remember the Source of Living Waters that is our Lord
Jesus Christ. He was in the Wilderness with Moses and the Children. It is not
common to gather water from a Rock, but all things are possible with our Lord. 19 Yea, they spake against God;
they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, he smote the rock, that
the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed. (Psalm
78:19-20)
I am certain that the learned Bible scholar will know who was represented by
that great Rock? 1 Moreover, brethren, I would not
that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and
all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses
in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same
spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same
spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and
that Rock was Christ.
(1 Cor 10:1-4)
I hope none of our Roman friends are thinking of that Rock as Peter? Peter was
a stone of that Rock, but that Rock and Foundation of the Church is Christ!
If we are truly the salt of the earth”
as Jesus calls His disciples, we will bear some of the nature of salt, will we
not? Salt preserves pure doctrine. Salt heals the hurt and dying. Salt makes
life, like food, taste better. Salt was even used by the Roman Army to
pay soldiers and that is the source of its name as salt – salarium (salary,
too). But there is one property of salt that too many professing Christians
lack – salt makes one thirsty. Do we make others around us thirsty for the
Gospel in the manner in which we live? Do men become thirsty to know the secret
of our joy under all circumstances? Or, have we remained in the salt-shaker so
long that we cannot be shaken out and applied due to our piously lumping
together? Be Salt! Be Light. Be Love! Be used!
