EXPERIENCE JESUS. REALLY: STAY THIRSTY, MY FRIENDS

As you continue through this Lenten season, we hope that you are experiencing Jesus. You may not feel like you have become an ordinary “mystic,” but the intent of this study is to help all of us grow in the experience of our Savior. The final lesson in our study is no exception. We dive into the wonders of God’s Kingdom and the richness that it brings to our lives. If we refocus our lives on the possibilities of experiencing Jesus, we will find a refuge in the love and truth of God. We begin to realize that we are only pilgrims in our present world, making the journey to be with God in eternity. But what does this mean?  How does this help us with the grind of our daily lives? We turn to the conflict and confusion of John 7:35-47 to help us find a practical clarity in our spiritual life. As the Apostle John records this moment in the life of Jesus, he gives us the conflict with the Pharisees and the crowd’s confusion. This is where we live. There is always the battle of conflict raging around us and the confusion of the numerous voices. The voice of Jesus rises above all the noise with an invitation to fullness and joy. It is an invitation to quench the burning thirst of exhaustion and fear, and conquer the confusion with the power of faith! The title of the sermon, Stay Thirsty, My Friends, is not just an advertising slogan; it is a powerful principle for our spiritual lives. Jesus doesn’t simply want to satisfy our thirst but to transform it, so that we will find a fullness of joy and eternal hope! What’s in your thirst? We pray that as you read these words, the voice of Jesus will still all the noise, conflict, and confusion to give you a river of living water flowing through your soul! 

John 7:35-47: The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? ³⁶ What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” ³⁷ On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. ³⁸ Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 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 Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? ⁴² Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants 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 the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?” ⁴⁶ “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards replied. ⁴⁷ “You mean he has deceived you also?” the Pharisees retorted.