A Call to the Fountain of Living Water
“For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me the Fountain of Living Water and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water” (Jeremiah 2:13).
The Prophet Jeremiah, known as the “weeping prophet,” brought this Word from the Lord to Judah. They had forsaken the Lord, and without repentance would be overtaken and defeated by the Babylonian Empire. They could have avoided the coming destruction by heeding the Lord’s warnings and repenting of their ways, but they didn’t and suffered defeat and exile from their nation by Babylon. This sad end for the chosen people of God came approximately forty years from the time Jeremiah began his prophetic ministry.
At the time of Jeremiah’s ministry, Judah had forsaken the Lord for other gods. They never completely stopped worshiping the Lord, but incorporated other gods into their worship. They also added manmade laws to God’s Law. Cisterns are meant to hold water and the reference to broken cisterns by Jeremiah represents what happens when God’s way is not strictly adhered to.
The Lord has given us His Word so that we would know His way. He has shown us that way – the way that will lead us to the blessings the Lord wants for us and to Eternal Life with Him. We are not to add to or take away from anything in the Word of God. That is exactly what Judah did and it did not end well for them. This word of rebuke from the Lord to Judah should cause us to examine ourselves to see if we are walking in accordance with God’s ways. The Apostle Paul admonished the Corinthians regarding this very thing.
“Examine yourselves whether you be in the faith, prove your own selves” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
We are “in the faith” by placing our faith in Christ and Him Crucified and keeping it there. Paul is stressing the importance of this by encouraging them to “prove your own selves,” to make sure their faith was in the proper object, that is, Christ and Him Crucified. He paid the price for our sin at Calvary and He is the only way to God. Our faith in Him and His sacrificial death must be for both salvation and our daily walk (sanctification). We are not saved by Grace and perfected by our own efforts. The Apostle Paul outlines what happens to us spiritually when we come to Christ. He said:
“Know you not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ (not referring to water baptism) were baptized into His death? Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the Glory of the Father, even so we should walk in Newness of Life” (Romans 6:3,4).
Paul is telling us that, spiritually, we died with Christ; that He became our substitute, and our placing our faith in Christ and His sacrificial death at Calvary gives us forgiveness of sins and “Newness of Life.” In other words, spiritually, we died with Him, we were buried with Him, and His Resurrection brought us “Newness of Life” by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus spoke of this Newness of Life in the Gospel of John. He had traveled through Samaria and stopped at Jacob’s well which was located in Sychar. He was thirsty and asked a woman to give Him a drink. The woman questioned him about His request because Jews typically had no dealings with Samaritans. He answered her and said:
“If you knew the gift of God, and Who it is that says to you, Give me to drink; you would have asked of Him, and He would have given you Living Water” (John 4:10).
The woman had lived a life of sin before this day, but by finding Jesus she found the Living Water He promises to all those that come to Him. He said that this “Living Water” when received would “be a well of water springing up into Eternal Life.” Jesus is the “gift of God.” He said the following regarding Himself to His disciples just prior to His sacrificial death:
“I am the Way, and Truth, and the Life, no man comes to the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).
Jesus is the Living Way that the Lord has provided. There is no other! If our faith remains in Christ and Him Crucified, we will have this “Living Water” through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit that will give us the victory that we seek as we walk out our Christian lives. If we abide in Him, we will walk in the “Newness of Life” afforded to us by our identification with Christ in His death, burial, and Resurrection.
“I (Jesus) am the Vine, you are the branches: he who abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
Find podcasts of this article, and all the articles on this website on the “Here I Am Lord” podcast on Spotify for Podcasters, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Pocket Casts, and RadioPublic. Also, Here I Am, Lord is on Telegram.
Follow to receive email notifications regarding future articles
Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com
Here I Am, Lord - - tqministries.com 