“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink” -John 7:37
We all know the story found in Luke 10:30-37 of the Good Samaritan, and how the man who fell among thieves was taken care of and brought back to health by the one the Lord taught was the good Samaritan, not by those one would most expect it to be, namely, the priests or the Levites who claimed to be what they clearly were not. In the process, we find the man was then rescued and brought back to health, which, no doubt, mercy is the lesson to be learned here. Amen!
In Matthew 9:11-13, we also find Jesus, the Great Physician, healing a man of the palsy, who we find to be followed about by the publicans and sinners. Yet, we find those who claimed to be what they clearly were not (the Pharisees) making the statement to the disciples:
“Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? And when Jesus heard this, He said unto them, they that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Again, amen.
Therefore, the point here is that those who claimed to be the children of God were not at all who they claimed to be.
Also, in parallel to today within the church (as to that of a hospital), it is to be a place where repentant sinners, not the self-righteous, who are called, are nourished up (ministered unto) and healed unto good spiritual health, are to go. Read 1 Timothy 4:6.
As reiterated in this last article that I wrote, we are not to linger in the hospital beds, desiring to be continuously ministered unto, but are to get out of that bed and become the soldiers that the Lord has called us to be, by ministering unto others (Matthew 20:28).
The church is not only to be a hospital for repentant sinners, but it is also a barracks to raise soldiers of the cross (2 Timothy 2:3).
“A barracks is meant to be a place where real soldiers were to be fed and equipped for war, not a place to settle down in or as a comfortable snuggery in which to enjoy ourselves. I hope that if ever they, our soldiers, do settle down God will burn their barracks over their heads!” -Cathrine Booth
Which now then leads me to ask the question: To whom are the promises of the Lord? Who is the water to be given unto that the Lord speaks of in John 7:37?
I have a friend on the East Coast who owns a Bible museum. In this Bible museum, you will find a large picture, which used to hang in the Prince of Preachers Charles Spurgeon’s study. This picture was that of a king with a sword in his hand, and it said on the title plate of the picture, “The king, comforting his soldiers.”
When looking upon it, I began to think, if the king here is comforting his soldiers (prodding them along in war), then it must be that the water that is promised (who the promises of God apply to) is not only to those repentant sinners in the hospital, but also most assuredly to those that are on the battlefield. After all, a soldier’s greatest fear is to run out of water (dehydration).
The promises of God belong to genuine Christians who drink of and feed on the water and the Bread of Life (John 6:35). It is His grace that is promised to us who belong unto Him, to those who are in this spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:10-18).
Let me show you something worthy of our attention.
Did you know that in 1 Corinthians 1:2–3, Scripture tells us, “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints… Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In 2 Corinthians 1:1–2, it says, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God… unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia: Grace be to you and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In Galatians 1:1–3, it says, “Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead;) And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia: Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In Ephesians 1:1–2, it says, “.. to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In Philippians 1:1–2, it says, “Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In Colossians 1:1–2, it says, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother,
To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In 1 Thessalonians 1:1, it says, “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In 2 Thessalonians 1:1–2, it says, “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Are you seeing a recurring pattern here as to whom the Lord is addressing when speaking of the promises, and to whom belong mercy and grace and peace?
To those who are in Christ Jesus, to those who are in the Church of God, to those who are faithful, etc. To those, the scriptural promises are given.
This does not apply to those who are outside of Christ; for upon them abides the wrath of God (John 3:36), who refuse to acknowledge and live according to the truth.
Conclusion: People need to read their Bibles to see if they fit in the category of those to whom the blessing pertains. Why? Because those who refuse Him as Lord cannot make a claim that He is their Savior, nor make the claim that they are His.
