“. . . . Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink" (John7:37).
Dearly beloved in Christ,
I greet you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Man has thirsts of different kinds. He wants to get quenched of his thirst and seeks ways by which he can quench it. Often he is dissatisfied with his ways, and is sometimes got in the midst of temptations and has lost his joy and wealth. Thus he transforms his life into one of struggles and anguish. Jesus Christ called, “Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). He still calls: “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” (Isaiah 55:1). The call is open: "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink." (John7:37).
“Therefore my people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge; Their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.” (Isaiah 5:13).
In a life of captivity, people are physically in thirst. Captivity is of different kinds. They do not know the truth, the truth of the Bible. They do not know who Jesus Christ is. In a life of captivity, you cannot do anything of yourself. You have lost the freedom. Such people are in large numbers. As a result, their thirsts are not quenched.I know a good family. This family was doing some business. There was sufficient money for running the business. But they were unconcerned about the business and therefore they went into debt. Finally a situation arose when they could not remain in that place. Their thirst was for money. As a result, they faced sorrows, defeats and struggles.
“They press out oil within their walls, and tread winepresses, yet suffer thirst.” (Job 24:11).
As said in Job 24:5, they “go out to their work, searching for food.” They suffer thirst as they do so. We do find people in thirst because of their work. Dear Brother/ Sister, are you also depressed as a result of overwork. Is the work so demanding? The thirst in your body may be hurting you. Do you suffer because of the thirst that hurts you? Does it affect your thought process? Are you so obsessed with it that you are not able to do anything? If you so suffer, there is a way out for you. The Lord who can quench it is still alive. When you give place for Him in your life, He will quench your thirst and make joy abound in you. He will definitely do things to make you better and happier. People suffer as they find it difficult to shoulder the burden of work. They can neither shirk it nor bear it. Only if they suffer the pain, they can run their family.
“Then he became very thirsty; so he cried out to the LORD and said, "You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant; and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?" (Judges 15:18).
Our enemy is Satan. Because of him, many people suffer untold miseries. This results in thirst. Samson used a jaw bone to assault his enemies numbering more than a thousand. As he fought a battle with the strength of the Spirit of the Lord, there arose thirst in him. That is the way we too have thirst in us. There are many children of God, who suffer thirst and pangs because of the assault of the evil forces. We find them shedding tears.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6).
When the thirst is in the spirit, they become quite incapable of doing anything. This is what we read in Matthew 5:6. This world is filled with unrighteousness. Here they seek righteousness which is very rare. Hence they are in thirst and hunger. Unable to bear the unrighteousness in this world, they even end their lives. In their hearts they become depressed. Bitterness in life is terrible.
Dear Brother/ sister, there is God who can quench your thirst. If you have thirst for righteousness, the Lord Jesus Christ would know that and quench it. He lives and blesses you.
The Lord God says: “For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” (Isaiah 44:2, 3). It is a blessed life of being filled with the Spirit of the Lord. There are many people who have this thirst for the Holy Spirit. Our Lord is faithful in filling you. He will fill you according to your thirst. When this thirst is quenched, there would be joy and exaltation. There would also be deliverance.
“My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. . . .” (Psalm 42:2).
As the thirst is in the soul, only Jesus Christ who is the lover of our soul can quench this thirst. There is no other way. He alone can give peace and blessings in our life. But we take efforts to meet the needs of this thirst in various other ways. The truth is contrary. The psalmist writes: “O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1). Here the thirst in the soul is likened to a dry and thirsty land. Thirst affects the soul. This soul should not be empty. It should be quenched. When it is quenched, there would definitely be a sense of clarity in thought, and guidance of the Lord with His presence. The Holy Spirit would fill us and lead us.
We also read in Psalm 143:6: “I spread out my hands to You; My soul longs for You like a thirsty land. Selah” Regarding the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ said: “but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14). To quench this thirst and to bless us, He calls us saying, “Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters.”
“therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you” (Deuteronomy 28:48).
This thirst is because of curse. The Bible cautions us: "But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you” (Deuteronomy 28:15). So we should listen to His word. Proverbs 13:13 says, “He who despises the word will be destroyed, But he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.” Many do not give heed to the word of the Lord or the servant of God. The Lord gives us good counsel. That helps us to avoid certain trying circumstances. When we ignore it, certain unwanted things happen to us and humiliate us. We are put to trouble. Then we say, “How I have hated instruction, And my heart despised correction!” (Proverbs 5:12). In spite of the warning given if we still transgress giving room for lust of the flesh, lust of the eye and the pride of life, we yield ourselves to be slaves of these things. The curse of not listening to the word of God results in thirst.
‘“. . . . Because, when I called, you did not answer; When I spoke, you did not hear, But did evil before My eyes, And chose that in which I do not delight." Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: " Behold, My servants shall eat, But you shall be hungry; Behold, My servants shall drink, But you shall be thirsty; Behold, My servants shall rejoice, But you shall be ashamed”’ (Isaiah 65:12,13).
Thirst is permitted in us because we did evil choosing what displeases the Lord. What are our actions? Do they please the Lord? If we choose to do evil by transgressing against His word, naturally we will never be satisfied with ourselves and thirst for somethings would keep on nagging us. Some have thirst after money. This leads to wrong decisions and question why they should live.As we meditate on the word of God, we should examine ourselves whether we seek to please the Lord or not. We should seek to take measures to set things right. Then the thirst would be quenched. There would be joy and exaltation.
“They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them” (Psalm 107:4,5).
In the life of the desert, there arises thirst. It is a forsaken life. It is living without any focus on direction. It is without any decision on the direction one is taking and has no clue as to how it would end. When a person lives without any hope of where he would spend his eternity, that life is analogous to a desert life. These people living a desert life have no life of fulfilment and thirst for something better to happen always haunts them.Hagar was a handmaid of Sarah. God gave Abraham a son through her. One day she was sent out of his house. She was sent away along with her son with some bread and a skin of water. She was then wandering in the desert of Beersheba. Today there are many such persons living the life of the desert. It is a state of being forsaken by all. But the Lord who loves us never forsakes us. He has assured us, “Can a woman forget her nursing child, And not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, Yet I will not forget you” (Isaiah 49:15). He lives even today.
‘So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water, But they were not satisfied; Yet you have not returned to Me," Says the LORD"’ (Amos 4:8).
We should return to the Lord from our sins and transgressions. Many are in various needs. They thirst after something. But they have no mind to seek the Lord God who is almighty. Some even curse Him, instead of seeking His help. They find fault with Him for their misery. As they do not know Him, they say speak ill of Him. But the Lord Jesus Christ wants to quench our thirst. For that He shed His blood on the cross. He also suffered thirst and said on the cross: ‘I am thirsty.’ He had the thirst to take us to the eternal kingdom of Heaven. So there is a way to quench our thirst. If you know that way, all your thirst would end.
“in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness --- besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches” (2 Cor. 11:27).
Paul speaks here about the thirst he had in his ministry. Today Jesus Christ calls us to come to Him for our thirst to be quenched. When you come to Him accepting His invitation, you would have true satisfaction and your thirst would end.
Quenching the Thirst
“And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35).
You must have faith for our thirst to end. He can bless anyone who has faith in Him. Faith is essential. Without faith you cannot please God. Depending upon the level of our faith, He fulfils our thirst. It may be about the healing of a sick child, the settlement of marriage of children, or the lack of children. Jesus Christ said, “Be it according to your faith, your faith is great.” He will see your faith and fulfil your wishes. He will do a miracle to anyone who believes. You should know the Lord whom you believe. Let us believe Him and be quenched of our thirst.
“They shall neither hunger nor thirst, Neither heat nor sun shall strike them; For He who has mercy on them will lead them, Even by the springs of water He will guide them” (Isaiah 49:10).
There is the God who is merciful. He is God of love, rich in mercy. He will lead you daily. You need not doubt about His mercy. He was merciful yesterday. Do not doubt whether He will be merciful today also. His mercy never ends. It is new every day. You may be one like a blind person not knowing the path. Isaiah 49:10 says, “For He who has mercy on them will lead them, Even by the springs of water He will guide them.” Isaiah 42: 16 says: “I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, And crooked places straight. These things I will do for them, And not forsake them.” So shall He guide you. He will continue to lead you till the end and take you to the eternal Kingdom. Today yield to Him to be led by Him. Not only should you accept Him, but also yield yourself to be led by Him. He will guide you and fill your life with joy and peace. You will no more experience thirst.
“Thus says the LORD who made you And formed you from the womb, who will help you: ' Fear not, O Jacob My servant; And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring” (Isaiah 44:2,3).
The Lord seeks to quench the thirst of those chosen by Him. Your thirst may be spiritual concerning the gifts of the Spirit or about ministry. He will fulfil your thirst and give you joy and blessings to the fuller measure. He lives even today. He is faithful to do it. We should commit ourselves to live as His children pleasing Him as His chosen people. Then He will fulfil our wishes and thirst.
“Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink” (Genesis 21:19).
In the life of Hagar it was a dreadful situation. She had no water to quench the thirst of her son. It was a situation where she could find no water anywhere. In this situation the Lord opened her eyes. She saw a fountain of water. The Lord showed the way in which she could quench the thirst of the child. When the spiritual eye is opened, there are several blessings. Then you can observe the wonderful protection the Lord gives us. You can also see the wonders of the Bible with understanding.
“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body --- whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free --- and have all been made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:13)
The Lord Jesus Christ baptises with the Holy Spirit. In Matthew 3:11, John the Baptist speaks about it: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” He will give a life of sanctification. As you have this baptism of the Spirit, your thirst will be fulfilled. It is a baptism in the body of Christ. He will fulfil our thirst and bless us. If you listen to His voice, He will fulfil your thirst and bless you.
May the Lord bless us!
In the service of Christ Jesus,
Bro. C. Ebenezer Paul.